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Donald Trump, who speaks Saturday, is the headliner at the convention.Nikki Haley, who also recently announced her candidacy for president, will also speak.
But perhaps even more notable is who won’t be in attendance—on the stage or otherwise.
Other top GOP officials have also abandoned the event, with Politico reporting that no members of the Senate or House leadership—with the exception of Rep. Elise Stefanik—will be in attendance, while Idaho Gov. Brad Little is expected to be the only Republican governor at CPAC.
As it does each year, CPAC will conclude with a straw poll of attendees, the results of which often help indicate how candidates could fare in a general election. But as one Republican strategist told Politico, with Trump headlining the event and few others in attendance, it could prove “to be a less accurate indication of where the grassroots are than in years past.”
In other words, “You have to take the results with a grain of salt,” the strategist added.
The diminished attendance of the event comes just weeks after Matt Schlapp, a longtime Republican activist and the organizer of CPAC, was accused of “groping” a male staffer for Walker’s campaign during a trip to Georgia. Schlapp has denied the accusations.
It allegedly began with Schlapp “inappropriately” intruding the staffer’s personal space at two different bars. The men were reportedly out in Atlanta getting drinks to discuss the staffer’s political future.
When the staffer was driving Schlapp back to a hotel, he said Schlapp placed a hand on his leg, then “fondled” his crotch. The staffer told the Beast he was frozen in shock, adding that the event was “scarring” and “humiliating.”
The staffer claimed he then denied an invitation to Schlapp’s room at the hotel and left “as quickly as I could.”
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Schlapp did not respond to questions from reporters when asked about the accusations at CPAC this week.
source: people.com
