CPAC 2016-2019: on Principles & Values
Mike Pence:
Freedom, not socialism, made America great
Speaking in front of a packed house at the 2019 Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC), Pence said that "freedom"--an apparent stand-in for capitalism--was the reason for the major global and American victories of the past two centuries. "It
was freedom, not socialism, that ended slavery, won two world wars, and stands today as the beacon of hope for all the world," Pence declared.
Source: Common Dreams e-zine on 2019 CPAC, "Freedom ended Slavery"
Mar 1, 2019
Donald Trump:
Supports religious liberty, and the motto, "In God We Trust"
Every day, we're restoring common sense and the timeless values that unite us all. We believe in the Constitution and the rule of law. We believe in the First Amendment right. And we believe in religious liberty.
And we believe strongly in the Second Amendment and the right to keep and bear arms which is under siege, folks. They have a lot of plans.
It's under siege. Be careful. But I'll protect you, I promise you that. I'll protect you. Because it all has to come through my office. And we hopefully are going to be here for six more years, so you're in good shape.
We believe in the American Dream, not in the socialist nightmare. And we believe in the words of our national motto: In God We Trust.
Source: Speech at the 2019 CPAC Convention
Mar 2, 2017
Donald Trump:
First Amendment allows us to strongly criticize fake news
I love the First Amendment; nobody loves it better than me. Nobody. I mean, who uses it more than I do? But the First Amendment gives all of us--it gives it to me, it gives it to you, it gives it to all Americans--the right to speak our minds freely.
It gives you the right and me the right to criticize fake news and criticize it strongly. And many of these groups are part the large media corporations that have their own agenda and it's not
your agenda and it's not the country's agenda, it's their own agenda. They have a professional obligation as members of the press to report honestly. But as you saw throughout the entire campaign, and even now, the fake news doesn't tell the truth.
Doesn't tell the truth. Doesn't represent the people. Never will. We have to go out and we have to speak our minds and we have to be honest.
Source: Speech at the 2017 CPAC Convention
Feb 24, 2017
Rand Paul:
Elect lovers of liberty, not just Republicans
Imagine with me for a moment, imagine a time when liberty is again spread from coast to coast. Imagine a time when our great country is again governed by the Constitution. Imagine a time when the White House is once again occupied by a friend of liberty.
You may think I'm talking about electing Republicans. I'm not. I'm talking about electing lovers of liberty.It isn't good enough to pick the lesser of two evils. We must elect men and women of principle, and conviction and action, who will lead us
back to greatness. There is a great and tumultuous battle underway for the future, not of the Republican Party but the future of the entire country.
Will you, America's next generation of liberty lovers, will you stand and be heard?
There's a battle going on. Don't forget, there is a great battle going on for the heart and soul of America. The Fourth Amendment is equally as important as the Second Amendment, and conservatives cannot forget this.
Source: Speech at 2014 CPAC convention
Mar 8, 2014
Rick Perry:
It is time for a little rebellion on battlefield of ideas
I am reminded this morning of words that speak to the American soul: words spoken by Thomas Jefferson, who said "a little rebellion now and then is a good thing."My friends, our country is in peril. Our debt is at record amounts. Our economic
recovery is stagnant. Our place in the world weakened. So I have a simple suggestion--It is time for a little rebellion on the battlefield of ideas.
But instead of looking to Washington to find the front lines of this battle, I ask you to look to the
states, where we find the laboratories of innovation, and 50 different experiments in democracy taking place. Among the states we see two visions for America. There's the vision common in blue states, where the state plays an increasing role
in the lives of its citizens. And then there's the vision common to red state America where the freedom of the individual comes first, and the reach of government is limited.
Source: Speech at 2014 CPAC convention
Mar 8, 2014
Sarah Palin:
Duck Dynasty: fired for expressing devout Christian views
Remember when our buddy from Duck Dynasty, Phil--remember this? Here's Phil, he's talking about faith with a reporter from GQ, first mistake, but in between saying he loves humanity, he loves sinners, and leave it to God to judge. Well, he quoted the
Bible and he got colorful with expressing his opinion, so what did that brilliant TV network do? They fired him. They canned the devout Christian for expressing his devout Christian views on a television show about his devout Christian family.
In another time though, that might have been it. Phil would have stayed fired, but not now, not this time, people all over America knew. It wasn't just wingers and clingers, people all over America knew that Phil's right to express himself, that fight
that he had to undertake, well, that was all about our right to express ourselves. His fight was our fight and we pushed back and we won. And now everyone is happy, happy, happy.
Source: Speech at 2014 CPAC convention
Mar 8, 2014
Ted Cruz:
We win elections by bold principles & a positive agenda
How do we win elections? In the contrast between corrupt Washington and the American people, we stand with the American people. We stand with a straight-forward and bold and positive agenda to inspire the young, to inspire women, to inspire Hispanics--
to inspire everybody.- Defend the Constitution--all of it.
- We need to abolish the IRS. We need to adopt a simple flat tax.
- We need to expand energy in this country and expand high-paying jobs all over America.
-
We need to expand school choice.
- We need to repeal Dodd-Frank.
- We need to audit the Federal Reserve.
- We need to pass a strong balanced budget amendment.
- We need to repeal every single word of ObamaCare.
- We need to stop the lawlessness [of
Obama and ObamaCare].
- We need to end the corruption.
A friend of mine suggested a bumper sticker slogan, "Republicans, we waste less." You win elections by standing for principle, inspiring people that there is a better tomorrow.
Source: Speech at 2014 CPAC convention
Mar 7, 2014
Paul Ryan:
Tea Party & libertarians bring "creative tension" to GOP
In his CPAC speech, Ryan celebrates the "messy and noisy" debate currently consuming the Republican Party, and cast the infighting as a necessary step to shape a fresh conservative agenda for the country: "The way the Left tells it, the Republican Party
is in a civil war," Ryan says. "It's Tea Party versus establishment--libertarians versus social conservatives."He compares today's intra-party squabbling to the beginning of the Reagan revolution, when a "battle of ideas" gave way to a long period of
conservative dominance in American politics: "We're figuring out the best way to apply our principles to the challenges of the day," Ryan says. "Sure, we have our disagreements. And yes, they can get a little passionate. I like to think of it
as 'creative tension.' That's how it always is: You fight it out. You figure out what works. You come together. Then you win. It's messy and noisy and even a little bit uncomfortable. But the center of gravity is shifting. We're developing an agenda."
Source: Buzzfeed weblog on 2014 CPAC convention
Mar 6, 2014
Paul Ryan:
The left offers people a full stomach and an empty soul
Ryan speech to CPAC: "The left is making a big mistake here. What they're offering people is a full stomach and an empty soul. The American people want more than that. This reminds me of a story I heard from Eloise Anderson. She serves in the cabinet of
my buddy, Governor Scott Walker. She once met a young boy from a very poor family, and every day at school, he would get a free lunch from a government program. He told Eloise he didn't want a free lunch. He wanted his own lunch, one in a brown-paper bag
just like the other kids. He wanted one, he said, because he knew a kid with a brown-paper bag had someone who cared for him. This is what the left does not understand."FactCheck: Did Anderson ever meet such a child? On July 31, 2013, she testified to
Congress [and told that same story].
Had she actually met this boy? Her spokesperson said she misspoke; the story came from a TV interview 25 years ago. When we told Ryan, he posted a notice saying, "I regret failing to verify the original story."
Source: Wash. Post FactCheck on 2014 CPAC convention
Mar 6, 2014
Page last updated: Jul 26, 2019