Donald Trump to speak at CPAC in first major public appearance since leaving office

Former President Donald Trump is slated to speak at the Conservative Political Action Conference, which begins next week, marking his first major public appearance since he left the White House.

Trump’s speech will focus on the future of the Republican Party and the conservative movement. The former president will also take on President Joe Biden's immigration policies during his speech, a source familiar with the plans told USA TODAY.

Trump is the first speaker listed on CPAC's website. Its profile of the former president describes him as the "very definition of the American success story, setting the standards of excellence in his business endeavors, and now, for the United States of America."

CPAC will be held at the Hyatt Regency in Orlando Feb. 25-28. The conference, which is usually held in the Washington, D.C., area, was moved to Florida due to COVID-19.

A conference of conservative activists from across the country, CPAC has been a launching pad for many Republican presidential candidates. The former president is just one of a lengthy list of speakers that includes South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis; Sens. Tom Cotton of Arkansas, Ted Cruz of Texas, Rick Scott of Florida and Josh Hawley of Missouri.

The news of Trump speaking at CPAC comes just after the former president broke an uncharacteristic period of silence since leaving office, blasting Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell in a press release Tuesday.

"The Republican Party can never again be respected or strong with political ‘leaders’ like Sen. Mitch McConnell at its helm. … Mitch is a dour, sullen, and unsmiling political hack, and if Republican Senators are going to stay with him, they will not win again," Trump said. "He will never do what needs to be done, or what is right for our country."

Trump wouldn’t say whether he would run for president again when asked during an interview with Newsmax on Wednesday. But he did vow to "back primary rivals who espouse Making American Great Again and our police of America First" in his press release Tuesday, indicating that will remained involved in politics and the Republican Party.

Republicans highly critical of Trump were not included in the speaker lineup for the "America uncanceled" themed conference.

Matt Schlapp, chairman of the American Conservative Union and a primary organizer of CPAC, worked with the Trump campaign on its election protests in the wake of the loss to Biden.

Schlapp said Sunday that former Vice President Mike Pence declined an invitation to speak at the event.

Schlapp thought it was a "mistake" for Pence to avoid the conference because "his conservative record is well respected, and conservatives want to hear his take on the current threats posed by socialism and this radicalized Democrat party."

The former vice president has been keeping a relatively low profile since he left office. He opened a transition office in Virginia and plans to move to Indiana by the summer.

Earlier this month, Pence announced he will act as a "distinguished visiting fellow" at the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank in Washington. He plans to be involved in next year's midterm elections, reportedly preparing to launch a fundraising committee focused on policy issues. And he aims to help Republicans' effort retake the majority in the House, and to wade into important Senate and gubernatorial races.

More: Mike Pence to join Heritage Foundation to 'lead the conservative movement into the future'

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Donald Trump to address CPAC in first major address since leaving DC