Donald Trump will speak at CPAC next weekend in Florida in his first public appearance since leaving White House - but Mike Pence will NOT attend
Donald Trump will deliver a speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference in Orlando, Florida next weekend in his first public appearance since leaving the White House, according to multiple reports.
Trump is expected to deliver a keynote speech on Sunday February 28, the final day of the conference, the New York Post reported on Saturday, citing a spokesman for CPAC.
It will be the first time Trump has directly addressed his supporters -- or appeared publicly at all -- since leaving the presidency on January 20.
Stripped of his Twitter account, he has remained uncharacteristically quiet as President Joe Biden took office, and as he faced a post-presidency impeachment trial in the Senate.
Trump hugs and kisses the American flag during last year's CPAC. He was confirmed as a speaker at this year's installment next weekend
Former President Trump heads to his golf club on Friday for yet another round of golf with friends. Trump wore a red MAGA hat for the first time this week
Trump had been a regular speaker at CPAC in prior years, famously hugging an American flag onstage in 2019.
At last year's conference, he reprized the performance as well as planting a noisy kiss on Old Glory.
But his attendance at this year's CPAC had remained in doubt, with Trump yet to define what level of public presence he seeks after leaving the presidency and facing legal threats on multiple fronts.
Trump skipped Biden's inauguration and has remained mostly out of sight at his Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida, spending portions of his Senate impeachment trial golfing on his nearby course.
Since Inauguration Day, Trump has limited himself to occasional statements issued through his 'Office of the Former President', which he quickly re-branded as the 'Office of Donald J. Trump'.
Trump has been in seclusion at his Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida since leaving office, spending many days golfing. Pictured: Friday at Trump International in West Palm Beach
Trump began his tradition of hugging the American flag onstage at CPAC in 2019
On Wednesday, Trump called in to Fox News to offer his tribute to conservative talk radio host Rush Limbaugh, as well as insist that he won the November election.
'Rush thought we won. And so do I,' said Trump in the extended interview, his first live remarks since leaving office and a possible preview of his CPAC speech.
'I think it's disgraceful what happened. We were like a Third World country on election night,' Trump said in the interview.
'I was disappointed by voter tabulation. I think it's disgraceful what happened.'
CPAC, one of the biggest events on the conservative calendar, is usually held in National Harbor, Maryland, but this year organizers moved it to Florida to evade strict pandemic restrictions.
Trump first appeared at CPAC in 2011 at the urging of GOProud, a gay conservative group. His 2011 speech is seen as the launch of his political career in the Republican Party.
Last year's CPAC was briefly interrupted by comedian Sacha Baron Cohen, who attended the conference dressed as Trump while filming his movie, Borat Subsequent Moviefilm.
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