MILWAUKEE — On the final night of the Republican National Convention, former President Donald Trump accepted the GOP presidential nomination and claimed an “incredible victory” in November to raucous applause.

“I am running to be president for all of America, not half of America, because there is no victory in winning for half of America,” Trump said after he surprised the crowd by appearing onstage during the musical rendition of “God Bless the USA.” “So tonight, with faith and devotion, I proudly accept your nomination for president of the United States.

The address was his first since a gunman attempted to assassinate Trump during a Saturday rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, which has cast a long shadow over the convention. Trump’s ear was bandaged from a gunshot wound, and delegates throughout the week began to bandage their own ears in a show of unity with the former president.

“As you already know, the assassin’s bullet came within a quarter of an inch of taking my life. So many people have asked me what happened, tell us what happened please, and therefore I’ll tell you what happened, and you’ll never hear it from me a second time because it’s too painful to tell,” Trump explained.

“I had God on my side,” Trump said of his survival.

The Thursday night address represents Trump’s complete domination of the GOP eight years after he transformed American politics in the modern era. Most Republican dissension against Trump has turned into a whimper with many of his harshest critics losing influence in the national party or bending to Trump’s vision.

“I’m not supposed to be here tonight,” Trump said, but the crowd roared back, “Yes you are!

“Thank you,” Trump answered. “But I’m not.”

UFC President and CEO Dana White introduced Trump, who appeared at the convention all three previous nights but didn’t speak instead portraying himself as a silent warrior figure who watched the crowd and speakers champion his legacy to the American public. “He is willing to risk it all because he loves this country,” White said in a laudatory remarks.

Trump previously told the Washington Examiner’s Salena Zito that he rewrote his convention speech in the wake of Saturday’s events. The former president wanted his new speech to reunite the country and meet the demand of this critical moment.

Several speakers referenced the miraculous nature that Trump survived on Saturday and attributed the former president’s refusal to cower as a sign of the fighting spirit that will propel him to victory in November against President Joe Biden.

“I have seen this man dragged through hell and back, in and out of courtrooms, indictments, impeachments, mug shots, and even an assassination attempt, and yet, he has never backed down,” Lara Trump, the Republican National Committee co-chairwoman and the former president’s daughter-in-law, said when she spoke on Tuesday.

“What was my father’s reaction when his life was on the line? Not to cower, not to surrender, but to show for all the world to see that the next American president has the heart of a lion,” Donald Trump Jr. said on Wednesday.

Several delegates told the Washington Examiner before Donald Trump spoke that they fully expected him to galvanize the crowd, which has been waiting to hear the former president since he appeared on the convention floor on Monday.

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“I hope that it’s a unifying speech. I hope that it puts America first,” Rachel Sikes, a Texas delegate wearing a bride-to-be sash, said. “I hope that it puts, even above America, I hope that it puts God first. I hope that he brings us together as a nation and does what he promises in his speeches and what he said up to this point.”

Trump also remains disciplined in not interjecting himself into the national conversation as Biden flounders and attempts to hold on to the Democratic presidential nomination despite growing calls from party members to step down.

MILWAUKEE — The mood was jubilant at the Fiserv Forum Monday to officially nominate former President Donald Trump at the Republican National Convention just days after a failed assassination attempt.

Monday’s night theme was “Make America Wealthy Once Again” but much of the focus of the night was on Trump’s announcement of his vice presidential decision Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance and excitement over Trump appearing in the arena.

Speaker after speaker championed the former president as they denigrated President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris. But it was Trump entering the building that electrified the crowd Monday night.

WHO IS JD VANCE? MEET TRUMP’S PICK FOR VICE PRESIDENT

Trump makes a triumphant appearance at the convention

The crowd immediately erupted into cheers when a video clip of Trump appearing inside the arena was shown. Moments later as Trump appeared at the convention, he threw up a triumphant fist and shook hands with several allies, children, and Vance in the Make America Great Again section box. Trump still had the bandage covering over his right ear that was wounded on Saturday.

