Vance Invokes Racist Tropes as GOP Convention Speakers Stoke Fear and Loyalty

The second night of the Republican midterm convention in Dallas, Texas, this week featured racist remarks from speakers and a call for violence against Democrats from an audience member — before concluding with President Donald Trump demanding a loyalty oath from viewers.

At one point, while arguing why voters should back Republicans in the midterms, Vice President JD Vance objected to the GOP being described as racist. While attempting to refute that idea, Vance invoked several racist tropes about immigrants.

“We were tired of being called ‘racist’ for noticing that our country was becoming dirtier, and poor, and less safe, and less prosperous,” Vance said.

Texas Sen. Ted Cruz used his speech to vilify specific Democratic figures, including New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed, and others.

Cruz complained that Mamdani “wants to seize the means of production,” a reference to his democratic socialist beliefs. Cruz also made bigoted remarks about El-Sayed, baselessly suggesting that El-Sayed’s past comments on his own personal religious views mean that he has an “obligation to Sharia Law.”

During those comments, a member of the audience shouted out that both Mamdani and El-Sayed “should be shot.” Despite brief pauses in his speech affording him the opportunity, Cruz did not object to that person’s calls for political violence.

In an appearance on CNN Thursday evening, El-Sayed condemned the senator’s refusal to rebut those interjections.

“This is what has become the norm in our politics,” El-Sayed said, adding that politicians like Cruz should “learn to disagree agreeably.”

The event concluded with a speech from President Donald Trump, who urged audience members and television viewers to pledge their loyalty to him.

“Please raise your right hand,” Trump said. “I pledge to the greatest president in the history of the United States that loves us so much he can’t even breathe that I will go out with my family, my friends, I will do it any way — I don’t care if I’m registered or not, I’m going to try and cheat like hell…to vote on November 3.”

Trump also issued an existential warning to his followers. “You know what happens if you don’t vote, you go to hell, you know that, okay?” the president said.

The do-or-die commentaries from Republican speakers at their unprecedented midterm convention is perhaps demonstrative of their desperation in the final two months before voters go to the polls. Indeed, polling over the summer has consistently shown that Democrats are likely to win control of the House of Representatives, with the Senate in toss-up status, despite the fact that this year’s races featured contests that, traditionally, have favored Republicans.

According to an aggregate of polling data compiled by FiftyPlusOne, 49.9 percent of voters say they plan to vote for the Democratic option on their ballots, while only 43.5 percent say they will back the Republican choice.