Republican National Convention, day two: Donald Trump officially nominated
THIS is Dr Ben Carson. Donald Trump’s fans love him, and he seems to love weird Lucifer-related conspiracy theories.
- Donald Trump officially nominated
- One state delegation is having a rough time
- Chris Christie ‘prosecutes’ Clinton
- Tiffany Trump brings the house down
WELCOME to our live coverage of the Republican National Convention.
Welcome to our live coverage of the Republican National Convention’s second day, as the party officially nominates Donald Trump.
Today, Trump’s children take centre stage, with Tiffany and Donald Jr set to address the convention. They’ll be joined by UFC boss Dana White and retired neurosurgeon Dr Ben Carson.
12:50pm
Sam Clench
Dr Ben Carson, a retired neurosurgeon and former presidential candidate, was the last highly anticipated speaker of the evening. Republicans love the guy.
“I have to start out by saying one very important thing. I’m not politically correct,” Dr Carson said. He wasn’t wrong.
In the middle of a riff about the “media and the political elite” having an agenda, Dr Carson went off track a bit. He mentioned that one of Hillary Clinton’s mentors was the writer Saul Alinsky.
“This was someone that she greatly admired,” he said.
“He wrote a book called Rules for Radicals. On the dedication page he acknowledges Lucifer.
“This is a nation where every coin in our pocket and every bill in our wallet says ‘In God We Trust’. So are we willing to elect someone as president who has as their role model somebody who acknowledges Lucifer? Think about that.”
Yeah. Think about that.
“If we allow (progressives) to continue to take God out of our lives, God will remove himself from us, we will not be blessed and our nation will go down the tubes.”
Ben Carson: Hillary Clinton's role model "acknowledges Lucifer" https://t.co/ft9S2XNN1O #RNCinCLE https://t.co/dLlKdk1drl
— CNN (@CNN) July 20, 2016
12:40pm
Sam Clench
A brief break from the action now to watch this footage from earlier, in which House Speaker Paul Ryan tries to figure out how a gavel works.
Paul Ryan can't figure out how to use a gavel, tells everyone to "shhhhhhhh" instead pic.twitter.com/LgqhTi2eVP
— Danny (@recordsANDradio) July 20, 2016
12:30pm
Charlotte Willis
After Tiffany’s star turn, Donald Trump Jr had a lot to live up to. He chose to reprise Chris Christie’s role as Trump’s attack dog.
He opened by saying he was a father of five, and was trained by his father in business “to make the tough decisions to ensure a brighter future”. He said his father “has a track record of accomplishing the impossible”.
When people told Trump a boy from Queens couldn’t conquer Manhattan, “rather than give up, he changed the skyline of New York,” Donald Jr said.
“We’re still one country and we’re going to get it all back, we’re going to get it back better than before. I know this because I know my father, he gets it done. When someone tells him that things are impossible, that’s what triggers him into action.”
Trump Jr said he was in conference rooms and offices alongside his dad from the time he could walk. He then targeted the Democratic party, saying it was their policies that created the problems, including “the worst immigration system in the world, an immigration system that favours illegals over those trying to go through the process legally.”
He acknowledged his privileged upbringing.
“As children, we were truly fortunate to have choices and options that other students didn’t have. We want all Americans to have those same opportunities.
“We’re going to put Americans first, all Americans, not just a special class at the top.”
In one speech, Donald Jr managed to squeeze in Trump the family man, Trump the problem fixer, economic principles, Benghazi and Hillary as “a risk America can’t afford to take”. Full marks for breadth, there.
12:10pm
Charlotte Willis
Donald Trump’s 22-year-old daughter, Tiffany Trump, was remarkably poised on stage.
“Please excuse me if I am a little nervous, when I graduated college a couple of months ago, I never expected to be here addressing the nation,” she began, although there wasn’t even a hint of nerves in her voice.
“I have given a few speeches in front of classrooms of students, but never in an arena with more than 10 million people watching. But, like my father I never back down from challenges, so here I am, a little new to the convention scene, but incredibly honoured and very confident in the good man that America is coming to know.”
What followed was an emotion-filled five-minute speech, with the confident Trump sibling sharing warm and personal anecdotes that have been rarely heard outside the Trump family.
“It’s often said that with enough effort and determination you can do anything you put your mind to. But, saying those words and living them are different things, and my father has lived them,” Tiffany said. “It’s one of his defining qualities and I’ve seen it in action all of my life. Whatever he does, he gives his all and does it well.