This was Trump’s first public appearance since the assassination attempt on Saturday and was a powerful moment during the convention. The crowd gave him a standing ovation and started chanting “USA! USA! USA!” and later “We want Trump! We Want Trump!” The former president did not address the crowd, but his speech will come later this week after he was officially nominated on Monday. He did spend the rest of the night clapping and smiling as speakers took to the stage and praised him.

In a video message that aired before he appeared onstage, Trump urged attendees to vote early to “swamp” Democrats so they “can’t win.” The former president implored the crowd that early voting would help “evict” Biden and help to ensure reelection in November.

Trump’s running mate is finally announced

Vance was selected as Trump’s running mate midafternoon on Monday ending the long-awaited suspense over which finalist would become Trump’s second in command and beating out other contenders including Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC), Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL), Gov. Doug Burgum (R-ND), Rep. Byron Donalds (R-FL), and Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY).

“After lengthy deliberation and thought, and considering the tremendous talents of many others, I have decided that the person best suited to assume the position of Vice President of the United States is Senator J.D. Vance of the Great State of Ohio,” Trump wrote on Truth Social on Monday.

Before joining Trump’s ticket Vance was best known for writing Hillbilly Elegy before winning the Ohio Senate seat. But after joining the ticket Vance has rocketed up the ladder in GOP politics.

“I just think he is a good choice. He’s an original thinker,” Vivek Ramaswamy said of Vance. “I think Trump-Vance is probably the most formidable presidential ticket that I’ve seen in my lifetime.”

Vice President Kamala Harris called Vance soon after the announcement to congratulate him but the pair did not speak. The vice president left a message for Vance, according to a source familiar.

Delegates on the convention floor repeatedly broke out in chants of “J.D.! J.D.!J.D.!” as he was officially nominated.

Trump’s classified documents case is dismissed

Trump scored a major victory outright on the first full day of the convention when U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon threw out special counsel Jack Smith’s case against the former president over his handling of the classified documents.

This was another major legal victory for Trump after the Supreme Court previously ruled he had some immunity from prosecution and it comes on the heels of Biden’s disastrous presidential debate in late June.

Many Republican delegates celebrated the nullification of the classified documents case in interviews with the Washington Examiner. “Well, it’s the right thing,” said Richard Porter, a delegate from Illinois. “The idea … that you can have someone appointed by the Justice Department as opposed to the president and approved by the Senate to bring a case against a U.S. citizen. I mean talk about the deep state. That’s not how it works.”

“It’s a trial that never should have been because President Trump had the authority as a former president to be able to make sure that those documents were available to him,” said Donald William Johnson, another Illinois delegate. “The whole thing is trumped up charges. And I use that I use that tongue in cheek, and it should have been dismissed.”

Traditional conventions make a comeback

After an eight-year hiatus, traditional in-person conventions came roaring back in 2024. The last in-person convention occurred in 2016 the first presidential cycle that Trump ran in. But the COVID-19 pandemic upended both the Republican and Democratic national conventions with both groups forced to hold mostly virtual events in 2020.

But four years later, jubilant Republicans gathered in Milwaukee excited to hear national and local GOP lawmakers speak before Trump appeared onstage. A festive air filled the Fiserv Forum with attendees dressed in Americana outfits or in head-to-toe Trump ornaments. As the convention continued Monday night the crowd continued to chant “Trump! Trump! Trump!”

“It’s only Day One. Look how much fun it is now. We have three more days to go,” said Art Wittich, a Montana delegate.

Cami Mondeaux contributed to this report.

MILWAUKEE — Democrats and their allies wasted little time planning their line of attack against Sen. J.D. Vance (R-OH), former President Donald Trump‘s newly announced running mate.

American Bridge 21st Century’s opposition research on Vance listed at least five areas in which to criticize Vance, including abortion, Social Security, Medicare and social services, democracy and the Capitol riots, problems with Trump, and the environment and energy.

