Republican National Convention 2020: Day 1

Patricia and Mark McCloskey.

The Missouri couple facing felony charges after pointing guns at protesters outside of their home in St. Louis earlier this summer spoke on the first night of the Republican National Convention. 

“What you saw happen to us could just as easily happen to any of you who are watching from quiet neighborhoods around our country. And that’s what we want to speak to you about tonight,” Patricia McCloskey said. 

“Not a single person in the out-of-control mob you saw at our house was charged with a crime. But you know who was? We were. They’ve actually charged us with felonies for daring to defend our home,” Mark McCloskey said. 

The McCloskeys drew national attention in late June after they were seen in a viral video brandishing guns outside their mansion at protesters walking on a private street en route to demonstrate outside the St. Louis mayor’s residence. 

The mayor lives on a nearby public street and the protesters were going down a street that doesn’t reach the mayor’s house, a St. Louis city official said. The Missouri couple was charged in July with unlawful use of a weapon, a class E felony.

In videos obtained by CNN, the pair were seen brandishing weapons outside their St. Louis home as demonstrators walked outside the house in late June.

The White House has defended the couple on a number of occasions. White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany told reporters at the time that President Donald Trump “said it is absolutely absurd, what is happening to the McCloskeys.”

“You’ve seen us on your TV screens and Twitter feeds,” Mark McCloskey said. “You know we’re not the kind of people who back down. Thankfully, neither is Donald Trump.”

Watch:

Andrew Pollack, the father of Parkland mass shooting victim Meadow Pollack.

Before the 2018 shooting, Andrew Pollack, the father of Parkland mass shooting victim Meadow Pollack, wasn’t a political activist.

But in the face of unspeakable tragedy, after 17 people were killed in the massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, he is among those who have transformed their grief into political activism, with the goal of preventing other families from facing the same horror.

Tonight, speaking from the Republican National Convention, Pollack said he believes President Trump is committed to keeping children safe in America.

“I truly believe the safety of your kids depends on whether this man is reelected,” he said.

The shooting, he said, changed his life forever.

“So many moments that I waited so long for were taken from me. I didn’t get to drop her off at college. I didn’t get to walk her down the aisle,” Pollack said.

“But every moment was taken from her and for what? I never wanted this to become a political spectacle but it did,” he added.

Pollack called Trump a “good man and a great listener” who he said “cuts through the BS.”

Reporting from CNN’s Betsy Klein contributed to this report.

Georgia State Representative Vernon Jones.

Vernon Jones, a Democratic politician from the state of Georgia, slammed Joe Biden’s leadership and praised President Donald Trump’s commitment to the Black community.

“As you can see, I am a man of color and I am a lifelong Democrat, too. You may be wondering, why is a lifelong Democrat speaking at the Republican National Convention? And that is a fair question. And here’s your answer, the Democratic Party does not want Black people to lead their mental plantation. We’ve been forced to be there for decades and generations,” Jones said in his remarks.

Jones said Biden has had “47 years to produce results,” but has been “all talk and no action.”

“Just like so many of the Democrats who have been making promises to the Black voters for decades. We have been there captive audience,” Jones said.

Jones went on to tout Trump’s measures with regard to the economy and funding for Historically Black Colleges and Universities.

“The President also built the most inclusive economy ever with record low unemployment for African Americans and record high participation in the workforce,” Jones said.

“He put the interests of American workers and especially Black workers first. That’s right. Donald Trump did that,” Jones said.

Former NFL player Herschel Walker.

Former NFL star Herschel Walker spoke at the Republican National Convention on Monday and said he has a “deep personal friendship” with President Donald Trump and has known him for 37 years. 

“It hurt my soul to hear the terrible names that people call Donald. The worst one is ‘racist.’ I take it as a personal insult that people would think I’ve had a 37-year friendship with a racist. People who think that don’t know what they are talking about. Growing up in the Deep South, I’ve seen racism up close. I know what it is. And it isn’t Donald Trump,” said Walker, who is African American. 

Walker said Trump is a “caring, loving father” and that over the years he has “watched (Trump) treat the janitors, security guards, and waiters the same way he would treat a VIP.”

