NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is missing out this week by dodging the country’s conservative activists, says Mercedes Schlapp, senior fellow at the CPAC Foundation and wife to Matt Schlapp, chairman of the American Conservative Union.
“We invited Ron DeSantis to come. He’s been a friend to CPAC. He’s spoken at CPAC before. Look, I think for DeSantis it’s a missed opportunity for him not to be at CPAC,” Mrs. Schlapp told The Washington Times. “This is CPAC. It is the heart of the movement. This is where all the grassroots activists come from all over the country. And they want to hear from the leaders of our party.”
Mr. DeSantis has not announced his 2024 presidential launch, although many expect him to do so. Instead of appearing at CPAC this week, he will be at a private event in Florida hosted by an anti-Donald Trump group. The event is happening at the same time as the Conservative Political Action Conference near Washington, where former President Trump is expected to speak Saturday.
Mr. Trump was not invited by the Club for Growth to its annual retreat for donors at the Breakers Hotel in Palm Beach, Florida. The event runs from Thursday through Saturday, and the list of attendees includes more potential 2024 GOP hopefuls than the CPAC roster.
In addition to prospective presidential candidates, about 100 “significant” donors plan to attend the Club for Growth event, according to a source familiar with the details.
Mrs. Schlapp listed Republican presidential candidates speaking at CPAC whom activists are excited to see.
“I just think President Trump is a sentimental favorite in a lot of ways. And at the same time, we have Nikki Haley coming, which I think is wonderful. I think she’s a very charismatic candidate,” she said. “And Vivek Ramaswamy, who, as we know, also has really bold ideas as to stop the woke agenda here in America.”
More than 30 members of Congress are scheduled to attend CPAC along with several international leaders.
