RNC 2024 Day 2: Trump feted by former rivals Haley, DeSantis in show of GOP unity

Trump, with a bandage on his ear, made an appearance again Tuesday evening

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Last updated: Wednesday, July 17, 2024 10:00AM GMT
RNC 2024 Day 2: Trump feted by former rivals Haley, DeSantis
Former President Trump's political rivals came together in a show of unity Tuesday.

MILWAUKEE -- The second day of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee ended Tuesday with appearances from some of former President Donald Trump's former rivals: former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy -- all calling for Republican Party unity.

They were joined by some of Trump's longest allies including Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders and Ben Carson in bashing the Democrats over what they claimed were harmful and failed policies.

The program focused on law and order with a theme of making the country "safe again."

Trump, with a bandage on his ear, made an appearance again Tuesday evening -- just days after he was wounded in an assassination attempt at one of his rallies in Pennsylvania over the weekend. Several speakers said God spared Trump in the shooting, saving him for a divine plan for the presidency.

Key Headlines

Here's how the news is developing.
ByTommy Barone ABCNews logo
Jul 15, 2024, 8:07 PM GMT

Trump clears threshold to lock in nomination

Trump has officially cleared the numerical threshold at which he has locked in the nomination, with a pause in the roll call for celebration.

Former president was formally nominated by Iowa GOP chair Jeff Kaufman and Nevada GOP Chair Michael McDonald.

"We want to remind all our delegates, alternates and guests that maintaining order during the roll call is extremely important," House Speaker Mike Johnson said.

Trump has officially cleared the numerical threshold at which he has locked in the nomination, with a pause in the roll call for celebration.

In his speech, Kaufman said that over the next four days, they will hear about Trump's "broad and inspiring vision for our country."

"This is not a program just for Republicans, but one for all Americans," he said.

In his speech, McDonald played up Trump's support for eliminating taxes on tips -- a policy that plays well in the service-industry-dependent swing state of Nevada.

"In Nevada, a state that is resilient on service industry. President Trump has proposed to eliminate taxes on tips on day one," McDonald said. "Unlike the Biden-Harris administration and the Democrats that increased taxes on tips."

As Iowa cast its votes, Iowa GOP chair Kaufman gave a shoutout to basketball star Caitlin Clark, while Sen. Mike Lee of Utah shouted out JD Vance -- Trump's just-revealed VP pick -- as he announced the state's delegates for Trump.

Florida, his adoptive home state, put him over the edge as his son, Eric Trump, announced the delegates.

Jul 15, 2024, 7:39 PM GMT

Trump announces Vance as his running mate

Trump announced Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance will be his running mate, writing on Truth Social that the Ohio Republican is "the person best suited to assume the position of Vice President of the United States."

The decision caps off months of speculation and sees Trump elevate a 39-year-old first-term senator whose roughly year and a half tenure in the Senate has seen him emerge as a staunch ideological ally of the former president.

MORE | Trump VP pick: Former president announces Vance as his running mate

FILE - Sen. J.D. Vance, R-Ohio, right, points toward Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump at a campaign rally on March 16, 2024, in Vandalia, Ohio.
FILE - Sen. J.D. Vance, R-Ohio, right, points toward Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump at a campaign rally on March 16, 2024, in Vandalia, Ohio.
ByBrittany Shepherd, Tommy Barone and Jacob Steinberg ABCNews logo
Jul 15, 2024, 7:03 PM GMT

GOP party platform passes

The Republicans have passed their party platform, despite dissent from the evangelical wing over softened language on abortion that better matches Trump's current posture. A fair amount of "nayes" were heard in the convention hall, but not enough for the vote to fail.

Rep. Michael Waltz, R-Fla., told delegates that the "platform was personally approved by President Donald J. Trump."

"It's a different kind of platform," said platform co-chair Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., as she presented the platform for a vote.

"It is not a laundry list of special interests' wishes, but a succinct, clear agenda and a promise to the American people."

Before the overwhelming voice vote in Milwaukee, the platform had passed 84-14 by the platform committee.

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Jul 15, 2024, 7:00 PM GMT

Trump's son, Eric Trump, says he'll cast the vote declaring his father the Republican nominee

Donald Trump's son, Eric Trump, announced on X that he'll be casting the vote at 3:30 p.m. ET declaring his father the Republican nominee for president.

He lives in Florida and is expected to cast the vote with Florida's delegation, putting Trump over the top with enough delegates to formally become the nominee.