Walker is a 1982 Heisman Trophy winner, former pro football star and a former Olympian. 

In 2008, Walker published a book, “Breaking Free,” and revealed he had a form of mental illness called dissociative identity disorder, or DID, formerly known as multiple personality disorder. He told CNN at the time that he hoped to educate the public and break down stereotypes about this disorder.

Watch:

Ohio Republican Rep. Jim Jordan.

Ohio Republican Rep. Jim Jordan, one of the President’s most ardent defenders in the US House of Representatives, touted the GOP as “the pro-America party” and President Donald Trump as the “pro-America candidate,” decrying what he said were Democrats’ values.

“Look at what’s happening in America’s cities – cities all run by Democrats. Crime, violence and mob rule. Democrats refuse to denounce the mob,” Jordan said during his convention speech. “And their response to the chaos? Defund the police, defund border patrol, and defund our military. And while they’re doing all of this, they’re also trying to take away your guns.”

Jordan also addressed the Russia investigation and the President’s impeachment, saying Trump has taken on the Washington swamp.

“When you take on the swamp, the swamp fights back. They tried the Russia hoax, the Mueller investigation, and the fake impeachment. But in spite of this unbelievable opposition, this president has done what he said he would do,” Jordan said.

Concluding his remarks, Jordan brought up his nephew’s deadly car accident — and the President’s conversation with Jordan’s family three days after his nephew’s death.

“For the next five minutes, family and friends sat in complete silence, as the President of the United States took time to talk to a dad who was hurting,” Jordan said.

He added: “That’s the President I’ve gotten to know over the last four years — a president who has shared private moments like this with soldiers, victims of violent crime and people who have had businesses destroyed by the mob. That’s the individual who’s made America great again and who knows America’s best days are in front of us.”

President Trump speaks to frontline workers in the White House in Washington.

President Trump made a “surprise” appearance in tonight’s Republican National Convention appearing with frontline workers in the East Room of the White House.

The President nor the participants were wearing masks and did not seem to be social distancing.

“These are great, great people. Doctors, nurses, firemen, a policeman. We want to thank you, all you’ve been incredible and we want to thank you and all the millions of people that you represent,” the President continued.

The participants shared their stories and described their line of work, including a registered nurse who praised Trump’s leadership.

“I am so in awe of your leadership. Honestly, I know many people have said often interesting things but it takes a true leader to be able to ignore all that stuff and take what is right and not be offended by all the words being said. You really do show that positive spirit to us and as nurses I appreciate that, I’m grateful for,” she said.

RNC chairwoman Ronna McDaniel.

The official roll call renominating President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence to the 2020 Republican ballot took place earlier today in Charlotte, North Carolina, but during the Republican National Convention’s primetime event, a video montage was shown to mark the moment.

“We have created a short video to symbolize the excitement for President Trump across all 50 states and territories,” RNC chairwoman Ronna McDaniel said.

Participants in different parts of the country cheered “four more years.”

Watch the video:

Kimberly Klacik, the Republican nominee running for the late congressman Elijah E. Cummings’s seat against Rep. Kweisi Mfume in Maryland.

Kim Klacik, who is running for Maryland’s 7th Congressional District, said Democrats have controlled Baltimore for far too long and assumed “Black people will vote for them, no matter how much they let us down and take us for granted.”

“We’re sick of it and not going to take it anymore. The days of blindly supporting the Democrats are coming to an end,” she said.

Klacik went on to slam Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden, saying that he believes “we can’t think for ourselves — that the color of someone’s skin dictates their political views.

“We’re not buying the lies anymore — you and your party have ignored us for too long,” she said.

Klacik praised Trump’s efforts, saying he is “bringing this country back roaring.”

Klacik is running for the seat formerly held by the late Rep. Elijah Cummings. The race is rated “Solid Democrat” by the nonpartisan Cook Political Report.

Watch:

Charlie Kirk, founder and president of Turning Point USA.

During the opening remarks of the Republican National Convention, Charlie Kirk, founder of the youth-oriented conservative group Turning Point USA, claimed that “bitter, deceitful, vengeful activists…have us locking up pastors.” 

