Republican Party Convention in Dallas: Texas Trump worship

Thousands of Republicans made a pilgrimage to the Texas city of Dallas in recent days to pay homage to their greatest hero: Donald Trump. For the first time, Republicans held a convention ahead of congressional elections, which are always held midway through a presidency. The reason for the event is the party's poor poll numbers less than two months before the November 3rd elections.

With the two-day election campaign event, the party leadership wants to spur on the voter base in order to avert the feared loss of the majority in the US Congress. How does the party want to achieve this? With Trump and a promise of money. The president promised during his speech on Wednesday evening that if Republicans defend the majority in both chambers of the US Congress, he would reward his compatriots with a one-off payment of $5,000 per capita.

“I will distribute a $5,000 dividend to every adult citizen of the United States of America, much like a successful company distributes cash to its shareholders,” he said.

Trump gave the closing speech on the first day of the event. He repeated many of his already well-known statements and tried to explain that his second term in office would be the most successful in US history. “Tariffs are making us far richer than we ever imagined – taking in trillions of dollars,” Trump said of his economic policies.

In addition to Trump, other leading Republican politicians, candidates and government members were also present at the party conference. But most people only came for one reason - President Trump. "I supported him from the beginning. He has his faults, like all people, but he is one of the best presidents I can remember," said Phillip Hatfield from Dallas in an interview with taz.

Republicans see the event as an opportunity to mobilize their voters and showcase their track record. But the economic effects of the Iran war are clearly causing problems for the party. And since the ruling party usually loses seats in congressional elections, the omens are not particularly good.

"Of course the Iran war is a problem. [...] But if you look at how the mullahs' regime has operated over the last 47 years, it was necessary to wage this war to ensure that Iran did not have nuclear weapons," Hatfield said.

Nevertheless, a close relationship with Trump is not a guarantee of success for all Republicans. This is evidenced by the fact that fewer than half of the Republican candidates from the most competitive districts will speak at the event.

A CNBC analysis showed that just 19 of 45 candidates are scheduled to speak at the two-day convention in Dallas.

"The reason why midterm elections often turn out badly for the ruling party is because the opposition is usually angry. In this case, the left camp is highly motivated. On election day, all those who hate Donald Trump will show up. The question is: Will the Republicans also go to the polls? Are we divided? We have to stand together," Texas Senator Ted Cruz told CNN.

According to reports from MS Now, numerous vulnerable Republicans have also decided to stay away from the party conference entirely. For Trump supporter Paul - who declined to reveal his last name - the three-hour drive from the Texas capital Austin was worth the trip. He hopes that Republicans will be able to defeat Democrats and what he called their “socialist and communist ideas.” Because otherwise he would see black things for the country and his eight grandchildren.

The Democrats have no counter program planned. But they want to counter with press conferences and media appearances to contradict the narrative and argue that the president's policies - such as tariffs and the conflict with Iran - have contributed to the current high prices.

On the second and final day, US Vice President J.D. Vance will give a keynote address.