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| Trump takes center stage at Republican national convention | Trump takes center stage at Republican national convention |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| Republican speakers and Trump family argue that the president has kept promises he made in 2016 | Republican speakers and Trump family argue that the president has kept promises he made in 2016 |
| Republicans have used the first day of their four day convention to issue dark warnings about the future of America, arguing that re-electing Donald Trump in November is the only way to save the country from falling into socialism, economic ruin, violence and anarchy. | |
| Monday night’s theme was officially the “land of promise,” but the collection of speeches offered an almost apocalyptic vision of the stakes in the election. | |
| “They’ll disarm you, empty the prisons, lock you in your home, and invite [street gang] MS-13 to live next door,” congressman Matt Gaetz of Florida said of the Democrats, likening the vision to a “horror movie.” | |
| Featured speakers described the incumbent president as a compassionate man who succeeded through his first term in office in the face of “radical” Democrats and the media, which were presented as the president’s coordinated enemies, hellbent on just blocking his initiatives. | |
| “The same socialist policies which destroyed places like Cuba and Venezuela must not take root in our cities and our schools,” Trump campaign senior adviser Kimberly Guilfoyle warned in a loud, inflammatory speech to an empty room. | |
| Directly lifting a line from Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden’s stump speech, Guilfoyle said: “This election is a battle for the soul of America. Your choice is clear.” | |
| Guilfoyle described Democrats as focused on enslaving Americans to their liberal ideology “to the point that you won’t recognize the country yourself.” | |
| The dark tone was apparent to political operatives. | |
| The “campaign said the convention would be about hope and light but so far most of the speeches are extreme fear porn,” said one veteran Republican presidential campaign operative. | |
| Curiously, multiple times throughout the night the cable news networks cut away from the speeches -including conservative networks like Fox News and One America News Network. The convention had some of the same elements as the Democratic National Convention last week, including a short taped version of the roll call across America, testimonials from average Americans and the president interacting with a people of people affected by the pandemic. | |
| Republicans and convention planners clearly worked to argue that Trump is bookending his first term with a long list of accomplishments. | |
| “President Trump promised to give the forgotten men and women of America a real shot at the American dream, and again he delivered,” said House minority whip Steve Scalise, a congressman from Louisiana. | |
| A video of Trump’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic featured multiple Democratic governors complimenting Trump and the federal government, editing out the fierce criticism of the administration’s response from those same speakers. Trump has been criticized for playing down the pandemic, and saying the coronavirus – which has killed more than 175,000 people in the US, more than any other country by far – will eventually just “disappear.” | |
| “He’s taken on the swamp, all of the swamp. The Democrats, the press, and the never Trumpers,” Ohio congressman Jim Jordan said. “This president has done what he said he’s going to do.” | |
| Speaking earlier in the day after officially receiving the party’s nomination, Trump addressed delegates in Charlotte, North Carolina, and claimed without evidence that Democrats planned use the coronavirus crisis to “steal” the election. | Speaking earlier in the day after officially receiving the party’s nomination, Trump addressed delegates in Charlotte, North Carolina, and claimed without evidence that Democrats planned use the coronavirus crisis to “steal” the election. |
| “The only way they can take this election away from us is if this is a rigged election,” Trump told the 336 delegates in the hall, who had traveled to the convention from the 50 states and US territories. “They’re trying to steal the election.” | “The only way they can take this election away from us is if this is a rigged election,” Trump told the 336 delegates in the hall, who had traveled to the convention from the 50 states and US territories. “They’re trying to steal the election.” |
| The majority of speakers at a political nominating convention such as the RNC or the Democratic national convention are usually current or former elected officials. But this year many of the speakers are icons of the conservative wing of the party. | |
| Over the next four days the RNC is poised to be the latest example of the Republican party’s complete shift over to a political party centered on Trump. The revised party platform for the convention this year is just an expression of support for the president’s second-term agenda. And none of the featured speakers at the convention are Republicans who have strongly dissented with Trump – a few, like the former Arizona senator Jeff Flake, have instead endorsed Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden. | |
| Usually former presidents attend their party’s nominating convention, but former president George W Bush, the only living former Republican president, is not attending the convention or offering a taped video. All three former living Democratic presidents participated in last week’s Democratic national convention. | Usually former presidents attend their party’s nominating convention, but former president George W Bush, the only living former Republican president, is not attending the convention or offering a taped video. All three former living Democratic presidents participated in last week’s Democratic national convention. |
| Both national and statewide polling has shown Trump trailing Biden and although polls have recently tightened, Biden came out of his party’s convention with a polling bump. Trump and his aides are hoping the convention will help shift both Trump’s approval numbers and the national spotlight in the president’s favor. | Both national and statewide polling has shown Trump trailing Biden and although polls have recently tightened, Biden came out of his party’s convention with a polling bump. Trump and his aides are hoping the convention will help shift both Trump’s approval numbers and the national spotlight in the president’s favor. |
| The convention is also an opportunity for Trump to try to address the crises facing the country and offer optimism. But critics have argued the president is politicizing science; on Sunday, as his administration continued to struggle to contain the coronavirus pandemic, Trump linked the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to a “deep state” cabal, and admitted having applied pressure on the agency to fast track new emergency authorization of convalescent plasma to fight the virus, despite the treatment being in the very early stages of testing. | The convention is also an opportunity for Trump to try to address the crises facing the country and offer optimism. But critics have argued the president is politicizing science; on Sunday, as his administration continued to struggle to contain the coronavirus pandemic, Trump linked the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to a “deep state” cabal, and admitted having applied pressure on the agency to fast track new emergency authorization of convalescent plasma to fight the virus, despite the treatment being in the very early stages of testing. |
| Tensions between law enforcement and protesters are likely to escalate over the next few days following the police shooting of an African American man, Jacob Blake, in Wisconsin on Sunday. As the country faces a national reckoning on racism and police brutality, there too the Trump administration has struggled to ease tensions across the country, instead using divisive rhetoric. | Tensions between law enforcement and protesters are likely to escalate over the next few days following the police shooting of an African American man, Jacob Blake, in Wisconsin on Sunday. As the country faces a national reckoning on racism and police brutality, there too the Trump administration has struggled to ease tensions across the country, instead using divisive rhetoric. |
| The convention is beginning the day after Kellyanne Conway, one of Trump’s longest serving aides, announced she would be leaving the administration at the end of the month. Conway said she needs to spend more time with her family. She will also deliver a speech at the RNC. | The convention is beginning the day after Kellyanne Conway, one of Trump’s longest serving aides, announced she would be leaving the administration at the end of the month. Conway said she needs to spend more time with her family. She will also deliver a speech at the RNC. |