MILWAUKEE — Former President Donald Trump greeted his defeated rivals at the Republican National Convention here on Tuesday, watching as they stuck to a carefully orchestrated script of one-by-one party unity.
There was Nikki Haley, who spent more than two months trying to confirm him after finishing his bid for the White House, speaking to “those who have some doubts” about Trump. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis launched a strong attack on President Joe Biden, who has become an ally of Trump.
And Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, who urged congressional attendees in Cleveland eight years ago to “vote your conscience,” thanked “God Almighty” for the turnaround. [Trump’s] “He hit his head while firing on Saturday.”
In 2016, a barrage of boos chased Cruz off the stage, but on Tuesday night he had nothing but cheers. DeSantis also received a standing ovation.
Only Haley, whose stand against Trump was freshest in the delegates’ memories, heard jeers. But he quickly won over the crowd.
“I’ll start by making one thing absolutely clear,” said Haley, Trump’s ambassador to the United Nations and a former governor of South Carolina. “Donald Trump has my strong support.”
Trump, who changed his schedule to be in time to see his former rival’s march speak, watched from his personal box, according to a source familiar with his plans. His newly appointed running mate, Senator JD Vance of Ohio, sat next to him.
Florida Senator Marco Rubio, one of Trump’s staunchest opponents and critics in 2016, delivered the keynote speech of the evening. He related his thoughts to Corey Comperatore, a former fire chief was killed at a Trump rally on Saturdayhailing him as a hero for shielding his wife and daughter from bullets. Rubio’s speech was one of several that referenced the shooting, even as convention planners did little to change the general themes of the week afterward.
“These are Americans who wear red hats and wait for hours in the blazing sun to hear Trump speak,” Rubio said, drawing a line from Comperatore and his family to Trump’s legion of MAGA fans. “And what they want, what they want, is not hate or extremism. What they want is good work and low prices. They want secure borders. … They want our leaders to be more interested in our problems at home, not in distant countries.”
DeSantis and Trump’s former housing secretary, Ben Carson, both described the assassination attempt as the latest in a growing series of attacks against him.
“Donald Trump has become the devil,” DeSantis said. “He was sued, he was sued and he almost lost his life. We can’t let him down and we can’t let America down either.”
Rep. Dan Meuser, R-Pa., predicted good receptions for both Haley and DeSantis.
DeSantis “stepped over his skis” to run for president, “but he’s a great governor,” Meuser said. “Nikki Haley is an incredibly influential woman and we need her on board. Therefore, he should be respected.”
Days after Trump survived Saturday’s attack, the continued push to portray a GOP in perfect harmony comes as Biden struggles to ease Democratic concerns over his poor debate performance last month. Efforts to minimize overheated rhetoric remained.
However, on a night where the theme was “Make America Safe Again,” the video, which was shown to several speakers as well as delegates, blamed Biden for the deaths of Americans allegedly killed by undocumented immigrants or falsely accused him of supporting the vote. stateless persons. The audience responded with chants such as “build the wall” and “send them back”.
“Democrats have decided that they want votes from illegals more than they want the safety of our children,” Cruz said in his address.
Delegates also watched a video of Trump warning about the threat of “rigging” by Democrats in this fall’s election.
Meuser, who attended a Trump rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on Saturday, said he felt there was a broad sense that congressional speakers should take a softer line.
“It starts with Trump,” Meuser said. “I hope JD accepts it. And others. Trump said that he doesn’t want people to change their speech, but I think they will.”
Vance entered the convention hall about halfway through the evening’s program as the house band played “Hang On Sloopy,” Ohio’s official rock song. Shortly after 8:00 PM CT, Trump entered the Village People’s YMCA, a staple of campaign rallies. Both men were greeted with thunderous applause upon their arrival. Trump came out again with a big bandage on his injured right ear. At least one man in Congress tried to match it by wearing a similar ear wrap.
Building a larger Republican tent was another recurring theme. In addition to Haley’s outreach to Trump skeptics, many former Democrats, including Rep. Jeff Van Drew, RN.J. and Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson also supported Trump.
Madeline Brame, part of the convention’s “Everyday Americans” series, took aim at Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg for not seeking criminal charges against two of the four men involved in the murder. His son. He received one of the most enthusiastic receptions of the night after calling on people of color to leave the Democratic Party.
“The Democratic Party that poor minorities have been loyal to for decades, myself included, they betrayed us,” Brame said. “They stabbed us in the back. Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, who claimed to represent us, left us. They have neglected poor minority communities in America, but my eyes have been opened.”
Another former Trump opponent, businessman Vivek Ramaswamy, tailored parts of his speech to young voters.
“Our message to Gen Z is this: You will be the generation that really saves this country,” Ramaswamy, 38, said. “You want to be a rebel, you want to be a hippie, you want to stick it on a man? Show up on your college campus and try calling yourself a conservative. Say you want to get married and have children. Teach them to believe in God.”
A number of GOP Senate candidates spoke earlier in the night, all taking a few minutes to introduce themselves and take shots at their Democratic challengers.
West Virginia governor Jim Justice, who is running for an open seat in his state, delighted the crowd by walking on stage with his English bulldog Babydog. Dave McCormick, the party’s Pennsylvania Senate candidate, struck a more somber note Saturday, briefly touching on the assassination attempt he saw just steps away.
“I first want to acknowledge what happened a few days ago in my hometown, where I witnessed remarkable strength and determination while sitting in the front row here at Butler,” McCormick said. “At a terrible and unexpected moment, the president rose to the challenge brilliantly. But what a sad and scary day it is for the families of the injured and the dead and for our great country. We all thank God that President Trump is in good condition.”
Others took shots at Biden, Harris and the media.
“I haven’t seen anything like the Biden-Harris open border policy,” said former Rep. Mike Rogers, who is seeking an open Senate seat in Michigan. “They roll out the red carpet for violent gangs, fentanyls, Chinese spies, people on terrorist watch lists. And listen, our enemies are not stupid. “They know all they have to do is wait until bedtime in the White House to get over the limit.”
In one of the best Senate battlegrounds of the year, Republican Tim Sheehy is embroiled in the culture wars against Democratic Sen. John Tester in Montana.
“My name is Tim Sheehy,” he said. “Those are my pronouns too.”