Paul Ryan; Donald Trump; Mitch McConnell (Credit: Getty/AP/Photo Montage by Salon) If there’s one thing to learn from the Conservative Political Action Conference — known as CPAC — it’s this: Modern conservatism may be linked to the Republican Party. But the roots of the movement, and the heart of the party, is Trumpism at its core. The list of CPAC speakers on Friday read like a who’s who from President Donald Trump’s orbit: Kellyanne Conway, former Milwaukee sheriff David Clarke, Brexit guru Nigel Farage, Fox News host Jeanine Pirro, Sebastian Gorka, and Rep.