So, Ivanka Trump was in Fresno today as part of Kevin McCarthy’s “Protect the House” fundraising tour. The lunch meeting was closed to the press and anyone who did not pay the reported entry fee of $1250. (Or $5000 if you wanted to take a picture with McCarthy!) In addition to McCarthy, the Fresno Bee reports that fellow Republican rep David Valadao was in attendance.
Curious about the spectacle, my wife and I drove by the event location. There was a small group of protesters outside — no more than 10 or 12 by my count, but it’s possible that others may have joined them by the end of the event. A separate group of protesters (also 10 or so at most) had signs aimed at governor Jerry Brown, though I don’t know what specifically they were protesting. According to the Fresno Bee story, two attendees said that about 150 people were at the luncheon, but without independent verification that number seems high to me. (Parking for the meeting facility was very limited.) No Trump supporters were gathered outside.
Three aspects of this are notable:
- First, this isn’t McCarthy’s (or Valadao’s) district. This is Devin Nunes’ district, but he evidently was nowhere to be seen. (His lips are too firmly attached to Trump’s backside to travel outside Washington D.C. — I think it has still been about 2 years since Nunes has attended a public event in his own district.) Yes, it’s one stop in a larger McCarthy-led fundraising campaign to support Congressional Republicans, but it’s telling that Nunes won’t meet with his own constituents even in a ‘safe’ setting. (The Fresno Bee story also reports that none of the money raised is going to Nunes.)
- Second, the fact that Ivanka was in attendance suggests that Republicans are worried about the upcoming midterms. Fresno and the California Central Valley should be safe Republican territory, but McCarthy and Nunes have firmly attached their political careers to Trump, and Nunes at least is facing an unexpectedly serious contender in Andrew Janz. Ivanka is the least objectionable Trump, more popular than the man himself, and I can’t see any reason for her to be here except to bring out more donors wanting to schmooze with that “very fine woman.”
- Third, despite hoping to bank on Ivanka’s relative popularity, the meeting was basically kept secret and held in a very odd location. Attendees had to RSVP and pay the full $1250 in order to learn the day, time, and location of the meeting. I believe it was not publicly announced until it was already happening. The event was held in a construction company warehouse, in a very industrial part of Clovis, basically across the street from the Fresno airport. Not exactly the downtown Sheraton...or even Motel 6. So why the secrecy? Why the low-profile location? I suspect that McCarthy and the event planners didn’t want the details known because they were afraid of a larger and more public protest. (Or maybe they were just embarrassed at the prospect of Ivanka touring Fresno. Trust me, there’s no “scenic route” to or from the airport.)
Overall, I think this event rates a big “meh.” Just driving by, it sure didn’t feel like Ivanka Trump was in town. It felt rather like nobody really cared — Republicans included.