“President of the United States Donald J. Trump at CPAC by Michael Vadon” by Michael Vadon is licensed under CC BY 2.0
Former President Donald Trump has been seemingly M.I.A. since the Capitol building riots that led to his social media shutdown. One of Twitter’s most popular users has been silent on all platforms for about two months, missing from the public eye that watches and reports his every move. This was out of character for the ostentatious former president. However, the organizers at the 2021 Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) invited the controversial figure to speak on the state of the party.
“Do you miss me yet? Do you miss me?” These were the first words the former president spoke before bashing the new administration. Trump’s speech at the conference resembled many of his past speeches from his presidential term. He reminded the conference of his “Make America Great Again” mindset.
Trump took the opportunity to address the end of his presidency to the country. Among many other topics, he discussed the question of him forming a new political party, which his followers were pushing for. He shut that claim down by saying that forming a new party would only divide the country further. Trump says he wants unity in the country.
The speech resembled many of his old rallies from his presidential campaign and his presidency. The crowd was lively, with chants and applause. Similar to his rallies in 2015 and 2016, he was unscripted. He did not have to appear presidential and he made that clear throughout.
Trump also decided to give his hot take on social issues. “I think it’s crazy, I think it’s crazy what’s happening. We must protect the integrity of women’s sports,” is what Trump said about transgender women playing in female sports. After this, he said that he has much more controversial perspectives to share. Trump rejected ‘Cancel Culture’ and said that we need to put America first. He was then met with a standing ovation from the audience. Even more applause and chants arose when he claimed that he won the election twice, which has been proven false numerous times. Trump called for election reforms, blaming COVID-19 and the Democrat Party for a lack of integrity. “We need one election day, not forty-five or thirty.”
Trump commented on “Trumpism,” which is what he called “great trade deals.” It is a political style in the fashion of Trump’s presidency and administration tactics. “It means strong borders. It means no riots in the streets. It means law enforcement. It means very strong protection for the second amendment.” The former president drove home the ideology he has made himself known.
Closing up his speech, he announced the many accomplishments of his presidency that were overlooked by the controversies he left with. Despite being impeached twice, he said he left with a very high approval rating. His approval ratings were, in fact, very low. “Nobody’s ever had things like we had.” Trump later remarked on how poorly the Biden administration was doing in comparison to him.
“American Flag” by JeepersMedia is licensed under CC BY 2.0
Trump’s followers were happy to hear his indirect mention of his future plans. He hinted that he might be running for president again in 2024. By then he will be 78 years old. This would make him the oldest president in American history if he were to win.
