Trump says he’s ‘flexible’ on Jacksonville’s RNC convention, amid rising COVID-19 cases

Amid Florida’s restrictions on public gatherings and an exploding caseload of COVID-19 patients, President Donald Trump says he’s now “flexible” on his original plans to hold a large Republican National Convention in Jacksonville.

When asked in an interview with journalist Greta Van Susteren whether he would consider a smaller convention, Trump said the final decision on the convention’s venue and size will depend on what happens to the state’s case count in the following weeks.

The convention, where Trump is expected to accept the Republican nomination for president, is in almost seven weeks, from Aug. 24-27.

“Well, we’re always looking at different things. When we signed in Jacksonville, we wanted to be in North Carolina. That almost worked out, but the governor didn’t want to have people use the arena, essentially. And so I said, ‘Too bad for North Carolina,’ “ Trump told Van Susteren on her show, “Full Court Press with Greta Van Susteren,” which will air Sunday on Gray Television.

“Look, we’re very flexible. We can do a lot of things, but we’re very flexible,” the president added, according to a transcript of the interview provided to the Miami Herald.

Trump said that when the RNC announced it was changing venues from Charlotte to Jacksonville on June 11, Florida “looked good.” And even if cases are spiking up, he expects “that’s going to go down.”

The number of Florida’s confirmed COVID-19 cases has doubled in the past two weeks, going from 100,000 cases to 213,794, as of Tuesday’s report by the Florida Department of Health. By contrast, it took the state nearly three months for the state to get to 100,000 cases.

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Last Monday, June 29, Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry, a Republican, enacted a mandatory mask requirement for public and indoor spaces in Duval County.

The RNC blamed the change of plans last month on North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper’s unwillingness to commit to a full-fledged convention in a crowded arena amid the coronavirus pandemic. Cooper is a Democrat, while Florida’s Gov. Ron DeSantis is a Republican and close ally of Trump’s.

But the prospects of a packed summer convention at the Veterans Memorial Arena, which holds up to 15,000 people, could vanish in the weeks leading up to the event as Florida emerges as the latest epicenter of the coronavirus pandemic.

The Washington Post reported Tuesday that five Republican senators — Lamar Alexander of Tennessee, Susan Collins of Maine, Charles Grassley of Iowa, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Mitt Romney of Utah — will skip the convention.

DeSantis refused to answer shouted questions from a reporter in Miami on Tuesday about whether he would lift the current capacity restrictions for the convention, which would limit the crowd to 50 percent at the Veterans Arena — just 7,500 attendees.

On Tuesday, Curry said at a virtual press conference that as of right now, the major political event would have to adhere to state orders and fill no more than half of its full capacity. But Curry said things could change and the city would continue to monitor the state’s cases.

I would just remind people that the convention is many, many weeks away, in late August,” Curry said. “We are currently under a statewide executive order by the governor. Facilities cannot participate in anything over 50% capacity. That’s where we are right now.”

McClatchy staff writer Francesca Chambers and Miami Herald staff writer David Smiley contributed to this report.