Donald Trump arrived at the Republican convention in Milwaukee on Monday with a bandage on his ear, greeted by a frenzied crowd that gave him a long standing ovation.
Two days after surviving an assassination attempt, the former president raised his fist as he entered the vast hall decorated in blue and red, to cheers from delegates who earlier officially nominated him as their candidate for the Nov. 5 presidential election.
In the packed arena, the billionaire’s supporters chanted: USA! “, ” USA! “, ” USA! “, or ” Fight! “, ” Fight! “, ” Fight! ” (“Fight!”) — the same words that Donald Trump shouted with a raised fist and a bloodied face when he got up after being shot at on Saturday. An image that went around the world.
To support him in the race for the White House, Donald Trump chose a 39-year-old senator as his running mate, who was installed alongside him on Monday evening.
“I have determined that the most suitable person to serve as Vice President of the United States is Senator J.D. Vance of the great state of Ohio,” the Republican wrote on his network, Truth Social.
A former soldier and successful author, this young elected official with an atypical profile has constantly defended in Congress the causes dear to the Republican, such as the fight against immigration.
Donald Trump will accept the party’s official nomination in a spectacular evening on Thursday, punctuated by the release of thousands of red, white and blue balloons, the culmination of an already historic week.
“Absolutely wonderful”
The emotion was palpable as early as Monday, as tens of thousands of Republicans gathered in Milwaukee nearly lost their hero at an outdoor campaign rally in Pennsylvania on Saturday.
Delegate from Illinois Susan Sweeney was jubilant as she watched Trump appear. “It was absolutely wonderful, when I think about what he’s been through, for him to come here, it shows how sensitive he is,” the woman, wearing a hat displaying images of Trump and Abraham Lincoln, a Republican icon, told Agence France-Presse (AFP).
Americans were shocked by the image of Donald Trump with a bloody ear and a raised fist, being hastily evacuated by his bodyguards.
The attack has tested an increasingly divided American society and angered the most radical Trump activists, who openly accuse Democrats of being responsible.
With more than 50,000 participants, the Milwaukee convention nevertheless got off to a well-oiled start on Monday, in an ultra-secure environment.
Thousands of police officers are deployed on the streets of the former industrial city, under tension. “If they’re not anxious, then neither am I,” says Tim Hawkins, 57, who has come from the other side of the country.
The chosen location is a huge sports complex, the walls of which are covered with large photographs glorifying the 45e President of the United States, who also wants to be the 47the.
Entire areas of the city center are fenced off by large metal fences and patrolled by agents of the Secret Service, the elite police force that has come under heavy criticism for failing to adequately protect Donald Trump at his rally on Saturday.
Biden criticizes JD Vance
But the convention’s dense schedule is still on. “Aside from increased security outside the perimeter, there will not be a single change to the schedule,” David Bossie, a close associate of Donald Trump who co-chairs the convention, told AFP.
Its main themes will be purchasing power, immigration, crime and the security guaranteed by a strong America.
For his part, Joe Biden said he wanted to reduce the tension caused by the shootings targeting his rival, during several solemn speeches.
He was quick to criticize JD Vance, however, accusing him of being “a Trump clone.”
The attack on Donald Trump could be electorally beneficial for the Republican, experts say.
Especially since he received some good news on the legal front on Monday: the judge in charge of the case in which he is accused of withholding classified documents decided to cancel the procedure.