Mike Pompeo Slams Trump on Debt and Election Losses, Calls on Conservatives to Reject ‘Celebrity Leaders’ With ‘Fragile Egos’
Mike Pompeo, former secretary of state under Donald Trump, took multiple swipes at his former boss while addressing CPAC on Friday. Pompeo took direct shots at Trump over adding to the federal debt and some more indirect shots while urging the right to reembrace traditional conservatism and reject “celebrity leaders” with “fragile egos.”
“We lost race after winnable race because voters didn’t trust us to do any better than the tax-and-spend liberals,” Pompeo said during his speech.
“Over the last few years, I’ve heard some who claim to be conservative excuse hypocrisy by saying something like ‘well, we’re we’re electing a president, not a Sunday school teacher,’” Pompeo added.
“That’s true. But having taught Sunday school, maybe we could get both,” he argued, an apparent swipe at some of Trump’s less savory behavior.
Pompeo, a former GOP House member and director of the CIA, also blasted Trump’s electoral history, saying, “We lost three elections in a row and the popular vote in 7 of the last 8.”
Pompeo also took aim at those on the right seeking to use the government to punish critics.
“Don’t hand that government more power under the guise of conservatism. We shouldn’t look for larger-than-life personalities, but rather we should find power in the rooms like this one,” he said, adding:
People all across the country. And I’m confident we’re going to get a renewed dedication to accountability, Personal responsibility results. This is the thing that has made the conservative movement and our party successful for decades.
We can’t become the left following celebrity leaders with our own brand of identity politics, those with fragile egos who refuse to acknowledge reality. This is a tough world, both abroad and here. And we know we can’t shift blame to others, but must accept the responsibility that comes to those of us who step forward and lead.
During another part of his speech, Pompeo called Trump out by name for adding to the national debt.
“I stare today at $31 trillion in debt and tell my son, ‘Make sure you work hard because Social Security may just not be there for you,’” Pompeo said.
“Every recent administration, Republican and Democrat alike, added trillions in dollars to our debt. That is deeply unconservative. [The] Trump administration, the administration I served, added $8 trillion in new debt. This is indecent and can’t continue. Earning back that trust will be hard work, it won’t just be a campaign speech,” he continued.
Pompeo’s speech at CPAC did not draw a massive audience. Semafor’s Dave Wiegel tweeted from inside the room, “Energy for Haley and Pompeo speeches was pretty low; a reporter asked me ‘was that what it was like when Jeb was here?’ More than just not filling the room, many lines being tested out that didn’t land.”
Watch the full clip above via C-SPAN
