How a friendship with Donald Trump Jr. helped land J.D. Vance a spot on the Republican ticket. (2024)

Republicans pitched themselves as the party of economic opportunity and sought to court Black voters on the first day of their convention, after formally making former President Donald J. Trump their nominee alongside his newly-named running mate, Senator J.D. Vance of Ohio. The selection of Mr. Vance, a one-time Trump critic whose abrupt turnaround fueled his rise to the Senate just last year, came two days after Mr. Trump survived an attempt on his life at a rally in Pennsylvania.

The convention opened with the delegates taking a moment of silence dedicated to reflecting on the attempted assassination of Mr. Trump on Saturday, which killed one person and left two others seriously wounded. In keeping with recent calls to dial back hostile political rhetoric, Monday’s speakers struck more subdued tones.

In their interview together on Fox, Sean Hannity pressed J.D. Vance for his position on abortion. Vance has previously called for widespread restrictions on abortion, but, like Trump, he says now that the issue should be decided on a state level. “We do see babies as inconveniences, and that’s a mistake,” Vance said. “It is reasonable for voters and states make those decisions.”

J.D. Vance has long been a critic of Biden’s efforts to fund Ukraine in its war against the Russian invasion. In his interview at the convention tonight with Sean Hannity of Fox News, he said that Trump “will bring this thing to a rapid close” by negotiating with Russia, rather than furthering the war effort for Ukraine.

David Sacks just took the stage and drew some tepid applause. I would venture a guess that most attendees here have not heard of him. As he speaks about the Democratic Party’s “gaslighting” Americans about President Biden’s fitness to serve, audience members are talking over him. It’s the first time I’ve seen wandering attentions this evening so far.

The delegates in Milwaukee have all been handed signs that say “Make America Wealthy Again” or, in perhaps the most direct distillation of Trump’s message on the economy, “Trump = Prosperity, Biden = Inflation”

At the convention in Milwaukee, David Sacks is about to take the stage. Sacks has had an incredible political rise over the last few years. A well-known tech entrepreneur, he has become a cultural and political force in certain circles via his popular “All-In” podcast and aggressive posting on his X account.

J.D. Vance in his interview with Fox News said he was ready to serve as president if fate called. He said he needed to have “humility” about assuming the post while also saying he would have an agenda “to bring peace in the world.”

— Gov. Kristi Noem of South Dakota

This is false.

South Dakota did in fact issue stay-at-home orders in May 2020 for residents older than 65 and those with underlying medical conditions in certain counties unless they engaged in essential activities. According to a study by the Centers for Disease and Control and Prevention on state restrictions during the coronavirus pandemic, only six states and territories did not issue any order. South Dakota was not one of them.

The last time Senator Katie Britt, Republican of Alabama, took to the national stage, she struggled mightily.

Ms. Britt, seen as a rising star in the party, delivered the Republican rebuttal to President Biden’s State of the Union speech in March in what was seen as a debut moment for the young first-term senator.

On the convention floor in Milwaukee, Bobby Bartels, the business manager of a union in New York, got major cheers from the crowd when he identified himself as a “union Democrat” who would be voting for Trump this fall. He attributed his decision to what he viewed as Trump’s better handling of the economy.

After a couple of hours of speeches at the Republican National Convention, here’s what we aren’t hearing: Anything about a stolen election or January 6 hostages or voter fraud.

— Gov. Glenn Youngkin of Virginia

This needs context.

The unemployment rates for the groups Mr. Youngkin listed did reach historic lows under President Donald J. Trump, but the rates for women and Black Americans have fallen even lower under President Biden.

Read the full fact check.

J.D. Vance has an interview airing with Sean Hannity at the same time President Biden's interview with Lester Holt is being broadcast on NBC News. Vance said “we have to deport people,” and “we should start with the criminals.” Vance used to be an outspoken advocate of immigration but has become a hardliner on the border issue, embracing Trump’s politics when he was running for Senate.

Sean Hannity in his interview read critical comments that J.D. Vance had made toward Trump when he was a “Never-Trumper guy,” prompting Vance to laugh. “He was a great president and he changed my mind,”Vance said, “because he delivered that peace and prosperity.”

Vance tells Hannity during his interview at the convention that Trump’s plan for a second term is “delivering the peace and prosperity.”

As the convention unfolds and President Biden speaks with NBC News, Senator J.D. Vance is giving an interview with Sean Hannity for Fox News. He is in a cheerful mood with a big smile. “I just try to enjoy the ride,” Vance said of his day today, when he was announced as Trump’s running mate.

President Biden, on NBC, says he has not engaged in the same kind of violent rhetoric as Donald Trump, as he defends his attacks that his opponent is an eminent threat to democracy. “We have to stop the whole notion that there are certain things that are contrary to our democracy that we are for,” he said.

