85% Would Vote for Trump Again

The annual Bourgeois Political Action Conference (CPAC) made clear that former President Trump Donald TrumpNow is the time to rebuild America'southward refugee resettlement program Is a post-Trump media world first to take shape? Major government surveillance revelations fail to make a big splash MORE remains the single most influential figure among the GOP's grassroots.

But the three-day gathering, which wrapped upward on Sun in Orlando, Fla., also showcased the growing star power of Republican leaders such as Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis Ron DeSantisThe five states nonetheless to draw U.s.a. House maps Biden'southward moves on Venezuela become flashpoint in Florida Florida state legislature approves state's biggest upkeep ever MORE and the conservative motion'south connected fixation on civilisation war bug ahead of the 2022 midterm elections.

Here are five takeaways from this year'southward CPAC.

Trump is still the star of the testify

If there was always any uncertainty about Trump's influence over the bourgeois base of the Republican Party, CPAC put it to balance.

Nearly 15 months subsequently losing his 2022 reelection bid, the former president still dominated the conference; ruby-red "Make America Great Again" hats speckled the crowds, vendors sold "Trump 2024" merchandise and attendees repeatedly expressed a desire to encounter the old president mount another bid for the White House in 2024.

That was confirmed on Dominicus with the release of the results of CPAC'due south 2024 presidential straw poll, which showed Trump every bit the heavy favorite amidst attendees to win the GOP nod. Fifty-nine percent said they would vote for Trump in a hypothetical primary that included more than a dozen prospective candidates.

The harbinger poll too found that, if Trump ran for president again in 2024, 85 percent of CPAC attendees would support him, including 72 percent who said they would "strongly" dorsum him.

DeSantis is a strength to be reckoned with

DeSantis has repeatedly dismissed questions about a potential 2024 presidential bid, saying that he's focused only on his job as governor and winning reelection this twelvemonth.

Nonetheless, CPAC spotlighted his growing star power inside the conservative move. His speech at the briefing on Thursday drew ane of the biggest crowds of the unabridged gathering, and attendees repeatedly pointed to him every bit a potential successor to Trump, even if they remain expressionless fix on supporting the quondam president once again in 2024.

Sunday'south straw poll also demonstrated DeSantis's popularity among the conservative grassroots. While Trump led by a wide margin in a hypothetical master contest, DeSantis finished in a strong second identify, scoring 28 percentage support, making him the just would-exist candidate not named Trump to notch double-digit backing.

And in the event that Trump doesn't run again in 2024, DeSantis would be the heavy favorite for the GOP nod. Without Trump on the ballot, 61 percent of those polled said they would support DeSantis.

The 2024 Republican presidential sweepstakes is well underway

Trump may have stolen the show on Sabbatum, only CPAC still drew a long list of prospective White House hopefuls, all of whom sought to stake out their own lane.

For South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem Kristi Lynn NoemNational Park Service denies Noem'due south asking for July 4th fireworks at Mount Rushmore DNC sends cookie cakes to GOP governors to celebrate American Rescue Plan ceremony Utah's Republican governor pledges to veto transgender sports ban More than (R), who addressed the briefing on Friday, information technology was a call for lifting energy regulations. Onetime Secretary of Land Mike Pompeo Mike PompeoUS concludes violence against Myanmar's Rohingya was genocide: report Security for Pompeo costing million per calendar month amid threats from Islamic republic of iran: report The Memo: Go ready for Biden vs. Trump all over once again MORE , meanwhile, spent a large portion of his speech railing against what he described equally Communist china's creeping influence around the world. DeSantis used his oral communication to bolster his brand equally a bulwark against a "biomedical security state."

The speeches collectively indicated that the early jockeying for the 2024 Republican presidential nod is already underway.

Nevertheless, it was articulate that the would-be candidates are walking a fine line. None want to step on Trump's toes, given that he'due south because another presidential bid in 2024, and nearly all of them paid tribute to the former president in their remarks.

"We accept some fantastic fighters, like President Donald Trump," Noem said. "Just he's not alone. The American people are on our side."

Cultural grievances took eye stage

While Republicans take spent months attacking President Biden Joe BidenBiden to visit Poland during Europe trip Quondam DC guess, Penn constabulary professor to innovate Ketanji Chocolate-brown Jackson at hearing US concludes violence confronting Myanmar'south Rohingya was genocide: report More than and congressional Democrats over their handling of the economic system, the COVID-19 pandemic and ascension criminal offense rates, CPAC demonstrated that the most die-hard conservatives are still focused intensely on cultural grievances.

That fact was evident in the briefing's slogan: "Awake, not woke."

Throughout the four days of the conference, speakers repeatedly railed confronting alleged social media censorship, the teaching of critical race theory in schools and the pervasiveness of so-called cancel civilization, while many of the kitchen table bug that Republicans accept sought to seize on nationally took a back seat.

Addressing the conference on Saturday, Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) hammered what he described as the country's turn toward "woke, government-run everything." Pompeo warned that "there is no threat greater to the United states of america than that which emanates inside our Republic."

And Sen. Marco Rubio Marco Antonio RubioPush to make daylight saving time permanent has longtime backers House leaders want to take upwards daylight saving time beak — afterwards Biden'due south moves on Venezuela become flashpoint in Florida More than (R-Fla.), who addressed the conference on Friday morning, said, "Yous tin can always cut taxes. You can always roll back regulations. Yous tin always elect better people. But when freedom is lost and it's eroded, it is so difficult to reclaim it and to get it dorsum."

The Ukraine crisis took a back seat

Russia'south total-scale invasion of Ukraine has dominated the news cycle and captured the world's attention. At CPAC, however, information technology seemed like more of an afterthought.

That's not to say the crisis didn't receive whatsoever attention. Speaker after speaker offered sympathy for Ukraine and used the invasion to attack Biden as a weak leader who had failed to deter the largest conventional armed services attack in Europe since World War 2.

Simply it was rarely if ever the main focus of the conservation at CPAC, with speakers and attendees hewing toward civilisation state of war bug and more familiar conservative rallying points such as COVID-19 restrictions and "cancel culture."

Trump delivered some of the lengthiest remarks on the crunch in Ukraine in his prime number-time speech on Saturday, though he cited the crisis mainly to boast most his own successes.

"As anybody understands, this horrific disaster would never have happened if our elections were not rigged and if I was the president," he said. "I stand as the simply president of the 21st century on whose lookout man Russia did not invade another land."

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Source: https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/596048-five-takeaways-from-cpac-2022