Keynote speaker at CPAC.
By Deepak Chitnis
WASHINGTON, DC: Conservative pundit and renowned commentator Dinesh D’Souza debuted the trailer for his latest film, entitled America, at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC), in the nation’s capital.
The film, D’Souza’s second, outlines the history of the United States from colonial times to present day. Since D’Souza is an outspoken Republican, the film will almost certainly have a Conservative slant, not unlike his previous film, 2016: Obama’s America. That film was released in 2012, just before the election between President Barack Obama and Mitt Romney, in an effort to drum up anti-Democrat sentiment and sway voters towards the right. 2016, made on a shoestring budget, ultimately grossed over $33 million, and is second only to Fahrenheit 9/11 in terms of successful political-based documentaries.
D’Souza also gave the keynote address at CPAC on Thursday afternoon, speaking to an assembled crowd of roughly 3,500 people. D’Souza’s speech was one of many that were given by several high-ranking Republicans, including New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal, and former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin. D’Souza’s speech followed the debut of his America trailer, with the final film set to hit theaters on July 4 of this year.
D’Souza is currently in the middle of legal troubles, and has been out of jail since early January on a half-million dollar bond. He was arrested under allegations of using straw donors to finance the campaign of a Republican friend of his, Wendy Long, who made an unsuccessful bid for the US Senate in last year’s elections.
D’Souza has pleaded “not guilty” to the charges, adamantly claiming that he is not innocent of the charges. The trial is set to go underway on May 19 in New York City.
In fact, D’Souza has said that his legal woes may be part of a Republican witch hunt orchestrated by the Democrats. In an interview on Sean Hannity’s televised talk show earlier this year, D’Souza said that his previous film struck a nerve with President Obama, and that him being scared by the film was likely what caused the charges to be levied against D’Souza.
The trailer for D’Souza’s America can be viewed below. Directed by him, it is also produced by Academy Award-winners Grey Frederickson (The Godfather Part II) and Gerald Molen (Schindler’s List), the latter of whom also produced D’Souza’s last film.
To contact the author, email to deepakchitnis@americanbazaaronline.com