“His desire for excellence is contagious, he possesses a unique gift for bringing that trait out in others, starting with those closest to him. He’s always helped me to be the best version of myself,” She told the hushed arena, who appeared to be hanging on her every word.
“He draws out the talent and drive in people so that they can achieve their full potential. That’s a great quality to have in a father, and better yet in the President of the United States.”
Tiffany then recounted fond memories of her father from her childhood, mentioning that she still keeps her report cards from school to look back and see the “sweet notes” he wrote on them. “Contrary to what you might expect,” she acknowledged, adding: “Donald Trump has never done anything halfway, least of all as a parent.”
She also spoke of “the Trump formula”, which is basically “to hold nothing back and let nothing get in the way of your dreams.”
Ending as confidently and as convincingly as she began, Tiffany painted a warm, loving picture of her father, using all the right buzz words. “Natural charm, no facade,” she said, adding that she proudly introduces her friends to a man who is “so friendly, so considerate so funny and so real.”
“I have admired my father all of my life and I love him with all of my heart. God bless you and thank you.”
11:50am
Sam Clench
Chris Christie, the Governor of New Jersey and a former federal prosecutor, said he was there as “Donald Trump’s friend for the last 14 years”. He said America is “about to be led by a caring, genuine and decent person”.
But Christie used most of his time at the podium to savage Hillary Clinton, running through a list of the mistakes she made as Secretary of State, including her use of a private email server in violation of federal rules.
“Since the Justice Department refuses to allow you to render a verdict, let’s present the case now,” he said, enlisting the partisan crowd as his jury. He proceeded to mention each of Clinton’s alleged failures one by one, asking the audience for a verdict.
“Guilty!” the crowd roared back at him, again and again. More than once, it broke out into chants of “Lock her up!”.
That was all before he started riffing on Clinton’s private email server.
“Let’s face the facts. Hillary Clinton cared more about protecting her own secrets than she cared about protecting American secrets. And then she lied about it over and over and over again,” Christie said.
“Time after time after time, the facts and just the facts lead you to the same verdict both around the world and here at home.
“Her focus group tested persona with no genuineness to be found is a sham.
“We didn’t disqualify Hillary Clinton to be president of the United States, the facts of her life and career disqualify her.”
Christie promised to “prosecute” Clinton at the beginning of his speech, and he certainly followed through. He was the first speaker to really engage the audience tonight - and in doing so, he got thousands of people to chant about putting the other nominee in prison.
Job done, then.
11:20am
Sam Clench
House Speaker Paul Ryan admitted Trump is “not his kind of conservative” just a few days ago. Nevertheless, he presented a strong case for Trump in his speech, portraying the election as a choice between tired ideas and real change.
“The Obama years are almost over. The Clinton years are way over. 2016 is the year America moves on,” Ryan said.
“There is a reason people in our country are disappointed and restless. If opportunity seems like it has been slipping away, that’s because it has.”
“Progressives deliver everything except progress.
“So many things that we stand for are in the balance in this coming election ... it is all on the line, so let’s act that way.”
11:10am
Charlotte Willis
Trump himself appeared via video link and delivered a short address live from Trump Tower to thank the convention for nominating him.
“Good evening, are you having fun?” he started, to enthusiastic cheers from the crowd.
“What we did, getting the party’s nomination, I’ll never forget it. It’s something I’ll never, ever forget.
“I’m so proud to be your nominee. I look forward to sharing my thoughts with you on Thursday on how we build a brighter and more hopeful future for all Americans.
“By the way, we are going to win the state of Ohio. And also of course, we are going to win the presidency.
“Together, most importantly, we are going to make America great again.”
11:05am
Sam Clench
Like Dana White, professional golfer Natalie Gulbis has a long history with Trump. She first met him after playing a tournament at his golf club in Florida, and according to her, he told her to fight for gender equality.
“Donald remains a consistent voice encouraging me to stand up to gender injustices and to lean in to any professional challenges that come my way,” Gulbis said.
“I was deeply frustrated about being treated differently as a woman ... overlooked and underpaid.
“Donald was adamant that in endorsement deals I should request and fight for equal pay that men were receiving.”
10:55am
Charlotte Willis
An National Rifle Association lobbyist, Chris Cox, scored himself a primetime speaking slot. Welcome to America. Cox ripped into Hillary Clinton and told the crowd their second amendment right to bear arms was at stake in the election.
“For the rest of her life, Hillary Clinton will never even think about dialling 911. For 30 years, she hasn’t taken a walk, a nap or a bathroom break without a good guy with a gun there to protect her.
