While all of Sydney was in the thrall of Taylor Swift, I went to a four-day concert that was more fun, vibrant, exciting, and energising than any Swifty could ever imagine. I attended the 2024 Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) at the Gaylord National Convention Centre, in the National Harbor, Maryland, USA.

The annual Conference is the largest gathering of Conservatives across the US. Thousands of attendees and media attend this event. This year’s event was attended by approximately six thousand people. This was my first time.

To make the most of my CPAC USA experience, I requested to be a volunteer. The interview included questions like: What conservative values are you most passionate about? And: Who is your favourite conservative and why? My Australian accent and 24-hour travel journey endeared me to my interviewer, who promised me a good role. I was officially a CPAC volunteer.

Americans sure know how to put on a show. And CPAC was no different. When I arrived on day one, I was blown away by the scale of the production. It was yuuuuge! Massive numbers of people, but a coordinated, seamless flow. CPAC volunteers, hotel security, and additional CPAC security floating about. Giant CPAC boards everywhere, a big MAGA Trump bus. Table after table of broadcasters and media, which included radio stations, and conservative podcasters, but also bigger names such as Epoch Times and News Max. There was Steve Bannon presenting his War Room show on a large stage erected adjacent to the main ballroom where the speakers were giving their talks. After their speeches, they would come have a yarn with Bannon.

It wouldn’t be an all-American experience if there wasn’t a commercial hustle. A plethora of T-shirts, paintings, baseball hats, and mugs for sale. We had the iconic Let’s go Brandon collectables, but also some other clever memes and items, such as water bottles with the slogan, ‘Make Hydration Great Again’, or T-shirts with the message: ‘I have PTSD. I’m Pretty Tired of Stupid Democrats. Trump 2024.’ Classic.

These were Trump supporters through and through. No Mitt Romney, or Liz Cheney-type Republicans here. As Jussie Smollett might have put it, this was MAGA country! A lot of the attendees were proudly wearing their Trump t-shirts and MAGA hats, but there might have been a best-dressed competition that I wasn’t aware of. There was Lady Liberty wearing a stola and crown, carrying a torch. There were Founding Fathers present amongst us. I managed to get a selfie with George Washington and Thomas Jefferson. We had a young family of five, with large scarlet (sequined) letters emblazoned on their shirts, a T, an R, a U, an M, and a P. Cute.

CPAC is conservative, is capitalist. There is a complex tiering structure for the entry tickets. The Platinum Plus ticket for a mere 30,000 USD, gets you a private handshake and photograph backstage with Donald Trump. We then have Platinum, Gold, Silver, General, and Student ticket options. There is a significant Veterans discount at all levels. The tiering of your ticket corresponds to how close you are to the main stage, and the opulence of your Lounge access. This stratification of the populace would drive Lefties insane, but the CPAC attendees get it. Everyone has their badges visible (as required), and everyone queues based on their ticket. No issues. Everyone is happy, smiling, and friendly! The mood is one of high energy, and excitement. This does not appear to be a group of people going into a four-day political conference, but people going to a music festival (thankfully without the hippies and the drugs). The festival concludes with the biggest rock star of all time, Donald Trump, giving the keynote speech on day four.

According to the mainstream media, CPAC is a gathering of white supremacists, red-necks, Nazis etc. This could not be further from the truth. We have attendees with all shades of melanin present. There are many Black and Hispanic attendees, and volunteers. Some are speaking Spanish, but wearing American flags. We have many attendees with their yarmulkes visible. I myself am of Indian background, which according to the Lefties makes me a POC. Person of Colour. How charming.

This is a ‘diverse’ crowd, and a true representation of the American population. Not one that Google’s Gemini would suggest. I’d argue that if you sliced up the CPAC attendees by race, you’d find a split that closely resembles the American population.

Over the four days, we hear from a long list of speakers. The following speakers were particularly appreciated by the CPAC audience. The right-wing firebrands like: Kari Lake, Matt Gaetz, Jim Jordan, Kristi Noem, and Megyn Kelly. Pretty much all of Trump’s VP shortlist gave a talk, including: Dr Ben Carson, Vivek Ramaswamy, Tulsi Gabbard, Elise Stefanik, and JD Vance. Foreign dignitaries spoke, including: Nigel Farage, Liz Truss, Eduardo Bolsonaro, Nayib Bukele, and Javier Milei.

