By Vera Bergengruen

Once a quintessentially American gathering that served as a launching pad for rising Republican stars, this year's Conservative Political Action Conference has expanded its appeal, drawing MAGA admirers from across the globe.

Alongside the usual flag-draped American attendees were "Make Colombia Great Again" and "Italians for Trump" hats. Spanish, Korean, French and Hungarian were heard in the packed cafes and bars at the three-day conference 10 miles from the Capitol.

Conservative politicians and activists from countries including Poland, Australia and Israel flocked to the glass-encased hotel outside of Washington, hoping to seize on the momentum of President Trump's second term.

The event showcased an emerging coalition of the global right that has been energized by Trump's electoral victory. A video of a Trump official on stage, a selfie with a MAGA celebrity or an approving "Wow" tweet from Elon Musk, who has become a powerful ally of the president, can both turbocharge their political career at home and land them a coveted spot in the new pantheon of international right-wing stars.

"Thirteen years ago, I was the only foreign speaker," said Nigel Farage, the Brexit campaigner and leader of Britain's Reform Party, declaring that the dizzying speed with which Trump is carrying out his agenda "is producing a wave that is now coming the other way across the Atlantic."

Warren Mundine, a political strategist who heads CPAC Australia, said he traveled to Washington with 40 Australian conservative activists, the largest group in his organization's five-year history. Most of them are under 30, he said.

"This is the first time I have seen such a large contingent of overseas people," said Mundine, wearing a blue "Make Australia Great Again" hat.

In a flourish of Trump-style showmanship, a beaming Argentine President Javier Milei bequeathed his trademark chain saw to Musk on stage on Thursday. "This is the chain saw for bureaucracy!" shouted Musk, in black sunglasses and a black baseball cap, saying the budget-slashing Department of Government Efficiency that he is leading was inspired by the Argentine's austerity measures.

Milei, who is embroiled in a scandal after a cryptocurrency he promoted crashed, prompting a fraud probe, was mobbed by fans asking for selfies and autographs on MAGA hats and baseball hats. After taking the stage with Musk, Milei shared more than 300 X posts from supporters by Friday afternoon, most of them celebrating their joint appearance as evidence that the scandal hadn't dented his international reputation.

Earlier on Thursday, Musk had been holding court in a small room on the sidelines of the conference, where Milei greeted him with an embrace, exclaiming, "Mi amigo!" Musk also received foreign leaders including Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico and the leader of Spain's far-right Vox party Santiago Abascal.

On stage, Musk's name was mentioned in almost every speech alongside Trump's by foreign leaders and politicians.

"We need people like Elon Musk leading the charge to take on the status quo," said former conservative British Prime Minister Liz Truss.

Former Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki agreed, telling the audience "we have to really have our European DOGE initiative."

While CPAC has seen a decline in attendance in recent years, with many younger attendees decamping to offshoots like Turning Point USA, the gathering has never been more important to foreign conservatives.

A month into Trump's presidency, they eagerly sought to align themselves with the U.S. president on stage, lavishing him with praise and citing him as a model for their own nationalist and anti-immigration agendas. Trump is scheduled to speak on Saturday.

The charged atmosphere went too far for some of the invited speakers.

Jordan Bardella, the French far-right leader and president of the National Rally party, abruptly canceled his scheduled address Friday morning after former Trump adviser Steve Bannon was accused of ending his speech with a gesture of his hand that was likened to a Nazi salute.

"While I was not present in the room, one of the speakers allowed himself, as a provocation, to make a gesture referring to Nazi ideology, " Bardella said in a statement.

Bannon called the gesture a "wave," not a Nazi salute, and derided the French politician as "a little boy, not a man" who is "unworthy of leading France."

Abascal, the leader of Spain's far-right Vox party, thanked Vice President JD Vance for his speech this month in Munich, where he accused European governments of repressing free speech and ignoring the will of voters to stop mass migration.

"Europe needed to hear that speech, and its leaders needed to hear those truths," Abascal said, adding that mass migration is destroying "the very identity" of Europe.

Echoing Vance, foreign speakers at the conference drew raucous applause by declaring that Christians are under attack, censorship is on the rise, and conservatives are being silenced.

Others emphasized their longstanding allegiance to Trump. Hungarian President Viktor Orban "is a loyal friend to President Trump," said the chair of CPAC Hungary, Miklós Szánthó. "And loyalty is a true conservative value."

Write to Vera Bergengruen at vera.bergengruen@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

February 21, 2025 23:14 ET (04:14 GMT)

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