WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) — The Conservative Political Action Conference, or CPAC, kicked off Thursday outside Washington, D.C., with a speech by Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.).
Donalds stressed that he is willing to allow the government to close unless there is a border agreement.
“Decide, Mr. President, do you want to close Mount Rushmore so that the southern border is open?” He said. In January, Donalds was an outspoken opponent of a bipartisan border agreement that took months for Senate Republicans to negotiate.
He also touched on a popular topic today: gender identity.
“Little boys are little boys. Little girls are little girls,” Donalds said. “When I was a little kid, I loved little girls. This is good. This is the natural order that keeps society moving.
Rep. Donalds is rumored to be on the short list of potential vice presidential nominees to join the ticket with Donald Trump, if he is the Republican presidential nominee.
If Trump is at the top of the ticket, Donald's choice could complicate the electoral process due to the 12th Amendment. Electoral College electors are prohibited from voting for president and vice president from the same state. Trump is now registered in Florida, Donalds' home state.
Matt Schlapp, president of the American Conservative Union, hosted CPAC again amid multiple allegations of sexual assault.
Schlapp has been a leader of CPAC since 2014 and in recent years the event has turned into the culture wars. In 2022, a symposium was held at which a banner was raised that read, “We are all domestic terrorists.” Thursday's segments included “Catfight? Michelle vs. Kamala,” “Going full Hungarian: Stopping George Soros” and “Will Moses go to Harvard?”
This year's theme for CPAC was called “The Place Where Globalization Will Die.”
In a segment titled “No Woke Warriors,” Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) spoke with anchor Ben Ferguson and touched on talking points that were consistent throughout the day: trans kids, the southern border, cutting aid to Ukraine, and parental abuse. Rights, which are often invoked when books are banned in schools.
“I've been here three years and witnessed all this chaos,” Tuberville drawled. “And it starts with what's going on with our family, with our kids, and with this crazy idea about sex.”
The crowd frequently erupted in “Free January 6!” Chants throughout the day, likely referring to those convicted of crimes for their involvement in the attack on the Capitol in 2021.
Donald Trump is still awaiting the Supreme Court's ruling on his claim for presidential immunity in the special counsel case on January 6. Donald Trump is scheduled to appear before CPAC on Saturday. Instead of being in South Carolina, he will attend the Republican presidential primary.
