By Jasper Ward
WASHINGTON, Feb 11 (Reuters) - President Donald Trump plans to host Republican and Democratic governors for a breakfast meeting next week, the National Governors Association chairman said
on Wednesday, though Trump later insisted he was still excluding two Democratic governors.
Republican Trump is inviting all the governors to the meeting, according to an email by National Governors Association Chairman Kevin Stitt on Wednesday, after the association canceled a White House meeting over the exclusion of Democrats.
The meeting is scheduled for February 20. Governors from across the U.S. gather every year in Washington for the NGA meeting. It has become a tradition for the president to host the governors at the White House for a session with cabinet secretaries, among other officials, and a black-tie dinner for the governors and their spouses.
"He was very clear in his communications with me that this is a National Governors Association’s event, and he looks forward to hosting you and hearing from governors across the country," wrote Stitt, who is also the Republican governor of Oklahoma.
"President Trump said this was always his intention, and we have addressed the misunderstanding in scheduling."
Trump said later on Wednesday that he invited all governors except Wes Moore and Jared Polis, the Democratic governors of Maryland and Colorado, respectively.
He accused Moore in a social media post of doing "a terrible job" of rebuilding Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge, which collapsed in 2024 after a container ship crashed into one of its support pillars.
Trump cited Polis' decision to not release Tina Peters from prison as a reason he was denied an invitation to the meeting. Peters, a former Colorado county clerk, was sentenced to nine years in prison in October 2024 after being convicted of tampering with voting machines after the 2020 U.S. presidential election.
Trump said he felt the two governors were "not worthy" of attending the event. The White House did not respond to a request seeking clarification of the comment.
(Reporting by Jasper Ward in Washington; Editing by Michelle Nichols and Matthew Lewis )
