This month’s Conservative Political Action Conference is expected to break attendance records as it signals the start of the 2020 presidential election and poses the question of whether President Trump is making good on his promise to “Make America Great Again.”
The theme for CPAC 2019 pulls no punches in answering that question. It is: “What Makes America Great.”
16 days to @CPAC !!! pic.twitter.com/Py8yZNQ4Af
— Daniel Schneider (@Schneider_DC) February 11, 2019
Already one of the largest conventions of its kind, the American Conservative Union, which is organizing the Feb. 27-March 2 at the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center just outside Washington, is expecting to draw a record 10,000 amid signs of increased activism among conservatives energized by the Brett Kavanaugh Supreme Court confirmation hearings.
The president and vice president are expected to speak, as are dozens of top-tier lawmakers, media figures, and even sports stars like New Orleans Saints linebacker Demario Davis.
And in a timely alignment of issues, the race and sex scandals now plaguing Virginia Democrats will get center stage as CPAC speakers and panelists put a focus on human dignity during the event at the convention center on the banks of the Potomac River just upstream from George Washington’s home of Mount Vernon.
CPAC spokesman Ian Walters said the overall theme of “What Makes America Great” is in part a turn on the president’s “MAGA” theme from the 2016 presidential campaign and also a way to highlight GOP optimism versus the sometimes gloomy view of Trump critics.
“The Left is always so down on America,” he said.
The events are being built around four key issues:
- Self-government and civil society, with a focus on voter participation.
- Free markets, and how the help the economy.
- War on humanity, touching on abortion and life issues.
- National security, including a spotlight on Israel.
It’s not just his lifetime #ACUFrating of 99% that makes @SenMikeLee a true conservative champion: it’s also his devotion to the Constitution and his passion for working toward solutions that best achieve our nation’s founders’ vision for America. He knows #WhatMakesAmericaGreat pic.twitter.com/kqF8YaOsVc
— Matt Schlapp (@mschlapp) February 8, 2019
Several panels will also highlight gun rights, faith, and Trump’s bipartisan victory on criminal justice reform. As in the past, CPAC will open Wednesday with an activist boot camp for about 1,000.
There will also be three satellite CPACs at California’s Pepperdine University, Colorado Christian University, and Virginia’s Liberty University. Several political stars are expected to speak to the Gaylord audience from those schools including Donald Trump Jr. from Liberty.
CPAC has been thriving and growing ever since former President Ronald Reagan attended it during his first year in office, 1981. His son, Michael, said: “Over time, the lonely walk begun by Barry Goldwater, the editors of National Review, and most definitely the American Conservative Union, became a march of millions.”
This year, organizers said that last fall’s fight over Kavanaugh has drawn back conservative activists who had fallen off in past years.
“Something happened during the Kavanaugh hearings that got a lot of conservatives to get over their petty disagreements and get back into the fight,” said Walters.
