Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Melania Trump surprise
As about 200 people who wrote large checks for the predinner VIP reception mingled in a smaller ballroom in another part of the resort complex, there was a sudden rumbling in the crowd, according to people who were present. As people craned their necks to see what was happening, they saw the first lady.
There was whooping and hollering, from some, said former U.S. Rep. Mark Foley of Palm Beach County. “It was exciting. She’s a gorgeous lady. She’s so poised.”
Only a handful of people organizing the dinner knew ahead of time she would stop by. She was gone in just a few minutes.
It was a surprise, said Bob Sutton, chairman of the Broward Republican Party, one of several people who described the scene and shared smartphone pictures with reporters. (A handful of reporters and photographers was kept far away from the VIP venue, Mrs. Trump could be seen from a distance when she walked up and when she left, accompanied by Secret Service agents.)
She went to an area roped off from the VIP guests, greeted the crowd and spoke to Gov. Rick Scott and the keynote speakers for the evening, Lynette Hardaway and Rochelle Richardson, the Trump-supporting YouTube duo who appear online as Diamond and Silk.
“She was gorgeous. She said ‘Hi everybody,’ ” said Margi Helschien, former president of the Boca Raton Republican Club who now runs the conservative group America First. “It was a total surprise. It was like, ‘Oh my goodness!’ ”
Two attendees said they had a vantage point from which they saw the Trumps’ 11-year-old son, Barron, outside on a patio. because “we’re winning every day.” Bob Sutton, chairman of the Broward County Republican party, saw it as a “learning opportunity. And Anita Mitchell, a former Palm Beach County party chairwoman, said it comes with the territory for a party in control. “Governing’s messy.”
Florida Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam, who once was in the upper echelons of the House Republican leadership, said it was disappointing and a setback, but would be overcome eventually. There’s time for “Republicans to dust themselves off, get back on the horse, and get it done right.” Foley was less sanguine. “I just think it was poorly orchestrated,” Foley said. “This is depressing to me.”
Foley said health care is a potent issue that, if done wrong, could send members of Congress to defeat in the next election. He said it would have made more sense for his former colleagues to have tackled something with broader support – such as cutting taxes. Especially since Republicans didn’t have an Obamacare replacement plan ready to roll out on Day One.
He said there’s at least a temporary price for what’s seen by many as a failure for Trump. “It doesn’t look good.”