Sorry, RNC Delegates, You Don’t Need a GoFundMe Page [UPDATED]

With the first selection of official delegates to the Republican National Convention in the 9th District last weekend, Virginia began its process of selecting ordinary grassroots folks to represent Republicans in selecting the Presidential nominee.

Shortly after that selection, a GoFundMe page popped up from one of these delegates, requesting individuals donate the absurd amount of TWENTY FIVE HUNDRED DOLLARS to pay for their expenses to the convention. Oh, and for the privilege, you’ll receive text and email updates ‘from the convention floor’.

Where to start?

Let’s break down the absurd numbers.

The delegate claims that his cost estimates range from $2500 – $3500, for a SIX DAY trip to CLEVELAND. As in, Ohio. As in, a little over 400 miles from here. With a 2004 Honda Civic, that gas cost is $30.47, round-trip. Want to fly? The 1 hour and 20 minute flight can be booked round-trip from Reagan to Cleveland for $287. Hotels? To stay at the Westin downtown is $159 a night, for six nights coming to $954, with taxes, roughly $1100. Now of course, you won’t be staying alone, as political necessity and fiscal conservatism dictates you share that room with 2 – 3 other people, so that cost is actually between $366 – $550, by far the largest expense of the trip.

$30.47 – Driving cost.
$366 – Hotel stay for 6 nights.
$30 a day for meals – $180
$100 for taxi/Uber, etc

Worst case scenario, this trip for ‘official expenses’ only, could be done for less than $600. With a flight, it’s $800/$900.

The GoFundMe asks for TWENTY FIVE HUNDRED. As in, this delegate would profit more than $1000 – $1500 on the backs of grassroots individuals around the state.

And this is ONE delegate. Virginia is preparing to send 50+ individuals to the convention to represent us. Are they all going to set up self-serving GoFundMe pages?

Former 2012 RNC delegate and experienced RNC traveler Matthew Colter Hurtt shared the following:

I’m going to post about this one time, and it’s going to rustle some jimmies:

When I was a delegate to the 2012 Republican National Convention, my TOTAL expenses were about $1,000. I bought my round-trip airfare through Expedia for $250, and I shared a hotel room with five or six other people. And I broke the fundraising link when I reached my goal.

Flights to Cleveland for the week of the 2016 Republican National Convention out of DCA are about $300 round-trip.

I would be VERY skeptical of anyone attempting to raise more than $2,000 — especially someone young. I can understand an older/married person wanting their own hotel room, but there is no excuse for someone young to not split a hotel room with several other people.

Your attendance at the 2016 RNC should not be a personal fundraising effort to pad your bank account, and it is dishonest to swindle good people out of their money.

I would be happy to entertain any questions about the specifics of attending a National Convention, if anyone is interested.

As a former National organization Virginia representative myself, I also know firsthand what it takes to attend national meetings on behalf of Virginia. But I knew what I signed up for, when I signed up for it. To attend a trip, you’re on your own, and maybe the state organizations off-sets some of those costs. But by and large, it was on me. And I was fine with that, because I knew what I was getting into.

There is no reason someone should be running for RNC Delegate and not be prepared for what comes next. If you’re not in a position to fund your trip, why should the Virginia grassroots be forced to bail you out? You know what you’re running for, to represent Virginia in Cleveland. The idea that ‘Ok, now since I got selected, how do I pay for this? Ooh! GoFundMe page!’ is beyond absurd. That all 50 states are selecting more than 2,000 delegates makes the scope of this another level of absurdity. A quick search on GoFundMe alone currently has SEVENTEEN people seeking to raise money from others to pay for their trips to Cleveland, ranging from $2500 – $6000 in funding requests.

The RNC could help things out by coordinating or setting up pages/Facebook where delegates can share hotel rooms/coordinate road-trips, etc. Beginning a conversation where tools and resources can be discussed.

But setting up self-serving GoFundMe pages asking for 2x – 4x the actual cost of your trip? That’s not very conservative. Or smart.

A glance at the Virginia delegates’ GoFundMe page shows it’s raised more than $1500, which in addition to the delegate’s personally pledged $1000, means he’s now exceeded 3x the money required for his trip.

UPDATED 3:09 PM

The Virginia GoFundMe post has been updated to clarify what the possible guaranteed donation overages will be donated to.

*All surplus funds will be contributed to the Craig County Republican Committee.

UPDATED 1:55 PM

Other past RNC delegates and travelers have reached out to me in response to this post, sharing their past experiences. Unanimously, they had no idea where $2500+ in expenditures would be required. They also shared that RPV provides breakfast, coordinates lunches, and provides bus transportation to and from the Convention, further reducing the costs required.

UPDATED 1:54 PM

Jordan Labiosa responded:

Jordan Labiosa I’m raising this amount based on the recommendations of folks including Kathy Kurtz Hayden and John Whitbeck. The original goal was lower but I was advised I would need to raise more.

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