The Conservative Political Action Conference opened today with a star-studded ensemble of 2016 presidential hopefuls.
The day began with Ben Carson, the celebrated neurosurgeon, delighting a conservative audience, both in-person and on Twitter.
https://twitter.com/AlexPappas/status/570956964227883008
Dr. Carson at CPAC: 'Lets Defund Obama's Golf' http://t.co/AZEASWufbs via @BreitbartNews #tcot
— John Galt (@dhrxsol1234) February 26, 2015
– @RealBenCarson says GOP should oppose Obama's executive amnesty: "Defund everything including his golf" Crowd goes wild.
— Charlie Spiering (@charliespiering) February 26, 2015
#BHM pioneer @RealBenCarson went from being the bottom of his class to becoming a world-renowned neurosurgeon pic.twitter.com/MqXxojrCq8
— Google for Education (@GoogleForEdu) February 26, 2015
– @realbencarson kicks off #cpac2015 pic.twitter.com/7hhQO9DgX0
— Charlie Spiering (@charliespiering) February 26, 2015
https://twitter.com/JamiePressDC/status/570988593537282049
Carson called for Americans to “defund Obama’s golf” and “get rid of dependency”, among other memorable one-liners.
After Carson spoke, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie made his case in an interview with conservative pundit Laura Ingraham.
Ingraham pushed Christie on several topics.
Strong performance by Chris Christie under tough but fair questioning by @IngrahamAngle
— Rich Lowry (@RichLowry) February 26, 2015
Christie took shots at the press, specifically The New York Times.
Chris Christie tells CPAC audience: 'I am still standing': http://t.co/zrkjx5VF0a #teaparty
— ConservativeAngle.com (@conserveangle) February 26, 2015
Chris Christie Will Not Be Reading This Post, He Assures CPAC http://t.co/rHX0qVd7p5
— NYT Politics (@nytpolitics) February 26, 2015
Following a common refrain throughout the conservative conference, Christie criticized the White House.
https://twitter.com/ireneenih/status/571043967229235202
Ingraham also asked Christie about potential presidential rival Jeb Bush.
Chris Christie tweaks Bush before CPAC crowd http://t.co/NQyRCsppIy
— POLITICO (@politico) February 26, 2015
In the end, Christie played well with the CPAC attendees, with his blunt, Jersey style.
CPAC <3 Chris Christie, via @AndrewE_Johnson http://t.co/JK0EcA4gkK pic.twitter.com/sLqiNtShZO
— National Review (@NRO) February 26, 2015
After the Christie interview, former Hewlett-Packard CEO Carly Fiorina gave a barn-burning speech against both the president, and Democratic 2016 frontrunner Hillary Clinton.
https://twitter.com/alweaver22/status/571020054436950016
Fiorina hit Clinton on what she described as hashtag activism.
https://twitter.com/GMNnews/status/571047823900160000
She also rebuked the president for his handling of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s upcoming speech before Congress.
Carly Fiorina at CPAC: Love for Netanyahu, Daggers for Clinton http://t.co/nVcHARM1bM
— NYT Politics (@nytpolitics) February 26, 2015
Is Fiorina the anti-Clinton? The media seems to think so.
Potential 2016er Carly Fiorina is positioning herself as the anti Hillary Clinton candidate: http://t.co/rPCIpKIsqw
— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) February 26, 2015
Sen. Ted Cruz looked comfortable on familiar turf. Cruz opened with a memorable one-liner, chiding Clinton because her foundation accepted money from foreign governments.
Cruz: "We could have had Hillary here, but we couldn't find a foreign nation to foot the bill"
— Zeke Miller (@ZekeJMiller) February 26, 2015
He also went after Clinton for being “too Washington.”
Cruz on Clinton Foundation: “Hillary Clinton embodies the bipartisan corruption in Washington” http://t.co/zPLIO0S19c
— Ed Morrissey (@EdMorrissey) February 26, 2015
He says his Republican rivals do not standing up for what they believe in.
#CPAC2015 "When have you been willing to stand up against Republicans? When have you stood with the people?" – @SenTedCruz
— Allan ?????? (@UnrealAllan) February 26, 2015
And finally, Cruz poked fun at former president Bill Clinton.
https://twitter.com/AlexPappas/status/571024627662757888
Members cheered as Cruz left the stage.