OXON HILL, Md. – Donald Trump returned to the Conference of Conservative Political Action recast in his image, capping the heavy three-day agenda with adoration for the former president who attempted a coup but very little-well attended by activists and presidential contenders alike.
Trump, within a few minutes of taking the stage at the Gaylord National Resort, went to his typical comments, disparaging the United States as a “dirty communist country” and attacking Democrats and the news media.
“They didn’t follow me. They came after you. I just blocked them,” he said. “We will expel the globalists. We will expel the communists.”
And even though dozens of rows in the back remained empty, Trump thanked the fire marshals for letting in many of his supporters. “Look at all these people. They are up to the rafters,” he said.
Trump called the prosecutors investigating him “racist” — those in New York and Georgia are Black — and said they were only going after him because of his chances of winning the presidency again. He continued to lie about the 2020 election being stolen from him: “We did better in 2020 than in 2016.” He added later, “I won the second election, and I won a lot.”
He overturned, at length, two impeachments: The first for attempted blackmail in Ukraine and the second for inciting the January 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol that ended the coup attempt to stay in office.
And he promises that if he wins again, he will take revenge on those who disrespected his followers. “I’m getting back at you,” he said.
Trump, during his presidency, has repeatedly attacked NATO and has planned to withdraw from the alliance in his second term – thus giving Russian dictator Vladimir Putin the most he wants. After Putin invaded Ukraine last year, Trump called him a “genius” for doing so.
On Saturday, he promised that if he wins the White House, he will quickly end the war because he is “aligned with Putin.”
“I’m the only candidate who can make this promise: I will prevent – and very easily – World War III. It’s very simple. And you’ll have World War III, by the way, you’ll have World War III if something doesn’t happen fast,” he said.
And even his aides have promised reporters that Trump will provide a vision for his return to the White House. However, his 105 minutes on stage were mostly repeating his oft-repeated lies and complaints.
Attendance on Saturday was greater than the first two days of speakers. However, the crowd was still smaller than at previous conferences, especially the previous two, which were held in Orlando, Florida, to avoid stricter COVID-19 restrictions in the Washington area.
Nor did most of the 2024 Republican contenders attend. Of the 14 major names running or considering running, only three attended CPAC: Trump, former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley and former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.
Eight years ago — the last time CPAC was held with a presidential election looming and without a Republican incumbent in the White House — the conference attracted dozens of aspirants.
GOP consultants say the decisions of the 2024 candidates, including Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott, are not forthcoming, given the already pro-Trump CPAC.
Indeed, on Saturday alone, speakers including former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, pillow-baggers and election conspiracy theorist Mike Lindell, failed Arizona gubernatorial nominee Kari Lake and GOP House Conference Chairwoman Elise Stefanik – all spoke about Trump.
“Most candidates make rational political decisions based on their path to victory,” said Saul Anuzis, former chairman of the Michigan Republican Party and a CPAC attendee since 1978.
Trump’s speech to several thousand fans was the closest thing to a rally he’s done since announcing his 2024 candidacy in November. Trump’s fundraising has paled in comparison to what he collected during the 2020 campaign and immediately after, and the rally cost hundreds of thousands of dollars to stage.
He has made small visits to New Hampshire and South Carolina, as well as a recent trip to the railroad derailment site in East Palestine, Ohio. After DeSantis set up a trip to Iowa this month, Trump announced that he, too, would be coming that same day.
Trump faces a criminal investigation by Atlanta prosecutors and the Department of Justice for the coup attempt on January 6, 2021 and his actions in the weeks leading up to that day, including an attempt to force Georgia officials to overturn his election defeat in that state.
DOJ prosecutors are separately investigating the retention of top-secret documents to defy subpoenas, while New York City’s district attorney renewed an investigation into payments to porn actors before the 2016 election.