Live updates: Trump vows to visit every swing district to campaign for Republicans in GOP midterm convention speech

Rep. Brandon Gill (R-TX) began his remarks at the RNC midterm convention with a “land acknowledgment,” seeming to mock a similar gesture often done by Democratic leaders. Gill, however, was acknowledging “the great state of Texas.”

“I’d like to acknowledge that we stand here today in the great state of Texas and the United States of America, the ancestral homeland of great American patriots, pioneers, and explorers who put down roots, fought for freedom all over the globe, and bled and died to build the greatest civilization ever known to man,” Gill said.

Land acknowledgments typically recognize that a venue sits on land historically inhabited by Native American tribes.

Trump took the stage at the midterm convention and said the arena was “packed,” despite many empty seats remaining scattered throughout the room.

“When we originally announced this eight weeks ago, they said, ‘Who’s going to go to a midterm convention?’ … This place is packed,” Trump said. “Not only is this packed, but you have an equal number of people standing outside.”

Several Republicans said they would not be attending the event to focus on campaigning, but Trump disputed the notion that some Republicans were dodging the convention before leaving Washington, D.C., for Dallas.

DALLAS — Vice President JD Vance has taken his seat in the special guest box in the American Airlines Center before President Donald Trump’s address at the convention.

Vance’s face was projected on the big screen at the center of the arena and was met with applause and wolf whistles from the crowd.

Vance is expected to deliver his own address on Thursday.

President Donald Trump takes the stage to deliver his keynote address on the first night of the GOP midterm convention.

This convention is the first time the Republican Party has held a convention for the midterm elections. The president announced the convention at the end of June, hoping to win over voters despite the administration’s sagging poll numbers.

DALLAS — As the “bowl” of American Airlines Center slowly starts to fill in preparation for President Donald Trump, the special guest box to stage right was also full.

The special guests included House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) in the front row, alongside Health and Human Services Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr. and Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin.

Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) was in the second row, with a prime position beside Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin.

Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, who is never far from the president, was in the third row with Small Business Administration Administrator Kelly Loeffler and her husband, New York Stock Exchange Chairman Jeffrey Sprecher.

Attendees at the RNC midterm convention have an array of merchandise to choose from to remember the event, including a commemorative coin that reads, “The golden age has only just begun.”

Merchandise also includes T-shirts, ball caps, mugs, and trading cards. There are also hats that display Trump’s “Make America Great Again” slogan and “Trump was right about everything.”

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was photographed signing attendees’ purchases.

Former heart surgeon and Trump administration health official Dr. Mehmet Oz joked at the start of his speech that politics is much like medicine

“What I learned in Washington, amazingly, is that politics is very similar to surgery, except it’s much bloodier, and we don’t use anesthesia when you’re in politics,” Oz said.

Oz, who now runs the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, has been at the heart of Trump’s healthcare affordability agenda, particularly on prescription drug prices and fighting fraud in entitlement programs. As a former Emmy-winning television personality, Oz and the work of his agency have been front and center on the campaign trail, touting the administration’s efforts to lower healthcare costs.

DALLAS — Republican midterm convention attendee Pam Beck, 69, was impressed by Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) choosing to introduce his colleague Sen. Dave McCormick’s (R-PA) address in a video.

“When I grew up, a blue dog Democrat who represented the farmers and the regular people was a normal thing,” Beck, a Dallas pharmacist, told the Washington Examiner. “The normal people are gone on the Democratic side. John Fetterman is one of the lone remaining blue dog Democrats, reasonable Democrats, that cares about our country versus going totally woke and allowing people to take over our Constitution, get rid of the Senate, that they want to do, pack the court, that they want to do, do surgery on children. It’s insane what’s happening, and I appreciate there’s at least one commonsense Democrat who’s willing to work with both sides of the aisle for the betterment of our country.”

But Beck added that there was no pressure on Fetterman to become a Republican.

“We’d certainly welcome him, absolutely, but he is doing what he wants to do,” she said. “This is America, and I’m very happy that he is reasonable.”

Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) said he will resign from the top spot on the House Judiciary Committee, adding to speculation that he will make a bid for House speaker.

Jordan has been chairman of the committee for three terms, and he told Politico he has no plans to seek an exemption from the Republican Party rule preventing committee leaders from holding posts for more than three terms. He also told the outlet he will not make a bid to lead the House Oversight Committee, as he led the panel from 2019 to 2022.

