Conservative Political Action Conference head Matt Schlapp and his wife, CPAC host Mercedes Schlapp, said on Newsmax on Thursday that not attending the event is "a missed opportunity in presidential politics."
Mercedes Schlapp said on "Wake Up America" that former President Donald Trump "is one of the sentimental favorites here at CPAC," which will be held in Washington this week.
She added: "We have other announced presidential candidates also speaking, including [former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations] Nikki Haley and Vivek Ramaswamy. Donald Trump obviously wants to talk about the America First agenda, how it was successful under his presidency, that in contrast to [President] Joe Biden and the America last policy, so it's going to be interesting to see how long the speech will go.
"President Trump is known for going very long at CPAC, sometimes two hours, so I think it's going to be something to watch. We have great speakers, including [Ohio Republican Rep.] Jim Jordan basically launching CPAC today."
When asked about Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis not attending the conference, Matt Schlapp said: "I think it's a missed opportunity in presidential politics. Talk is cheap.
"It's about getting in and then showing up at places like CPAC and making your pitch, and we're glad that we have all the announced presidential candidates. … We have other people that are talking about running, like [former Secretary of State] Mike Pompeo."
Matt Schlapp added: "I have a high regard for Ron DeSantis. He had a near-perfect voting record in the House of Representatives. He's been a fabulous governor of Florida, called him America's governor.
"He's been very courageous, and if he runs for president, he's going to have to show up at places like this. He's going to have to compete like in our straw poll. And that's our process, and we're just very gratified that President Trump is coming."
Theodore Bunker ✉
Theodore Bunker, a Newsmax writer, has more than a decade covering news, media, and politics.
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