Metro Council members are pulling the plan to host the 2024 Republican National Convention, but the RNC Host Committee is not giving up.

The RNC wants to have the ability to address concerns expressed by council members and says the committee views Nashville as the ideal American city, and so does Gov. Bill Lee.

“We certainly hope they choose to and I’ve communicated that with the mayor. We have an opportunity for an enormous economic boom as a result of 40,000 people coming to our city for a week,” says Gov. Lee.

Gov. Lee goes on to say this would provide small businesses in the Midstate an opportunity to profit.

“These are the types of things Nashville is set up to be successful in. We saw that with the draft, we’ve seen that even with July 4 celebrations that are safe and large,” says Gov. Lee.

FOX 17 News reached out to the mayor's office to ask how much the city spent on the 2019 NFL Draft, CMA Fest and “Let Freedom Sing!” celebration for context. We are waiting on a response.

In the other finalist city, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, a spokesperson for the mayor's office says if the city received the $50 million federal grant, the costs would be covered.

But critics, like Lee Jones, the Chair of the Davidson County Democratic Party, worry about the financial burden and added security risks.

“The political environment right now is very volatile and I just don’t think we need it at this time,” says Jones.

Jones says she would have the same concerns about hosting the DNC Convention in Nashville.

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