President Trump to address CPAC on the theme of 'appreciation'

President Trump addressed a Republican retreat in Philadelphia in January.

(Image credit: NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP/Getty Images)

last updated 24 February 2017

President Trump is set to take the stage at the Conservative Political Action Conference on Friday. While Trump pulled out of speaking at the conference in 2016 at the last minute, he addressed the group in 2011, where he was booed for claiming Sen. Ron Paul could not get elected. He also spoke at the conference in 2013, 2014, and 2015.

White House chief strategist Stephen Bannon teased Trump's speech to the crowd Thursday, hinting that the theme would be "appreciation," Fox News reports.

Others are looking to Trump's speech as a signpost of what to expect from his administration. "Trump may either accomplish more than Republican presidents did in terms of a conservative agenda, despite all the chaos and drama … or he will redefine conservatism," Rick Tyler, a GOP strategist, told NPR. "The movement is at a crossroads, and it remains a known unknown where it is going." Trump speaks at 10 a.m. and will be broadcast live on C-SPAN and cable news channels.

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Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.