Will Donald Trump deliver a keynote speech at this year’s Republican National Convention?
While the list of speakers for the August convention won’t be decided for weeks, Trump is clearly fishing for an opportunity to once again insert himself into the presidential race. On Tuesday afternoon, he made his case via Twitter:
Hmmm…can you imagine me speaking at the RNC Convention in Tampa?thedc.com/MhqIMFThat’s a speech everyone would watch.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 22, 2012
A day earlier, Trump’s special counsel Micahel Cohen told The Daily Caller that “Mr. Trump’s massive popularity is just one of the many reasons he is being sought as a keynote speaker at the Tampa RNC Convention.”
Trump has served as a high profile surrogate for Mitt Romney after endorsing the former Massachusetts governor in February, and he has consistently proven that he can attract media attention every time that he opens his mouth. Still, Romney and the Republican Party would be playing with fire by allowing him to give a high profile convention speech.
The real estate mogul and reality TV star has endured a string of embarrassments throughout the presidential campaign. He had to cancel his planned debate after only Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum would agree to attend, and his favorability ratings plummeted after his repeated suggestions that President Obama was not born in the U.S. were proven false. His continued refusal to give up his conspiracy theories about the president have led to charges of racism, and Obama himself skewered Trump during his recent White House Correspondents dinner.
Mitt Romney has claimed that he wants to keep his campaign’s focus on the economy, and away from distractions like birtherism. If that is the case, then he should keep Trump far away from the convention stage.
