Overview
- President Donald Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance closed the two‑day Republican midterm convention in Dallas on Thursday by urging supporters to vote to protect slim GOP majorities in Congress.
- Trump repeated his pledge of a $5,000 “Trump dividend” for every adult if Republicans retain both chambers, a plan budget analysts and some Republicans say could exceed $1 trillion.
- Vance used a primetime keynote to attack Democrats, rebuke a heckler waving a Mexican flag with a remark about buying a plane ticket, and burnish his standing as a possible future leader.
- The event blended high‑dollar fundraising and large pro‑Trump ad reservations with troubling optics for the party, including reports of a partly empty arena and RNC finance activity that included a $2 million Dallas haul and a reported $68 million in ad reservations.
- Republicans acknowledged steep midterm risks — low down‑ballot enthusiasm, voter concern over the economy and the war with Iran — and the party will be judged on whether the Trump‑centered push and heavy ad spending can reverse historical midterm losses.