Don't expect to see many notable Republicans speak at the GOP Convention next month,
Politico reports. In fact, don't expect to actually see many high-ranking Republicans in Cleveland at all.
Though convention speeches have launched careers (few more notable than Barack Obama in 2004), there don't seem to be a lot of takers for the upcoming GOP convention, according to Politico.
The reason — Donald Trump.
"At this point 70 percent of the American public doesn't like Donald Trump. That's as toxic as we've seen in American politics," Stuart Stevens, a longtime Republican strategist told Politico. "Normally people want to speak at national conventions. It launched Barack Obama's political career."
One example:
Mia Love, an African-American congresswoman from Utah said Sunday there's no "upsides" in going to the convention.
And the list of other Republicans not going to the convention is a Who's Who of the GOP elite, in Congress and statewide, Politico reports:
- South Carolina Rep. Trey Gowdy
- New Hampshire Sen. Kelly Ayotte
- Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn
- Nebraska Sen. Ben Sasse
- South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley
- South Carolina Rep. Mark Sanford
- Florida Rep. Carlos Curbelo
- Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner
- South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham
- New York Rep. Elise Stefanik
- Oklahoma Rep. Steve Russell
- North Carolina Rep. Richard Hudson
Expected to have prime-time speeches are Trump's three children, but after that, it's anybody's guess; the campaign is playing it close to the vest.
"The exposure has enormous upsides for someone who performs well," Fred Malek, a GOP fundraiser, told Politico. "And this is the Republican convention, not the Trump convention."