On stage we talk about law and order, religious freedom and a reduced ideal of government, while others have fun with a pinball machine that imitates the storming of the Capitol in the USA.
“J6 Insurrection,” intended to be an “educational game,” is one of the most popular attractions at the 2024 edition of CPAC, the annual high mass of American conservatives taking place this week in suburban Washington.
“You make America proud,” Donald Trump shouts over the loudspeakers as a player throws the small ball to score points.
The ex-president's voice echoes as real video footage of the insurrection against Congress on January 6, 2021 by supporters of the Republican who violently protested his defeat to Democrat Joe Biden is filmed.
“I think the goal was to get people to take action, and that's exactly what happened,” argues Jon Linowes, proud Trumpist and developer of this game.
For this New Hampshire entrepreneur, like many others at CPAC, the more than a thousand Donald Trump supporters charged over the attack on the Capitol are “political prisoners.”
The game offers various options with names reminiscent of Donald Trump's slogans and the conspiracy theories that “Trumpists” are fond of: “Fake News”, “Political Prisoners” or even “Stop the Theft” (of the 2020 election).
“I wanted to show what I believe is the reality of what happened on January 6th, given the dominant narrative that you see in all media,” says Jon Linowes.
“Awake Tears”
As far-right stars draw crowds, vendors sell candy, cigars, T-shirts, mugs and books all bearing the image of Donald Trump, with pictures of him for Joe Biden. Again, they portray everything as an old man or….a Nazi.
You can also buy treats that say “Make America Great Again” (Donald Trump's famous slogan) or a “Woke Tears” bottle, which ironically contains “woke” tears, a reference to this left-wing ideology in American universities, which is led by hated by conservatives.
The concept: “Woke” people are forced to listen to Donald Trump speeches for “hours,” causing them to sob, their tears collected in a bucket, jokes Woke Tears founder JP Mohr, a 25-year-old Californian.
This year, CPAC takes place eight months before the presidential election, with a likely rematch between Donald Trump and Joe Biden.
The turn that this event, once a showcase of dominant ideas in the conservative camp, took is a testament to the evolution of the Republican Party, largely monopolized by Donald Trump.
The T-shirts feature his famous photo that police took when he was arrested in Georgia last year.
With his four criminal complaints, the ex-businessman used arguments during the election campaign to mobilize his supporters in the face of what he denounces as a “witch hunt”.
“Trump is my vote. “It represents what I think,” admits Ana Villalobos, a New York-based Salvadoran who sells $550 hammocks also decorated with the image of Donald Trump, with gold pom-poms representing the former president’s blonde hairstyle. President.