That's what i was wondering. Did Trump/Manafort call up Drudge and say, "Look, i need a favor here..."
It wouldn’t be a “favor” — Drudge would always be delighted to run with any tip on such hot breaking news. It would be mutual benefit. But anyway, Drudge was not the first to break the story.
Drudge linked to the Roll Call story, he did not break it himself. But it was within 30 minutes that Rollcall, Indy, NY Times and CBS all had pretty much the same story, each saying they had their own sources.
If I had to guess, I'd say that the biggest leak happened when Pence informed the Indiana GOP that he won't be seeking reelection, and it just blossomed from there.
Do I think this was timed to the rules committee meeting? Nahh, happy coincidence. Not that Manafort wouldn't fire such a bullet at the GOP, more along the lines of a floor revolt solidifies Trump support even more than a happy harmonious convention. I'm sure Manafort would have been even more happy to get delegates unbound, have hysterics overnight, have Trump step out tomorrow, announce Pence, and by next week, have a first ballot vote of 2000 to 200 (or however that math works out.)