NATIONAL HARBOR, MD — Addressing a full capacity Potomac Ballroom inside the Gaylord National Harbor, President Donald Trump continued his annual tradition started in 2011 of addressing CPAC and, as expected, it was a quintessential Trump speech with riffs attacking everyone from Hillary Clinton to the liberal media to Robert Mueller, Jeff Sessions, and critics writ large for peddling “b***s***.”
The President first went after the press almost 15 minutes into his long, rambling, two-hour-and-two-minute speech when he doubled down on his plea from the campaign for Russia to hack and steal Hillary Clinton’s e-mails and then mocked the media reaction to this pronouncement that’s been at the center of arguments the Trump camp colluded with Russia.
“So everyone is having a good time, I’m laughing, we’re having fun and then that fake CNN and others say: ‘He asked Russia to go get the e-mails. Horrible!’ I mean, I saw it like two weeks ago. I’m watching and they are talking about one of points. He asked Russia for the e-mails,” Trump complained.
With the crowd bursting into laughter, the President decried the media as “sick” “people” who are “dirty” and “know the game”: “They know the game and they play it dirty. Dirtier than anyone who’s played the game. Dirtier than it’s ever been played.”
Trump took other a few other shots at the media, but the other extended riff came about 15 minutes later when he lambasted The Washington Post and reporter Dave Weigel for his cheap attempt to distort the crowd size of a Trump rally.
The President falsely asserted that Weigel did this with the size of a Houston, Texas rally ahead of the 2018 midterms, but actually took place on December 8, 2017 in Pensacola, Florida.
Nonetheless, the President noted that Weigel showed up hours ahead of time and took a picture of an empty arena to then assert that the President hadn’t drawn a large crowd.
“And you know who really got even? Our people because they were incensed. We had people sitting on the stairwells. We had people sitting in every seat,” the President added, alluding to the backlash against Weigel.
Before resurrecting an arguably tiresome debate about the size of his inauguration crowd, Trump concluded with the claim that a conservative journalist would have been fired if they had done the same and how, of course, Weigel wasn’t axed (even though he apologized) (click “expand”):
And by the way, just to finish that story, the great Sarah Huckabee and Mercedes, who is incredible, sitting right there. Mercedes, thank you. I always say — you know, they’re good people. Much better than I. They always say: “Don't bring it up. Don't fight. Don’t fight.” Everyone understands. They don't understand, if I don't explain it, how are they going to understand? So, remember the empty arena one? And then they were shown and The Washington Post had to do — and this particular writer, had to do a — I thought he was going to get fired. I mean, if that were a conservative, he would have been fired on the spot. He would have been humiliated for what he did because it was fake news. Nobody was in the arena. There were thousands outside, but they hadn’t opened the gates yet.
Rewinding to the beginning, perhaps the best indicator that it would be barn burner of rare, red meat for his most diehard Make America Great Again supporters was when Trump walked out on stage and, after acknowledging the audience, he promptly hugged the American flag on-stage and even swayed with it as it to share a dance with it.
CPAC 2019 is a far cry from when Trump addressed the 2011 gathering at the Washington Marriott Wardman Park in a last-minute announcement that probably left more than a few people puzzled. If it wasn’t clear in 2017 or 2018, the Trumpification of CPAC is complete with the conference’s 2019 gathering with speaker after speaker singing the virtues of the President on every possible policy issue.
And considering the speakers list and the endless praise for the President and his accomplishments covered and not covered by the liberal media, it’s impossible to see things changing anytime soon.
To see the relevant transcript from CPAC 2019 on March 2, click “expand.”
CPAC 2019
March 2, 2019
12:28 p.m. EasternPRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: Then in 1913, they ended tarrifs. They ended tariffs. Somebody got stupid and they ended tariffs. They said: “Oh, it’s okay for other nations to come in.” I won’t use a certain word because it’s not politically — but everyone knows the word I’d love to use. Should I use it? I won't do it. [CHEERS AND APPLAUSE] Our great First Lady always said, don't use certain words, please” I said: ‘But the audience wanted me to do it.” She said: “Don't do it!” [CHEERS AND APPLAUSE] And the problem is, if I do do that, they won’t put the little preamble. They’ll just use the word and they’ll say: “Isn't that terrible?” So I won't use it. I’ve learned because with the fake news — [BOOING] if you tell a joke, if you’re sarcastic, if you're having fun with the audience, if you’re on live television with millions of people and 25,000 people, in an arena and if you say something like Russia please, if you can, it is Hillary Clinton's e-mails! Please, Russia, please! [CHEERS AND APPLAUSE] Please, get us the e-mails! Please! [CHEERS AND APPLAUSE] [CROWD CHANTING “LOCK HER UP”] So everyone is having a good time, I’m laughing, we’re having fun and then that fake CNN and others say, “he asked Russia to go get the e-mails. Horrible!” I mean, I saw it like two weeks ago. I’m watching and they are talking about one of points. He asked Russia for the e-mails. These people are sick and I'm telling you — [LAUGHTER] — They know the game. They know the game and they play it dirty. Dirtier than anyone who’s played the game. Dirtier than it’s ever been played.
(....)
(....)
12:45 p.m. Eastern
TRUMP: In Texas, we had 109,000 people sign up. We used the Houston Rockets’s arena. It holds 22,000. Tens of thousands were outside. We were sending notices, “please don't come.” That's a little different. Usually people are begging, can somebody come? We never had an empty seat. Of course, The Washington Post — a guy named David Weigel — he wrote an article. A summary — listen to this. He wrote an article. He got there four hours early, took a picture of an empty arena. He then put out a note to the effect: “Not very good crowd size, Mr. President.” And I never saw it because I don't follow the guy, but the thousands of the people that were in that arena that was packed with 25,000 people outside that could not get in. He got in four hours early because he doesn't fly private, you know? [LAUGHTER] And maybe it is because of the carbon footprint, you think maybe that’s the — must be the carbon footprint he just doesn’t want a problem. He got there four hours early and, you know, the police hadn’t started taking the people — they weren’t taking them in. So, there were virtually nobody. [sic] And you know, whatever it was, 18,000, when you had nobody, it is a little scary looking, so you took pictures. And you know who really got even? Our people because they were incensed. We had people sitting on the stairwells. We had people sitting in every seat. I don't think we had an empty seat since we announced, and from the day we came down the escalator, I really don’t believe we had an empty seat at any arena, any stadium. It’s been an incredible thing and that’s why I say: This has never, ever happened before and now, we have to verify it in 2020 with an even bigger victory. [CHEERS AND APPLAUSE] [CROWD CHANTS “FOUR MORE YEARS”] And by the way, just to finish that story, the great Sarah Huckabee and Mercedes, who is incredible, sitting right there. Mercedes, thank you. I always say — you know, they’re good people. Much better than I. They always say: “Don't bring it up. Don't fight. Don’t fight.” Everyone understands. They don't understand, if I don't explain it, how are they going to understand? So, remember the empty arena one? And then they were shown and The Washington Post had to do — and this particular writer, had to do a — I thought he was going to get fired. I mean, if that were a conservative, he would have been fired on the spot. He would have been humiliated for what he did because it was fake news. Nobody was in the arena. There were thousands outside, but they hadn’t opened the gates yet.
