Trump bestowed his magical presence on CPAC yesterday, to tell them how awesome he is and how lucky they are to have him.

The Post gives us an enlightening bit of background:

The speech marked the fifth time Trump has addressed the conference hosted by the American Conservative Union, which is showcasing how he has pushed the Republican Party and the conservative movement toward an “America first” nationalism that has long existed on the fringes.

Trump’s first appearance in 2011 offered clues to his political ambitions.

“America today is missing quality leadership, and foreign countries have quickly realized this,” he said six years ago.

“[The] theory of a very successful person running for office is rarely tested because most successful people don’t want to be scrutinized or abused,” he said. “This is the kind of person that the country needs and we need it now.”

Ah “successful” – he thinks he’s successful. He’s right in a sense, of course – he’s filthy rich and he’s stayed out of jail. But that’s all he’d succeeded at: piling up cash and evading prosecution. It’s a very narrow understanding of “success.” A better word for what he’s talking about would be “self-enriching” – but that sounds quite different in terms of running for office, doesn’t it. “The theory of a very self-enriching person running for office is rarely tested because most self-enriching people don’t want to be scrutinized or abused. This is the kind of person that the country needs and we need it now.” It doesn’t convey the same thing, does it. Self-enriching people don’t want to be scrutinized because they want to stay out of jail. More to the point, self-enriching people seem quite unlikely to have any skills that would transfer to public office. Self-enrichment is rather obviously the opposite of public service, and in tension with it.