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The 168 members of the Republican National Committee began meeting in California on Wednesday, where they will meet at a $900-a-night hotel to choose their next leader.
Harmeet Dhillon, a Trump-allied attorney running against incumbent Ronna McDaniel, said the cost was typical of the wasteful leadership he was trying to oust.
“At a time of economic catastrophe in our country, when we are losing the elections, I would have made a different decision if I were the president,” she told DailyMail.com.
“I would have chosen a place that was easy to get to and that also lived up to what our voters and activists would like us to do.”
Members of the Republican National Committee begin their winter meeting in California on Wednesday, which includes voting to select a new chairman. But the decision to hold it at the Waldorf Astoria Monarch Beach hotel, where rooms start at $900, has sparked a dispute.
Harmeet Dhillon is running to remove Ronna McDaniel as chair, saying the choice of venue shows how the RNC and its profligate spending are out of touch with voters.
McDaniel is on track to win a fourth term.
But Dhillon is joined by MyPillow founder and Trump supporter Mike Lindell in trying to upend the status quo as some grassroots members seek change after disappointing midterm results.
Organizers say they have negotiated a reduced rate of $250 for members to stay at the Waldorf Monarch Beach Hotel.
Dhillon said the choice of a luxury resort, more than an hour from Los Angeles, with its three pools and golf course, reflected poor spending decisions under McDaniel and risked appearing out of touch with the grassroots.
“We have to be cognizant of the fact that people fly and pay a $100 cab ride to get here, and then spend a lot to stay here,” he said.
“This is emblematic of some of the spending choices on our part, which is one of my campaign messages, which is waste of donor money.”
He condemned the way campaigns have spent tens of millions of dollars on consultants, failing to win a large majority in the House and leaving the Senate in the hands of Democrats.
NCR spending has been a regular target of Fox News hosts, who have focused on a red state blog post saying he had spent at least $750,000 on flower arrangements alone under McDaniel.
Rooms at the Waldorf Astoria Monarch Beach hotel start at over $820, plus a $55 resort fee and tax.
Rooms start at over $820 plus a $55/night resort charge and tax
“With world-class dining, a private beach club, championship golf, and an extensive spa among the activities and amenities on our 175 oceanfront acres, anything is possible, because it’s all here,” the hotel’s website reads. hotel.
The hotel brands itself as one of the most luxurious spots in Dana Beach, about an hour’s drive up the coast from Los Angeles.
“With world-class dining, a private beach club, championship golf, and an extensive spa among the activities and amenities on our 175 oceanfront acres, anything is possible, because it’s all here,” the site’s blurb reads. Web.
A room service burger (on a brioche bun with truffle aioli) costs $33.
The hotel bar serves a $62 vintage cocktail (made with 12-year-old WhistlePig), which comes wrapped in smoke.
And a lobster pie at the Bourbon Steak restaurant will set diners back a whopping $130.
The organizers say they have negotiated a discount, which means members pay $250 per night.
“The RNC considers many factors when planning our member meetings, including a hotel that has the necessary meeting space, event production capabilities, several hundred rooms for our members and their guests, and security, among other factors,” said spokeswoman Danielle Alvarez.
‘The cost of this meeting is in line with or below the costs of previous meetings.’
Broadcaster John Fredericks, who chaired Trump’s 2016 and 2020 campaigns in Virginia, said valet parking cost more than $100 a night, so he was hosting his show from another hotel.
“The optics are terrible,” he said.
“It’s just another example of the total disconnect that Chairman McDaniel has with the grassroots.
‘Have this meeting here for your re-election at one of the most luxurious and expensive resorts in the United States?
“She does this so ordinary Americans can’t come.”
Mike Lindell, founder of MyPillow and super loyal to Trump, is the third candidate in the race
It adds to an already bitter campaign. Friday’s vote for RNC president is just the latest example of the forces tearing the party apart.
The infighting was on public display as members of Congress nearly came to blows before finally electing Rep. Kevin McCarthy as Speaker of the House on the 11th ballot.
Different wings blame the other for a poor performance in last year’s midterm elections.
And Trump, for six years the undisputed power in the party, could face a strong challenge from Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis as he seeks the 2024 nomination.
A protracted battle for the RNC presidency could only deepen that sense of division.
The campaign has already been marked by ill-tempered exchanges.
Dhillon has placed the blame for the midterms on McDaniel’s doorstep, saying the RNC failed to mobilize the vote as well as the Democratic Party.
McDaniel argues that weak candidates are the problem and has said that she is the unit candidate.
Dhillon’s campaign scoffs at claims that a number of state parties have passed votes of no confidence in the president.
“The job of the chair of the Republican Party is to unify Republicans, so it’s very impressive that Ronna McDaniel is uniting all factions of the Republican Party against her candidacy,” said Caroline Wren, a spokeswoman for Dhillon.
The shadow of former President Donald Trump looms over the proceedings. But even his supporters are divided, with some siding with his former ally McDaniel, but his more radical supporters, like Arizona’s Kari Lake, backing Dhillon.
The campaign took a darker turn in recent weeks, with claims that a McDaniel ally used Dhillon’s Sikh faith as a negative factor in private conversations.
And in another sign of the divisions, Trump has seen his own loyalists split as they decide how best to shake up the status quo.
He has refrained from publicly endorsing a candidate to protect the RNC’s neutrality during the party’s nomination process.
But aides have made it known that he is quietly endorsing McDaniel, whom he endorsed in 2016 when she first took office.
Former White House adviser Kellyanne Conway and former chief of staff Reince Priebus will be on McDaniel’s unofficial spanking team, according to the Associated Press.
Three of Trump’s current top advisers will be present, including Susie Wiles, who is a key figure in running his campaign.
Kari Lake, who was narrowly defeated in the Arizona gubernatorial race, and Turning Point USA boss Charlie Kirk will be in Dhillon’s corner.