With his approval rating at a historic low, Donald Trump has brought down the curtain on the Republicans’ first ever midterm convention by pleading with supporters to do him “the biggest favour” and “pretend” they are voting for him in November’s US elections. The president is facing a growing backlash over rising prices and the war in Iran. Sweeping losses for the Republican party could effectively turn Trump into a lame duck for his final two years in the White House.
Sensing political danger, Trump wrapped up the novel two-day event in Dallas, Texas, on Thursday with a pitch that critics are likely to say smacked of desperation: “You gotta do me the biggest favour you’ve ever done me. You’ve gotta do this for me. You’ve got to pretend I’m on the ticket.
Pretend I’m on the ticket because this is going to turn out to be one of the most important elections.” In an improvised pledge of allegiance to himself, Trump directed the crowd of about 20,000 to raise their right hands and repeat: “I pledge to the greatest president in the history of the United States, that loves us so much he can’t even breathe, that I will go out with my family, my friends, I’ll do it any way – I don’t care if I’m registered or not, I’m going to try to cheat like hell like they do.” The convention had been aimed at turning around Republicans’ fortunes. Opinion polls suggest they are on course to lose the US House of Representatives, and possibly the Senate. In what was effectively an abridged version of his rambling keynote address on Wednesday, the president reiterated his promise of “Trump dividend” of $5,000 for every US adult if Republicans win both chambers of Congress.
Democrats have dismissed the pledge as a bribe while economists have warned it would cost more than $1tn. Trump also hammered the theme of the convention: drawing a contrast between his own accomplishments and what he argues amounts to a threat posed by Democrats. They turned our cities into scenes of death and misery, murder, poverty and destruction, and made America a laughingstock all over world.
The convention resembled a Trump mega-rally more than a traditional party meeting, with no nominations or formal business and more than 50 speakers or presentations each night. Supporters wore “Make America Great Again” regalia and waved signs displaying the Stars and Stripes. Republicans believe it has been successful in galvanising the party’s base in the face of stiff electoral headwinds.
Earlier on Thursday, speaker after speaker sought to champion Trump’s accomplishments while constantly branding the Democratic party as extremist and communist. The president’s eldest son, Donald Trump Jr, delivered a fiery address setting Republican “common sense” against a “dystopian hellscape” of leftwing ideology. Trump Jr framed the Republican platform, including pledges to end taxes on tips, overtime and social security, as a direct response to a “war on the working people” by Democrats.
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