Host Committee Says Business-Only RNC Is A Farce: ‘We Need To Stop Pretending’

The scaled-down RNC in Charlotte might be still hold some activities in the Charlotte Convention Center. CREDIT: Erin Keever/WFAE

After the GOP said Thursday night that Jacksonville, Florida, would host almost all of the Republican National Convention, the local host committee in Charlotte fired back.

That group – led by former Republican City Council member and mayoral candidate John Lassiter – said its efforts had been met with “broken promises.” It added that the plans for a small business-only convention in Charlotte are, essentially, a farce.

“We need to stop pretending there’s any part of the convention that will remain in Charlotte,” the committee said.

The Republican National Committee sent the city, county, CRVA and Charlotte Hornets a letter Friday morning outlining its plans for a small Charlotte event.

The GOP will hold its summer meeting in Charlotte, on Aug. 21 and 22. It may have a few pre-convention committee meetings, although the party platform won’t meet. That means the 2016 GOP platform will be used until 2024.

The RNC may still use the Charlotte Convention Center, but it said Friday the Spectrum Center won’t be needed. It also instructed the city and host committee to no longer spend money preparing for the event.

RNC spokesperson Liz Harrington defended the committee’s decision to move to Jacksonville. She said the host committee’s criticism of “broken promises” isn’t valid.

“I don’t believe that’s fair at all,” she said. “We were always wanting to hold a convention. And rooms of no more than 10 people – that’s not a convention. That’s what Gov. Cooper was offering us.”

And Harrington said the RNC’s decision to have a small meeting in Charlotte fulfills its contractual obligations.

“Obviously we still wanted to uphold our obligations, legally,” she said. “And so we will have a presence in Charlotte.”

There are a few remaining questions.

What happens to the $50 million that Lassiter’s group has raised? Does it transfer to Jacksonville? Or can donors get their money back?

Harrington doesn’t know.

The city has spent $14 million buying security equipment for the convention. It’s supposed to be reimbursed by the Department of Justice, but will that money come?

And was the RNC’s comparison of President Trump to Abraham Lincoln a little over the top?

In its letter to the city, the RNC noted that Lincoln in 1860 was nominated in Chicago and gave his acceptance speech in Springfield, Illinois, a few days later.

Just like Trump, who will be nominated in Charlotte – and then celebrated in Jacksonville.

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