WHO IS JD VANCE? MEET TRUMP’S PICK FOR VICE PRESIDENT

The research claimed Vance opposed abortion bans without any emergency exceptions, supported a federal abortion ban, called to cut Medicare, said he wouldn’t have certified the 2020 election, and referenced Vance not voting for Trump in 2016, the first time he successfully ran for president.

Leaders with the Democratic National Committee and President Joe Biden’s campaign echoed these criticisms in statements released mere moments after Trump announced on Truth Social that Vance would join his ticket.

“J.D. Vance embodies MAGA — with an out-of-touch extreme agenda and plans to help Trump force his Project 2025 agenda on the American people,” said DNC Chairman Jaime Harrison, in a statement Monday. “Vance has championed and enabled Trump’s worst policies for years — from a national abortion ban to whitewashing Jan. 6 to railing against Social Security and Medicare.”

“Donald Trump picked J.D. Vance as his running mate because Vance will do what Mike Pence wouldn’t on Jan. 6: Bend over backward to enable Trump and his extreme MAGA agenda, even if it means breaking the law and no matter the harm to the American people,” said Biden’s campaign Chairwoman Jen O’Malley Dillon in a statement.

Trump has sought to distance himself from Project 2025, a conservative plan from the Heritage Foundation that would vastly remake the federal government. But Democrats, who have spent weeks in turmoil over Biden’s ability to lead the party, are hoping to change the national narrative to focus on Trump and Vance.

“Let’s see what Donald Trump’s VP candidate thinks of Donald Trump,” the Biden War Room’s X account said as it shared snippets of Vance previously slamming Trump.

The Democratic Party has long painted Trump as an extremist and is hoping to brand Vance in the same manner. But the near-assassination attempt against Trump on Saturday has tempered members across the political divide who have called for a cool down on violent rhetoric.

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Republicans, however, have embraced Vance as the next generation of the Trump movement.

“J.D. Vance is the future of the Republican Party, who understands the struggles of working Americans, particularly the forgotten men and women of the Midwest,” said Ford O’Connell, a Florida-based GOP strategist who is attending the convention. “He’s a veteran, and he’s very smart and savvy. I mean, in a lot of ways, he compliments Donald Trump.”

Conservative activists are sounding the alarm to counter efforts that the Republican platform could dilute anti-abortion language — a departure from decades of precedence.

In a preemptive move, a group of 10 anti-abortion leaders sent a letter to former President Donald Trump, pressuring him not to back away from language in the GOP platform against abortion. The drastic move is evidence of rising fear among conservatives that Trump’s consistent statements that abortion should now be left up to states after the fall of Roe v. Wade could become the national stance of the GOP.

The Republican platform has not been updated since 2016 and was re-approved in 2020. The more than 60-page platform included a federal abortion ban after 20 weeks, which Trump has not publicly said he supports.

This time around, the platform committee will hold a closed-door session to determine the party platform a week before the Republican National Convention begins on July 15, which will reportedly be scaled back from 2016. C-SPAN will not broadcast the meeting in another departure from precedence.

The letter, obtained by the Washington Examiner, praises the former president for being the “most pro-life president in American history” but then urges Trump to “make clear that you do not intend to weaken the pro-life plank.” The letter was first reported by the New York Times.

“We believe it is critical for voters to know that you and the Republican Party continue to stand for life,” the letter states. The leaders also urged Trump to include language that supports a “human life amendment to the Constitution” and legislation that clearly states the 14th Amendment’s protection applies to “children before birth.”

Ralph Reed, chairman of the Faith and Freedom Coalition; Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America; and Tony Perkins, president of the Family Research Council were among the group of people who signed the letter.

Dannenfelser emailed the letter to Susie Wiles, Trump’s campaign senior adviser, on June 10. The SBA Pro-Life America leader remained supportive of Trump in a statement to the Washington Examiner but also pushed for anti-abortion language in the platform.

