October 10, 2016, 04:59 pm
Trump camp fires Virginia chairman for staging RNC protest
By Lisa Hagen
Getty Images
Donald Trump's campaign fired his Virginia chairman on Monday for organizing protests outside of the Republican National Committee (RNC) headquarters.
Corey Stewart staged protests outside of the RNC headquarters in Washington on Monday. Later in the day, Trump's deputy campaign manager, David Bossie, confirmed to ABC7News that Stewart had been fired from the campaign.
“He is being replaced, effectively immediately,” Bossie told ABC7News. “Corey made this decision when he staged a stunt in front of the RNC w/o the knowledge or approval of the Trump campaign."
Stewart organized the protest to counter criticism from Republican leaders after the leak of a tape from 2005 featuring Trump, the GOP presidential nominee, making sexually explicit comments about women. The controversy led a number of high-profile Republicans to withdraw their support, with some even calling on Trump to drop out of the presidential nominee.
RNC Chairman Reince Priebus on Friday slammed Trump's comments in a statement, saying, "No woman should ever be described in these terms or talked about in this manner. Ever."
On Sunday night, Priebus praised Trump for his performance in the second presidential debate of 2016 but avoided talk of the controversy.
Trump’s campaign manager, Kellyanne Conway, said the Trump campaign had a strong relationship with the RNC and touted the chairman's support on Monday.
“We have a tremendous working relationship w/ the RNC,” she said, according to ABC7News.”Chairman Reince Priebus has been an engaged and incredibly supportive ally to Mr. Trump throughout the campaign.”
The chairman of the Republican Party of Virginia in a statement supported the Trump campaign’s decision and emphasized that getting the GOP nominee elected is a “team effort.”
"The Republican Party of Virginia, the Republican National Committee, and the Trump campaign are part of one team,” chairman John Whitbeck said. “While this turn of events is disappointing, I support the Trump campaign's decision to remove their Virginia chairman. With less than a month until election day, we can't afford any distractions."
The protests came as Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) held a conference call Monday with House Republicans, during which he didn't rescind his endorsement of Trump but said he would no longer defend or campaign with his party's nominee.
Robert Maguire
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@RobertMaguire_
Pro-Trump protester outside RNC HQ
2:29 PM - 10 Oct 2016
