WASHINGTON – Senator Ted Cruz of Texas and Senator Josh Hawley of Missouri took the stage today at the Conservative Political Action Conference and delivered what was their most extensive public address since January 6, when both were seen by critics as having helped incite a violent attack on the United States Capitol in an attempt to prevent certification of the 2020 presidential election.
Cruz spoke on Friday morning, while Hawley addressed the audience in a less enviable place in the afternoon. As they did in appearances on Fox News and elsewhere in the past few weeks, they launched themselves as victims of the Democratic “culture of cancellation” – a poorly defined concept that encompasses social and corporate disapproval – while not taking on the responsibility of inciting white supremacists and other supporters of former President Donald Trump who stormed the Capitol in hopes of preventing Joe Biden from taking over the Oval Office.
“I’m not going anywhere,” said Hawley, justifying his objection to the Pennsylvania election results, which delayed what should have been a routine certification process. “I thought it was an important position to take.”
Although he had made similar defenses since January 6, Friday presented Cruz and Hawley with a chance to speak in Trump’s backyard for some of Trump’s most loyal supporters. Although the crowd was smaller and less noisy than in previous years, it seemed uniform in its support for the 45th president, so much so that some participants pushed a golden statue of Trump into the conference room.
“Let me tell you something now, Donald J. Trump is not going anywhere,” Cruz said in his own rowdy comments. “These deplorables are here to stay,” he added a little later, using Hillary Clinton’s infamous term for Trump supporters in the 2016 presidential campaign.
Whether Trump plans to mount another presidential race in 2024 remains a matter of dispute, which has left Hawley, Cruz and other White House aspirants, like Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, in a somewhat complicated position. The CPAC is usually an audition for future presidential candidates, but with Trump himself potentially among that group, any audition had to be managed carefully so as not to offend the country’s most popular Republican.
Hawley and Cruz faced six weeks of relentless scrutiny for what their critics say is an act of opportunism on January 6. Hawley saw a book contract with Simon & Schuster canceled and was harshly denounced by John Danforth, the former Missouri senator who once served as a mentor for the young arsonist.
Cruz had his own political problems compounded by revelations that he had traveled to Cancún with his family while Texas was hit by a devastating winter storm. In his speech on Friday, Cruz dismissed this latest uproar. “Orlando is incredible,” he was enthusiastic. “It is not as good as Cancún,” he joked, “but it is good.” He made no further observations about the situation in his home state, where thousands remain in danger.
With his keen sense of humor on display, Cruz scoffed at Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, DN.Y., who described fearing for his life as the pro-Trump crowd spread across the United States Capitol.
Then, turning to anger, he lamented the “giant barbed wire fences” that were erected around the Capitol. “Democrats are convinced that political theater helps them,” said Cruz of these measures, which were put into effect after the riot.
A little more contained in his own speech, Hawley reiterated the attacks on Silicon Valley that he had been doing throughout his time in the United States Senate. These attacks have found new strength among conservatives since Trump and some of his supporters were banned from social media.
“I’m here today, I’m not going anywhere, I’m not going to back down. No way, ”he said for a brief standing ovation.
Both men described American politics as a Manichean battle between the extreme left and patriotic Americans. That’s how many Republicans seem to see things, with 4 out of 10 saying that political violence can be justified, according to a survey earlier this month.
“This is the Rebel Alliance,” said Cruz, referring to the “Star Wars” franchise. He also alluded to “Braveheart”, the 1995 Scottish independence film, concluding his speech with a cry for “Freedom!” that instantly became a social media sensation.
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