If my calculations are correct, CPAC 2022 will be my sixth CPAC.
I’ve always loved going. Sometimes I’ve gone as media, other times as an author for a book signing. Whenever I’ve gone, it’s been a blast. In addition to getting to hang out with friends, it’s an opportunity to hear some of the most important voices in the conservative movement.
So, naturally, I was a bit surprised when I learned on Monday morning that former Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-Hawaii) was confirmed to be a speaker.
CONFIRMED: @TulsiGabbard pic.twitter.com/JqaL0byn8U
— Matt Schlapp (@mschlapp) February 21, 2022
In addition to being a former Democrat congresswoman, Gabbard is also a former 2020 Democratic presidential candidate.
So what is she doing at CPAC?
She’s not just an ordinary speaker either. She’s headlining the annual Ronald Reagan Dinner, according to a report from the Washington Examiner.
Don’t get me wrong–as far as Democrats go, Tulsi Gabbard is one of the better ones. Last year, I wrote an article praising her as a beacon of sanity in a party that has otherwise gone completely insane. I still believe it. If more Democrats were like her, this country would be much better off. She understands that there are biological differences between men and women. She sounded the alarm about the left plotting “KGB-style surveillance” of conservatives. She understands that obsessing about race is divisive, not inclusive. She even defended Kyle Rittenhouse. And, of course, she’s been regularly critical of Joe Biden–something few in her party seem capable of.
Related: Why Can’t Democrats All Be Like Tulsi Gabbard?
So, I think this is a good thing. Sometimes she may sound more like a Republican than a Democrat. But she is a Democrat–make no mistake about that. I certainly am not kidding myself that Gabbard is conservative.
Neither was former Senator Joe Lieberman when he gave the keynote address at the 2008 Republican National Convention. Eight years prior, Lieberman had been the Democratic Party’s vice-presidential candidate as Al Gore’s running mate. Desperate times call for desperate measures. In 2008, Barack Obama was the Democratic presidential nominee, and Lieberman recognized that he was dangerous for our country and our allies, so he endorsed Republican John McCain and spoke at the GOP convention, because, as he said, “country matters more than party.”
Obama was too inexperienced and too radical to be president. Lieberman saw it, and he was right. The Obama years were a disaster, and no one can say that we weren’t warned. Fourteen years later, another Democrat will be speaking at CPAC because she recognizes how radical her party has become. What does that say about the Democratic Party?
We all know the Democratic Party has become increasingly radical. Does anyone think that the communist-hating, tax-cutting John F. Kennedy would feel at home in today’s Democratic Party? Of course not. A few years from now, Democrats will think that Barack Obama was “too conservative” for their party.
So, I think it’s a good thing that Tulsi Gabbard will be speaking at CPAC. Republicans need to recognize that there are Democrats who aren’t completely overboard and that they can work with them to achieve common goals. In fact, if there were more Democrats like Tulsi Gabbard, there would actually be some common goals. I’m sure there are more Democrats like her who see their party has gone too far to the left and are afraid to speak out. Republicans need to embrace them.
