Republicans ready for ‘very hasty’ ‘Trump-a-palooza’ convention in Texas

The Republican National Committee’s (RNC) first-of-its-kind midterm convention has been cloaked in mystery until a few weeks ago. Details are finally emerging about what’s expected to be a two-day pep rally to bolster hype and encourage Republicans to get out the vote in November amid President Trump’s shrinking approval rate .

But some Republicans are quietly frustrated that the event came together so fast and at such a high price tag for lawmakers: House members are reportedly expected to contribute $25,000 to attend.

A GOP operative told The Hill that while Trump has touted the convention for a year, candidates and incumbents have not had long to plan.

“Lot of things made this very hasty that didn’t need to happen,” the operative said. Trump announced at the end of June that the convention would be in Dallas on Sept. 9 and 10.

The midweek convention also conflicts with the first two NFL games of the season and bumps against the 25th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, raising questions about whether the “ Trump-a-palooza ” will get enough airplay to justify the expense.

And while primetime addresses from Trump and Vice President Vance could gin up excitement as Texas Republicans defend their toss-up Senate seat , the convention risks pulling candidates in other states off the campaign trail during a critical summer stretch.

“I think the big question on people’s minds is whether or not this is helpful,” said Joshua Blank, research director for the Texas Politics Project at the University of Texas at Austin, pointing to the program’s polls that show Trump’s approval rating underwater in the state.

Blank also looked back to 2018, when Democrats were rallying around Beto O’Rourke in his campaign to oust Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas). Trump, then in his first term, visited Texas to boost Cruz, but “most analyses after the fact tended to indicate that that visit didn’t really help Cruz,” he said.

“It raises the question of whether the timing is somewhere between ill-conceived or just not conceived at all,” Blank added of the event scheduling. “This may be convenient for some, but it doesn’t seem to be necessarily timed for maximum impact. It seems more like a reaction to concerns about enthusiasm among Republican voters. It’s more of a reaction than it is a clear plan.”

But Texas Republican consultant Brendan Steinhauser contended that “it’s a net positive” for the GOP in Texas and beyond.

“It’s two days. It’s not two weeks … so you’re not really taking away from anything else,” he said. “Texas is indeed competitive, and this makes all the sense in the world to me,” he said. “As long as it’s a net positive financially, and they make use of the time and deliver a message, then I think it’s a good thing.”

Texas Republican strategist Vinny Minchillo argued that “people are digging really hard to find problems with the event,” which he sees as a good opportunity to rev up the the GOP base in Texas as they look toward a Senate race that’s “much tighter than anybody would really like on the Republican side.”

“Certainly, conflicting with an NFL game early in the season is going to be tough,” Minchillo said, but he argued that the conflict won’t eclipse the convention’s purpose as a “rally-the-troops event and an opportunity for fundraising.”

“The people who want to watch the president are going to watch the president, and maybe the people who want to watch the NFL game are just going to record the president and watch him later,” he added.

The major news networks have not said whether they will show coverage of the convention. A spokesperson for Fox News confirmed the network would broadcast some coverage, but the details have yet to be announced. About 20,000 people are expected to attend, according to John Hiller, White House aide and the CEO of the convention’s organizing board.

Meanwhile, Dallas’s city agencies are quickly preparing to secure the event. The Dallas Police Department (DPD) held a press conference with officials from the FBI and Secret Service Thursday afternoon, confirming that security needs would cost the city $1.8 million.

“The city is also actively evaluating reimbursement and grant opportunities and will pursue all eligible funding sources to help offset the costs to Dallas taxpayers,” City Manager Kimberly Bizor Tolbert said. “At the same time, reimbursements do not necessarily determine whether we provide necessary public safety services.”

Deputy Police Chief Devon Palk said people will experience public transit and road closures as well as an increased law enforcement presence, including officers from other agencies that are not the DPD. Palk and Bizor Tolbert both said they expect protests related to the convention.

The cost comes after Bizor Tolbert announced spending restrictions this spring as the city veered toward a potential budget shortfall of more than $30 million for the fiscal year.

“We’ve got a city that’s got budget problems, and the city of Dallas has a lot of financial issues. So $2 million is not an insignificant amount of money for them to spend,” Minchillo said. “But that’s what it costs to bring in these big events.”

Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson, a longtime Democrat who switched to the GOP in 2023 and now helms the Republican Mayors Association, has said hosting the landmark midterm event is a “ tremendous honor .” Dallas is the largest U.S. city with a Republican mayor.

The RNC has announced 109 items and speakers for the two-day event, most of which are to be announced. Vance is set to give a keynote on the first night, and Trump will close out the second night.

“The president’s personality is a big one, and he’s the leader of the party right now, and I think he’ll have — it’ll be Trump imagery and gear everywhere. … But I think that there will be a lot of excitement for other candidates as well and opportunities to support them,” Steinhauser said.

“It’ll be not only Trump-a-palooza, but it’ll be a big event for the whole ticket. And if not, that would be a missed opportunity.”

Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) and House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) are among the top GOP figures expected to attend , as is Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who’s locked in the Lone Star State’s high-stakes Senate race against Democrat James Talarico.

“They’re going to Texas, obviously, because they’re trying to help Paxton win the Senate race,” said Jon Taylor, a University of Texas at San Antonio political science professor. Trump held a fundraiser for the RNC, with Paxton in attendance, in late August.

But the convention also comes amid controversy over the Trump administration’s plans for border wall construction inside Texas’s Big Bend National Park and frustration over Trump’s embrace of data center builds that have prompted Paxton and Gov. Greg Abbott (R) to support restrictions — which could hamper efforts to energize Republicans in the state.

“I know the president thinks that somehow … he’ll be able to energize the Republican base, MAGA base. I’m not convinced of that, to be honest. I mean, I’m wondering how much airtime they’re going to give both to Ken Paxton in particular, but to Greg Abbott as well, and how much of this is just going to be essentially just about Donald Trump,” Taylor said.