NATIONAL HARBOR, MD. – Nazis got a warm welcome at this year’s conservative political action conference.
Throughout the conference, racist extremists, some of whom had acquired official CPAC badges, openly mingled with conference attendees and espoused anti-Semitic conspiracy theories.
The presence of individuals has been an ongoing issue at CPAC, and in previous years conference organizers have kicked out known Nazis and white racists like Nick Fuentes.
But this year, racist conspiracy theorists faced no noticeable resistance at the conference, where Donald Trump has been the keynote speaker since 2017.
At a Young Republican mixer Thursday, a group of openly National Socialist Nazis mingled with mainstream conservative figures, including some from Turning Point USA, and discussed race science and anti-Semitic conspiracy theories.
A member of the group, Greg Conte, who attended the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, said his group came to speak to the media. He said the group was prepared to be kicked out if CPAC organizers were tipped off, but that never happened.
Another, Ryan Sanchez, formerly part of the Nazi Rise Above Movement, took photos and videos at the conference wearing an official badge and highlighted ties to Fuentes.
Sanchez and other contestants clearly used the N word.
For several years, CPAC and its supporters have tried to soften the most extremist edges of the party and conference conservative movement, and welcomed ongoing debate between Trump and more moderate conservatives.
This year, however, some attendees and former attendees expressed dismay at the conferences’ closer ties to Trump and his wing of the party.
In one of the most viral moments of this year’s conference, Conservative personality Jack Posobiec called for the end of democracy and a more overtly Christian-oriented government. Although Posobiec later said his remarks were partly satire, many CPAC attendees embraced his and others’ calls for the January 6 uprising.
CPAC organizers did not immediately respond to a request for comment.