While President Donald Trump has been out of the country meeting with foreign leaders on his first official overseas trip, members of his family have been working back home to increase their engagement with the Republican party establishment.
Two of Trump’s sons, Donald Jr. and Eric, along with Eric’s wife, Lara, held multiple meetings at the Washington office of the Republican National Committee Thursday, a Republican source confirmed to CNN.
The meetings with various White House officials and RNC officials included members of the pro-Trump political group America First Policies — run by Katie Walsh, who briefly served as Trump’s deputy chief of staff — and RNC Chairwoman Ronna Romney McDaniel.
The meetings between the trio of Trumps and the various groups were held to make sure everyone was “on the same page,” according to the source. The group discussed the midterm election and 2020 reelection outlook as well as assigning roles moving forward. The meetings were first reported by The Washington Post.
The White House did not return CNN’s request for comment on Thursday’s meetings.
Trump’s eldest two sons were active surrogates on the campaign trail, but assumed the reins of the Trump Organization when their father took office. Ethics rules prevent them from talking with their father about the family business, but Thursday’s meetings signal a role in laying the groundwork for future political activity, including the President’s reelection campaign.
At a March GOP dinner in Dallas, Donald Trump Jr. said he missed politics.
“I thought I was out of politics after election day,” he said. “I thought I’d be going back to my regular job. I thought I’d be really excited about it. But once you get a little bit of a taste of that action, it’s hard to leave. You know, listen, deals are still exciting, but when you’re sort of the guy out there 24/7, every day fighting in this thing — it’s like a great fight, the intensity. I don’t miss the politics, I promise. I want nothing to do with the politics, but I miss the intensity of that.”
Lara Trump, the President’s daughter-in-law, is playing a more concrete role as the midterms and the general election gear up. She joined the Trump campaign’s digital vendor, Giles-Parscale, as a senior consultant in March. She posted photos from the family’s Washington visit on her Instagram account, including a video outside Washington’s Trump International Hotel.