Facts First: This connection is not true. Pastors in the US have been arrested for disobeying state and local social distancing orders during the pandemic by holding in-person church services. One of the first instances of a pastor being arrested in the US happened in late March when a Florida pastor held two church services that disobeyed state health emergency rules. The pastor turned himself in at the time, the Associated Press reported. CNN could not find instances of pastors being arrested because of “bitter, deceitful, vengeful activists.”

Amy Johnson Ford.

A West Virginia nurse who was deployed to New York and Texas to work as a relief nurse during the coronavirus pandemic praised President Trump for his efforts to stop the virus.

The nurse, Amy Johnson Ford, said “we have President Trump to thank” for expanded telehealth access amid the pandemic.

“President Trump recognized the threat this virus presented for all Americans early on, and made rapid policy changes. And as a result, telehealth services are now accessible to more than 71 million Americans, including 35 million children,” Ford said.

She added: “As a health care professional, I can tell you without hesitation, Donald Trump’s quick action and leadership saved thousands of lives during Covid-19. And the benefits of that response extend far beyond coronavirus.”

Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz.

Rep. Matt Gaetz, a Republican from Florida and longtime defender of President Trump, slammed Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden, issuing a scathing description of the former vice president’s leadership and policies.

“I’m speaking from an auditorium emptier than Joe Biden’s daily schedule,” Gaetz said in his remarks, speaking from the Andrew W. Mellon Auditorium in Washington, DC. “But we are a nation of full hearts — and clear minds. We see the choice clearly: Strength or weakness. Energy or confusion. Success or failure. And Biden knows failure.”

Gaetz praised Trump’s leadership and vision for the country.

“Donald Trump like all builders is a visionary. That which is built in the mind is even more powerful than the brick and mortar that holds it together,” Gaetz said.

“President Trump sometimes raises his voice — and a ruckus. He knows that’s what it takes to raise an army of patriots who love America and will protect her,” Gaetz said.

“America is not just an idea or a Constitution, it is our home. We must protect our home with unbreakable Made-in-America strength — strength I see every day in President Donald Trump,” the congressman said in closing.

Watch:

Charlie Kirk, founder and president of Turning Point USA.

Charlie Kirk, founder and president of conservative youth activist organization Turning Point USA, praised President Trump’s leadership and warned that the 2020 presidential election “is a decision between preserving America as we know it, and eliminating everything that we love.”

Kirk said that if reelected in November, Trump would help give youth and future generations a better country.

“This election is the most critical since 1860, when a man named Lincoln was elected to preserve the union from disintegration. This election is not just the most important of our lifetime — it is most important since the preservation of the Republic in 1865,” Kirk said.

“By reelecting Trump, we will ensure that our kids are raised to love our country and respect our founding father, not taught to hate or be ashamed of them,” he continued.

“We will be a country that has its best 100 years ahead. We will build a future where America remains the greatest country ever to exist in the history of the world. All of that is within our grasp if we secure four more years for the defender of western civilization, our champion, my friend, the 45th president of the United States, President Donald J. trump,” Kirk said.

Kirk described Turning Point USA as “the largest pro-American student organization in the country” that is “fighting for the future of our Republic.”

Watch:

Timothy Cardinal Dolan, the Archbishop of New York.

Cardinal Timothy Dolan, the Archbishop of New York, delivered the opening prayer ahead of Monday’s primetime speeches at the Republican National Convention.

Dolan called on prayers for frontline workers and those suffering from coronavirus. He called for prayers for all lives to be protected — an apparent nod to recent anti-police brutality demonstration across the country. He also pushed for prayers for immigrants and unborn infants.

“Pray we must that all lives may be protected and respected in our troubled cities and the police who guard them, in tense world situations where our men and women in uniform keep the peace, for the innocent life of the baby in the womb, for our elders in nursing care and hospice, for our immigrants and refugees, those lives threatened by religious persecution throughout the world or by plague, hunger, drugs, human trafficking or war,” Dolan said as the Statue of Liberty was seen in the background.

Before concluding, Dolan called for watchers to “pray for democracy,” for “an electorate so eager to perform its duty of faithful citizenship.”

