Donald Trump Jr., Lara Trump or Vivek Ramaswamy are Turning Point USA founder and CEO Charlie Kirk’s ideal candidates to replace current Republican National Committee (RNC) chair Ronna McDaniel.
Kirk could not say whether there are plans by disgruntled RNC committee members to try to initiate a vote of no confidence against McDaniel at this week’s winter meeting in Las Vegas, Nevada.
But he was more than open to DailyMail.com about his long-standing dissatisfaction with McDaniel’s leadership within the Republican Party and his desire for an overhaul of the committee.
“We tried to get another seat last January, but it didn’t work out,” Kirk said. “And we have been very dissatisfied in recent months with the way the RNC has handled several cases.”
While Kirk insisted that people should “not read anything” about his summit and repeatedly noted that he has “nothing personal” against the chairman, he said it was no coincidence that his summit coincides with that of the RNC.
He also said that if McDaniel “leaves, that’s fine.”
Turning Point founder and executive director Charlie Kirk told DailyMail.com that he wants to see RNC Chair Ronna McDaniel replaced with someone from the Trump world like Donald Trump Jr., Lara Trump or Vivek Ramaswamy
Turning Point Action’s Restoring National Confidence conference on Monday and Tuesday focused on airing grievances against the RNC and its leadership. Pictured: RNC Chair Ronna McDaniel speaks during a Republican primary debate on November 8, 2023
Kirk wants the RNC “country club” to break up and get new blood in the leadership. And he thinks this should come from the pro-Trump world, as the campaign and RNC will merge at the convention in the summer.
Kirk called the RNC meeting, which is closed to the press, a “waste of time” and said his competing event manifested because he “actually wanted to have a real winter meeting with the grassroots and the district chairmen.”
“It’s not against the RNC,” he assured Monday as he sat with DailyMail.com on the sidelines of his summit in Las Vegas. “We’re not here to shame her, make fun of her, or make fun of her, you can’t tell from the tone or anything.”
‘It’s about what can be improved. It’s about improvement. It’s about being the best version of yourself,” Kirk said. “And competition breeds excellence, and the RNC has not had to compete for existence in my lifetime.”
“So they’re really shocked by this and they’re like, ‘Well, how dare you?’ Okay, here we are. And so that’s kind of what caused it. And it is very positive. It’s very optimistic. It’s very progressive. And you can see there’s a buzz, there’s an energy here. That is exciting.’
And Kirk was mostly right. But War Room podcast host Steve Bannon seemed to have a more personal vendetta against McDaniel during his comments in which he said McDaniel is “guilty” for not pushing harder to question the validity of the 2020 election Pull.
However, many of the speakers focused on the state of the US election in general and expressed more general grievances against the RNC – and not McDaniel specifically.
Reports immediately drew parallels between the Restoring National Confidence Summit and the RNC Winter Meeting. Speakers appeared to arm attendees with the information and arguments to push McDaniel out and initiate an overhaul from the ground up.
More than fifty RNC Committee members attending the Turning Point Summit gathered on the conference side before the start of the RNC Winter Meeting, likely in preparation for a vote of no confidence.
Kirk thinks Don Jr. the best to run the RNC and says that because he doesn’t want that job it’s one of the reasons ‘why he would be great’
He said former 2024 primary candidate Vivek Ramaswamy (right) and Lara Trump, the ex-president’s daughter-in-law, would also be excellent choices to lead the RNC.
A few attendees gave DailyMail.com some idea of this plan outside the Planet Hollywood conference center on the Las Vegas strip on Monday, but declined to make it public or give their names.
Others say they believe McDaniel plans to announce her resignation at the winter meeting this week.
Brita Horn, a summit attendee from Colorado, asked Kirk if he heard rumors about McDaniel planning to resign this week.
‘I have no idea. And I don’t want to personalize this. If she does, great, that’s great,” Kirk said during an open question and answer session with summit participants. “I saw that news and I have no idea if it’s true or not.”
If there was a plan, Kirk responded, “That’s a good question. And well, it’s good that we’re all here to make a plan. So you guys can figure that out.”
“I believe it is time for a new leader and someone who has a different attitude and who puts winning above all else,” he added. “I’ve been saying that for a while.”
Before speaking to the crowd at his summit, Kirk told DailyMail.com that when he thinks of those who could replace McDaniel, his first thoughts are Don Jr., Lara Trump and Vivek Ramaswamy, who dropped out of the race after Iowa 2024 stepped out and showed their support. Trump.
“I think Vivek would be great. Or Don Jr. or Lara Trump,” Kirk said. “I mean, if the Trump campaign and the RNC merge, which they’re doing at the convention, why not call RNC Chairman Don Jr. let it be? He works his butt off, he raises a lot of money. He’s super intuitive.’
“Do you think he would want to do that?” DailyMail.com asked Kirk.
“No, that’s why he’d be great,” he insisted. ‘But Lara Trump would be a good one too. She’s very smart, great on TV. Vivek would do well.”
“So I think about Vivek, Don Jr. or Lara Trump,” he repeated. ‘I think you should step outside the committee. That’s my personal opinion. You need to leave this whole country club. You have to start thinking differently, you have to mix it up a bit.’