While he did not say he was planning to gun for House Speaker Mike Johnson’s (R-LA) role, he did not rule out a bid, saying he was focused on the midterm elections.

Rep. Mike Collins (R-GA) accused Sen. Jon Ossoff (D-GA) of forgetting Laken Riley, who was killed by an illegal immigrant in 2024, “til it was politically convenient.”

Collins took the stage after a video of Riley’s family was played and touted his work in penning the Laken Riley Act, which allows Immigration and Customs Enforcement to take custody of illegal immigrants charged with violent crimes. Collins said he went to every Democrat and Republican in Congress to ask for support on his legislation, including Ossoff.

“I sat in John Ossoff’s office and demanded that he help America remember the name of our shared constituent, but no, he wouldn’t lift a finger to help me,” Collins said. “He forgot her name until it was politically convenient.”

Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) told the Washington Examiner she was pitched on running for president in 2028 at the Republican Party’s midterm convention on Wednesday.

“Someone pitched me for a presidential run in a 2028 cycle,” Luna said. “Not even kidding. And I was like, ‘Yeah, I don’t think that’s going to happen.'”

Luna said she was focused on “getting reelected” this November in Florida’s 13th Congressional District. Yet, Luna has also flexed her political muscle by hitting the campaign trail and backing GOP House candidates in competitive general elections, open-seat primaries, and even races pitting fellow Republicans against one another.

Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) made a surprise appearance at the RNC midterm convention to praise Trump’s policies and introduce his Pennsylvania colleague, Sen. David McCormick (R-PA).

“Yes, I’m a Democrat. Why am I here talking to you today? Because, well, I’m a common-sense Democrat,” Fetterman said. “I’m always going to stand with America. I’m always going to reject the extremes and socialism and that anti-American way of life.”

“Dave McCormick is the kind of senator that gets the job done, and he’s going to fight for Pennsylvania. I’m proud to count him as my friend,” he added. “Right back over my shoulder. That’s the iconic U.S. Steel Mill, and that’s exactly the kind of thing that will work together, and we’ll work with President Trump to fight and defend the steel way of life right here in the Steele Valley. I have this opportunity to introduce this great American, a great senator, and yes, he’s in a different party, but I’m proud to count him as my great friend.”

The freshman senator’s appearance marks his clearest step out on the Democratic Party yet, as rumors have swirled for months that Fetterman was looking to cross the aisle. If he were to change his party affiliation, it would pose a serious risk for Democrats as they seek to regain control of the chamber.

Fetterman has drawn red lines with his party as socialist candidates have notched wins in primary elections, some of whom have made opposition to Israel a cornerstone of their campaigns. Fetterman has remained steadfast in providing aid to the Jewish state.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton kept his remarks to standard Republican policies, repeating points established by other GOP incumbents and candidates earlier in the evening.

Paxton positioned Republican objectives against Democratic state Sen. James Talarico’s “crazy ideas,” emphasizing the familiar point that Talarico has a warped sense of Christianity and that he is a “socialist.”

“California already has two senators. It doesn’t need a third,” Paxton said.

Paxton also highlighted his “Protecting the Texas Promise Plan,” which includes the attorney general’s plans for affordability and tax cuts.

“It means a healthy living tax deduction for gym memberships, nutrition plans, and yes, even doctor-prescribed GLP-1s, even though I know no one in this room is using those,” he said, poking fun at the popular weight-loss drug.

Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) will reportedly make a video appearance at the RNC midterm convention to praise Trump and Sen. Dave McCormick (R-PA), according to Axios.

While Fetterman’s appearance would certainly make a splash, rumors that the senator has been eyeing a party flip have been swirling for months. Fetterman has often ripped into Democratic candidates in the midterm elections for opposing Israel, saying support for the Jewish state is “nonnegotiable” for him.

Fetterman’s video remarks are expected to be played before McCormick takes the stage.

As the RNC midterm convention was in full swing, Trump took to Truth Social to post a video parodying a famous 1970s speech proclaiming “God gave us Trump.”

The audio mimics Paul Harvey’s 1978 speech “So God Made a Farmer,” delivered to the Future Farmers of America. In the audio Trump posted, the president is championed as a defender of Democracy, ready to take on “communists.”