The Republican National Convention heads into its second day Tuesday in Milwaukee — now with Donald Trump officially as its presidential nominee. Trump energized the crowd Monday night by entering the arena with a bandage on his right ear after being injured during an assassination attempt Saturday. Expect more speakers Tuesday to mention what they described as the former president’s strength and resilience after the shooting at his rally in Pennsylvania. That will likely include Nikki Haley, a onetime primary rival who was a last-minute addition to the schedule.
Here’s what to watch for on the second day of the RNC:
Quick Read
- Republican National Convention enters second day: The RNC continues in Milwaukee with Donald Trump officially as its presidential nominee.
- Trump energizes crowd: Trump appeared with a bandage on his right ear after being injured in an assassination attempt, highlighting his strength and resilience.
- Nikki Haley to speak: The former UN ambassador and South Carolina governor, a last-minute addition, is expected to call for party cohesion against Joe Biden.
- Focus on immigration: Tuesday’s theme is “Make America Safe Once Again,” with speeches on immigration and crime, highlighting Biden-era policy impacts.
- Speakers on immigration: Family members of victims in cases involving immigrants in the U.S. illegally are expected to speak, including the brother of Rachel Morin.
- RNC schedule: The full schedule of speakers for the day will be announced later Tuesday morning.
- Biden on campaign trail: President Biden resumes campaigning in Nevada, addressing the NAACP convention, giving an interview to BET, and attending an economic summit.
- Biden’s remarks on Trump: In an NBC interview, Biden called it a mistake to say he wanted to put a “bull’s-eye” on Trump but argued Trump’s rhetoric is more incendiary and warned about Trump’s threat to democratic institutions.
The Associated Press has the story:
What to watch as Republican National Convention enters its 2nd day in Milwaukee
Newslooks- MILWAUKEE (AP) —
Nikki Haley will speak on Tuesday
The former United Nations ambassador and South Carolina governor was the last major rival against Trump in this year’s primary contest. She waited two months after dropping out in March to say she would vote for him. Then last week, she announced she would instruct her convention delegates to vote for Trump but wasn’t planning to attend the convention.
It wasn’t until Sunday — hours after the shooting — that her office reversed itself and said she would speak. It’s likely that she will call on her party to show cohesion in the face of this fall’s general election battle against President Joe Biden.
Immigration will be in the spotlight
Many of the speeches Monday focused on economic policies and claims that Biden had mishandled the economy. On Tuesday, the overview shifts to immigration and crime, according to Trump’s campaign and the Republican National Committee, with the theme of “Make America Safe Once Again.” Be on the lookout for speakers to argue that they have been damaged by Biden-era immigration policies. Trump and Republicans believe the border debate is among their strongest issues.
As part of a broader attempt to blame crime on border policies, expect speeches from family members of slain people in cases where immigrants in the U.S. illegally face criminal charges. Trump has repeatedly brought up the issue at rallies this year.
Last week, the Trump campaign and the RNC announced that the brother of Rachel Morin — a Maryland woman whom prosecutors say was killed and raped by a fugitive from El Salvador — would be one of the speakers at the convention. Officials say the suspect, Victor Antonio Martinez Hernandez, entered the U.S. illegally after allegedly killing a woman in his home country. He was arrested last month in Oklahoma and charged with first-degree murder and rape in Morin’s death.
DeSantis scheduled to address RNC on Tuesday night, AP sources say
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is scheduled to address the RNC Tuesday night, according to a person familiar with the schedule who was not authorized to speak publicly.
DeSantis was seen as Trump’s strongest challenger for the 2024 GOP presidential nomination until he dropped out right before the New Hampshire primary.
His remarks Tuesday will come the same night that former presidential candidate Nikki Haley is scheduled to speak, putting two of Trump’s most visible rivals turned supporters on stage in a show of party unity.
‘My father will always be a fighter’
Speaking to Axios’ co-founder Mike Allen on Tuesday, Donald Trump Jr. said he felt the “gravity of the moment” — referring to Saturday’s shooting — when his father walked on the stage Monday night at the RNC with a bandage on his ear.
Donald Trump Jr. told Allen that he spent three or four hours going through his father’s convention speech with him, “trying to de-escalate some of that rhetoric.”
When asked if the change in Trump’s rhetoric would last, he said: “I think it lasts. There are events that change you for a couple minutes and there are events that change you permanently.”
“My father will always be a fighter,” he added. “That’s never going to change. But I think he’s going to do his best to moderate that with where it needs to be.”
Don Jr. describes first call with Trump after shooting
Donald Trump Jr. on Tuesday described the 90 minutes when he didn’t know whether his father was alive after Saturday’s assassination attempt.
Donald Trump Jr. spoke with Axios’ co-founder Mike Allen at an event outside the RNC at Central Waters Brewing Company in downtown Milwaukee. The event was fully packed, reaching capacity with a few dozen attendees having to watch the conversation on a TV outside.
Donald Trump Jr., who was fishing in Florida with his daughter at the time, said it was about 90 minutes after the shooting before he knew his father was OK. When he saw images of the former president with his fist in the air, Donald Trump Jr. said he felt pride.
“To be shot and to stand up with that kind of resolve, I just told him, ‘Hey man, you’re the biggest bad-ass I know,’” the ex-president’s eldest son said.
After the initial happiness of knowing he was OK, Donald Trump Jr. said there was some levity when he asked his father about his hair and Trump responded by saying it was fine even though it had a little blood in it.
Biden goes back on the trail
The Democratic president gets back on the campaign trail Tuesday with events in Nevada, as he continues to try to reassure members of his party about his candidacy after his disastrous debate last month. He had canceled a planned Monday trip to Texas and his reelection campaign temporarily suspended its television ads after Saturday’s shooting.
He will address the NAACP convention in Las Vegas on Tuesday, conduct an interview with the BET network and participate in an economic summit with Rep. Steven Horsford, chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus.
As the RNC got underway, Biden had his own slice of the prime-time spotlight Monday. In an interview with Lester Holt on NBC, Biden called it a “mistake” to say he wanted to put a “bull’s-eye” on Trump, but argued that the rhetoric from his opponent was more incendiary, while warning that Trump remained a threat to democratic institutions.
Those remarks from Biden came during a private call with donors last week as the Democrat had been scrambling to shore up his imperiled candidacy with key party constituencies. During that conversation, Biden declared that he was “done” talking about his poor debate performance and that it was “time to put Trump in the bull’s-eye,” saying Trump has gotten far too little scrutiny on his stances, rhetoric and lack of campaigning.