Each speaker receives a thunderous applause, and a standing ovation upon entry, and exit, as well as numerous times during the speech. The crowd was absolutely fired up, and appreciated the talks given. I urge all readers to stream the fantastic speeches, which are available online.

My volunteer task was to make sure the Platinum, Gold, and Silver attendees were ushered to their seats. This meant I had the best seats in the house, on my meagre General ticket.

It is now the fourth, and final day of CPAC. D-Day, Donald’s Day. He is speaking at 1 pm as he needs to be in South Carolina by 5 pm. He is scheduled to give his victory speech at the conclusion of the South Carolina primary, approximately 90 seconds from the time of polls closing.

All attendees receive emails advising them of the extra security that will be present on D-Day. Given my volunteer privileges, I lazily make my way over to the Convention Centre at 8 am to find queues stretching over 150 meters. People have been lining up since 6 am to make sure they have the best seats for Trump. I flash my Volunteer badge with much authority to the very serious (and strong!) Secret Service gentleman. He waves me to the front of the line. I cut through all these good folk. Now, that’s what I call real privilege! I am required to go through what is much like airport security. I walk through a scanner, and I’m patted down by a sensor. The contents of my bag are emptied and checked. Lots of Secret Service personnel directing the crowds, with that distinctive coiled earpiece in their ear, sharp suits, and very serious expressions.

I arrive in the large Potomac Ballroom which is already a third full, with the Trump die-hards already at the front. I make my way confidently to the Platinum area, thank you very much. As the morning progresses, we go through the warmup acts, such as Kari Lake. There’s murmurings amongst the crowd that Trump is now in the building. My fellow volunteers inform me that there are quite a few people with paid tickets for the meet and greet. And that Trump will pose with all Law Enforcement security present, as well as Hotel staff. He always does that, which delays him, they say smiling with much warmth. In addition to the Platinum Plus ticket holders, Trump is backstage greeting all the other CPAC Speakers. I urge you to watch the clip of Milei greeting Trump backstage. Milei’s adoration puts any Swifty to shame.

The College Republicans have a good showing here. They are across three or more rows. A lot of them have partied all night and are here on little or no sleep. But by God, they are pumped! They are running on adrenaline and that magic potion called youth. As we get closer to 1 pm, every 10 minutes or so we have chants from the kids, ‘Trump, Trump, Trump!’ ‘We want Trump!’ ‘Retribution!’ ‘Victory!’

It’s 1 pm. The handlers come on stage to set up a special microphone, and a larger podium (well, obviously). Matt and Mercedes Schlapp come to the stage. They tell us Trump is indeed backstage and will be on stage shortly. The audience cheers wildly. A party playlist begins to play. The crowd is dancing along to ABBA’s Dancing Queen and head banging to Metallica’s Enter Sandman. There is electricity in the room. Just after 2 pm, the Star-Spangled Banner begins to play, with Trump’s recorded voice reciting the Pledge of Allegiance. Trump walks onto the stage and hugs and kisses the American flag hoisted on the stage. The crowd goes wild. Trump delivers his speech which goes for close to an hour and fifteen minutes.

I strongly urge all readers to watch Trump’s speech. Trump was self-deprecating and very funny. He goes off the teleprompter about 15 minutes into it and recounts a story of being on Air Force One to Iraq. A very endearing tale indeed. He does a hilarious Biden impersonation. He predicts the headlines from the Fake News Media, and within the hour, from the Guardian, ‘Trump declares himself a total genius at CPAC.’ Sigh. The day ended with a South Carolina Primary Watch Party.

A special callout to the CPAC Australia team. Andrew Cooper, Managing Director of CPAC Australia gave a fantastic speech, which was well received by the crowd. The CPAC Australia team hosted an Aussie-themed after-party, which has already become legendary as one of the best parties in CPAC history. I suppose when Nigel Farage has a great time at a party, that will do it. I won’t divulge the names of the other notable figures at the party. What happens at CPAC, stays at CPAC.

I had the most amazing time at CPAC USA. It was a blast. But there was also a deeply satisfying feeling of finding my community, my tribe. Like-minded, freedom-loving individuals who love the West and are unafraid of being cancelled. A real sense of fellowship. For once, I wasn’t the lone, conservative outsider. That was truly special.

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