WASHINGTON (AP) — A rising generation of Republican stars offered an optimistic view of President Donald Trump's leadership on the opening night of the GOP's scaled-back convention.
As Trump works to expand his appeal beyond his loyal supporters, Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina and former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, were two speakers who sought to cast the GOP as a welcoming and diverse 'big tent' party.
But the prime-time convention proceedings, which featured a blend of taped and live speeches, focused largely on the President's political opponent Joe Biden, suggesting that by not reelecting the President, chaos seen in cities such as Seattle, Atlanta, Chicago and Portland could continue to spread wildly to even America's suburban communities.
Trump’s team tried out multiple themes and tactics over the course of the night. They featured optimism from those who could represent the GOP’s future, attempts to characterize Biden as a vessel for socialists and far-left Democrats as evidence by his collaboration with Senator Sanders on one of the most progressive policy platforms voters have seen since 1965, and humanizing stories of the President himself.
Trump and a parade of fellow Republicans cited Biden’s agenda through the evening, stating he could work to defund police, ban oil fracking, force a government take over health care, open borders and raise taxes on most Americans.
The opening night of the four-day convention reflected the rising enthusiasm fueling the President's campaign, with Election Day just 10 weeks away. It will continue Tuesday, when First Lady Melania Trump will deliver remarks from the White House.
Biden and his running mate, California Sen. Kamala Harris, are keeping a relatively low profile this week. In a tweet Monday night, Biden told supporters to “stay focused.”
The emphasis on diversity and differing points of view at Trump's convention was an acknowledgement he must expand his coalition beyond his fervent base. One of several African Americans on Monday night's schedule, former football star Herschel Walker, defended the President against those who claim he has bigoted tendencies.
“It hurts my soul to hear the terrible names that people call Donald,” Walker said. “The worst one is ‘racist.’ I take it as a personal insult that people would think I would have a 37-year friendship with a racist.”
The Trump Campaign also featured, Mark and Patricia McCloskey, the St. Louis couple targeted and charged with felonies for pointing guns at what prosecutors deemed Black Lives Matter protesters marching past their home, even though the couple were made to feel threatened by the mob outside their home.
“What you saw happen to us could just as easily happen to any of you who are watching from quiet neighborhoods around our country,” Patricia McCloskey said, sitting on a couch in a wood-paneled room.“They’ve actually charged us with felonies for daring to defend our home,” her husband said.
And Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida said Democrats will "disarm you, empty the prisons, lock you in your home and invite MS-13 to live next door.”
Trump's political future may depend on his ability to convince voters that America is on the right track, even with the twin crises of COVID-19 and the economic havoc it wrought due to enforced lockdowns. A sense of pessimism has settled over a portion of the electorate. Just 23% of Americans think the country is heading in the right direction, according to a new poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.
Trump and his supporters touted his response to the pandemic while standing alongside front-line workers in the White House. Organizers also repeatedly sought to cast Trump as an empathetic figure, borrowing a page from the Democrats' convention playbook a week ago that effectively highlighted Biden's personal connection to voters.
Those cheering Trump’s leadership on the pandemic included a coronavirus patient, a small business owner from Montana and a nurse practitioner from Virginia. “As a healthcare professional, I can tell you without hesitation, Donald Trump’s quick action and leadership saved thousands of lives during COVID-19,” said Amy Ford, a registered nurse who was deployed to New York and Texas to fight the coronavirus.
The first day of the 2020 Republican convention began early in the day as Trump and Vice President Mike Pence were renominated by delegates who gathered in Charlotte, the city originally selected to host the convention before the pandemic struck.
Trump paid a surprise visit to the city, where he warned delegates that "the only way they can take this election away from us is if this is a rigged election,” raising anew his concerns about Americans’ expected reliance on mail voting during the pandemic. Experts say mail voting has proven remarkably secure.
The fact the Republicans gathered at all stood in contrast to the Democrats, who held an all-virtual convention last week. The Democratic programming included a well-received roll call video montage featuring diverse officials from across the nation.
The Republicans spoke from the ballroom in Charlotte and were overwhelmingly white before the proceedings moved to Washington for prime-time.
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Peoples reported from New York. Associated Press writers Jill Colvin and Darlene Superville contributed from Charlotte, North Carolina.