Donald Trump’s campaign didn’t give the public much to chew on when it was announced he would host a meeting of Republican lawmakers and notables in the nation’s capital. But one participant did say it ended up being a “pretty good” lunch.
The frontrunner for the GOP nomination spent quality time with a group of current and former officials, many of them supporters, to discuss “party unity” at a D.C. law firm Monday afternoon. The total number and guest list were kept secret. But Trump’s campaign manager, Corey Lewandowski, made it sound like a good deal in a weekend interview with the Washington Post: “Mr. Trump is continuing his outreach to Washington and there has been an overwhelming positive response.” Surely the gathering wouldn’t be underwhelming, then.
But the arrivals and departures from the front door were less of a who’s who than a who? No one from the Senate’s Republican leadership attended. A House speaker did — from the year 1998. Newt and Callista Gingrich, lips mostly sealed, were enveloped by reporters as they entered the building past noon. When he exited a couple of hours later, Newt was only a bit more communicative, either paying his compliments to the chef or saying he had a swell time.
“The lunch was pretty good,” he quipped.
Other attendees were talkative following the hour-plus meeting, including Gingrich’s chosen successor as speaker, Bob Livingston, who retired over an extramarital affair instead of pursuing the office.
“I am really, really irritated by these people who think they’re smarter than the American people. The American people are expressing themselves loudly in just about every state, most of the primaries, and he’s gotten most of the votes,” Livingston said of Trump. “And for me, that’s very, very important. I want to see the people heard, and I want to see Donald Trump president.”
Livingston predicted that Republicans would unify behind Trump once they “reflect about the alternatives” of a Hillary Clinton presidency, a forward-looking tone matched by others at the Monday gathering. Congressional Republicans “need to get used” to the likelihood that the New York businessman will be the party’s choice for president, Rep. Scott DesJarlais said. And according to Bloomberg, Rep. Chris Collins went one further, saying it is “very clear” Trump will be the nominee.
Other sitting members of Congress at the meeting included Tom Marino, Renee Ellmers, Duncan Hunter Jr., and Tom Reed, each of whom has endorsed Trump. His top foreign policy adviser, Sen. Jeff Sessions, was also there. But it was two conservative leaders, Heritage Foundation president Jim DeMint and Sen. Tom Cotton, who were the biggest names revealed as being in attendance. Neither man has lent his endorsement to Trump.
It was a minor media spectacle outside the Jones Day building. Reporters and camera crews lined the sidewalk outside the primary entrance for hours in the morning and afternoon, and others posted up near the garage on the opposite side, which was heavily manned by police. The press easily outnumbered the bystanders. A lone agitator waited on Trump’s caravan with a plain, Sharpie-written “Trump Is Racist” sign in the back, and most individuals who stopped to survey the activity moved along quickly.
A couple of additional doors around the building mostly lacked any bustle, including security.
Only two such personnel were posted to the steps that separated the main entry from the sidewalk. This being a Trump function, they’re miraculously all that were needed. The word “scrum” has a different meaning when “media” is written right before it.