Dolan received online criticism for accepting the invitation to pray at the RNC, but earlier Monday, he defended his appearance, saying that he doesn’t see a prayer offering as an endorsement of a party or candidate.

President Donald Trump speaks during the first day of the Republican National Convention on Monday, August 24, in Charlotte.

Republicans have kicked off night one of the Republican National Convention tonight with a theme focused around the “Land of Promise” after formally nominating President Donald Trump earlier in the day.

While the in-person Democratic National Convention was scrapped due to the coronavirus pandemic, Republicans began their convention with an in-person roll call in Charlotte, North Carolina, and then move to remote speeches largely from an auditorium in Washington, DC — but, in an unprecedented move, also from the White House.

The start to the Republican convention comes as the first polls since the DNC last week show Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden has gained popularity, but has not widened his lead over Trump.

Trump and Vice President Mike Pence appeared at the roll call in North Carolina on Monday to thank delegates.

Notable speakers tonight will include some of Trump’s Republican allies in Congress (Sen. Tim Scott, House GOP Whip Steve Scalise, Rep. Matt Gaetz and Rep. Jim Jordan), former US Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley, and the President’s eldest son, Donald Trump Jr.

Besides lawmakers, tonight’s program includes a list of speakers who appear to have credited the Trump administration and Republicans for policy successes or who have been successful examples of the President’s policies in action.

The lineup will include the father of a student killed in the 2018 Stoneman Douglas High School shooting, a GOP congressional candidate who starred in a viral video about “the reality for Black people” in Baltimore and a coffee shop owner who was the first to qualify for a Paycheck Protection Program loan in Montana.

There will also be remarks by Patricia and Mark McCloskey, the couple who drew national attention this summer after they were filmed brandishing guns at a group of protesters who were walking along the neighborhood’s private street, en route to the St. Louis mayor’s residence to advocate for policing reform.

The night’s event began with this video:

While there will be an audience when President Trump delivers his address from the South Lawn Thursday night, sources tell CNN the RNC and Trump campaign scrapped plans to have a live audience at the Andrew W. Mellon Auditorium in Washington, DC, where Donald Trump Jr. and others will give their speeches Monday night. 

Gatherings of more than 50 people are prohibited in Washington under current regulations and it became too much of a headache to figure out how to safely have an effective audience, an official involved in the planning told CNN.

The conversation at the Republican National Convention is expected to focus on Covid-19 during at least a portion of the program Monday night.

Officials, lawmakers and allies of President Donald Trump will attempt to rebut four days of Democrats hammering his response as inadequate during last week’s Democratic National Convention.

On Monday, Trump teased possible breakthroughs for a vaccine as critics accused him of putting a political timeline on a scientific endeavor. 

Trump is expected to appear with frontline workers tonight.

Cardinal Timothy Dolan defended his Republican National Convention appearance by stating he doesn’t see offering a prayer as an endorsement of a party or a candidate after receiving online criticism.

Posting on Twitter his previous statement on why he agreed to participate, Dolan said that had he been invited to offer a prayer during the Democratic National Convention he would have “happily accepted,” as he did during the 2012 DNC convention. 

The statement says it’s one of his “most sacred obligations” to “try and respond positively whenever I am invited to pray.”

In response to CNN’s inquiry about some of the criticism he has received since word emerged of his participation, Dolan acknowledged it.

“I want to say that I maintain almost neutrality when it comes to Politics, we the church absolutely don’t get involved in party politics, I only represent a sector of the church, if we don’t pray for America, as Catholics, who will? The RNC involvement is giving me a positive criticism these past days,” he told CNN.

The Archdiocese of New York says that they notified the Democratic National Committee that Cardinal Dolan would accept an invitation to pray at the Democratic National Convention as well.

“We notified the DNC that the Cardinal would also accept an invitation to pray at their convention, if they wished. However, they had already invited other Catholic representatives to pray,” Joseph Zwilling, the director of communications for the Archdiocese of New York told CNN.

Read the tweet:

A senior Trump campaign official told reporters on a call today that the President “will be making an appearance every night” of this week’s Republican National Convention, though he will not be speaking every night.

