OXON HILL, Md. (AP) – Two prominent Republicans took jabs at former President Donald Trump at the conservatives’ annual meeting on Friday, knocking the “celebrity leader” out of tune with reality while citing winnable elections that have been lost as they urge a party course correction ahead of the 2024 presidential contest.
But his refusal to call him by name underscores the risks he faces and echoes challengers’ concerns about alienating Trump’s loyal base.
In his speech, former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley – both of whom served in the Trump administration – gave an overview of how the former president declared and the potential opponent of 2024 tried to easily navigate the dominant role in the party while looking for ways to distinguish themselves in what could be an ugly and noisy primary contest.
“We cannot be on the left, following celebrity leaders with their own identity politics, who have fragile egos who refuse to acknowledge reality,” Pompeo said in an afternoon speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference.
Haley, who launched her campaign last month, is dealing with similar themes, as the party has lost the popular vote in seven of the last eight presidential elections.
“Our reasons are right, but we failed to gain the trust of the majority of the American people. That ends now. If you are tired of losing, trust the new generation. And if you want to win – not only as a party, but as a country – then stand with me,” Haley said.
As he received polite applause during his speech, some attendees chanted “Trump! Trump! Trump!” when he walks through the board.
This is a sign of dissonance in the event as potential challengers and claims are trying to enter the meeting that has been close to the former president. When other candidates announced and likely there was a speaking slot, Trump has been given top billing as the headliner on Saturday evening, and his son Donald Trump Jr. has been mobbed throughout the conference by excited fans.
Haley and Pompeo were among the few announced or potential Republican presidential candidates in attendance at CPAC, which has been a must-stop for GOP hopefuls but has not lost this year.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, former Vice President Mike Pence and Senator Tim Scott of South Carolina skipped the event this year because it has been marred by controversy and an apparent tribute to Trump.
Like Haley, Pompeo noted recent Republican losses over the years and blamed the party for its shortcomings.
“We lost race after race that we could have won. It’s because the voters don’t believe that we’re doing better than the tax and spend liberals,” he said, echoing the criticism raised by some participants. “Every new administration, Republican and Democrat, has added trillions of dollars to our debt. It’s not conservative at all.
More generally, he said voters are “losing faith in conservative ideas.”
“Losing is bad because losing is bad. But the principle we are doing is the most dangerous. And it is not a political problem. The problem is that the loss is a symptom of a bigger problem. This is a crisis of conservatism,” he said. “We have lost the belief that we are right.”
In an interview before his speech, Pompeo told The Associated Press that he chose to attend this year’s event because of “the great group that represents our party.”
He dismissed the importance of a straw poll of CPAC attendees on Saturday about the 2024 presidential election, an unscientific survey that Trump is expected to win, while noting that the election is more than half a year away.
“There’s a long way to go. There’s a lot of ground to cover and I think everyone who decides to enter the race will have plenty of opportunities in the fall to make their case,” Pompeo said. “I’ve participated in straw polls. I’ve done well. I’ve done poorly. I don’t think this is going to end.
Pompeo, one of a long list of potential candidates, said he was still mulling over a decision on whether to challenge his former boss for the nomination.
“Still working on it, figuring it out,” he said, adding that he and his family “have been here for a few months now.” In the meantime, “we’re doing everything we can to be prepared to make that case to the American people,” Pompeo said.
Pompeo also said without hesitation that he would support the eventual Republican candidate, joking, “There doesn’t seem to be a President Biden that I can support.”
Unlike Pence, who declined to say Thursday whether he would support his former boss if Trump ends his party’s nomination in 2024.
“I think they will have a better choice,” Pence told The Associated Press in an interview in South Carolina. “I believe that no one can beat Hillary Clinton in 2016 except Donald Trump, but I think we live in a different time and need a different kind of leadership.”
The Republican National Committee plans to block candidates from the primary debate if they do not sign pledges to support the GOP’s primary presidential nominee, setting up a potential clash with candidates including Trump, who has raised the possibility of leaving the Republican Party and running. independent candidacy if they don’t win the GOP nomination outright.
Vivek Ramaswamy, technology entrepreneur and author of the book “Woke, Inc.” who also ran for president, at the convention there and told AP later in an interview that he saw himself as Trump’s successor.
“I’m building on the foundation that was laid,” Ramaswamy said, adding that he is more focused on ending affirmative action and climate change mitigation than former presidents. He also said he would support the eventual GOP candidate “if everyone makes that commitment.”
While Trump loyalists gathered in Maryland, the influential anti-tax group Club For Growth, which has clashed with Trump, held a rival event in Florida where DeSantis and others were invited but Trump was not – a clear illustration of some of the party’s conservatives. the flank is looking for a new direction.
David McIntosh, president of Club For Growth, said in an interview Friday that DeSantis, who kicked off the group’s donor summit with a speech Thursday night, did not say he would run for president and instead focused his comments on policy issues.
“He talked a lot about his victory in the last election but didn’t show anything one way or the other about the presidential election,” McIntosh said.
He said DeSantis was received enthusiastically by a crowd of about 150 and spoke about his record in Florida and his vision for governing the state.
McIntosh said Pence, also on the show, did not indicate when he might make a decision on whether to seek the presidency. Haley, Scott and Ramaswamy are also scheduled to speak in Florida.
Associated Press writer Nicholas Riccardi contributed to this report.