Tea party conservatives Friday ripped Donald Trump's abrupt withdrawal from the Conservative Political Action Conference on Saturday morning, saying that the move proved that he did not represent the best interest of conservatives.
"He is not a tea party person," Jenny Beth Martin, co-founder of the Tea Party Patriots, told CNN. She cited "many different issues" in Trump's platform that ran contrary to tea party principles.
"From supporting the largest tax increase in history to saying he's for tax cuts now," said Martin, who has endorsed rival Ted Cruz. "He always looks out for what's best for Trump. That's not what the tea party stands for."
Kellyanne Conway, the pollster who also backs Cruz, also told CNN that Trump's about-face "sends the wrong message to the grass roots, because this is their major gathering. Mr. Trump has been very well received at CPAC in the past.
"When he skipped the debate in Iowa, it absolutely cost him votes," Conway added, referring to Trump's January decision in Des Moines. He finished second in the Iowa caucuses the following week.
"Voters will decide how important it was for him to show or not show at CPAC. Voters have a funny way of saying you're either with me or you're not. Conventions like CPAC are a great form of direct democracy.
"He's making his decision. I certainly respect that. But it may not come without risk."
CPAC, the annual gathering sponsored by the American Conservative Union, said that
Trump pulled out from his speech — planned for Saturday at 8:30 a.m. — "at the last minute."
Organizers said on Twitter:
The four-day event, which began Wednesday, will also feature speeches from Cruz and John Kasich on Friday and Marco Rubio on Saturday.
Ben Carson, who said Wednesday that he was ending his campaign, will also speak Friday — and he is expected to announce that he is officially suspending his White House run.
Trump's campaign said Friday that he would skip the CPAC speech at the Gaylord National Resort outside Washington to campaign in Wichita, Kan., and later in Orlando, Fla.
"Because of this, he will not be able to speak at CPAC, as he has done for many consecutive years," the Republican front-runner's
campaign said in a statement.
He also thanked ACU Chairman Matt Schlapp "and all of the executives at CPAC and looks forward to returning to next year, hopefully as President of the United States."
Kansas holds its caucuses on Saturday, while Sunshine State voters hold their primary on March 15.
Conservatives immediately slammed Trump's decision, with longtime critic Sen. Ben Sasse of Nebraska, who has called for a third-party candidate if Trump wins the nomination, saying on Twitter:
Rubio charged that Trump should have withdrawn from the event, telling CNN that "he really doesn't belong at a conservative rally.
"Donald Trump is not a conservative," the Florida senator said.
CPAC will release its straw poll results on Saturday.
Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul, who dropped out of the nomination sweepstakes last month, won the poll for the last three years.
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