DALLAS (AP) — President Donald Trump and his Vice President JD Vance teamed up Thursday to close out the second and final night of the Republicans’ midterm convention in Dallas, imploring voters to stick together to save their party’s majorities in Congress.
Republicans know they are up against history, which traditionally rebuffs the party in power during midterms, but they're relying on Trump’s personal appeal to voters. Vance, with a primetime speaking
slot right before the president, was widely watched as a potential heir to the “Make America Great Again” movement.
Trump organized the convention hoping to rally voters who turn out for him, but not for other candidates.
“You got to do me the biggest favor you’ve ever done,” Trump told the crowd. “You’ve got to do this for me.”
At one point he led the crowd in a repeat-after-me pledge to swear to vote on Nov. 3.
Vance delivered searing criticism of Democrats, calling them “the party of hatred.” And even though Republicans have faced their own rifts over Trump's war in Iran and other issues, he urged them to remain united for the midterms.
“Don’t give the country over to a bunch of crazy people because you happen to disagree with us on a policy issue here or there,” he said.
Republicans face a potential reckoning this fall. They are struggling to bolster enthusiasm for congressional candidates and laboring to overcome voters’ concerns about the economy and the war with Iran. While many Republicans skipped the confab at American Airlines Center, others still see solidarity with Trump as their best shot at winning, despite the president’s low approval rating.
Republicans spent two consecutive nights denouncing Democrats as extremists, and Trump capped Wednesday by making the outlandish promise of $5,000 to each American adult if his party wins in November. Such a proposal could cost more than $1 trillion and was roundly panned — even by some Republicans.
As the convention ended, Cheryl McClure of Mansfield, Texas, said she hopes her party's fortunes improve.
“People are talking about what’s happening at the grocery store, and are understandably still afraid, but things are getting better, and it’s our job to spread the word,” she said. “The emotion coming out is good to drive us forward into November.”
House Democrats blasted the Republicans’ convention as an opulent spectacle for an out-of-touch president.
“Donald Trump does not care about the average American family or about affordability," said Rep. Robert Garcia, D-Calif.
Protesters chanting “say it loud, say it clear, Donald Trump’s not welcome here” marched down streets, but were stopped by police from getting too close to the site.
Vance’s keynote offered hints about his political aspirations, as he spoke about his own family, his wife, Usha, who recently gave birth to their fourth child, and his vision for the country. He has not yet said if he will run in 2028.
When a protester with a Mexican flag interrupted his speech, Vance won an extended roar of approval with his sharp response.
“Well, my friend, if you love Mexico so much, get your a— over there. I’ll buy you a plane ticket,” he said.
"We got to send a message this November,” Vance said. “This country was handed down to us by our parents and their parents before them. We received this national birthright, and we are going to fight for it by electing Republicans this November.”
The vice president, who also serves as the Republican National Committee’s finance chair, raised $2 million for the party earlier Thursday at a fundraiser in Dallas, according to a person familiar with the event who was not authorized to discuss it publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.
Trump is also deploying his cash in key midterm races. No Going Back PAC Inc., which, according to a person with knowledge of the situation, is connected to Trump’s MAGA Inc., has reserved more than $68 million for advertising. The person was not authorized to speak publicly about the funding arrangement.
Coming on the eve of the 25th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, the evening solemnly marked that moment. It also produced a video tribute to Charlie Kirk, who co-founded the conservative group Turning Point USA. He was assassinated one year ago.
“His voice has only grown louder,” said Lucas Miles, a pastor and vice president at Turning Point. The president's son, Donald Trump Jr., drew chants of “USA!” as he honored Kirk and criticized Democrats.
At one point, Rep. Mike Lawler, who is fighting to win reelection in New York, appeared onstage with the family of Sheridan Gorman who was fatally shot in Chicago and officials have charged a man they say was illegally in the country. They presented a bench in her honor as a place where lawmakers can sit to discuss issues.
In a lighter moment, Marty O’Donnell, a composer who is challenging a House Democrat in Nevada, got the crowd to sing along to the earworm jingle he wrote for Flintstones vitamins.
The night's themes delved into what House Speaker Mike Johnson calls the “Contrast for America,” as Republicans showcased what they call their “Big Beautiful Bill” of tax breaks and spending cuts and warned of a bleak future if Democrats take control.
The campaign slogan is a throwback to another Republican leader, Newt Gingrich, who offered a Contract with America. This time, rather than presenting a detailed list of priorities, Republicans are quick to portray all Democrats as in line with their most liberal candidates, some backed by the Democratic Socialists of America, and focused on investigating the Trump administration.
“It truly is a contrast between common sense and crazy,” Johnson said. “We cannot and we will not allow them to take the majority in Congress.”
With the Republican majorities in the House and Senate both at risk this fall, the president’s agenda for his final two years in office is also at stake. The margins in Congress are expected to be narrow, with a few seats in a shrunken map of competitive races determining the outcome.
Presidents past have acknowledged their midterm losses — Barack Obama called his 2010 setbacks a “shellacking,” George W. Bush labeled his a “thumping.”
But Trump often refuses to accept defeat, including his false claims that he, rather than Joe Biden, won the 2020 election. One of the many people he pardoned for their actions in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, former Oath Keepers leader Stewart Rhodes, appeared at the convention.
The night closed with a slow-motion balloon drop that typically falls on a presidential nominee at party conventions, and Trump lingered onstage to enjoy operatic singing from his favorite tenor.
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Mascaro reported from Washington. Associated Press writers Jill Colvin, Thomas Beaumont and Jamie Stengle in Dallas, Will Weissert, Steven Sloan and Aamer Madhani in Washington, JJ Cooper in Phoenix, Bill Barrow in Atlanta, Marc Levy in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, Mike Catalini in Morrisville, Pennsylvania, Hannah Fingerhut in Des Moines, Iowa, and Sarah Rankin in Richmond, Virginia, contributed to this report.
