PHOENIX (AP) 鈥� As Washington heaved over the possibility of a partial government shutdown, leading far-right figures gathered with thousands of Donald Trump鈥檚 most ardent supporters and, for the most part, gloried in splintering the president-elect鈥檚 party.
Speakers and attendees at Turning Point USA鈥檚 AmericaFest 2024 hailed Trump and billionaire Elon Musk for initially scuttling a bipartisan agreement to keep government open. They jeered and his willingness to engage with Democrats, disregarding Johnson's and frequent appearances at his side.
鈥淭he political class is infected with a malignant cancer. The cancer is bipartisanship,鈥� boomed Steve Bannon, the Trump adviser who perhaps more than any other reflects and stokes the president-elect鈥檚 pugilistic populism.
鈥淲e don鈥檛 need partisanship,鈥� Bannon continued, as he called for Johnson鈥檚 ouster. 鈥淲e need hyper-partisanship.鈥�
The president-elect has wide latitude with his core supporters and is in turn responsive to their demands. That dynamic fuels the unpredictability put on display in last week鈥檚 budget fight and sets up inevitable future conflicts within Trump鈥檚 broadened Republican coalition.
That Trump failed to achieve his central goals 鈥� with a plan backed by Trump and Musk 鈥� seemed unimportant to Bannon and others who welcomed Trump to the conference's Sunday finale. The fight itself, and the incoming president being at the center of it, was the point.
鈥淭hank you, God, for sending us Donald Trump,鈥� said Turning Point founder Charlie Kirk as Trump took the stage. Thousands roared and held their cell phones aloft to capture the moment.
Trump's supporters differ on what they want
Interviews with people at AmericaFest and arguments from speakers illustrated that, beyond fealty to Trump, the new right in America is defined philosophically by anti-establishment sentiment, staunchly conservative social mores and vocal declarations of patriotism 鈥� not a uniform policy consensus.
鈥淚 just want everything Trump said he was going to do,鈥� said Andrew Graves, a 39-year-old former Disney employee who now works as an Arizona organizer for Turning Point. 鈥淚t doesn鈥檛 matter how as long as we get it done.鈥�
Pressed on what 鈥渋t鈥� is, Graves mentioned 鈥渨hat鈥檚 going on in education鈥� and 鈥渒eeping women out of men鈥檚 sports.鈥� He talked about Trump鈥檚 signature promises 鈥� tariffs on foreign imports, a hardline immigration crackdown 鈥� only when prompted.
Jennifer Pacheco, a 20-year-old student from Southern California, said she embraced Turning Point because she likes Kirk鈥檚 unapologetic Christianity and believes 鈥渨e need to have God be more present in this country.鈥�
In Trump, Pacheco sees a transformative figure. 鈥淚t鈥檚 just everything that鈥檚 off track, and I think we will see things get fixed,鈥� she said, talking about the economy and cultural values.
When asked, Pacheco said she does sometimes worry about national debt levels. But she said she did not closely follow the week鈥檚 maneuvers in Washington and was unfamiliar with Trump鈥檚 call to essentially eliminate the nation鈥檚 debt ceiling through the entirety of his upcoming term.
Alexander Sjorgen, a 26-year-old from Berks County, Pennsylvania, volunteered a more detailed list of policy priorities: addressing structural deficits, goosing domestic energy production, launching a mass deportation program, curtailing 鈥渢he transgender rights鈥� agenda, rethinking how involved the U.S. is in international affairs.
鈥淔or the most part, we all just want to see the country strong again and feel like its ours again,鈥� he said.
One speaker calls for a 鈥榬evolutionary moment鈥�
That ethos permeated convention halls and meeting rooms awash in Trump paraphernalia 鈥� the 鈥淢ake America Great Again鈥� hats, T-shirts emblazoned with the bloodied candidate after Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania. Among the throngs, there was the occasional fully costumed 鈥淯ncle Sam鈥� or Revolutionary War figure.
Top speakers seized on the atmosphere, being greeted as celebrities and drawing roars of approval on everything from demanding confirmation of Trump鈥檚 Cabinet picks to imprisoning members of Congress who investigated the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol.
鈥淚t feels good to win back our country,鈥� Kirk told the opening assembly. But, he added, 鈥渢he transformation of the Republican Party is not yet complete.鈥� He threatened primaries against any GOP senator who votes against a Trump nominee, Capitol Hill.
Bannon praised the assembled activists as 鈥渢he vanguard of a revolutionary movement鈥� and compared Trump鈥檚 election to Franklin Roosevelt鈥檚 1932 realignment of working-class Americans behind Democrats. Bannon skewered Johnson and other establishment Republicans in 鈥渢he imperial capital,鈥� his derisive quip for Washington.
鈥淧resident Trump came back from the political dead,鈥� Bannon said, framing Trump鈥檚 sweep of seven battleground states as a landslide. 鈥淲e have nothing else to discuss. It鈥檚 only about the execution of President Trump鈥檚 agenda.鈥�
During 75 minutes at the podium on Sunday, Trump ticked through many of his usual pledges and policy ideas. But he did not acknowledge his unsuccessful venture on Capitol Hill last week or continued questions about whether he will try to unseat Johnson. Summing up his intentions, Trump opted for politically fuzzy rhetoric.
鈥淟ast month, the American people voted for change,鈥� he said, touting a 鈥漜ommon-sense鈥� agenda and promising a 鈥済olden age鈥� for the country.
Kirk, Bannon and other influencers discussed the Trump agenda in more detail than most attendees, sometimes even acknowledging discrepancies and complexity.
Bannon conceded Trump did not get his way on the debt ceiling vote but said he eventually would. But he also insisted that doesn鈥檛 mean Trump won鈥檛 cut spending. 鈥淗e鈥檚 got a plan. 鈥� But you鈥檝e got to line everything up,鈥� he said, spotlighting billionaires Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy and their 鈥済overnment efficiency鈥� commission.
Ben Shapiro, another commentator, offered assurances that Trump would rethink tariffs if they 鈥渁re in fact inflationary.鈥� Further, Shapiro tried to reconcile Trump鈥檚 staunch support for U.S. aid to Israel and conservatives鈥� disdain for foreign aid, including for Ukraine in its war against its invading Russian neighbors. Israel鈥檚 fight against Hamas, Shapiro argued, is 鈥渆xistential,鈥� suggesting that Ukraine鈥檚 defensive posture is not.
Retired Gen. Michael Flynn, a firebrand who Trump has suggested in office, insisted conservatives are not isolationist even as he assailed the Pentagon footprint around the world.
鈥淚鈥檓 not anti-war,鈥� Flynn said from the main podium. 鈥淚鈥檓 anti-stupid war.鈥�
Kirk, meanwhile, tried to frame any differences across Trump鈥檚 coalition as reconcilable.
鈥淢aybe you are a parents-rights advocate. Maybe you are here as a Second Amendment enthusiast. 鈥� Maybe you are a pastor. Maybe you are a 鈥楳ake America Healthy Again鈥� advocate,鈥� Kirk said. 鈥淲hatever focus group you have, as long we can agree on the big stuff 鈥� we need to combine forces and defeat the incumbent regime. Welcome aboard. We are going to make America great again.鈥�
Bill Barrow, The Associated Press
