GOP congressional leaders McCarthy and McConnell missing at CPAC

Florida Republican Rep. Byron Donalds says he would like to have seen McCarthy speak at the conference, but he's "not going to hold it against him."

By Nicholas Ballasy

The GOP's congressional leaders, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, are missing from the lineup at this year's Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) taking place just outside of Washington, D.C.

Other key Republican lawmakers, including Ohio Rep. Jim Jordan, chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, and Texas GOP Sen. Ted Cruz, spoke on the main stage at the annual gathering of conservatives.

McConnell, who is the longest serving Senate GOP leader, was booed when Trump mentioned him at CPAC in 2021.

McConnell's office did not respond when Just the News asked why McConnell is absent from this year's conference.

McCarthy's office told Just the News that the speaker is not attending because he left the Washington, D.C. area after the House adjourned on Wednesday afternoon.

Just the News asked Florida Republican Rep. Byron Donalds at CPAC if he thinks McCarthy should have come to the conference.

"I mean, yeah, but I'm not going to hold it against him," he said. "He's busy. He's got a lot going on. Look, we've been a very active Congress already, and we're going to be more active."

Donalds was asked if he thinks Florida GOP Gov. Ron DeSantis, a potential 2024 presidential candidate, missed an opportunity by not addressing the conference.

"I don't know," Donalds told Just the News. "I try not to get into every member's schedule because a lot of things that go on that people don't know about. You might have to go home and take care of family business. I think everybody tries to do their best to get there, but I looked at that list of attendees. Oh man, it's going to be a hot time at National Harbor."

Republican National Committee Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel is also not scheduled to speak at the conference this year.