CPAC near Washington
Trump buffoonery and genital groping: the US conservatives in 2023
Donald Trump and the kiss of the flag: As in 2019, Donald Trump moved closer to the US flag at the CPAC 2020.
© Zuma Press / Imago Images
The VIP all-round service at the annual meeting of the US conservatives CPAC costs $15,000. Where US presidents used to be made, Donald Trump now dominates. Many Republicans now prefer to avoid the event.
Anyone interested in who Americans have had to contend with for a long time will find what they are looking for these days at the Gaylord Harbor National Resort and Convention Center just outside Washington DC. The US conservatives will meet there for four days. Speeches and discussions will take place in rounds such as: “No Chinese balloons over Tennessee”, “Beat the left at your own game – how to exploit postal voting” and “Parents with pitchforks”. These panels at the CPAC conference sound like satire, but are on the agenda.
When Donald Trump kissed the flag
Until a few years ago, the annual meeting was still a serious rendezvous for conservative politicians. No Republican with serious ambitions passed the CPAC, where presidential candidates were bagged and buried. 2020, it was election year, Donald Trump was on the stage, walked to the obligatory US flag after his speech, hugged it, kissed it pushy and breathed an “I love you, baby” into the air. Since then, the quality of the event has not necessarily increased.
Even conservative voices complain that the CPAC is increasingly degenerating into a pure tribute to the ex-president. Late-night comedian Jimmy Kimmel quipped: “The conference begins with a 21-gun salute and the oath of allegiance to Donald Trump.”
“Display of Trump’s buffoonery”
The gradual loss of importance can also be seen in the fact that well-known Republicans are playing truant on the CPAC. Ex-Vice President Mike Pence and the third most powerful politician in the country, Kevin McCarthy, speaker of the House of Representatives, will definitely not be there. Ron DeSantis, Florida Gov. and possible presidential candidate, has appointments with major donors this weekend.
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The well-known TV presenter Sarah Elizabeth Cupp, also a Republican, described the “Conservative Political Action Conference” as a joke. The CPAC is more of a platform for Trump than for conservative debates, “a cartoonish display of his buffoonery,” Cupp said on her show Unfiltered.
In other words, conservatives who are avoiding the Washington meeting are also avoiding the ex-president – who will, of course, be present. He will give the closing speech on Sunday at 5:25 p.m. American flags have so far only been hoisted virtually this year.
$15,000 for VIP care
Participation in the event is not exactly cheap: Anyone who wants to visit all days and panels from Wednesday to Saturday pays 300 dollars. Graduation day alone costs $150 and whoever is willing Spending $15,000 gets the “Platinum Package” with VIP service and access to the “Star Lounge”. The list of speakers shows who will be there next to Donald Trump – even if the important officials are missing, a few celebrities have announced their presence.
Among others, Nikki Haley, Trump’s ambassador to the UN and now presidential candidate, will speak. As does far-right thinker and former Trump adviser Steve Bannon, top US arms lobbyist Wayne LaPierre, British far-right and Brexiteer Nigel Farage, former Brazilian leader Jair Bolsonaro, conspiracy theorist and MP Majorie Taylor Greene, and half the Trump family.
The show of right-wing America is also overshadowed by allegations against organizer Matt Schlapp. An unknown Republican accused him of “touching” his genitals during a trip to a hotel. He is now demanding nearly $10 million in compensation. Schlapp rejects the allegation and has his lawyer say: “The false accusation by an anonymous person causes unbearable suffering to the Schlapp family.”
Many US conservatives and institutions have skewed to the right in recent times, but with such a staff it is hard to imagine a White House-eligible head of state springing from the loins of these Republicans so quickly.
Sources: Jimmy Kimmel on Youtube“New York Times“, CPAC.org, ABC News, CNN“slate”