MILWAUKEE — A vice presidential nominee. A message of unity. A party-like atmosphere.
The Republican National Convention is officially underway, with GOP politicians, delegates and voters convening in Milwaukee, Wis., for a jubilant celebration that will culminate with former President Trump’s official nomination as the 2024 nominee.
This year’s event, however, comes on the heels of Saturday’s assassination attempt on Trump, which shook the political world — and is cooling the rhetoric at the quadrennial event.
The convention, though, has still been marked by its classic trademarks, including spirited outfits, passionate speeches and jabs at Democrats.
Here are five memorable moments from day 1 of the Republican convention in Milwaukee.
Trump picks a VP candidate
Washington’s latest favorite parlor game has finally come to an end.
Trump officially announced Ohio Sen. JD Vance (R) as his vice presidential pick on Monday.
He revealed his pick of the first-term senator, populist conservative and America First firebrand in a Truth Social post midway through the roll call of states that officially nominated him, and Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) announced the news in the convention hall.
“Utah, the 45th state admitted to the union, today proudly casts all of its 40 delegate votes for President Donald J. Trump and his newly announced running mate, my friend and colleague, JD Vance,” Lee said.
Vance later walked onto the convention floor to huge cheers and chants of “USA, USA” alongside his wife Usha, and was seen celebrating his nomination with the Ohio delegation.
Other vice presidential contenders were quick to praise the choice, including Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) and North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgam (R), the two other finalists being considered for the job.
“#TrumpVance2024!!!” Rubio wrote on X.
Burgam on X said Vance’s “small town roots and service to country make him a powerful voice for the America First Agenda.”
It wasn’t just politicians lauding the pick. Tennessee Delegate Beth Campbell, who told The Hill she was at her fifth convention, said Vance has “an American” story that “will resonate with everyday Americans.”
House Republican present at rally shooting helps pledge delegates for Trump
Saturday’s shooting at Trump’s rally in Butler, Pa., is hanging over this year’s convention, after the former president’s ear was pierced by a bullet and an attendee was killed.
Rep. Dan Meuser (R-Pa.), who was in the audience of the rally when shots rang out during Trump’s speech, was spotted on the convention floor with the Pennsylvania delegation, helping the Keystone State pledge its delegates for Trump.
Asked by The Hill if this week feel’s different in light of the shooting, Meuser responded “I think so.”
“Certainly for me, I was there, but I think for a lot of people it was very traumatic,” he said from the convention floor. “I mean it was a near-death experience for the president. But clearly he’s responded incredibly to it, showed all kinds of moral fortitude, strength of character, and he’s here.”
“I think it’s given more resolve to people than sadness and remorse,” he added.
Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.), meanwhile, said the rhetoric at the convention had been lowered — at least in the first 24 hours — because of Saturday’s events.
“You can feel a little bit, the rhetoric is not as high, and I’ve been here for 24 hours,” Tuberville told The Hill in a brief interview at the convention center. “People are more, kind of laid back after what happened this weekend.”
“That’s good,” he added. “Very good.”
McConnell booed on the convention floor
Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.) was greeted with jeers and boos while he was pledging the Bluegrass State’s delegates for Trump.
While there were a few cheers, McConnell spoke haltingly as the jeers overpowered the convention floor and he was drowned out.
“Madame Chairman, the commonwealth of Kentucky proudly casts its 46 votes for the next President of the United States, Donald J. Trump,” McConnell said.
His relationship with Trump has deteriorated over the years after he criticized the former president for his refusal to accept the results of the 2020 election. The two didn’t speak for several years, but seemed to bury the hatchet in June when Trump met with Senate Republicans. Still, bad blood remains with some of Trump’s most ardent supporters in the Senate.
McConnell has said that he will step down as GOP leader in the upper chamber after the 2024 election, ending his run of more than 15 years of conference leadership, though he said he will finish out his Senate term.
Fun, patriotic outfits at the convention
The Fiserv Forum arena is a sea of red, but that’s where the wardrobe similarities end. From the patriotic to the wacky, from elephant ears to American flags, the attendees in Milwaukee are looking to make a statement.
The delegates have been eager to show their support for Trump, sporting large, emblazoned words on their outfits and clothes with large photos of him.
One outfit that made the rounds on social media — and on the jumbotron — was that of Blake Marnell, a California delegate donning a suit blasted with bricks.
“It’s my support for the border wall,” Marnell, who goes by @Brick_Suit on social media, told The Hill.
An alternate delegate from Connecticut Jim Walsh, wearing a large elephant hat, told The Hill he was here for the “party aspect.”
“But I’m hoping to see a positive speech from Donald Trump and maybe get the party and the country a little more united after everything that’s happened,” he added.
Trump makes first public appearance since shooting
Trump made his first public appearance since Saturday’s shooting toward the end of the evening.
The crowd roared as he entered the convention hall sporting a bandage over his ear. As Lee Greenwood performed “God Bless the USA,” Trump made his way to his box seat and shook hands with Tucker Carlson, Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.), Vance and his family members before taking his seat.