The head of the Republican National Committee gaveled in the “historic” midterm GOP convention in Dallas on Wednesday with a burst of praise for President Trump, declaring the gathering “dedicated to one mission: defying history.”
RNC Chair Joe Gruters said Republicans are positioned to defeat Democrats, expand their congressional majorities and “continue America’s common sense conservative revolution.”
“The contrast could not be clearer: Republicans are delivering freedom, opportunity, security, and common sense,” Mr. Gruters said. “Democrats are being overtaken by radical socialists driving their party further and further from the values that make America great.”
“They want bigger government. We want greater freedom,” he said. “They want open borders. We want secure borders.”
“Democrats play political games. Republicans deliver results — and if Democrats take even one chamber of Congress, the agenda stops,” he added. “We’re sure as hell not going to let that happen.”
The two-day gathering is the brainchild of Mr. Trump, who pushed for a midterm-year convention that Republicans hope will energize voters ahead of an election increasingly shaped by his record on the economy and affordability issues.
Midterms tend to be difficult for the sitting president’s party.
The Trump-led Republicans are defending their House and Senate majorities at a time when the president’s approval rating is underwater, and the Iran war has added to affordability woes at the gas pump.
Mr. Trump is set to deliver the keynote address Wednesday and return to the stage Thursday after Vice President J.D. Vance — a double-billing the GOP believes can set the tone and give Republicans a clear message heading into the final stretch of the midterms.
Mr. Gruters hailed Mr. Trump as the “greatest Republican communicator of our lifetime” and the “best president the country has ever had.”
“He loves his country,” he said. “He loves the people who make it strong, and he is fighting for them every single day.”
The opening-night lineup also features Attorney General Todd Blanche and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, along with House Majority Leader Steve Scalise and Sen. Tim Scott, who chairs the National Republican Senatorial Committee.
They’ll be joined by candidates in competitive House and Senate races — including Texas’ own Attorney General Ken Paxton — and ordinary Americans who will testify to how they have benefited from the Trump agenda.
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