“CPAC is influential,” Cusack said Monday on C-SPAN. “Neither Trump nor Vance went to this year’s CPAC, so it was less star-studded than in the past.”
Just a few members of the Trump administration spoke at CPAC, including Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, and Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche.
Trump and Vance have attended previous CPACs, where they have given impassioned speeches that rile up the base, especially during election years.
Cusack said last year’s CPAC was different because Trump was coming off a “massive” election win.
“That said, when I say it’s different than a year ago, is that you think about a year ago, the president was flying high,” Cusack said. “[He] won all seven battleground states, won the popular vote against Kamala Harris. And here, a year later, it’s different.”
Cusack pointed out that a year after Trump’s victory, there is a divide in the conservative movement with MAGA allies disagreeing with each other publicly.
“You have MAGA stalwarts fighting each other publicly,” Cusack said. “There are certain parts of MAGA that are not really pleased with this Iran war, so the president has a bit of a base problem right now.”
A core issue the president campaigned on in 2024 that resonated with voters was ending “all foreign wars.” Numerous former MAGA allies criticized Trump for the Iran war, including Tucker Carlson and Megyn Kelly.
Besides Iran, Cusack said MAGA people are unhappy with the president on gun policy and abortion rights.
“This is the first time I’ve actually seen this because President Trump really courts his base,” Cusack said. “MAGA people who are not happy with the president, and that is really going to impact [midterm] turnout for Republicans.”
FOX NEWS POLL GIVES TRUMP HIGHEST DISAPPROVAL RATING ACROSS BOTH HIS TERMS
Despite the president’s declining popularity, Cusack said there is “good news” for Republicans ahead of the midterm elections.
“They have a lot of money for the election, but they don’t have the political momentum,” Cusack said. “Talking to Republican lawmakers recently, they say, ‘It’s early, talk to me in October.’”
