Two days after surviving an assassination attempt, former President Donald Trump made a triumphant appearance on the first night of the Republican National Convention, sporting a bandage over his right ear.
Delegates erupted in applause as Trump appeared on screen backstage and then walked onto the stage, visibly emotional, as Lee Greenwood performed “God Bless the USA.” Trump did not deliver a speech to convention attendees.
Trump’s appearance came hours after Republicans nominated him to appear on the presidential ticket for a third time, and welcomed Ohio Sen. JD Vance as his running mate.
“We must come together as a party, and we must come together as a nation,” said Republican Party Chairman Michael Whatley, who was chosen by Trump to be the party’s chairman, as he opened the evening session of the national convention. “We must show the same strength and resilience as President Trump and lead this nation into a greater future.”
But Whatley and other senior party members made clear that their call for harmony does not extend to President Joe Biden and Democrats.
“His policies are a clear and present danger to America, to our institutions, our values and our people,” said Sen. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, a state Trump won in 2016 but lost to Biden four years ago.
Saturday’s shooting at a campaign rally in Pennsylvania — in which Trump was wounded and one man killed — was on delegates’ minds as they celebrated, a stark contrast to the anger and anxiety of recent days. Some delegates chanted “Fight, fight, fight!” – the same words Trump was seen shouting to the crowd as he was protected by the Secret Service with his fist raised and his face bloodied.
“We should all be thankful right now that we were able to vote for President Donald J. Trump after what happened on Saturday,” New Jersey state Sen. Michael Testa said in announcing his state’s 12 delegates for Trump.
The scene surrounding Trump’s formal nomination was a reflection of his enormous popularity among Republican activists. When he passed the threshold of delegates needed for the nomination, screens in the hall announced “numbers exceeded” as the song “Celebration” played in the background and delegates danced and waved pro-Trump signs. With “Make America Great Again” signs on their sides, delegates cheered throughout the vote as states cast their votes in favor of Trump for a second term.
Several speakers made reference to religion when discussing Trump and the assassination attempt.
“The devil went to Pennsylvania armed with a rifle,” said South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott. “But an American lion stood up.”
Wyoming Delegate Sheryl Foland was among those who joined in the “fight back” chant after watching Trump survive Saturday’s rally in what she called “monumental photos and videos.”
“We knew we were going to adopt that chant,” added Foland, a child mental health therapist. “Not only because we wanted him to fight, and God was fighting for him. We thought, ‘Isn’t it our job to rise to the challenge and fight for our country?'”
“It’s bigger than Trump,” Foland continued. “It’s a slogan for our country.”
Another timely development helped lift the mood at the convention site on Monday: The federal judge presiding over Trump’s case for withholding classified documents dismissed the case over questions about the appointment of the prosecutor who brought the charges, handing the former president a major legal victory.
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