BOULDER — Forget taxing, spending and foreign policy, Rand Paul’s campaign was up in arms over a Jacuzzi, leather seats and Donald Trump’s big-screen TV at the University of Colorado’s Coors Events Center on Tuesday afternoon in the first clash of the GOP debate that occurs there tonight.
Paul political adviser Chris LaCivita sent out a series of annoyed tweets and pictures that reflected his dislike of the small space, dominated by a restroom and fan, compared to the much nicer accommodations for better-polling candidates during a walk-through with Republican National Committee members.
Paul is polling at about 4 percent — tied with Ted Cruz, Mike Huckabee and John Kasich — compared to 27 percent for new frontrunner Ben Carson, in the latest .
According to the tweets, the unrest over greenrooms began during the 2 p.m. walk-through — “#CNBCDebate walkthru: guess which green room belongs to @realDonaldTrump and which belongs to @RandPaul #thanksRNC,” he tweeted comparing Trump’s fancy facilities to Paul’s potty — but by about 10 p.m., fences had been mended.
He tweeted, “Thanks to everyone at @GOP for bending over backwards to acquire great working conditions for team Paul.”
LaCivita’s says he is a “combat wounded Marine, Pittsburgh native, Steelers and Penguins fan and I love cooking what I harvest in the wild,” and his Twitter profile includes a photo of him in combat fatigues holding a weapon sitting alongside a fellow Marine.
RNC chairman Reince Priebus said on on Fox News Channel said that all the candidates should be comfortable when they in Boulder but the venue isn’t made for 14-person debates.
“This is an athletic facility. It’s not quite a Jacuzzi, it’s a locker room. They’re doing everything they can to space off everything for candidates,” he said. “I think all of it has been resolved.”
He added: “I think we’ve got bigger problems than worrying about greenrooms, but I do think the candidates should be comfortable.”
