US President Donald Trump left Washington today, on board the presidential plane gifted by Qatar, heading to Texas, after accidentally opening one of the emergency evacuation sleds before removing it.
The evacuation sled apparently opened shortly before Trump was scheduled to board the plane to head to Dallas to attend the first-ever Republican convention in the middle of the election cycle. This problem delayed Trump's travel for a short period.
In response to a journalist's question whether he was sure the plane was safe to fly, Trump said, "Yes, I'm sure, otherwise I wouldn't be on board."
The emergency sled was removed.
The Boeing 747-8 usually contains 12 inflatable evacuation slides in case of emergency. These sleds are designed to enable passengers to reach the ground safely from a height of approximately 30 feet.
Trump began traveling on the giant plane on July 1 after he accepted it as a gift from Qatar last year. Extensive efforts were made to renovate the plane, a Boeing 747, before Trump began using it.
Trump said last week that the Boeing 747 would be taken out of service in October for unspecified security upgrades that would take about 60 days.
US President Donald Trump said today (Wednesday) that he expects the war with Iran to end “immediately” after the midterm elections for the US Congress in November, considering that Tehran is trying to influence the vote, but it will not be able to hold out for much longer.
He said in a statement he made to journalists, “I believe that the war will end immediately after the elections because Iran is unable to withstand for a longer period.”
He added: “Immediately after the elections, oil prices will fall,” considering that it is necessary to wait until after these elections.
The high cost of gasoline and diesel fuel raises the Republican Party's fear of suffering a crushing defeat in the midterm elections, which include the renewal of all seats in the House of Representatives and a third of the seats in the Senate.
On the other hand, the Democrats hope to wrest control of one or both chambers from the presidential camp.
On the other hand, Trump indicated that American forces carried out attacks on nine Iranian ships, and “you will see more of them.”
The US army, which imposed a blockade on Iranian ports in response to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, announced on Tuesday the destruction of five Iranian oil tankers in response to Iranian attacks.
In light of the renewed hostilities, the price of a barrel of Brent crude exceeded the $100 threshold on Wednesday for the first time since July, and European gas recorded its highest levels since the beginning of 2023.
With the opening of the first day of the extraordinary Republican Convention in Dallas, Texas, attention turns to US President Donald Trump, who is responsible for his party maintaining the legislative majority in both chambers of Congress.
Less than two months away from the midterm elections that will decide the majority, Trump takes the stage of a conference that he decided to hold exceptionally in the hope that he will succeed in convincing his base to go to the polls and ensure the victory of the party’s candidates. The US President will speak twice at this conference, the first on the opening night, and the second at the closing ceremony, on Thursday evening, after a speech delivered by his Vice President, J.D. Vance.
Political "review".
The US President and party leaders aim to mobilize the support of Republican voters, specifically the MAGA base, some of whose members have expressed their dissatisfaction with the Iran war and the active foreign policy led by the White House.
“We're putting the president on the ballot,” Republican National Committee Chairman Joe Gruters said. “This is exactly what we are doing through this midterm election conference.” Gruters described Trump as “the best showman in the world of politics,” adding: “He is the most capable of mobilizing those voters who do not usually participate extensively in voting.” “He did it three times, and he will succeed in rallying them again.”
Indeed, this is what some Republicans are counting on in states that do not witness a lot of electoral enthusiasm, such as Kansas, where Senator Roger Marshall, who represents it, spoke about this challenge. “We need the president’s base to go to the polls and vote,” he said. There are about 200,000 people in Kansas who only vote when President Trump is on the ballot. Therefore, he must certainly convey to them the message that he is on the ballot.” Marshall warned of the repercussions of not voting, saying: “If we lose the House of Representatives, we will only witness one impeachment attempt after another, and his agenda will end.”
Electoral challenges
This strategy faces challenges, even in red states, such as Texas, for example, where Ken Paxton, the Republican candidate who was supported by Trump versus the state's veteran Senator John Cornyn, has difficulty attracting voters.
There, his Democratic rival, James Tallarico, was able to collect $68 million in donations, compared to only $9 million for Paxton, in a race that Fox News classified as equal, in a painful blow to the Republicans. Trump will seek Paxton's endorsement and support from a campaign fund affiliated with the political action committee (MAGA Inc), whose cash value has reached more than $400 million.
It is expected that the committee will try to emulate what it did in the South Carolina race, where it spent more than $800,000 to support Senator Darlene Graham in the primary elections, which led to her victory. The commission has already begun spending $10 million in the Texas race.
Linking candidates' campaigns to Trump's name carries risks in swing states, which justifies the absence of some of them from the Republican convention in Dallas. Poll numbers show a sharp decline in Trump’s support among independents. The percentage of opposition to him among them reached 71 percent, according to a poll by The Economist in cooperation with YouGov. One of the most prominent reasons for this decline in popularity is the economic repercussions of the Iran war. 41 percent of Americans say they are concerned about not being able to afford food and gasoline as prices rise. The trade war with Canada has also led to dissatisfaction among voters in states with economic ties to Canada, most notably states witnessing heated races such as Michigan, Maine, Iowa, Ohio, North Carolina, and Georgia.
For this reason, Republican leaders hope that Trump will adhere to the conference agenda, and not mention in his speeches in Texas the war with Iran or the trade confrontation with Canada, but rather focus on the achievements of his administration and his party. A White House official also said that the conference aims not only to motivate voters to vote, but also to convince those who are hesitant about the necessity of voting for the Republican agenda instead of the “socialist Democratic agenda,” as he put it.
High cost
But Democrats faced this strategy with a different response; They focused on the high cost of the conference after the Dallas Host Committee announced that it had raised nearly $45 million to help pay for the conference.
Democratic National Committee Chairman Ken Martin said: “At a time when working families are struggling to make ends meet in light of Donald Trump’s economy, Republicans are holding a multi-million dollar celebration to celebrate Trump’s faltering presidency.” He added, "Democrats are on the ground and talking to voters about ways to reduce costs, expand health care, and ease the burden of living, and propose actual solutions, while Republicans are trying hard to cover up their agenda that puts billionaires first."
But the cost is not limited to holding the conference, but rather to attending it. The cost of attending a round table with Trump, for example, on the sidelines of the conference was $250,000, according to an official invitation from the Republican National Committee, while the cost of taking a photo with the president was about $88,000.
The same applies to the Vice President; The cost of attending the round table he held was $75,000 per person, and taking a photo with him would cost $35,000, according to the official invitations from the committee. These amounts aim to collect donations for the Republican Committee Fund to help candidates supported by Trump in difficult races.
Trump and the Republican leaders know that they are swimming against the tide and history, as it is common for the president’s party to lose in the midterm elections, regardless of its performance. Trump realistically acknowledged: “When you are president, whether you are a Republican or a Democrat, and whether you are a good or bad president, you lose the midterm elections. No one knows why.” Then he commented, saying: “Some people love me more than they love the party.” A statement that summarizes the dilemma troubling Republicans: They need Trump to rally his base, but at the same time they fear that the convention will turn into a celebration of the president rather than a platform to support the party's candidates.