Tonight’s appearance involves Trump “meeting with frontline workers during the course of the broadcast, honoring them for their sacrifices and commitment to keeping the American people healthy, safe and supplied. These will include police officers, firefighters, nurses, truckers and delivery drivers, and President Trump will be welcoming and thanking the frontline workers for their efforts,” according to the official.

The official also pointed to the list of speakers announced earlier today for tonight’s RNC programming, telling reporters, “there may be names, not included on the list, who will in fact speak tonight. And we do anticipate that there will be some surprises that we are not rolling out at this point, and there may be further information about those as we get closer to airtime.”

Democratic presidential candidate former Vice President Joe Biden speaks during the fourth day of the Democratic National Convention on Thursday, August 20, in Wilmington, Delaware.

More than two dozen former Republican lawmakers announced Monday they are endorsing Joe Biden for president.

Former Sen. Jeff Flake of Arizona and former Rep. Charlie Dent of Pennsylvania are among those throwing their support behind the Democratic presidential nominee through “Republicans for Biden,” and the endorsements come on the morning of the first day of the Republican National Convention.

Biden has repeatedly emphasized Republican support as he looks to build a broad coalition in his campaign against President Trump.

While the endorsements offer a symbolic boost to Biden as he seeks to win over persuadable voters, Trump is still overwhelmingly popular among Republicans, a point made by Trump campaign spokesperson Tim Murtaugh, who dismissed the significance of the endorsements.

“Joe Biden has been a failure in the Washington Swamp for a half century, so no one should be surprised when Swamp creatures gather to protect one of their own,” Murtaugh said. “President Trump has unprecedented support — over 95% — among real Republican voters and is also making strong inroads in Biden’s core Democrat constituencies, like Black Americans, Latinos, and union members. President Trump’s record of success for all Americans will carry him to victory in November.”

Along with Flake and Dent, former Sens. Gordon Humphrey of New Hampshire and John Warner of Virginia added their support.

Read more about the endorsements here

President Donald Trump speaks during the first day of the Republican National Convention on Monday, August 24, in Charlotte.

Ahead of the Republican National Convention kicking off today, President Donald Trump said to expect an overall positive message.

“I think the overall is going to be a very positive as opposed to a dark — a very, very positive message,” Trump said in an interview on Fox News with “The Next Revolution” host Steve Hilton that was taped on Friday and aired Sunday night.

Trump campaign senior adviser Jason Miller said Republicans would present an “optimistic and upbeat convention this week” in contrast with what he described as last week’s “massive grievance fest” of a Democratic National Convention.

Speaking from Charlotte, North Carolina, moments after he was formally renominated as the Republican Party standard-bearer, however, Trump delivered a screed that predicted a legally contested election in November and complained that Democrats were exploiting the coronavirus pandemic — still raging in the United States — to undermine his reelection.

It was hardly the optimistic message that Trump’s advisers have been relentlessly previewing ahead of this week’s renomination festivities. Instead, Trump’s speech was indistinguishable from the meandering, grievance-filled appearances he has been making in the lead-up to his scaled-down convention.

Sadoux Kim, a former producer of “The Apprentice,” is one of the producers and consultants helping to put together the Republican National Convention, three sources confirmed to CNN.

A source familiar with convention planning, a White House official and a campaign official confirmed to CNN Kim is helping to put together the show but did not detail his specific role.

The New York Times, which first reported Kim’s involvement, said he was a longtime deputy to Mark Burnett, who created and produced “The Apprentice.”

The Republican National Committee has confirmed it will not release a new platform during the 2020 convention this week — and in lieu of one, the party will support President Trump’s agenda. 

In one of several resolutions issued and viewed by CNN, the RNC said it has “unanimously voted to forego the Convention Committee on Platform, in appreciation of the fact that it did not want a small contingent of delegates formulating a new platform without the breadth of perspectives within the ever-growing Republican movement.” 

Instead there will be no new platform until the next convention in 2024 and, in the meantime, the RNC “will continue to enthusiastically support the President’s America-first agenda.” Despite multiple opportunities, Trump has struggled repeatedly to articulate what a second term of his presidency would look like and what goals he’d like to achieve. 

