S.E. Cupp Defends CPAC From Critics: ‘Still A Lot Of Good To Be Gained’ From ‘Invaluable’ CPAC

One of the most vocal critics of the Conservative Political Action Conference’s decision to block gay conservative groups like GOProud and the Log Cabin Republicans from sponsoring the event, MSNBC host S.E. Cupp defended the conference on Wednesday from its mounting list of critics. Cupp said that CPAC still has a strong list of young conservative speakers and continues to augment the vitality of the conservative movement.

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Steve Kornacki said that, like the Ames Straw Poll and the evangelical vote, CPAC may be no the verge of becoming irrelevant for Republicans.

“I’m not going to pile on CPAC, and I’m not going to join the chorus of mocking the conference — it’s a really important conference every year,” Cupp countered. She said that the conference this year will feature a roster of young conservative voices that are important to the future of the Republican Party.

“I think there’s still a usefulness and a purpose to CPAC, and I still have hope that

CPAC will become what it needs to be – especially for young conservatives,” Cupp added. “It’s invaluable.”

She advised the speakers at CPAC to focus on the good that is being done by GOP officeholders at the state level – from governors to state representatives. “These are the people we need to be focusing on,” Cupp observed. “That includes [New Jersey Gov.] Chris Christie and [Virginia Gov.] Bob McDonnell.”

She went on to play a clip from President Ronald Reagan’s 1982 address to CPAC. She said she was saddened that Reagan’s message of broad GOP outreach rings anachronistic when one considers the rhetorical focus of today’s Republican politicians.

“There’s still a lot of good to be gained at CPAC, and hopefully this hash lesson will, sort of, agitate maybe some change,” Cupp concluded.

Watch the clip below via MSNBC:

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