MILWAUKEE – Donald Trump – his right ear bandaged – appeared with his pick for vice president at the Republican National Convention to raucous applause and chants of “fight, fight, fight”.
Two days after narrowly surviving an assassination attempt at a campaign rally in Pennsylvania, the Republican nominee appeared to have tears in his eyes as he acknowledged the cheering crowds and sat alongside members of family and running mate Senator JD Vance.
Trump, 78, had announced his choice of Mr Vance, edging out other contenders including Marco Rubio and Doug Burgum, earlier in the day on social media.
“As Vice President, JD will continue to fight for our Constitution, stand with our Troops, and will do everything he can to help me MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN,” Trump wrote.
Many in the Fiserv Forum, where the four-day event is being held, appeared deeply emotional to catch a glimpse of the former president, after he was shot at by a gunman who pierced his ear with one of his bullets, before being killed by a US Secret Service agent. When Trump was rushed away by agents on Saturday, he raised a fist and repeatedly said, “fight”.
“As an American, it is very shocking for me that a person like a former president can be shot at like that,” John Figueroa, a member of the Tennessee GOP delegation, told i.
“Him being here tonight shows his resolve. He is good for America and good for the world.”
Another delegate, Linda Buckles, said she hoped Trump would tackle a range of issues running from illegal immigration to the economy. “He will get it back on track.”
While members of political parties can often sound over the top with the way they talk about their candidates – Barack Obama was often the subject of hype and hyperbole as president – under Trump things have been taken to a new level.
Political scientists say that is in large part his own doing, as he has promoted himself and himself alone as a solution to the nation’s challenges. And with a handful of exceptions, such as Liz Cheney and Mitt Romney, the Republican Party has gone along with it.
There is no room for dissent, and no space an alternative opinion. Even the handful of Republicans who challenged Trump for the nomination – primarily Nikki Haley – have been banished. The former South Carolina governor, who served as Trump’s UN ambassador, is not due to visit the convention and has been given no speaking slot.
The result is a populist platform approved by Trump and his top campaign advisers. If people do not agree with everything, they say it is enough that Trump is leading the party.
Nathaniel Thomas, 74, an African American pastor from Washington, DC and also a delegate, told i he believed some polls that suggested as many as 20 per cent of Black men might vote for Trump in November – that would be historic.
“The Democrats have always taken African Americans for granted and Republicans have not always been good with their messaging,” he said, seated on the convention floor. He said often African Americans who wished to vote Republican were the target of ridicule.
Taffy Howard, 55, a delegate from South Dakota, told i that as former member of the navy, one of her priorities was stronger military. She said she was opposed to transgender people being permitted to serve. “Our military is there to fight wars, not culture battles,” she said.
Speaking to the convention from the stage, Senator Tim Scott, who briefly ran against Trump, said divine intervention spared the former president’s life.
“Our God still saves,” Mr Scott said. “He still delivers and he still sets free. Because on Saturday the devil came to Pennsylvania holding a rifle, but an American lion got back up on his feet and he roared.”
Trump is due to formally accept the party’s nomination in a prime time speech on Thursday.