MILWAUKEE — Former President Donald Trump finally took the stage at the Republican National Convention Thursday night, speaking publicly for the first time since he nearly fell to a sniper’s bullet at a rally in western Pennsylvania.
But Trump wasn’t the only person to speak to GOP delegates at the Fiserv Forum. As they have on the previous three nights, a host of Trump supporters, ranging from former administration officials to professional wrestlers, took the stage ahead of him.
Many of the Republican Party’s heavy hitters had already spoken during earlier portions of the convention, but a few unexpected names tried to make an impression Thursday, including wrestling legend Hulk Hogan, Ultimate Fighting Championship CEO Dana White, conservative media personality Tucker Carlson, and several of Trump’s own family members.
Trump’s speech was, however, the biggest takeaway of the night.
Trump takes the stage
Trump entered the downtown Milwaukee arena as country singer Lee Greenwood gave a live performance of his signature song, “God Bless the USA.” Beginning slowly, Trump delivered an uncharacteristically emotional speech in which he recounted the assassination attempt.
Promising it would be the only time he did so, he told in detail what happened, saying the crowd did not stampede after the shots rang out because they didn’t want to leave him.
“I’m not supposed to be here tonight,” he said. When the crowd broke into chants of “Yes, you are!” he repeated, “Thank you. But I’m not. I stand before you in this arena only by the grace of almighty God.”
Trump had told the Washington Examiner's Salena Zito that he completely rewrote his convention acceptance speech after being shot, switching from a "humdinger" attacking President Joe Biden to one emphasizing unity.
He said he has spoken to the families of each victim, naming them as David Dutch, James Copenhaver, and former fire chief Chris Comparatore. The latter of the three died from his wounds, and Trump kissed a fire department uniform Comparatore had worn before announcing $6.3 million had been raised for the victims’ families.
The balance of his speech returned to Trump’s familiar topics of inflation, illegal immigration, and energy independence, layering in his new pledge to eliminate taxes on tips, though his voice remained subdued throughout.
While Democrats appear close to toppling Biden as their nominee, Trump mentioned his opponent by name only once. He repeatedly thanked his supporters, saying he would bring back the American dream if he returns to the White House.
“We have to make the most of every day, for the people and for the country that we love,” he said. “The attacker in Pennsylvania wanted to stop our moment, but the truth is the movement has never been about me. It has always been about you.”
Tucker's world
Political commentator Tucker Carlson hasn't slowed down much since being let go from Fox News last year. He got a big reception from delegates inside the arena as one of Trump’s warmup speakers and gave a teleprompter-free reflection on leadership that praised Trump for his actions following the shooting.
“I reached out to Trump within hours of [the assassination attempt],” said Carlson, who has also worked for CNN and MSNBC during his career. “Having just been shot in the face, he said not a single word about himself. He said only how amazed he was and how proud he was of the crowd, which didn’t run. And I thought two things. The first thing I thought was, 'Well, of course, they didn't run. His courage gave them heart.'"
The second thought was that Trump hadn’t sought to “inflame the nation” with rhetoric afterward, instead trying to spread a message of unity .
But Carlson couldn’t resist a few cracks at Biden’s expense, including in a passage about the meaning of leadership.
“Just because you call yourself the president doesn’t mean that much inherently,” he said. “I can call my dog the CEO of Hewlett Packard. It doesn’t mean she is. It’s true. And you hate to say it, but it also is true that you could take, I don’t know, a mannequin or a dead person and make him president. No, you could!”
Carlson opined that Trump is seeking to restore democracy rather than subvert it because he gives voters what they actually want.
The incredible Hulk and the UFC CEO
Professional wrestling icon Hulk Hogan brought his “24-inch pythons” to the area a few minutes after Carlson, dubbing Trump a “gladiator” and his supporters “Trumpites.”
Hogan, whose real name is Terry Bollea, remixed the most famous move of his wrestling days by ripping off a tank top to reveal another one reading, “Trump/Vance.” He finished with World Championship Wrestling-style admonition toward Trump’s enemies.
“Donald Trump is the president who will get the job done,” he said. “So all you criminals, all you lowlifes, all you scumbags, all you drug dealers, and all you crooked politicians, you need to answer one question, brother. ‘What are you going to do when Donald Trump and all the Trumpomaniacs run wild on you!?’”
Hogan was not the only sports world figure to speak, with the list also including Trump National Doral Golf Club General Manager Carrie Ruiz and Ultimate Fighting Championship CEO Dana White.
White pegged Trump as a loyal friend for 25 years, one who would fight hard for the United States in a second administration.
“I’m in the tough guy business,” White said. “This is the toughest, most resilient human being I’ve ever met in my life. The greater the stakes, the harder he fights, and this guy never, ever gives up.”
Melania Trump makes an appearance
Talk had circulated about former first lady Melania Trump’s whereabouts during the convention and whether or not she would make an appearance. She finally did, just after 9 p.m. local time on the RNC’s final night, entering in a solid-red suiting and sitting by vice presidential nominee J.D. Vance (R-OH) in Donald Trump’s VIP box.
While Melania Trump did not speak, her presence added to a general subtheme of the human side of Donald Trump, with one of his grandchildren, Eric Trump’s daughter Carolina, sitting in his lap as RNC Co-Chairwoman Lara Trump sat to his side. Several speakers mentioned love and leadership in their remarks.
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Ahead of introducing Trump, White read a letter he said Trump wrote inviting him to speak at the convention. The letter included an apology that the gig would interrupt a vacation White was planning to take with his family.
“He was concerned about interrupting my family trip,” White said. “That’s the President Trump that I know. A man who truly cares about people.”
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