Trump Cancels CPAC Appearance

Donald Trump was supposed to speak at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) on Saturday morning, but instead, he scheduled a rally in Kansas, which holds its caucuses that day. "Very disappointed @realDonaldTrump has decided at the last minute to drop out of #CPAC -- his choice sends a clear message to conservatives," CPAC organizers tweeted Friday. His campaign said in a statement that Trump has spoken at CPAC "for many consecutive years" and "looks forward to returning next year, hopefully as President of the United States."

Trump has been bashed by some of those who have spoken at CPAC so far, the Hill reports: A Tea Party Patriots co-founder, for example, said the Tea Party "is about love of country and the love of our Constitution," but "Trump is about love of himself." Ted Cruz, John Kasich, and Ben Carson speak at CPAC Friday (Carson is expected to formally suspend his campaign); Marco Rubio speaks Saturday. (More Donald Trump 2016 stories.)