Senate GOP candidates are being told that it would be fine for them to stay home this summer rather than traveling to the party's national convention in Cleveland, in a possible sign that the party could be trying to keep Donald Trump's impending nomination from affecting their campaigns.
According to sources cited by
The New York Times, Ward Baker, the executive director of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, told a briefing for donors and lobbyists on Thursday that party conventions are a distracting spectacle, and candidates should skip them if they wish.
The sources spoke under the condition of anonymity about the closed-door session, said Baker told those at the meeting that it would be better for campaigning lawmakers to speak to their own constituents back home.
Meanwhile, Andrea Bozek, a committee spokesperson, told The Times that it is up to "each individual campaign" to decide whether they wish to travel to the convention.
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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