Donald Trump has surprise sitdown with RNC
Donald Trump made a surprise visit to the headquarters of the Republican National Committee in Washington on Thursday, where he met with party chairman Reince Priebus.
It was not immediately clear what the two talked about or who requested the sitdown, but Trump later tweeted that it was a “very nice meeting.” “Looking forward to bringing the party together,” the Republican presidential hopeful wrote. “And it will happen!”
Trump was in Washington for a meeting with campaign advisers, including his foreign policy team. Word of Trump’s visit with the RNC was first reported by Politico.
Trump’s relationship with the Republican Party has been somewhat rocky.
Shortly after Trump launched his presidential campaign in June with a series of controversial comments about Mexican immigrants, Priebus reportedly urged Trump to “tone it down” in a phone call. Trump subsequently disputed those claims. The pair spoke in September when Priebus visited Trump Tower. At that meeting, Priebus got Trump to sign a loyalty pledge wherein he promised to support the party’s nominee if he loses the primary. In return, Trump said he received assurances the party would treat him fairly.
In a CNN town hall on Tuesday, Trump said he would no longer stand by that pledge to support any Republican nominee because he objects to how the RNC and the GOP establishment have treated him during the campaign. Trump specifically cited the fact that the party’s 2012 presidential nominee, Mitt Romney, spoke out against him after he emerged as the frontrunner in this year’s race.
“I have been treated very unfairly,” Trump said.
Donald Trump speaks with Reince Priebus, chairman of the Republican National Committee, at a debate on March 3, 2016, in Detroit. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
The meeting also came in the wake of Trump’s recent complaints about the delegate process ahead of what many believe could be a contested party convention this summer.
Last week, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz’s campaign claimed more delegates in Louisiana than Trump, even though the real estate mogul won a majority of the vote in the state’s primary earlier this month.
“I won. And then I found out that I got … 10 delegates less than the guy who lost,” Trump complained to CNN’s Anderson Cooper on Tuesday. “I call it bad politics. When someone goes in and wins the election and gets less delegates than the guy that lost, I don’t think that’s right.”
