The Republican National Convention has culminated Thursday with former President Donald Trump ‘s acceptance of the party’s presidential nomination, achieving a comeback four years in the making and anticipated even more in the past week in light of Saturday’s assassination attempt.
Meanwhile, former President Barack Obama has privately expressed concerns to Democrats about President Joe Biden’s candidacy, and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi warned Biden that Democrats could lose the ability to seize control in the House if he didn’t step away from the race.
President Joe Biden’s reelection campaign insists it’s “not working through any scenarios” where he “is not the top of the ticket,” despite intensifying calls from congressional Democrats for him to abandon the race ahead of November’s election.
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And there’s Melania
It is one of the most anticipated moments of the convention. Former first lady Melania Trump has been cheered loudly when mentioned by other speakers during the previous nights, but she finally entered the arena on the final night wearing a red jacket and pencil skirt suit and waving to the crowds.
1. Melania has beenlargely missing from the campaign trail, missing key moments such as his Super Tuesday victory party and his 78th birthday party last month. She also did not accompany the Republican nominee during his more than month-long hush money trial in New York, with reporters repeatedly asking him at the courthouse “Where’s Melania?”
2. She will not be speaking at the convention. Her office was the one that declined an invitation for Barron Trump to appear as a Florida delegate after the state’s Republican party chose him to join the delegation saying the couple’s youngest son had “prior commitments.”
3. Her presence helps the Republican party show unity, a theme that has emerged more prominently after the attempt on Trump’s life. A day after the attack, Melania issued a statement calling on Americans to “ascend above hate, the vitriol, and the simple-minded ideas that ignite violence.”
Trump expected to hammer home key Biden criticisms
Trump in his speech is expected to continue hammering some of his key criticism of the Biden administration.
“Under the current administration, we are a nation in decline,” he will say, according to excerpts provided by his campaign.
He will rail against inflation, saying it is “making life unaffordable, ravaging the incomes of working and low-income families, and crushing our people.”
And he will talk about his signature issue, immigration, saying the country is facing an “illegal immigration crisis” with “a massive invasion at our southern border that has spread misery, crime, poverty, disease and destruction to communities all across our land.”
He will also talk about foreign policy, warning that “our planet is teetering on the edge of World War Three.”
“It is time for a change,” he will say. “We simply cannot sustain four more years of this administration.”
Trump campaign releases excerpts from the GOP nominee’s speech
Trump, in his speech, will speak directly about the failed assassination attempt and express gratitude to the American people “for your outpouring of love and support.”
“As you already know, the assassin’s bullet came within a quarter of an inch of taking my life,” he will say, according to excerpts released by his campaign.
He will say that, “Despite such a heinous attack, we unite this evening more determined than ever.”
Franklin Graham is one of the few speakers to acknowledge abortion
Evangelist Franklin Graham followed former wrestling icon Hulk Hogan onto the stage, and he smiled at the contrast.
“God spared his life,” Graham said of Trump. “And when we go through those experiences, it changes us.”
Graham also made a rare allusion to Trump appointing the Supreme Court justices who provided the key votes to overturn Roe v. Wade, a politically touchy subject the convention has avoided.
“When he told me and this country that what he was going to do was appoint conservative justices, he did,” Graham said of Trump.
Graham also led a prayer for God’s guidance for the country and aid for Trump and running mate JD Vance. Graham added of Vance: “We’re thankful for his strong stand for defending life.”
Hulk Hogan endorses his ‘hero’
Retired pro wrestler Hulk Hogan, who once endorsed Barack Obama for president, made an unexpected appearance Thursday at the RNC, putting his full support behind Trump, who he has recently called his “hero.”
He walked on stage swinging an American flag.
“You know something, I have some great tag teams in my time,” Hogan said. “But you know something, I see the greatest tag team of my life, standing together, getting ready to straighten this country up.”
Trump and his family reenter the arena
Trump returned to the family box with his adult children, including Ivanka and Don Jr. and many of his grandchildren.
Former first lady Melania Trump has been spotted in the arena but not in the family box yet.
The band keeps vamping for time
The house band has gone through several numbers — and extended versions of them at that.
There was the cover of The Romantics’ “What I like about you,” and then a version of Stevie Ray Vaughan’s “Pride and Joy.” And extended versions at that.
“Pride and Joy” traded keyboard and guitar solos, while the video screens around the arena offered shots of red, white and blue-clad delegates dancing.
After three choruses, the band launched back into an extended jam, seeming to fill the time until the next round of speakers.
And just when it seemed the break might end, they launched into Sam and Dave’s, “Soul Man.”
And another song by the band …
The convention programming is running around half an hour behind schedule during the prime time show Thursday. The band is playing song after song as the crowd awaits what is expected to be a series of high-profile speeches including Hulk Hogan to Eric Trump Jr., with the former president closing out the night.
Attendees keep signs handy
Of course, there are the “Make America Great Again” signs on the convention floor. After all, it’s the slogan that Trump has touted for eight years.
But the 2024 Republican convention has spawned a variety of related, official campaign placards, in the same red, white and blue font as the well-known MAGA signs.
There’s “Bring Back Common Sense,” “America First/Americans First,” and “Fire Joe Biden.”
Then there are the handmade signs, like conventions of old, though one, painted in red on a white background says, “I’m from New Mexico and I love Trump.”
Democratic Sen. Jon Tester called President Biden to drop out of the presidential race
The Montana senator is up for re-election this year, hoping to hold onto Democrats’ only congressional seat in the state.
“I have worked with President Biden when it has made Montana stronger, and I’ve never been afraid to stand up to him when he is wrong,” Tester told the Daily Montanan. “And while I appreciate his commitment to public service and our country, I believe President Biden should not seek re-election to another term.”
He is the second Democratic senator to call for Biden to exit the race. Sen. Peter Welch of Vermont called for Biden to step down earlier this month.
Tucker Carlson invokes divine intervention
Former Fox News host Tucker Carlson says that he called Trump hours after Saturday’s assassination attempt and the former president didn’t talk about himself.
“He said only how amazed he was and how proud he was of the crowd that didn’t run,” Tucker recounted. “Of course they didn’t run; his courage gave them heart.”
Carlson also said that Trump didn’t try to create division after the attack. “He turned down the most obvious opportunity to inflame the nation,” Carlson said.
Like many speakers during the convention, Carlson suggested that recent events were divinely inspired.
“What’s happened over the past month, since the debate and particularly since Saturday in Butler a lot of people are wondering: ‘What is this? This doesn’t look like politics; I wonder if something bigger is going on,’” Carlson said.
Country singer Jason Aldean greets Trump at the convention
How much Trump loves music has come up several times in Thursday’s speeches, and
