Trump reasserts GOP dominance as others focus on midterms

By STEVE PEOPLES
Associated Press

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Over three days, Republicans at the Conservative Political Action Conference seemed intent on avoiding Donald Trump’s grievances about the last election, and some ignored him altogether. But by the end of it, the defeated president had reminded those who want to move on that he remains the most powerful voice in Republican politics. He easily won the conference’s presidential-preference straw poll Sunday. In his speech the night before, Trump indicated he planned to run for president a third time. As Russian troops prosecuted their Ukrainian invasion, Trump also described Russian President Vladimir Putin as “smart.”