Trump’s CPAC Speech Delivers More Of The Same Lies, Makes Clear GOP Civil War Is Alive And Well
March 1, 2021
Yesterday, Trump delivered a low-energy speech at CPAC that was just more of the same. Trump continued to lie about the election, rewrite history on his failed pandemic response, and make clear that the GOP civil war is still alive and well.
At CPAC, Trump gave a low-energy speech that was just more of the same.
Vox’s Aaron Rupar: “you guys realize Trump is just going to deliver the same exact speech he’s done for the 5 years, right? he only knows how to do one speech”
Politico’s Anita Kumar: “Even the music is the same…”
NBC News’s Ali Vitali: “Honestly? I’ve watched hundreds of Trump rallies. Given how long it’s been since he spoke, it seemed fair to think he might have a lot of energy pent up and a lot to say (on and off script). But his energy seems kind of low about 30 mins in.”
Trump made clear that the Republican Party civil war is alive and well.
New York Times: “After days of insisting they could paper over their intraparty divisions, Republican lawmakers were met with a grim reminder of the challenge ahead on Sunday when former President Donald J. Trump stood before a conservative conference and ominously listed the names of Republicans he is targeting for defeat.”
Trump continued to lie about his election defeat and made clear he won’t stop trying to suppress the vote.
ABC News: “If some in the Republican Party hoped the former president would move on from 2020, Trump quickly made clear he plans to continue to stoke the false election claims well into the future, pushing many of the same debunked claims he pushed in the lead up to the deadly Capitol attack on Jan. 6.”
CNN: “Donald Trump has no remorse about the deadly violence he incited with his lies about a stolen election in his uprising against the US Congress. This much was clear when the ex-President put the Republican Party on notice on Sunday that he intends to use his hold on its grassroots to try to suppress the vote heading into the presidential election in 2024, in which he hinted he might run.”
Trump kept up his revisionist history for his failed pandemic response.
CNN: “Trump’s speech at CPAC also gave him another shot at revisionist history about his handling of the Covid-19 pandemic not long after the nation marked 500,000 deaths from coronavirus.”
The only thing that changed is Trump’s diminishing support among even his most devoted followers.
New York Times’s Maggie Haberman: “Jim McLaughlin is portraying this unscientific straw poll of cpac attendees as unalloyed good news for Trump a few minutes before Trump takes the stage. But less than 2/3 of those polled at this devoted crowd say they want him to be the nominee again.”
ABC News’s Will Steakin: “Seems pretty low for Trump at conference that has a golden statue of him!!”