A packed Republican midterm convention in Dallas, Texas, ended on an energized note as Vice President JD Vance and President Donald Trump delivered closing remarks aimed at rallying the party behind GOP victories in November.
Vance was greeted by thunderous applause as he took the stage, thanking convention attendees and viewers for what he described as their deep love of country. He vowed that the Trump administration would not allow America to move “backwards.”
“Two years ago, we have to remember our nation, ladies and gentlemen, was tired. We were tired of seeing our factories close. We were tired of our neighbors dying of drug overdoses. We were tired of not being able to afford anything. We were tired of seeing the cartels and the criminals given free rein over our great country, and we were tired of being called racists for noticing that our country was becoming dirtier and poorer and less safe and less prosperous,” Vance said.
He argued that frustration across the country had reached a breaking point by the end of 2024. “By the end of 2024, you were tired. We were tired as a country. The radicals in Washington — they could take much of us, but they couldn’t take our will to fight back. And so all of us came together on November the fifth, and we sent the toughest sob in American politics back to the White House, and we made Donald J. Trump the 47th president of the United States,” Vance declared, as he contrasted Democratic policies with what he said the Trump administration has corrected.
Vance said that when the administration took office 18 months earlier, many Americans believed the opportunity to build a stable and prosperous life had been taken from them. He pointed to falling worker wages, prices that had risen 20 percent, and what he described as thousands of illegal immigrants entering the country during the Biden administration.
“The Democrat legacy of the last few years was that they bankrupted our country and left us poor. They left our country weaker, wide open, and our communities less safe. Their record, my friends, stands for itself. And rather than admit error and change course, of course, they are doubling down on the crazy,” Vance said.
Turning to the 2026 midterm elections, Vance also criticized several Democratic candidates seeking office.
“In Texas, you have Democrats, grown men, who seem to be pretty obsessed with trans children,” he said, in a reference to James Talarico.
He also singled out Democrats in Colorado. “[In] Denver, Colorado, you have Democrats who say that 9/11 was inevitable, who offer justifications for terrorists who murdered 3,000 of our fellow citizens,” Vance said. He later added, “These are candidates who, when they’re not calling to repeal the Second Amendment, they will attack you as a literal white supremacist if you dare to criticize Sharia law.”
Vance drew loud applause with one of his sharpest lines of the night. “They asked, my friends, for a one-way ticket to Washington to legislate and regulate and wield power over your lives; instead, in my opinion, they need a one-way ticket to a mental hospital,” he said.
Trump then took the stage to bring the convention to a close, entering as Lee Greenwood performed “God Bless the USA.”
“Less than two years ago, the American people gave us a mandate to save America, and in 19 months, I’ve delivered on every single promise I made, and I think I delivered on far more,” Trump told the crowd, before highlighting what he described as the major accomplishments of his administration.
“We went from the highest prescription drug prices by far anywhere in the world, to the lowest prescription drug prices anywhere in the world, and that alone should get us a big victory in our midterms that are coming up. Get out and vote, please,” Trump said. “Get out and vote. The stock market has set 80 all-time record highs. Think of it in a short period of time – 80, 80 days we set records, and more Americans are working today than ever before.”
Trump also touted terminating all diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) mandates all across the federal government, as well as banning transgender ideology and critical race theory in our schools and putting a stop to the “transgender mutilation of our beautiful children.”
“And as you know, we had big court victories on this. We will not have men playing in women’s sports,” the president said to massive applause.
However, Trump continued, if Democrats and the “communists” win the election, it will be a very different world.
“They’re promising to confiscate your wealth, tax your Social Security, abolish no tax on tips, no tax on overtime. They’re going to defund the police, giving voting rights and welfare to 25 million illegal aliens, destroy Texas oil and gas, thereby doubling and tripling your taxes,” the commander-in-chief warned. “Have men playing in women’s sports, transgender for everybody, the mutilation of your children, and set loose criminals to rob, rape, and kill like we had just two years ago. ”
Trump teased a “Trump dividend” if Republicans win, previewing “$5,000 for every adult citizen in our country.”
“And we can do that because our country has never done better. We’re taking in trillions — trillions, trillions of dollars. There’s never been any country, not even close, that’s come anywhere near,” Trump said, adding, “It’s about time we take care of our adults.”
Trump also had an invigorated and laughing crowd pledge to bring their families out to vote on November 3 to endure Republican victories across the country.
“So please go and vote,” Trump said. “We will defeat the communists. We will reject – and that’s what they are. They’re not socialists. They’re not Democrats. They’re communists. We will reject these radical left lunatics. We will demolish the extremists, fanatics, lunatics — lunatics, and criminals who want to destroy our country.”
The pair closed out the convention on its final night after historic streaming numbers the night before – over 34 million impressions on TikTok alone. Additionally, the RNC garnered tens of millions of impressions on other social media platforms, including views on X and Facebook.
“President Trump is the ultimate turnout driver for the MAGA base, and today’s historic, sold-out crowd proved it,” White House spokeswoman Allison Schuster told – News.
She added, “While Radical Left Democrats fail the American people with tax hikes, soft-on-crime policies, and defunding of federal law enforcement, hardworking Americans have a champion in President Trump and his commonsense agenda of lower taxes, safer streets, and secure borders.”
Prior to the night’s close, President Trump took to Truth Social, noting that the convention’s day-one was a “major, sold-out hit, far bigger, better, and more important than anyone thought possible,” even beating the numbers for the opening night of the NFL’s regular season.