President Biden, in his NBC News interview now being broadcast, is trying to explain his remark to donors last week that “it is time to put Trump in the bull’s-eye,” by saying that he meant that people should pay more attention to Trump’s agenda. “I didn’t say put him in the crosshairs,” Biden said.

— Gov. Glenn Youngkin of Virginia

This is misleading.

First, “energy independence” is a political phrase: It does not mean that the United States doesn’t import oil — that hasn’t been true in nearly a century. But politicians typically use the term to mean that the United States exports more energy than it imports.

Read the full fact check.

Gov. Kristi Noem of South Dakota, who just took the stage, was once considered a contender to be Trump’s running mate. But her political stature took a hit after the publication of her political memoir in May, in which she described shooting the family puppy to death in a gravel pit.

The last time a Republican candidate for president won in Virginia was 2004. Glenn Youngkin, the Republican who was elected governor in Virginia in 2022 by running as an outside business executive, drew cheers as he promised delegates that Trump — who lost to Biden by 10 points in 2020 – would take the state this November. “I believe Virginia will this year elect another outside businessman — as president of the United States,” he said. It’s not an unreasonable assertion. A New York Times/Siena College poll suggested today that Virginia is now very competitive.

In his interview with NBC News running tonight at the same time as the Republican convention, President Biden told Lester Holt that his phone call with Donald Trump, after the assassination attempt, was “very cordial.” He adds that “there is no place for violence in American politics — none, zero.”

— Gov. Glenn Youngkin of Virginia

This is false.

Grocery prices are up substantially since Mr. Biden took office in early 2021, but not by 30 percent: The Consumer Price Index’s food at home index is up about 21 percent. Likewise, gas prices have increased, but not by 40 percent: They are up about 35 percent, depending on what measure one uses.

And while Mr. Youngkin squarely blamed inflation on Mr. Biden and Ms. Harris, inflation was caused in part by global supply shortages that came amid shipping route snarls and factory shutdowns related to the pandemic. It was also a global phenomenon, underscoring that it was not solely the product of United States policy. Given that, the statement needs more context. Some economic research has suggested that government spending policy in the United States did contribute to inflation, but it was one of several factors.

J.D. Vance just walked past me in the Fiserv Forum, flanked by his new Secret Service detail and with the senior Trump adviser Jason Miller. He was on his way to the Fox News set at the convention, where he’s doing an interview with Sean Hannity.

— Senator Tim Scott of South Carolina

This is misleading.

A substantial body of economic research suggests that immigrants, including undocumented ones, typically do not compete directly with native-born workers.

This does remain a subject of some debate: The Harvard economist George Borjas has argued that an influx of Cuban immigrants into Florida during the early 1980s pulled down wages for less-educated workers, for instance. That result has been contested by other academics, however, including David Card at the University of California-Berkeley. And in any case, many economists argue that any possible negative effect is probably muted at an economic moment like this one, when job openings remain plentiful and the unemployment is very low, meaning that there are many jobs to go around.

Senator Tim Scott, an architect of the 2017 Trump tax cuts, described them as the “biggest tax cuts ever for working people and single moms.” The tax cuts, however, overwhelmingly benefited the rich and large corporations.

Senator Scott just drew the night’s biggest cheers so far when he stated that “America is not a racist country!”

Senator Tim Scott of South Carolina is demonstrating why he was so valued by Donald Trump as a surrogate on the campaign trail, and why he was once a contender for the vice-presidential nomination. During his speech, Scott revved up the convention crowd with a cadence that was half preacher and half wrestling announcer. “On Saturday, the devil came to Pennsylvania holding a rifle,” Scott said, referring to the attempted assassination of Trump. “But an American lion got back up on his feet, and he roared! Oh yeah! He roared!”

The last time Senator Katie Britt spoke to a nationwide audience, she drew widespread attention for her overdramatic, uneven performance that drew unfavorable comparisons to bad soap operas and, some speculated, hurt what at the time seemed her chances of being a potential vice-presidential pick for Trump. Tonight, speaking at the R.N.C., she delivered a more measured, restrained speech as she focused on inflation.

The four-day Republican National Convention is underway, with a cast of lawmakers, governors and other high-profile Republicans speaking from a convention stage in Milwaukee as the party puts forward its vision for the country.

Here is the list of those appearing at the convention on Monday night, according to the Republican National Committee, including a number of elected officials, some business executives, several “everyday Americans” and a musical performer.

Some of Elon Musk’s closest friends have helped start a new super PAC meant to help former President Donald J. Trump, creating an avenue for Mr. Musk and his $250 billion fortune to potentially play a significant role in the 2024 presidential race.

The group, America PAC, is likely to draw significant support from Mr. Musk, according to three people close to the group who spoke on the condition of anonymity; it is not confirmed whether he has already donated. The group’s founding donors span Mr. Musk’s social circle and include a tight-knit network of wealthy tech entrepreneurs who frequently finance one another’s startups, philanthropic projects and favored political candidates.