LOS ANGELES, February 24, 2018. — Peyton Manning may have led the pace car at the Daytona 500, but it was President Donald Trump who took the longest victory lap in recent memory.
Number 45’s predecessor, aka Obama, took victory laps for non-victories on a regular basis. For Trump, this one was actually earned. Trump arrived on Friday at the 2018 Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) to a hero’s welcome.
CPAC 2018 gathering begins with a battle over censorship
Gone were the “Never Trump” skeptics. Trump basked in the glow of cheering throngs because he did two things his predecessor was never able to do. Trump kept his policy promises, and his policies actually worked.
The theater that is Donald Trump
Trump’s theatrics were on full display. He offered self-deprecating humor that would have made Ronald Reagan proud. The crowd laughed, roaring in approval when Trump showed everyone his tiny bald spot.
Yet for all the humor and bluster, what matters to this crowd is results.
Trump spent nearly 80 minutes reminding the audience at CPAC and watching at home on C-SPAN about his accomplishments.
Putting Neil Gorsuch on the Supreme Court is still as big of a deal as it gets. But wait, there’s more
In 2018, the High Court is expected to rule on whether unions can keep seizing dues from people and spending those dues on political activity that the people oppose. Barring any surprises, Gorsuch may finally help deliver the knockout blow to decades of what is basically unions stealing money.
Trump’s tax cuts are already being felt. As Democrats argue about crumbs, Americans are seeing their financial lives improve. That is a tangible improvement rhetoric cannot undo.
2018 Conservative Political Action Conference at Gaylord National Harbor
ISIS has been smashed to bits because Trump’s best decision was hiring General James Mattis as Secretary of Defense. Diplomacy has been improved as well, but the only way Trump could have messed up the State Department would be to keep John Kerry.
Donald Trump at CPAC: America is far better off than we were before
Trump’s message was long, yet simple and easy to understand. America is far better off than we were one year ago, and his policies are the reason why. After eight years of anti-business hostility, America is now open for business again. Regulations are being slashed as corporate and consumer confidence soars.
Trump will still have some land mines ahead of him. The left is pushing gun control, exploiting young kids to do it. The midterms are expected to be tough based on traditional results in off-year elections.
The Russia probe about nothing has still not been shut down.
Despite all of that, Trump knows that results are what matter. He listens to his base, not CNN and MSNBC. The base is happy. Even those who insisted that Trump is a pragmatic non-ideological moderate have to be pleased.
He has governed as a fairly traditional conservative. If he keeps doing that, he may need all three days at CPAC 2019 to mercilessly mock his critics and thank his supporters.