On June 12, Trump tweeted, “The Republican Party has not yet voted on a Platform. No rush. I prefer a new and updated Platform, short form, if possible.”

The resolution issued this week said is due to logistics and if the platform committee had been able to meet this year without Covid-19 restrictions, the RNC “would have undoubtedly unanimously agreed to reassert the Party’s strong support for President Donald Trump and his Administration.”

Before the convention was dramatically scaled back, Trump’s aides, including Jared Kushner and Bill Stepien, had been assembling a platform for 2020, which they were hoping would be slimmed down.

The RNC accused the media of misrepresenting why it is not adopting a new platform this convention and said reporters are engaging in “misleading advocacy for the failed policies of the Obama-Biden Administration.” 

It ends by saying “any motion to amend the 2016 Platform…will be ruled out of order.”

Former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley visits "Fox & Friends" at Fox News Channel Studios on November 12, 2019 in New York.

The Trump campaign announced the list of speakers for the Republican National Convention beginning Monday in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Among the notable speakers listed are Vice President Mike Pence, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, former Ambassador Nikki Haley, Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson, counselor to the president Kellyanne Conway, Rudy Giuliani and UFC President Dana White.

Trump family members appearing at the RNC include first lady Melania Trump, and his children Ivanka, Donald Trump Jr., Eric and Tiffany Trump.

Lawmakers slated to address the convention include Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy, Sens. Tim Scott, Rand Paul, Marsha Blackburn and Joni Ernst, along with Reps. Steve Scalise, Matt Gaetz, Dan Crenshaw, and Jim Jordan. 

State lawmakers include Govs. Kim Reynolds of Iowa and Kristi Noem of South Dakota.

Multiple sources told CNN that President Trump will participate in each night of the convention, with his acceptance speech coming from the White House on Thursday.

The campaign did not indicate whether any of the remarks will be prerecorded, a criticism Trump and others lobbed at many of the Democratic National Convention speakers last week.

Pompeo, who is slated to address the convention Tuesday night, departed Sunday on an official visit to the Middle East. A person familiar with his plans said Pompeo intends to address the RNC from Israel, a break from longstanding traditions of leaving domestic politics when outside the country — particularly for the nation’s top diplomat. 

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell will tape a speech that will be featured as part of the Republican National Convention, Tim Murtaugh, Trump campaign communications director, told CNN.

Patricia and Mark McCloskey draw their firearms on protesters as they enter their neighborhood during a protest against St. Louis Mayor Lyda Krewson on June 28.

Patricia and Mark McCloskey, the St. Louis homeowners who pointed guns at protesters earlier this summer, are scheduled to speak at the Republican National Convention tonight.

The McCloskeys drew national attention in late June after they were seen in a viral video brandishing guns outside their mansion at protesters walking on a private street en route to demonstrate outside the St. Louis mayor’s residence. The Missouri couple was charged in July with unlawful use of a weapon.

The White House has defended the couple on multiple occasions, with White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany telling reporters at the time that President Donald Trump “said it is absolutely absurd, what is happening to the McCloskeys.”

In videos obtained by CNN, Mark McCloskey holds a long rifle and Patricia McCloskey holds a handgun as demonstrators, protesting Mayor Lyda Krewson’s decision to publish the names and addresses of people in favor of police reform, walked outside the home. Portland Place, the private street where the McCloskeys live, is near Krewson’s home.

Daniel Shular, a local reporter, took one of the videos and said he watched the entire roughly 10-minute long incident unfold. About 500 protesters were cutting through Portland Place, according to Shular, to bypass road closures nearby that blocked access to the mayor’s home.

“A door next to the gate at Portland Place was unlocked and protesters went through it to cut through the neighborhood to get to Krewson’s house,” he told CNN.

That’s when Shular says the McCloskeys came out of the house with the firearms. At one point in Shular’s 31-second video, Patricia McCloskey points the handgun in the direction of protesters. In multiple videos, it appears the McCloskeys and protesters exchange words, but it is unclear what is said.

Mark McCloskey has defended his actions towards the protesters, saying last month that he was “in imminent fear they would run me over, kill me.”