“It’s easy for her to dismiss a right she will never have to use. But for the rest of us, the choice to own a firearm is ours to make.”
10:45am
Charlotte Willis
UFC President Dana White delivered the first stirring speech of the night, telling the convention about his business relationship with Trump stretching all the way back to 2001 and touting the Republican nominee as a fighter.
“Donald championed the UFC before it was popular, before it was a successful business,” White said.
“Donald has great business instincts. He supports businesses of all sizes. He’ll make it possible for them to grow and succeed.
“Donald is a hard worker. This guy’s going to get up there, he’ll roll up his sleeves.
“For over 15 years, Donald Trump has been a loyal and supportive friend.”
White said Trump had always “reached out” to him when something happened in his career.
“You can really tell a person’s true character when they’re happy about someone else’s success,” he said.
“I know fighters. Ladies and gentleman, Donald Trump is a fighter, and I know he will fight for his country.”
White’s speech was loud, passionate and to the point. Very on brand.
10:30am
Sam Clench
No state despises Donald Trump more than Utah.
That much was clear during the primaries, when Ted Cruz won 70 per cent of the state’s vote, compared to Trump’s meagre 14 per cent. It was clear when one of Utah’s favourite sons, former Republican nominee Mitt Romney, excoriated Trump during the campaign. It was clear when Utah led the attempted revolt against Trump’s nomination on the floor of the convention yesterday. And it was crystal clear in the middle of the nominating process today, when Utah’s delegates cast all 40 of their votes for Cruz.
Those votes ended up counting for Trump anyway, thanks to an intricate set of rules that make very little sense to every person who isn’t a Republican Party official. The delegates didn’t look too pleased.
The look on the Utah delegate's face when Trump gets all their votes is the look on my face all the time these days: pic.twitter.com/wRw9gJPgOr
— Sonny Bunch (@SonnyBunch) July 19, 2016
Utah walking out? BYE BYE!!! SEE YA!!! Waaaaaaaaaaaaaambulance in the parking lot.
— Michael Murdock (@docmurdock) July 19, 2016
It’s been a bitter couple of days for the Utah delegation. Yahoo News reports one delegate, Kera Birkeland, was threatened by Trump supporters after going to the bathroom during yesterday’s floor fight.
“I went into the bathroom and came out of my stall and there I was, confronted by two women,” she wrote on Facebook.
“They yelled at me, called me names. They said I should die. They said the police should be pulled from the Utah delegation and we should all die. They never touched me. They did not say they would kill me. They just said I should die.
“This behaviour is horrible, but I won’t let it get me down. I’ll stay involved and keep fighting for what I believe. Our society really needs to change and start treating people with respect and decency.”
Yeah. It’s a really, really rough time for Utah.
10:00am
AP
United for a night (kind of), Republicans have officially nominated Donald Trump as their presidential standard-bearer, capping the billionaire businessman’s stunning takeover of the party and propelling him into a November face-off with Democrat Hillary Clinton.
House Speaker Paul Ryan has formally declared Donald Trump the winner of the Republican presidential nomination.
Ryan says Trump received 1,725 delegates in the state-by-state roll call. Ryan says Texas Sen. Ted Cruz was the runner-up with 475 delegates. Ohio Gov. John Kasich came in third with 129 votes, followed by 113 for Florida Sen. Marco Rubio.
Fifth-place went to physician Ben Carson with seven delegates, followed by former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush with three delegates and Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul with two delegates.
“I will work hard and never let you down!” Trump quickly wrote on Twitter following the roll call vote.
Trump’s campaign hoped the formal nomination would both end the discord surging through the Republican Party and overshadow the convention’s chaotic kick-off, including a plagiarism accusation against Melania Trump’s address yesterday.
There were flurries of dissent on the convention floor as states that Trump did not win recorded their votes, but he far outdistanced his primary rivals. His vice presidential pick, Indiana Gov. Mike Pence, was also formally nominated.
Trump was put over the top by his home state of New York. Four of his children joined the state’s delegation on the convention floor for the historic moment and appeared overwhelmed with emotion.
“Congratulations, Dad, we love you,” declared Donald Trump Jr.
Some delegates emphasised a need for a televised display of unity after the deeply divisive GOP primary. “United we stand, divided we fall,” said Johnny McMahan, a Trump delegate from Arkansas.
But Colorado’s Kendal Unruh, a leader of the anti-Trump forces, called the convention a “sham” and warned party leaders that their efforts to silence opposition would keep some Republicans on the sidelines in the fall campaign against Clinton.
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