A large group of Republican presidential hopefuls will gather for lunch at billionaire conservative David Koch's oceanfront mansion in Palm Beach, Florida, on Sunday and meet face-to-face with some of the party's most influential contributors.
The event at Koch's 30,050-square foot home is being sponsored as a fundraiser for the Republican Governor's Association, one of the many conservative interests Koch supports, reports
The Washington Post. It is attracting prospective candidates such as Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, and Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal.
Former Govs. Jeb Bush and Rick Perry were also invited to the event. Perry's aides said he will not be able to attend. There was no word Saturday about whether Bush, whose war chest already surpasses that of his potential challengers, will attend.
Many of the donors who participate in the RGA's Executive Roundtable Program are expected to attend the Sunday event.
Membership in the program, which is only open to chief executives, wealthy philanthropists, and entrepreneurs, requires donors to cough up at least $25,000 a year to participate.
Real estate mogul Donald Trump, who is one of the donors, also is scheduled to attend the event. But unlike most of the party's key donors, Trump has announced his own exploratory bid for the 2016 presidential campaign.
The Sunday event is also expected to attract several other governors, including Indiana Gov. Mike Pence; who has been mentioned as a long-shot candidate for the presidential election. Other Republican governors expected to attend include Bill Haslam of Tennessee, Susana Martinez of New Mexico, Rick Scott of Florida, Nikki Haley of South Carolina, and Mary Fallin of Oklahoma.
"Republicans had tremendous success in the 2014 gubernatorial elections thanks to the strong leadership and fundraising by our GOP governors," RGA spokesman Jon Thompson said in a statement. "The RGA is focused on continuing that momentum by ensuring we have the resources to strengthen our majority so more states can experience the successful reform and results Republican governors are achieving across the country."
Most of the contenders will only have to make a short trip to get to Koch's mansion, as they plan to speak on Saturday to RNC donors gathered in Boca Raton.
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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