Members of Villagers for Trump are hoping to learn more about President Trump’s rescheduled visit to The Villages when they stage a monthly rally on Tuesday night.
The president originally was scheduled to visit Florida’s Friendliest Hometown on Tuesday afternoon but he postponed the trip following mass shootings in El Paso, Texas, and Dayton, Ohio, over the weekend that left 32 people dead and more than 50 injured.
Members of the grassroots organization, which formed a little more than a year ago, boasts 1,700 members and clearly is the choice of area Republicans who want to be active in GOP politics, were supposed to play a huge role in the president’s visit. Trump originally had planned to fly into Ocala International Airport aboard Air Force One and then make the 30-mile trip to The Villages to speak about Medicare at The Sharon L. Morse Performing Arts Center at 2:15 p.m.
Ten Villagers for Trump members were supposed to have a more intimate meeting about Medicare with the president. And another large contingent was planning to greet Trump’s motorcade when it pulled into the Sharon’s parking lot.
The president is expected to reschedule his visit to The Villages and members are hoping to find out soon when that event will happen. Tuesday night’s meeting is at the Eisenhower Recreation Center and is scheduled to begin at 6:30 p.m.
The group also will hear from attorney Matthew “Mat” Staver, who founded and serves as chairman of Liberty Counsel and is the former dean of Liberty University’s Law School.
Staver’s organization is an international non-profit litigation, education and policy group dedicated to advancing religious freedom, the sanctity of human life and preservation of the family. He also is the host and producer of daily radio programs “Faith and Freedom” and “Freedom’s Call” and is a frequent guest on international and national networks, cable television channels and radio shows.
Staver has authored 10 books, including “Faith & Freedom: A Complete Handbook for Defending Your Religious Rights” and “Eternal Vigilance: Knowing and Protecting Your Religious Freedom.” The former Seventh-day Adventist pastor who became a Southern Baptist also has published more than 230 legal opinions and has filed numerous briefs and argued in many federal and state courts, including the U.S. Supreme Court.
Staver has been the news recently while representing grandmother Sandra Merritt in a case in California involving Planned Parenthood. He also represented Kentucky county clerk Kim Davis, who in 2015 refused to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples and lost a re-election bid in November 2018.
