ORLANDO, Florida (AP) – Taking the stage for the first time since leaving office, former President Donald Trump called for Republican Party unity, even as he exacerbated intra-party divisions by attacking fellow Republicans and promoting lies about the election in a speech who made it clear he intends to remain a dominant political force.
Speaking on Sunday at the Conservative Political Action Conference, where he was hailed as a hero back, Trump criticized his successor, President Joe Biden, and tried to outline a vision for the future of the Republican Party that revolves firmly around him, despite his loss in November.
“Do you miss me already?” Trump said after taking the stage with his old rally soundtrack and crowd applause.
Trump, in his speech, tried to downplay the civil war that dominated the party over the extent to which Republicans should embrace him, even as he rolled out a list of enemies, calling by name the 10 House Republicans and seven Republican Party senators. who voted for impeachment or condemned him for inciting the United States Capitol riot. He ended by highlighting Rep. Liz Cheney, the House’s third Republican, who faced a tremendous negative reaction in Wyoming for saying that Trump should no longer play a role in the party or headline the event.
While he insisted that the division was just a fight “between a handful of Washington, DC, political hackers at the establishment and everyone else across the country,” Trump had a message for the occupiers who dared to upset him: ” Get rid of ’em all. ”
The conference, held this year in Orlando, rather than in the Washington suburbs to escape the restrictions of COVID-19, served as a tribute to Trump and Trumpism, with a golden statue in his image on the screen. Speakers, including many potential aspirants for 2024, argued that the party should embrace the former president and his followers, even after the deadly Capitol insurrection on January 6.
They also repeated on panel after panel their baseless allegations that he lost his re-election just because of mass electoral fraud, although those allegations were dismissed by judges, Republican state officials and the Trump administration itself.
Trump also continued to repeat what Democrats dubbed the “big lie”, calling the election “rigged” and insisting he won in November, although he lost by more than 7 million votes.
“As you know, they just lost the White House,” he said of Biden, rewriting the story.
It is highly unusual for former American presidents to publicly criticize their successors in the months after they step down. Former presidents usually stay out of the spotlight for at least a while; Barack Obama was seen as kitesurfing on vacation after his departure, while George W. Bush said he believed Obama “deserves my silence” and started painting.
Not Trump.
He gave a severe rebuke to what he defined as the new government’s first month of failures, especially Biden’s approach to immigration and the border.
“Joe Biden had the most disastrous first month of any president in modern history,” said Trump.
White House press secretary Jen Psaki rejected criticism expected last week. “We will see what he says, but our focus is certainly not on what President Trump is saying at CPAC,” she told reporters.
In addition to criticizing Biden, Trump used the speech to crown the future of the Republican Party, although many leaders argue that they should move in a new, less divisive direction after Republicans lost not only the White House, but the two chambers of the White House. Congress.
Although Trump has flirted with the idea of creating a third party, he promised on Sunday to remain part of “our beloved” GOP.
“I will continue to fight right next to you. We are not starting new parties, ”he said. “We have the Republican Party. It will be strong and united as never before. Still, Trump spent much of his speech attacking those he considered insufficiently loyal and dubbed “RINOs” – Republicans in name only – for not being with him.
“We cannot have leaders who show more passion for condemning their American compatriots than they ever have for facing the Democrats, the media and the radicals who want to turn America into a socialist country,” said Trump.
Trump did not use his speech to announce plans to run again, but repeatedly raised the possibility by predicting that a Republican would win back the White House in 2024.
“And I wonder who it is,” he offered. “Who, who, who will it be? I wonder.”
It is not yet clear, however, how much appetite there would be for another Trump term, even in the room of staunch supporters.
The conference’s unscientific annual survey of just over 1,000 participants found that 97% approved of Trump’s job as president. But they were much more ambiguous when asked if he should run again, with only 68% saying he should.
If the 2024 primary were held today and Trump was in the running, only 55% said they would vote for him, followed by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis with 21%. Without Trump on the field, DeSantis garnered 43% support, followed by 8% for South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem, and 7% each for former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Texas Senator Ted Cruz.
Although he no longer has his social media megaphone after being barred from accessing Twitter and Facebook, Trump was returning to public life even before the speech. He called conservative media after the death of radio star Rush Limbaugh and issued statements, including one attacking Mitch McConnell after the Senate Republican leader criticized Trump for inciting the Capitol rebellion. McConnell said he would “absolutely” support Trump if he were named GOP in 2024.
At his Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida, Trump has also been quietly meeting key advisers and party leaders while building his post-presidential political operation. Although he has supported several pro-Trump candidates, including one who challenges an impeachment advocate, advisers have been working for the past week to develop referrals for those seeking his endorsement to ensure candidates are serious and have established policies and fundraising full-fledged organizations before they get involved.
They are also planning a new super PAC that could raise unlimited amounts of money, although an adviser warned that they were still deciding whether to create a new entity or reuse an existing America First super PAC.
Trump hinted at the effort on Sunday, expressing his commitment to helping elect Republicans and inviting participants to join him.
“I stand before you today to declare that the incredible journey we started together … is far from over,” he said.