McCloskey asserted that it is “ridiculous” to consider him the face of opposition to the Black Lives Matter movement after the incident.

“I didn’t care what color they were. I didn’t care what their motivation was,” he said. “I was frightened. I was assaulted.”

Former Covington Catholic student Nick Sandmann, Andrew Pollack, the father of Parkland shooting victim Meadow Pollack, anti-abortion activist Abby Johnson, South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem and Pennsylvania congressional candidate Sean Parnell will also be among the speakers at the Republican convention.

The room is set and delegates begin to arrive for the first day of the Republican National Convention on Monday in Charlotte.

The Republican National Convention will get underway this week with a four-night event that will see the party formally renominate President Donald Trump while navigating a mix of online and in-person events due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Trump campaign senior adviser Jason Miller told NBC’s “Meet the Press” Sunday that viewers can plan on hearing Trump “speaking at various parts through each of the nights” at the GOP convention.

Here’s what you need to know of this week’s event:

Notable speakers: Participants will include Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, former Ambassador Nikki Haley, Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson, counselor to the president Kellyanne Conway, Rudy Giuliani and UFC President Dana White.

Trump family members appearing at the RNC include first lady Melania Trump, and his children Ivanka, Donald Trump Jr., Eric and Tiffany Trump.

The convention will also feature “breakout stars,” people one wouldn’t typically consider to be Trump supporters, and “a great, uplifting message from the President,” he told NBC.

Dan Scavino, one of President Trump’s longest serving aides and one of the few people with access to his Twitter account, is also scheduled to speak at the RNC this week, a person familiar with the planning told CNN.

As the deputy chief of staff for communications, Scavino is in a public-facing role, but he rarely speaks publicly.

The convention’s focus: Miller said Republicans will present an “optimistic and upbeat convention this week” in contrast with what he described as last week’s “massive grievance fest” of a Democratic National Convention.

The RNC will focus heavily on Trump’s accomplishments over his first four years, lay out a second term vision for the administration, and promised “a complete change in the perception that I believe the media tries to tell of what a Trump supporter looks like, or who a Trump supporter is,” Miller added.

Where Trump will accept the nomination: Trump will accept the Republican nomination at the White House after scrapping his plans to deliver the speech in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Ethics experts have said that accepting the nomination from White House property highlights Trump’s willingness to trample on norms. A federal law, known as the Hatch Act, generally forbids the use of government property and employees for political activities with some exceptions.

The President and vice president are exempt, but some previous officeholders have sought to limit political activity in the White House, for instance, by holding political events elsewhere or in the residential spaces of the presidential mansion.

Where the convention will take place: After exhaustive deliberations over potential venues, the bulk of the convention will be centered in Washington, including on the White House lawn and at the Andrew W. Mellon Auditorium, situated around the block from Trump’s hotel (which Republicans said they expected to act as a social hub for the week and will likely benefit financially).

Notably, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo plans to address the RNC on Tuesday from Jerusalem, a person familiar with his plans said, a break from longstanding traditions of leaving domestic politics when leaving the country — particularly for the nation’s top diplomat.

Read more about the four-day event here.

President Donald Trump speaks on stage during the first day of the Republican National Committee convention on Monday in Charlotte.

President Trump, a television producer at heart, is hoping for a convention this week that looks vastly different from the all-digital event Democrats have staged over the past days — including an emphasis on live programming and at least some type of audience who can respond to the multiple appearances he is planning.

Calling aides at all hours from Air Force One or the White House residence, Trump has conveyed last-minute ideas on venues or gimmicks and demanded progress reports on the speakers he wants during his nominating extravaganza, which he hopes will provide a boost to his poll numbers.

Early drafts of his nomination acceptance speech closely resemble two previous addresses that delved heavily in the divisive culture wars that Trump has aggressively stoked: his first convention speech in 2016, where he declared “I alone can fix” the country’s ailments, and his July 4 address at Mount Rushmore, which seized upon recent racial strife to hammer a “law and order” message.

Even amid a national pandemic that has severely limited Republicans’ ability to party, the convention ordered up by the President will still contain moments that are designed both to surprise viewers and trigger outrage from Trump’s opponents — both defining features of Trump’s political style.