“In order for us to keep the momentum and win in November, we must remain unified. Our only request is that the GOP platform retain a key principle as it has for 40 years, asserting a constitutional right to life for the unborn under the 14th Amendment,” said Dannenfelser.

But Trump has long signaled that publicly supporting a federal abortion ban could cost the GOP the White House after the GOP faced stinging losses in 2022 and 2023. He, and by extension, his campaign, has instead insisted that Democrats are “radical” on abortion while maintaining that each state should decide how far to limit abortion.

“President Trump has long been consistent in supporting the rights of states to make decisions on abortion,” said Karoline Leavitt, the Trump campaign’s national press secretary, in a statement that did not directly address the letter’s concerns. “Joe Biden and the Democrats are radically out of touch with the majority of Americans in their support for abortion up until birth and even after birth, and forcing taxpayers to fund it.”

Democrats have successfully run on defending abortion rights since the Supreme Court struck down Roe in 2022. Fearing that another abortion theme election cycle could sink his campaign, Trump has tried to walk a fine line between bragging over helping overturn Roe by nominating three conservative Supreme Court justices while trying to appear liberal on the matter.

Toning down the GOP’s platform stance on abortion could help to prevent attacks on abortion from Democrats when the Republican National Convention is held in Milwaukee later this month. Wiles and Chris LaCivita, a Trump campaign senior adviser, alluded to preventing attacks from Democrats in a memo sent out last week.

“Publishing an unnecessarily verbose treatise will provide more fuel for our opponent’s fire of misinformation and misrepresentation to voters,” the pair wrote.

Kristan Hawkins, president of Students for Life of America, was not one of the signees of the letter to Trump but she claimed that the scaled-back GOP platform was not an issue for her organization.

“The length of the platform is not a concern for Pro-Life voters. It’s not the number of words, but the intent that matters,” Hawkins said in a statement.” If the GOP wants to succinctly pledge to protect life in law and in service, from conception to natural death, as well as end the weaponized abuse of federal programs and agencies in support of abortion and cut  taxpayer funding to Planned Parenthood and other abortion vendors, that’s a solid agenda worthy of support.”

In an interview with the Washington Examiner, Kristi Hamrick, vice president of media and policy for Students for Life of America, claimed that a lack of definitive language in support of life would be a problem for social conservatives.

“What we are saying to the RNC leadership is the goal should be a strong defense of life,” said Hamrick. “To water it down or to insinuate that the goal is less than that, that would be the problem.”

“From our perspective, if you’re running for federal office, you should have a federal plan for dealing with the human rights issue of our day,” Hamrick added, pushing back against claims that abortion should be left to states to decide.

Although conservatives may be anxious over what happens to abortion in the party platform, the decision to limit the amount of infighting is a wise choice, according to Republicans, who are itching to retake the White House.

“While it will be a missed opportunity to guide the direction of the Republican Party over the next four years, it’s a smart move in the interim since the Trump campaign and RNC must deal with a small but vocal faction of social conservatives who want the GOP to take politically stupid positions on gay marriage and abortion,” a GOP strategist who requested anonymity to speak candidly said. “A televised, gavel-to-gavel platform committee meeting would surely be a distraction.”

Trump allies, Randy Evans, a former U.S. ambassador to Luxembourg under Trump; Russell Vought, a former Trump administration Office of Management and Budget director; and Ed Martin, president of the right-leaning Phyllis Schlafly Eagles, are heading the platform committee guaranteeing Trump’s wishes will be fulfilled.

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Yet some GOP experts remain unfazed by whether abortion is in the party platform, citing the toothless nature of the endeavor.

“The official platforms of both parties have become meaningless in the grand scheme of campaigns and elections as few undecided voters actually make their decision based on the platform,” said Dennis Lennox, a Republican consultant. “The only people who care about the platform are the influence groups who seek to put something in the document and rank-and-file activists, who view the platform as some kind of creed or holy writ to attack fellow Republicans in primaries and races for intra-party offices.”