In his first public speech since leaving office, former President Trump told the public at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) that he would not start a third party because “we have the Republican Party”.
Why does it matter: The former president intends to consolidate himself as the “likely candidate for 2024” of the Republicans, while his main candidates – including former members of his administration – face the challenge of running against the Republican Party’s most popular politician.
- Trump made it clear that he is not going anywhere and treated his CPAC speech as one of his MAGA rallies, discussing topics, attacking political opponents and listing long-standing complaints.
- After predicting that President Biden “would decisively lose the White House in four years”, Trump said he could run again in 2024, while repeating the false claim that he won the 2020 elections: “Actually, as you know, they they just lost the White House. Who knows, I might even decide to beat them a third time, right? ”
- “This election was rigged,” Trump said falsely, before calling for strong restrictions on postal voting and absentees.
- No longer able to do this on Twitter, Trump spent much of his speech sowing doubts about the election and fueling the same anger among his base that led to the Capitol violence on 1/6.
What to watch: 2024 candidates like Mike Pompeo, Nikki Haley and Mike Pence – two of whom skipped the CPAC this year – will need to throw their hats into the ring earlier than their potential opponents in charge.
- Former Trump administration officials no longer have the necessary public platform to stay relevant on a daily basis.
Trump’s mocking language and the refusal to stay in the background is also contributing even more to the factions we are seeing taking shape within the GOP.
- Mitch McConnell had to eat raven after being beaten by Trump after his scathing comments about the former president’s role in the January 6 attack on Capitol Hill. The minority leader said he would “absolutely” support Trump if he were the Republican candidate in 2024.
- Mitt Romney, arguably the Republican Party’s biggest detractor in Congress, said this week that Trump would likely win the nomination in 2024 if he ran.