Trump Announces Midterm GOP Convention 07/01 06:22

   President Donald Trump announced Tuesday that Republicans will hold their 
first-ever national convention ahead of November's midterm elections, an 
unusual event aimed at boosting turnout in races that will decide whether the 
party maintains control of Congress.

   (AP) -- President Donald Trump announced Tuesday that Republicans will hold 
their first-ever national convention ahead of November's midterm elections, an 
unusual event aimed at boosting turnout in races that will decide whether the 
party maintains control of Congress.

   The convention will be held in Dallas on Sept. 9 and 10.

   Although both major parties traditionally hold blockbuster conventions 
during presidential campaigns, Trump has long floated the idea of a similar 
gathering this year to focus voters' attention on a sprawling collection of 
House and Senate races.

   If Democrats regain control of either chamber, they will be empowered to 
block Trump's agenda and launch investigations into his administration for the 
final two years of his term.

   Republicans have only slim majorities in Congress, and the party in power 
normally loses ground in the midterms. And without Trump on the ballot, 
Republican leaders worry that it could be hard to galvanize their voters.

   Trump hopes the convention would help change that dynamic, and he's been 
talking about it since last year. He floated in a social media post that 
Republicans would use the event "to show the great things we have done since 
the Presidential Election of 2024."

   "We will also have lots of Great Entertainment -- It will be a RALLY like 
none other!" Trump wrote in a Truth Social post announcing the convention 
details.

   The Democratic National Committee considered hosting a similar midterm 
convention but ultimately rejected the idea. An expensive soiree could have 
strained the DNC's finances, which are struggling with lackluster fundraising 
and millions in debt.

   Democrats have said the GOP convention will be a chance for them to tie 
Republican House and Senate candidates to Trump, whose approval rating is 
underwater.

   Locating the convention in Texas places a spotlight on the state's Senate 
race, which pits Democratic nominee James Talarico against Republican nominee 
Ken Paxton.

   Paxton is the state attorney general who, with Trump's backing, defeated 
longtime Sen. John Cornyn in a primary earlier this year. Republican Senate 
leaders fear that Paxton's history of scandals -- including an extramarital 
affair, an impeachment and a securities fraud case that did not lead to a 
conviction -- could undermine his candidacy and turn a winnable race into a 
drain on party resources.

   It also highlights the aftereffects of Trump's mid-decade redistricting push 
that began in Texas, an effort to secure more seats for Republicans in this 
fall's elections.

   The Republican National Committee began laying the groundwork earlier this 
year, voting at its winter meeting in January to make such an event possible by 
amending procedures centered around quadrennial presidential nominating 
conventions.

   Democrats considered holding a similar gathering ahead of the midterms but 
tabled the idea. However, the party did hold such conferences in the 1970s and 
1980s.