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Local political leaders agree Trump is shaking things up and belongs on stage with the other Republican candidates.
“I think he’s putting the rest of the candidates on their toes,” said Ed Sullivan, president of the Villages Republican Club of Sumter County.
He said Trump is forcing the candidates to face the issues.
“Too many politicians try to stay in the middle,” Sullivan said. “He’s an asset.”
Trump tied with Gov. Scott Walker in a recent straw poll taken by The Villages Tea Party. In a similar straw poll taken a month earlier at a Tea Party meeting, Ben Carson had been the clear leader with Trump barely registering.
“He is saying what is on a lot of people’s minds,” said Villages Tea Party President Aileen Milton. “We have yet to see if he offers solutions or just rhetoric.”
Villager Pam Robin who heads the Villages Conservative Action Group said Trump is ruffling feathers.
“But people are paying attention and I am sorry, but they weren’t paying attention before,” she said.
She added that she would love to see Trump visit The Villages.