, Columnist
Trump’s Not-Quite-Triumphant Return
The former president's speech at CPAC showed both the roots of his appeal and the limits of it.
The speech was great; the poll, not so much.
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The former president made a semi-Trumphant return on Sunday. Donald Trump’s rapturous reception at the Conservative Political Action Conference in Orlando, Florida, made clear that the conservative movement, as well as the Republican Party, belongs to him. Yet there were also signs that his brand is tarnished.
Trump made the expected attacks on President Joe Biden and the anticipated elbow tosses at Republicans deemed either insufficiently loyal or outright treacherous. There were nods and winks to a 2024 run, when he will win for “a third time.”