Trump aide John Hiller, CEO of the Republican Party’s midterm convention, discusses preparations for the two-day gathering during a media event Wednesday in Dallas. The convention is scheduled Sept. 9-10 at the American Airlines Center.
Tom Fox/The Dallas Morning News
The circus leaves town Aug. 30. Ten days later, President Donald Trump takes center stage.
Crews will have that narrow window to transform the American Airlines Center from the home of “The Greatest Show on Earth” into the setting for the Republicans’ first midterm convention, a two-day rally beginning Sept. 9.
The convention already is on a tight timeline.
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Unlike traditional nominating conventions, which organizers and local host committees typically spend more than a year preparing, the GOP and its vendors have had only weeks to plan the Dallas gathering.
Still, during an arena tour Wednesday for the media, officials expressed confidence that they can pull it off.
“We’re building this plane as we fly it,” said Trump aide John Hiller, who was sent to Dallas as CEO of the convention. “We’re on a short timeline, but we’ve got a great team.”
For local supporters, the convention is about more than politics.
Developer Ray Washburne, co-chair of the Dallas Host Committee, which is raising money to help pay for the event, said it offers a chance to “show off Dallas” as a model of American prosperity.
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He said Trump picked Dallas because the city exemplifies the country’s economic growth.
“When the president decided where he wanted to have his convention, he chose Dallas because it’s a great example of all the great economic growth happening in this country,” Washburne said. “We’re very proud to have it here.”
The walkthrough offered the first public glimpse of how the party plans to turn the home of the Mavericks and Stars into two nights of speeches and spectacle, with 20,000 expected attendees.
It also revealed how much remains unfinished with barely a month to go.
On Wednesday, organizers used temporary red and blue curtains to mark the tentative layout across the bare arena floor. A 6-foot-high stage will extend onto the floor from one end of the arena. At the other, risers will be built for cameras and photographers.
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Convention trappings
A logo of the Republican Party’s first-ever midterm convention appears on the American Airlines Center video board during a media walkthrough Wednesday of the arena. Crews will a short sprint to prepare the venue for the event that begins Sept. 9.
Tom Fox/The Dallas Morning News
Television outlets also can set up broadcast positions on the floor or in American Airlines Center suites.
Large media suites, furnished for morning and evening news programs, are being offered for as much as $118,000, giving the gathering some of the appearance of a traditional nominating convention.
It also will feature state delegations, although final number of delegates has not been announced.
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State Republican parties are taking different approaches to filling their allotments, including donor packages, ticket sales, raffles and applications.
Those attending are being called delegates, but they will not nominate a candidate or conduct official party business. State signs will mark their locations across the arena floor and likely in the first couple of rows of seats.
Republicans hope the gathering will fire up their base and build momentum heading into the November elections. Democrats have portrayed the unusual event as a sign that the GOP is worried about losing control of Congress.
Arena’s busy August
Freeman, a Dallas-based global event production company, is again supporting the party’s work. It has extensive GOP convention experience, including the 1984 Republican National Convention in Dallas.
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Before Republicans move in, the American Airlines Center has a packed August calendar. It will host concerts by Megan Moroney, Benson Boone, Santana and the Doobie Brothers, along with a Dallas Wings game against the Indiana Fever.
Its final scheduled event is a three-day run of Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey’s “The Greatest Show on Earth” from Aug. 28-30.
For now, convention organizers are confronting other issues.
With help from Visit Dallas, the city’s tourism bureau, delegate hotels were lined up, although organizers have not disclosed where each state will stay.
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A security perimeter will be established around the arena. Its boundaries have not been announced, leaving nearby businesses uncertain about how their operations could be affected.
An outdoor area is expected to be set aside for protesters but that hasn’t been detailed either.