Depending on how the election turns out in November — and how Republicans reshape themselves if the President loses —this week’s proceedings could reflect either the last gasp of that brand of politics or an illustration of the new GOP formed in his image.

A member of the Georgia delegation walks out with their delegation placard after the vote on the first day of the Republican National Convention, Monday, August 24, in Charlotte.

Donald Trump was unanimously renominated by the Republican National Convention to be the party’s nominee for president in November.

All 2,550 delegates were able to cast their votes, though many were done via proxy. Each state and territory was offered six in-person spots at the convention in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Nevada cast the votes that put the President over the top at the convention.

Florida skipped their alphabetical spot. The state would have needed to cast their votes between Nebraska and Nevada to formally give the President enough votes to win the nomination during the roll call.

Instead, the Sunshine State cast their votes after South Dakota, immediately before the President spoke. In the announcement of their votes, Florida GOP Chairman Joe Gruters called the President, “our new favorite son,” acknowledging Trump’s change of formal residence from New York to Florida in 2019.

Here’s some notable speakers who cast their state’s votes:

Republicans from all over the country are about to kick off night one of the Republican National Convention with a theme focused around the “Land of Promise.”

The convention begins as the first polls since last week’s Democratic National Convention show Joe Biden has gained popularity, but hasn’t widened his lead over Donald Trump.

CNN’s Zachary B. Wolf, alongside Leyla Santiago and Kelly Mena, gave a preview of what to expect in the nights ahead and took viewers’ questions.

Watch:

Read more about why the US still has political conventions and what will happen in 2020 here.

President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence give a thumbs up after speaking during the first day of the Republican National Convention Monday, August 24 in Charlotte, North Carolina.

The first day of the Republican National Convention kicked off in Charlotte, North Carolina, this morning – the city initially chosen to host the event – for an in-person event before moving the rest of the production to the nation’s capital. 

The formal presidential nomination process was attended by six delegates from each state and territory, amounting to a total of 336 delegates, according to the RNC. RNC Chairwoman Ronna Romney McDaniel presided over the nomination process, which concluded with Donald Trump and Mike Pence being formally nominated as the party’s nominee for President and vice president.

Trump and Pence appeared at the roll call in North Carolina to thank delegates.

Pence briefly addressed a friendly, fired-up crowd of delegates at the RNC ahead of Trump’s appearance.

A Trump victory, he said, will make America great again, again.

He called on the delegates to help with down-ballot races, and said the economy, law and order, freedom, and free markets are “on the ballot” this year, urging them to mobilize, phone bank, and door knock.

He thanked the delegates “for the honor of this day” and said he’d be speaking more about the nomination at Fort McHenry later this week.

Trump had voting on his mind Monday morning as he addressed his convention, kicking off his first remarks for the week with dark messaging lamenting the 2016 election and railing against mail-in voting, continuing to cast doubt on the election’s results.

“Now if you really want to drive them crazy, you say 12 more years,” he said as an enthusiastic crowd of delegates chanted “four more years.”

“Because,” he continued, “We caught them doing some really bad things in 2016. Let’s see what happens. We caught them doing some really bad things. We have to be very careful because they’re trying it again, this whole 80 million mail-in ballots that they’re working on. Sending them out to people that didn’t ask for them. They didn’t ask, they just get them, and it’s not fair, and it’s not right, and it’s not going to be possible to tabulate, in my opinion.”

There is no evidence that former President Barack Obama spied on Trump’s campaign. You can read CNN’s most recent mail-in voting fact checks here.

Still, Trump went on to claim Democrats “are trying to do it with the whole post office scam, they’ll blame it on the post office. You can see them setting it up. Be very careful and watch it very carefully.”

He closed his remarks with another warning about how important the election will be while telling the delegates not to “let them take it away from you.”

“Be very, very careful. This is going to be, and I really believe this, this is the most important election in the history of our country. Don’t let them take it away from you. Don’t let them take it away,” Trump said.

Trump’s formal acceptance speech will happen remotely Thursday from the White House.

Watch: