DeSantis: Trump will help GOP raise funds

Governor downplays impeachment hearings

TALLAHASSEE – President Trump’s planned appearance at the Republican Party of Florida’s annual statesman’s dinner in South Florida on Saturday is helping the party beat fundraising goals, Gov. Ron DeSantis said Tuesday.

“This dinner that we’re doing Saturday, obviously, the president’s going to be there, I think it’s going to raise way, way more than they’ve been able to do on this in the most recent years,” DeSantis told reporters after a Cabinet meeting.

DeSantis also downplayed impeachment hearings over Trump’s efforts to get Ukraine to investigate Joe Biden. When asked if Trump was hurting himself by resisting House Democrats’ efforts to call witnesses within his administration, DeSantis suggested most voters are tuning it out.

“My sense, just talking to people, is I think the public generally views it as typical Washington stuff,” DeSantis said. “Obviously the people that love the president think it’s bad, people that hate him think it’s good that they’re (holding impeachment hearings). But I think the average person in between is kind of like ‘typical Washington.’”

The Republican Party dinner was originally scheduled for last month in Orlando but was postponed after a lack of interest from major donors and trouble finding a keynote speaker. The news came

amid reports from Politico that DeSantis was at odds with party chairman Joe Gruters. DeSantis then announced the date for the dinner and Trump’s appearance during an October newsconference. Fundraising totals for RPOF for the fourth quarter won’t become public until January, but the party raised nearly $2.3 million in the final quarter of 2015, the last time a statesman’s dinner was held before a presidential election year. DeSantis said Saturday’s event, which is closed to the press, will surpass recent totals.

“You not only have the president coming, you have both U.S. Senators, I think every congressman or most congressmen from the Republican delegation, all the legislative leaders will be there too,” DeSantis said. “It should be a good event.”