Billionaire entertainment and real estate mogul Donald Trump has offered to let Texas Gov. Rick Perry use his ritzy Mar-a-Lago Club in Palm Beach, Fla., as the venue for a campaign fundraiser that presumably would focus on the uber-rich there.
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| Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago Club in Palm Beach, Fla. (Getty Images) |
That news comes from a source familiar with the conversation between the two political movers-and-shakers when they met Wednesday in New York City.
The two, who dined at tony Jean Georges restaurant in Columbus Circle, reportedly hit it off well.
“He was very impressed with Perry,” an inside source said of Trump. “They’ve been talking for six weeks by phone. They’ve had some long conversations.”
The two political heavyweights spoke very specifically about Perry’s upcoming jobs proposal. Trump urged Perry to be “very aggressive” in asserting that China has manipulated its currency and trade policies to take advantage of U.S. good will.
“Perry wants Trump’s endorsement but seemed to be more interested in his ideas,” the inside source told Newsmax.
Trump has made no secret of his regard for the current GOP front-runner, describing Perry as “very impressive.” But Trump hasn’t ruled out competing in the presidential sweepstakes himself, possibly as a third-party candidate.
Trump diplomatically told Perry he would not make an endorsement in the GOP primary race until he knows whether former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin plans to run.
“He told Perry nicely that he probably wouldn’t endorse anybody until she made her intentions known,” the source said.
Perry also was very congratulatory regarding Trump’s role in cable TV executive Bob Turner’s surprising win in New York Congressional District 9, which includes the neighborhood Trump grew up in.
Trump recorded a robo-call the Turner campaign used to target Democratic voters, urging them to send a message to Washington in defense of Israel. Turner will be the first Republican to serve the district in Congress since 1923.
The inside source said a soiree at Mar-a-Lago would be timed to coincide with the social season there, which begins soon.