Steve Bannon, Mike Lindell, And Jack Posobiec to Join Trump In Addressing CPAC This Week
Former President Donald Trump will headline the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) later this week, but instead of being joined by a cross-section of the Republican Party, the conference will primarily feature MAGA loyalists – including hardright figures and known conspiracy theorists.
The conference will kick off Wednesday with an event hosted by Steve Bannon’s far-right podcast War Room, which is very influential with the MAGA base and a regular stop for MAGA leaders running for office.
MyPillow CEO and avid 2020 election denier Mike Lindell will also speak at the conference as will Pizzagate conspiracy theorist Jack Posobiec. Posobiec made a name for himself on the far-right in 2016 by claiming top Democrats were running a child sex trafficking ring out of a DC pizza parlor. The widely debunked conspiracy theory resulted in a man firing a gun in the pizza parlor in an effort to stop the phony trafficking as well as long-term harassment of the restaurant’s owners.
Reps. Jim Jordan (R-OH) and Matt Gaetz (R-FL) will also speak at the conference, as will Sens. J.D. Vance (R-OH) and Tommy Tuberville (R-AL). Vivek Ramaswamy is the only 2024 presidential candidate (other than Trump) on the list of speakers. South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem is the only GOP governor to join the conference, a far cry from CPACs of the past.
Matt Schlapp, the chairman of the American Conservative Union which puts on CPAC, will also speak at the conference. Schlapp is currently facing multiple accusations of sexual assault and a $9 million lawsuit from a former staffer over alleged sexual misconduct.
CPAC’s waning influence on the right led the National Review to ponder, “Should Conservatives Care about CPAC?” Henry Olsen wrote, “Clearly many elements of the populist wing do, as evidenced by their fervid attendance and the degree to which MAGA stars flock to preach to the faithful. Others, such as Reaganite fusionists or the libertarian-leaning element, look elsewhere for intellectual sustenance and companionship. The movement, once united in ends albeit divided over means or priorities, is now rent asunder.”
Olsen called CPAC a “MAGA carnival” and added:
CPAC crowds are smaller than they used to be and think tanks are virtually absent. Leading conservative stalwarts such as Morton Blackwell and Charlie Gerow have resigned from CPAC’s board, and even longtime anti-tax activist Grover Norquist has said that “CPAC stopped being a useful part of the movement long ago.” When you’ve lost Grover, you’ve lost the plot.
CPAC’s agenda includes sessions like “What You Talkin Bout Fani Willis” (featuring Jim Jordan), “Combating Human Trafficking,” “Does Congress Even Matter,” and “Trump: Our Ace in the Hole.”
One session in particular raised some eyebrows online, titled, “Cat Fight? Michelle vs. Kamala.” CNN’s Edward-Isaac Dovere commented on the session and noted it includes “A bunch of people with no connection to either person, commenting on a fight that doesn’t and won’t exist.”
Bannon is also set to be the last speaker on Saturday before a watch party for the South Carolina primary, in which Trump is heavily favored to defeat Nikki Haley in her home state.
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