Vance takes center stage: 5 takeaways from RNC’s Day 3

Immigration and foreign policy dominated Day 3 of the Republican National Convention (RNC), where Ohio Sen. JD Vance highlighted his roots as he accepted the nomination to be former President Trump’s running mate.

The third day of the RNC culminated in Vance giving remarks that drew a boisterous response from the rowdy crowd. Although Vance has built up a reputation as an attack dog, the senator focused on his backstory, his vision for the country and the need to reelect Trump. 

Here are five takeaways from the night:

Vance steps into the spotlight 

Vance made his debut as Trump’s VP pick with a speech that leaned into his small-town roots and his upbringing in Appalachia, offering himself up as a relatable running mate for the man he once referred to as “America’s Hitler.”  

“Never in my wildest imagination could I have believed that I would be standing here tonight,” Vance said after he formally accepted the nod.  

“I grew up in Middletown, Ohio, a small town where people spoke their minds, built with their hands, and loved their God, their family, their community and their country with their whole hearts. But it was also a place that had been cast aside and forgotten by America’s ruling class in Washington,” he said, pitching the Trump-Vance ticket as the champion for those parts of the country.  

He referenced his time in the Marines and in the Senate, where he’s serving his first term, but leaned into emotional stories of his “tough-as-nails” grandmother and his single mother’s struggles with addiction.  

Vance also used the opportunity to sing Trump’s praises, highlighting the former president’s raised-fist moment at the Pennsylvania campaign rally where he nearly lost his life in an assassination attempt over the weekend.

“Look at that photo of him: defiant, fist in the air. When Donald Trump rose to his feet in that Pennsylvania field, all of America stood with him,” Vance said of the moments after Trump’s close call, as the former president watched from the audience with a bandage over his ear, which was grazed by a bullet.

“Even in his most perilous moment, we were on his mind,” Vance said. “His instinct was for us. … To call us to something higher.”  

A brutal split screen for Dems 

The convention comes at a particularly good moment for Republicans and a very troubling one for Democrats.

As the GOP made a concerted effort to rally around its candidate in the wake of his near assassination, Democrats saw their internal turmoil once again spilling out into the open, with calls for President Biden to step aside gaining steam.

Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), the Democratic nominee for Senate in California, became one of the most prominent members of his party to call for Biden to end his reelection bid, saying he has “serious concerns” about the incumbent’s ability to beat Trump in the fall.  

That came the same day an Associated Press poll showed widespread discontent with Biden, with 2 in 3 Democrats saying the president should step aside and almost half unsure he has the mental capacity to be an effective president. 

A memo from a Democratic-funded polling group also suggested four prominent Democrats would outperform Biden in key swing states if they replaced him at the top of the ticket. 

All of this underscored the divisions lingering in the Democratic Party about who should lead it as Election Day fast approaches. Meanwhile, Republicans have consistently stressed unity among their ranks in their speeches at the convention, even though some sharp attacks on Democrats undermined their message of coming together as a nation.

Vance seemed to well encapsulate the convention speeches so far when he said his message to fellow Republicans was, “We love this country and we are united to win.”  

As Vance was speaking, CNN reported that former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) privately told Biden that he cannot win and could ruin Democrats’ chances to retake control of the House. That report, along with reporting that Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) also told Biden that dropping out would be for the best, signals that questions about Biden staying in the race are possibly circulating even at the highest levels of the party. (Schumer’s spokesperson called the reports about the senator “idle speculation.”)

‘Everyday’ speakers hit Biden on foreign policy 

Some of the night’s most effective speakers weren’t politicians at all, but in fact “Everyday Americans” who hammered Biden over foreign policy.

Slotted between appearances from standout Republican names, the “everyday” speakers talked about how Biden’s foreign policy had led to painful personal losses for them. 

Arizona ranchers Jim and Sue Chilton, whose land borders the U.S.-Mexico border for more than 5 miles, sounded alarms about drug smuggling and human trafficking. 

“It looks like and it feels like an invasion, because it is,” Jim Chilton said of border crossings he said he’s noted through cameras on his own ranch.  

“We know firsthand that Biden’s open border is our nation’s greatest national security threat,” he said.  

Orna and Ronen Neutra, the parents of an American hostage in Gaza, questioned “Where is the outrage?” in light of their son, Omer, and several other Americans being held captive by Hamas following the Oct. 7 attack on Israel. They said the attack was not just on Israel but on Americans, a seeming allusion that the Biden administration should being taking more steps to free them. 

And in one of the most wrenching moments of the night, family members of some of the 13 U.S. service members who were killed in a bombing at Kabul’s airport during the 2021 withdrawal from Afghanistan talked about their personal losses — hitting Biden over one of his most sensitive issues.

Speakers seek to humanize Trump 

One of the recurring themes from the nonpoliticians who spoke was the attempt to humanize Trump as a father, grandfather and caring individual. 

The speaker that received the most attention was his granddaughter, Kai Madison Trump, who is Donald Trump Jr.’s daughter. She called her grandfather an “inspiration” and a “normal grandpa.” 

“He gives us candy and soda when our parents aren’t looking,” the 17-year-old said as Trump was seen smiling. “He always wants to know how we’re doing in school.” 

A couple speakers who had undergone personal hardships also thanked Trump during their speeches for the care he expressed for them. 

The Gold Star families who talked about Afghanistan praised Trump for expressing compassion to them. Christy Shamblin, whose daughter-in-law was killed, said Trump spent six hours with her family. 

“He allowed us to grieve. He allowed us to remember our heroes. Donald Trump knew all of our children’s names,” she said. 

Meanwhile, they slammed Biden for “silence” about the administration’s “failures” that allowed the incident to happen. 

East Palestine (Ohio) Mayor Trent Conaway also pointed to Trump quickly visiting his town after a train derailment spilled toxic chemicals and forced some evacuations last year. He said Biden’s visit was “scripted” but that Trump was authentic. 

“[Trump] listened to us and shared a meal with volunteers, and his presence was genuine,” Conaway said. 

Navarro brought down the house 

Ex-Trump White House trade adviser Peter Navarro brought down the house when he took to the convention podium just hours after he was released from prison.  

Navarro, who served a four-month sentence for refusing to comply with a congressional subpoena related to the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, entered the convention hall to a standing ovation and more than a full minute of applause. 

“Yes indeed, this morning I did walk out of a federal prison in Miami,” Navarro said, prompting renewed cheers.

“I’m Peter Navarro. I went to prison so you don’t have to.” 

Navarro used his time at the mic to lash out at Democrats for “lawfare” against conservatives and offer his audience ominous warnings that Democrats “will come for you.”  

“If we don’t control all three branches of our government … their government will put some of us — like me and Steve Bannon — in prison, and control the rest of us,” he said.  

The remarks highlighted a broader GOP message that the party across the aisle is on a politically motivated warpath. Trump has said he would “absolutely” rehire his former adviser if he takes back the White House in November. 

“In Trump’s America, you didn’t have to worry about being locked up for disagreeing with the government,” Navarro said. “I went to prison so you won’t have to. I am your wake-up call.”