Donald Trump Returns To Washington DC For First Time Since Leaving Office
Former President Donald Trump will return to Washington, D.C., for the first time since leaving office in January 2021, according to multiple media reports. Trump is scheduled to headline a July 26 event for the America First Policy Institute (AFPI).
Trump will deliver the keynote address at 3 p.m. ET on the second day of the invitation-only event. The event will be streamed live and open to the press. Rumors are swirling that Trump will announce he is running for president before the midterms however some advisers want him to do it after.
That said other GOP figures like Ron DeSantis are creeping up in the polls so while Trump is the clear favorite to win the nomination it is not set in stone. According to Axios the expected attendees and speakers include:
Eight former Cabinet-level officials: McMahon, former Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe, former U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer, former Energy Secretary Rick Perry, former Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf, former acting Attorney General Matt Whitaker, former Veteran Affairs Secretary Robert Wilkie and former Secretary of Interior David Bernhardt.
8 former Trump White House officials:
Kudlow; Rollins; Kellyanne Conway, former senior adviser; Gen. Keith Kellogg, former national security adviser to Vice President Mike Pence;
Kevin Hassett, former chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers; Fred Fleitz, former chief of staff to national security adviser John Bolton;
Scott Turner, former executive director of Trump’s White House Opportunity and Revitalization Council and Pastor Paula White-Cain. Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich.
13 House members, including Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) and Minority Whip Steve Scalise (R-La.).
10 GOP senators: Mike Braun (R-Ind.), Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Steve Daines (R-Mt.), Joni Ernst (R-Iowa),
Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.), Ron Johnson (R-Wisc.), James Langford (R-Okla.),
Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.), and Rick Scott (R-Fla.).
Three former GOP governors:
Phil Bryant of Mississippi and Bobby Jindal of Louisiana, plus Perry (former governor of Texas).
According to Newsmax:
“The group has not specified the two-day event’s location yet due to security reasons.
A 501(C)(3) non-profit research institute, AFPI says it exists to advance policies that put the American people first.
“Our guiding principles are liberty, free enterprise, national greatness, American military superiority, foreign-policy engagement in the American interest, and the primacy of American workers, families and communities in all we do,” the group says on its website.
Among the people listed as AFPI leaders are former Small Business Administrator Linda McMahon, former Director of the National Economic Council Larry Kudlow, former Director of the Domestic Policy Council Brooke Rollins, and former acting Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security Chad Wolf – all members of the Trump administration.