Mike Pompeo, Nikki Haley Betray Donald Trump At CPAC Remarks

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OXON HILL, Md. (AP) Two top Republicans sparred with former President Donald Trump at the conservatives’ annual gathering Friday, slamming the celebrity leaders as out of step with reality as they cited winning elections that were lost as they urged the president’s course correction. party before the 2024 presidential contest.

But their refusal to call him by name underscores the dangers facing potential and declared challengers worried about alienating Trumps loyal base.

In their remarks, former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley, who both served in the Trump administration, offered a snapshot of how former presidents have declared and potential opponent in 2024 is trying to navigate his dominant role in the party while looking for ways to differentiate themselves in what could be an ugly and crowded primary contest.

We cannot be the left, following celebrity leaders with their own brand of identity politics, those with fragile egos who refuse to recognize the truth, Pompeo said in an afternoon speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference .

Haley, who launched her campaign last month, hit on similar themes, noting that the party has lost the popular vote in seven of the last eight presidential elections.

Our cause was right but we failed to win the confidence of the majority of Americans. That will end now. If you are tired of being lost, trust the new generation. And if you want to win not just as a party, but as a country, stand with me, Haley said.

As he received a standing ovation during his speech, many attendees chanted Trump! Have fun! Have fun! as he walked into the venue.

It was a sign of dissonance at the event as potential and declared challengers tried to enter a gathering that has been closely aligned with the former president. While other declared and probable candidates were offered speaking slots, Trump was given top billing as Saturday night’s headliner, and his son, Donald Trump Jr. was thronged throughout the conference by excited fans.

Haley and Pompeo were among several announced or potential Republican presidential candidates in attendance at the CPAC event, which is once a must-stop for GOP hopefuls but hasn’t gotten much this year.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, former Vice President Mike Pence and Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina skipped this year’s event because it was clouded by controversy and its overt tribute to Trump.

Like Haley, Pompeo noted recent Republican losses in recent years and blamed the party for its shortcomings.

We lost race after winnable race. It’s because voters don’t trust us to do any better than tax-and-spend liberals, he said, echoing a criticism raised by some attendees. Every recent administration, Republican and Democrat, has added trillions of dollars to our debt. That is profoundly unconservative.

More broadly, he says voters have lost faith in conservative ideas.

Losing is bad because losing is bad. But the principles we stand for are what are really at stake. And this is not a political problem. The problem is that losses are symptoms of something bigger. This is a crisis in conservatism, he said. We lost faith that we were right.

In an interview before his speech, Pompeo told The Associated Press that he’s chosen to attend this event over the years because it’s a great group of people who represent a broad swath of our party.

He dismissed the importance of Saturday’s straw poll of CPAC attendees on their 2024 presidential preference, an unscientific survey that projected Trump to win, while noting that the election is more than a year and a half away.

There is still a long way to go. Theres lots of ground to cover and I think everyone who decides to get in the race will have a lot of opportunity in the fall to make their case, said Pompeo. I am in straw polls. I did great. I didn’t do very well. I don’t think it says much about how it ends.

Pompeo, one of a long list of potential candidates, said he is still mulling a decision on whether to challenge his former boss for the nomination.

We are still working, figuring it out, he said, adding that he and his family are within months of a decision. Meanwhile, doing all the things one would do to be ready to make the case to the American people, Pompeo said.

Pompeo also said without hesitation that he would support the eventual Republican nominee, flashing, It seems unlikely that President Biden is someone I can get behind.

That contrasts with Pence, who declined to say Thursday whether he would support his former boss if Trump ends the parties in 2024.

I think there are better options, Pence told The Associated Press in an interview in South Carolina. I believe no one can beat Hillary Clinton in 2016 except Donald Trump, but I think we live in a different time and it requires different leadership.

The Republican National Committee plans to bar candidates from its primary debates if they don’t sign a pledge to support the GOPs ultimate presidential nominee, setting up a potential showdown with candidates including Trump, who raised the possibility of leaving the Republican Party and launching an independent candidacy if he does not win the GOP nomination outright.

Vivek Ramaswamy, a tech entrepreneur and author of the book Woke, Inc. who is also running for president, addressed the convention on Friday and told the AP later in an interview that he saw himself as a successor to Trump.

I am building on the foundation he laid, Ramaswamy said, adding that he is more committed to ending affirmative action and climate change mitigation than the former president. He also said he would support the GOP nominee if everyone made that commitment.

As Trump faithful gathered in Maryland, the influential anti-tax group Club For Growth, which has clashed with Trump, held a competing event in Florida to which DeSantis and others were invited but Trump was not a keen description of some on the conservative side of the parties. looking for a new direction.

David McIntosh, president of the Club For Growths, said in an interview Friday that DeSantis, who started the group’s donor summit in a speech Thursday night, has not said whether he will run for president and instead is focusing on his statements on policy issues.

He talked a lot about his victory in the last election but hasn’t hinted anything one way or the other about a presidential run, McIntosh said.

He said DeSantis was enthusiastically received by the crowd of about 150 people and spoke about his record in Florida and his vision for governing the state.

McIntosh said Pence, who was also at the event, did not indicate when he might make a decision on whether to seek the presidency. Haley, Scott and Ramaswamy are also scheduled to speak in Florida.

Associated Press writer Nicholas Riccardi contributed to this report.

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