Let Trump open the possibility of re-election in 2024

He delivered a speech Sunday afternoon at the annual Conservative Political Action Conference in Orlando, Florida, where hundreds of Republicans, among the party’s most ardent, had gathered. This was his first major speech since losing the presidency to Democrat Joe Biden.

“I stand before you today to declare that the extraordinary journey we embarked on together four years ago is far from complete,” Trump said.

“We have gathered this afternoon to talk about the future – the future of our movement, the future of our party and the future of our beloved country,” he said.

But Mr. Trump also affirmed his intention as the party’s dominant figure, leaving open the option of running again after three years for another four-year term in the White House.

“Who knows. “I can decide to defeat the Democrats for the third time,” the former president said to the applause of those present, reiterating his unsubstantiated claim that he had won the November 2020 election.

He argued that the party was “united”, despite some Republican lawmakers saying they should bypass the former president, whose only term ended in fruitless election protests and the January 6 riots in the Capitol.

The former president said he had no plans to form a new party to compete with the Republican Party, adding that such announcements were “fake news”.

THE BATTLE WITHIN THE REPUBLICS

A battle is raging within the Republican Party, where some of the figures known as Senate minority leader Mitch McConnell want to bypass Mr. Trump, while others, like former president ally Senator Lindsey Graham, believe the party’s future depends on the energy of the pro-Trump conservative base.

The results of a poll conducted with conference participants gave Mr. Trump a strong 55 percent support, saying they would vote for him in the 2024 Republican presidential nomination race. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis stepped down. second with 21 percent.

Without Mr. Trump, DeSantis led with 43 percent among the other candidates, who received far fewer votes.

But not everyone supported Mr. Trump. One poll question was whether Trump should run again in 2024 and the result was mixed: 68 per cent said he should run while 32 per cent were against or without any opinion.

Mr. Trump’s statements at the conference at least serve to deter any other potential Republican candidate for 2024, such as Senators Marco Rubio, Ted Cruz and Tom Cotton, former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley, or others aspiring to the presidency.

Mr. Trump’s future as the country’s dominant Republican figure remains an open question. He is the only president in U.S. history to be twice charged with dismissal from the House of Representatives and to have been acquitted both times. It is also the first president in 90 years to lose political control of the White House and both houses of Congress in a single term in office.

Conservatives at the three-day conference have hailed the mention of his name. Many have even posed for pictures with a large golden statue of his face that was carved in Mexico and that walked the conference hall.

In early February, the Senate voted 57-43, with seven Republicans joining all 50 Democrats, to find Mr. Trump guilty of inciting a crowd of hundreds of supporters who attacked the Capitol as lawmakers were certifying his election defeat. However, the Senate did not reach the two-thirds majority needed to plead guilty.

The riot left five dead, including a Capitol Police officer. More than 200 protesters have been arrested as the investigation continues.

The Republican conference was one of the most prominent annual rallies for the Conservatives and came at a time of growing debate within the Republican Party over whether or not to distance itself from the former president or continue to link her future to him.

Mr. Trump has signaled he will try to tarnish the political image of the 10 Republicans in the House of Representatives who voted to remove him in January, a week before he left office, and seven others in the Senate who voted in favor of his acquittal. .

Senator Mitch McConnell, the leader of the Senate Republican minority, voted to acquit Mr. Trump in court, but then sharply criticized the former president for his role in inciting the Capitol attack, where protesters smashed windows, destroyed Congressional offices and clashed with police.

Senator McConnell said Mr. Trump was “practically and morally responsible for provoking the events” that led to the Capitol riots.

Trump responded, portraying the senator as a diligent politician who never smiles, and said if Republican senators stay with McConnell, “they will not win again.”

However, Senator McConnell said last week that he would support Mr. Trump for the presidency if Republican voters nominate him again in 2024.

Asked if Trump still controls the Republican Party, Florida Sen. Rick Scott told Fox News Sunday that it was a “voter party.” But he added that he believes Mr. Trump will “be useful” in the near future.

“We are on the right side of things, while the Democrats are on the wrong side,” said Senator Scott.

A Republican lawmaker who voted to convict Mr. Trump, Louisiana Sen. Bill Cassidy, told CNN that if Republicans reclaim the White House after four years, “it’s because we’re talking about issues, not putting one person (Trump ) on a pedestal. ”

“The current conference does not represent the entire Republican Party,” he said. “If we idolize a single man then we will lose.” “I do not think he will be our nominee,” the senator said. “We need a man who works for everyone.”

ATTACKS AGAINST THE PRESIDENCY

Mr Trump’s speech included attacks on President Biden, in an attempt to position himself as the new president’s main critic, on issues such as immigration and security along the U.S. border with Mexico or the slow reopening of closed schools due to pandemic.

“We all knew the Biden administration would be bad – but none of us imagined how bad it would be and how far it would go,” said former President Trump. “Joe Biden has had his first month more catastrophic than any president in modern history,” he said.

The White House has made it clear that it will not pay attention to the speech.

“Our focus is certainly not on what President Trump says,” White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki told reporters last week.

Early national polls show voters give wide approval to Mr Biden’s first month in office, including some Republicans. But former President Trump, even if widely rejected by Democrats and a majority of independents, remains quite popular among many Republican voters.

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