Trump smashes political rules anew while first lady makes serene case for re-election, national calm

President Trump once again upended Washington’s norms with a glitzy convention show from the White House lawn that antagonized Democrats and introduced America to a new GOP star from Kentucky. Then he surrendered the stage to his wife, who delivered a serene plea for national unity and calm after months of unease.

“Instead of tearing things down, let's reflect on our mistakes, be proud of our evolution and look to our way forward,” Melania Trump urged Tuesday night in the keynote address on the second night of the Republican National Convention.

The first lady’s style – calm, composed and reassuring -- provided a stark contrast to Americans who had been fed a steady diet of political red meat on national TV starting with the Democratic National Convention a week ago.

She used her time on the national stage to appeal to women and to address the fears and angst of Americans rattled by months of a stubborn pandemic, racial strife and violent street riots while making the case her husband, the 45th president, was best suited to lead the country through the strife for four more years.

"I know many people are anxious and some feel helpless," Melania Trump said. "I want you to know you are not alone. My husband's administration will not stop fighting until there is an effective treatment or vaccine available to everyone. Donald will not rest until he has done all he can to take care of everyone impacted by this terrible pandemic."

Mrs. Trump called for an end to violence and looting “being done in the name of justice," as protests continue to erupt nationwide following the death of African-American George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police.

"Like all of you, I have reflected on the racial unrest in our country," she said. "It is a harsh reality – that we are not proud of parts of our history. I encourage people to focus on our future, while still learning from our past. We must remember that today we are all one community comprised of many races, religions and ethnicities."

Her tone admittedly less defiant that her brash husband, whom she quipped was brutally honest on where he stood, the first lady nonetheless made an impassioned case for why Donald J. Trump deserved a second term.

"I believe that we need my husband's leadership, now more than ever, in order to bring us back once again to the greatest economy and the strongest country ever known," the first lady said as the president watched from a front-row seat.

Mrs. Trump’s simple, straightforward appeal contrasted with a night when her husband unabashedly used the potent backdrop of the White House, a pre-taped citizenship ceremony and a presidential pardon as anchors for a prime-time show supporting his re-election. Even the secretary of state, Mike Pompeo, beamed in from Jerusalem to urge Trump’s re-election in a speech that defied decades of tradition of American diplomats avoiding the election spotlight.

"As a soldier, I saw, first hand, people desperate to flee to freedom," Pompeo said in pitching Trump for four more years in office. “The way each of us can best ensure our freedoms is by electing leaders who don’t just talk but deliver."

Trump’s Democratic detractors were instantly incensed, vowing investigations, hearings and recriminations for using government property, the nation’s chief diplomat and his presidential powers for such overt political purposes.

The president ignored the uproar, relishing instead the triumph of his latest showmanship, which included the young African American attorney general from Kentucky, Daniel Cameron, who staked claim to the mantle of rising star with a stirring speech attacking Democrats for taking minorities for granted.

Cameron, the first black elected to statewide office in his southern state, dismissed Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden as a “backward thinker” who viewed African-Americans as monolithic and expected only to vote for Democrats.

“Mr. Vice President look at me, I am black,” Cameron said. “We are not all the same sir. I am not in chains, my mind is my own and you can’t tell me how to vote because of the color of my skin.”

Some of the night’s others speakers also took aim at Biden. Former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi gave a fact-based litany of examples she said showed the Biden family had cashed in on his five decades of government service.

Eric Trump, the president’s middle son, slammed Biden as a politician "who has been a total pushover for Communist China and someone who would be a giant relief for terrorists” while losing sight of the working American.

"He is a career politician who has never signed the front of a check and does not know the slightest thing about the American worker or the American business – the engine which fuels the greatest economy the world has ever known," Eric Trump said.

And Sen. Rand Paul, a former Trump rival for the 2016 nomination and a famously anti-war libertarian, said Biden would continue to pursue endless wars that Trump was seeking ably to end.

"Joe Biden will continue to spill our blood and treasure," Paul declared. "President Trump will bring our heroes home."

The auspices of presidential power were also on display when Trump used a video in the middle of the convention show to reveal he had pardoned Joe Ponder, a Nevada man convicted of bank robbery who subsequently dedicated his life to helping prisoners reintegrate into society.

“We live in a nation of second chances,” Ponder said while standing alongside Trump in a video. The president chimed in: “Jon’s life is a beautiful testament to the power of redemption.”