Eighteen holes later, he leaves his Trump International Golf Club and returns to Mar-a-Lago, where he retires to his own private living room, separate from his wife’s, and ponders two main questions: Who is with him ? And who is against him?
“As soon as 2022 starts working, expect Don (Trump Jr.) to be an extremely active presence in the campaign,” a person working with Trump Jr. told CNN, confirming not only the young Trump’s taste for the political battle, but also that of the ex-president, too.
Donald Trump’s influence in the elections is becoming clearer by the day. On Tuesday, former senator David Perdue announced that he will not launch a campaign, although he recently filed documents to do so. The decision follows closely Perdue’s recent visit to Palm Beach, where he played golf with Trump, said a person familiar with Georgia Republican programming.
“We’ve seen this for years – Trumpian incentive offers that look more like the threats from the ‘good deal you have here’ mobster,” said Doug Heye, a former Republican strategist and consultant who previously worked in senior communications roles at leadership on Capitol Hill. “The problem for these candidates to advance is that, although he always struggles to score points, Donald Trump doesn’t give points, he just takes them away. One at a time.”
Family dynamics in flux
In 2019, it was clear that Trump Jr. was the Republican swagger without which the base could not live. Trump Jr. was not only in high demand for appearances and events, but he was also filling rooms, spewing conspiracy theories on social media, going round with his attacks on Democrats, the so-called RINOs (Republicans in Name Only) and anyone other than him did I agree with Trump’s theories and policies – true or not.
Ivanka Trump, now housed in an expensive Miami beachfront condo while a new mansion nearby is being built on a $ 30 million lot purchased last year, wants “nothing to do with politics,” said a friend of hers about your current state of mind.
Instead, she is “accommodating her family, and that is her only focus,” said the friend.
Trump has been in Mar-a-Lago to visit his father since he moved to Florida, says another person familiar with his comings and goings, but his interest in discussing his father’s next visit to the White House is nil. The five years that Trump spent in the campaign and in the White House “were very long,” her friend told CNN, and talking about a political future is prohibited. Paparazzi have captured photos of Trump in recent weeks, mostly lounging on the beach next to his new home. One day she was caught reading “The Book of Joy” by the Dalai Lama.
But the lack of interest in political engagement, if understandable, paves the way for his brother to shine even more in his father’s orbit – even if he is not the favorite son. (In an interview in 2019, Trump said of his eldest son: “Don is, uh, he’s enjoying politics; in fact, he’s very good.”)
Trump Jr. and his girlfriend, Kimberly Guilfoyle, have served as their father’s highly effective substitutes for nearly three years, since the couple were a couple, and they show no signs of slowing down. Next week, the duo will hold a high-value fundraising meeting in Mar-a-Lago for South Dakota Republican governor Kristi Noem, a person familiar with the event told CNN.
Noem is running for re-election in 2022, and the $ 1,000 per person event will technically be Trump and Guilfoyle’s first official foray into the electoral cycle. The VIP experience of the party, according to an acquaintance, includes participating in a round table with Noem, Trump and Guilfoyle, as well as a photo – the price of the updated face-to-face time is $ 4,000 per person. No word on whether the former president will make an appearance, but Noem is a friend – she once presented the then president with a $ 1,100 replica of Miount Rushmore with her face included, according to a New York Times report.
Sunshine State Headquarters
Like his sister, Ivanka Trump, and his half-sister, Tiffany Trump, who also recently moved to Miami, Trump Jr. plans to make the Sunshine State his permanent home. Two people with knowledge of the situation said he plans to move closer to his ex-wife, Vanessa Trump, and the couple’s five children.
Vanessa Trump spends much of the year in Jupiter, Florida, where her ex-husband is eyeing a $ 11 million beachfront mansion in the city’s exclusive Admiral’s Cove development. A person familiar with Trump Jr.’s developments did not want to confirm the purchase of the house, which, according to real estate records, is under contract with the sale pending, and a representative of the real estate company responsible for the sale has not commented to CNN about Trump’s speculation. buyer.
But the commitment to Florida, an enthusiastically favorable Trump-friendly state that the former president won last November – indicates that the Trumps are not connected to New York City as their center. In addition, it is much more pleasant for Trump to welcome his visitors to Mar-a-Lago, which has an integrated audience of members, many of whom are also sycophants.
A person familiar with Trump’s activities in Mar-a-Lago says he is increasingly serving as the club’s CEO, involved in operations, reforms and membership. For a while, his neighbors in Palm Beach expressed disdain for the fact that Trump was living mere blocks from his multi-million dollar mansions – a disturbance they no longer wanted to endure after the past four years of security and privacy challenges.
“I really don’t think most Palm Beachers are thinking about Trump any longer. He never really leaves his two clubs,” said Laurence Leamer, a part-time Palm Beach resident and author of two narratives about the area ” . Madness Under the Royal Palms “and” Mar-a-Lago: Inside the Gates of Power at Donald Trump’s Presidential Palace. “
Trump is habitual, which makes it easier for those who want to find him, seek his blessing or ask for forgiveness for turning his back, a practice that Heye believes will only increase in the coming months.
“For many, loyalty never ends. But part of Trump’s gamble when his campaign became serious was that the party would bow to him, he would not bow to the party. He was right,” he said.
This story has been updated.