Conservatives’ signature Washington gathering moved into full swing Thursday with calls from an influential GOP governor for the party to “go big, go bold,” now that Republicans have control of Congress and the White House for the first time in a decade. The conference at National Harbor in Maryland features a host of lawmakers and officials -- including top White House advisers and Vice President Pence on Thursday, and President Trump on Friday morning. The conference was from the outset a departure from recent CPAC gatherings, which for the last eight years were used to bash the Obama administration. “The conservative movement has elected a Republican president,” American Conservative Union Chairman Matt Schlapp said Wednesday, at the start of the annual conference, which his group sponsors. Schlapp said Wednesday that CPAC invited Yiannopoulos because the backlash he faced for his college talks were part of a large, chilling effect regarding free speech on campus.

Source: Fox News February 23, 2017 16:18 UTC