“I told my team it’s time to cancel the Jacksonville component of the GOP convention,” Trump told reporters at a news conference at the White House. “I’ll still do a convention speech in a different form, but we won’t do a big crowded convention per se. It’s just not the right time for that.”

Trump cited safety concerns as driving his decision and indicated he didn’t want to be the subject to negative media scrutiny for holding the convention events.

The president said the official nomination business would still take place in Charlotte, N.C., as planned, but didn’t offer further details on his expected speech. He said the party would hold “tele-rallies” and other online events the week of the convention in late August.

#BREAKING: President Trump announces he’s CANCELING Jacksonville, Florida events of #RNC2020: “I said, ‘The timing for this event is not right… to have a big convention, it’s not the right time.” pic.twitter.com/LKJthPVTie

— The Hill (@thehill) July 23, 2020