Trump Campaign Press Release - 5 Must-Watch Moments from Real Americans

The first night of the Republican convention packed an impressive punch.

Americans tuning in to the first night of the Republican convention didn't see former lobbyists for Russia, supporters of anti-Semites, or people talking about destroying capitalism and defunding the police.

Instead, they saw a party honoring America, and heard from real Americans – people who aren't part of the Washington political class and people who are better off today because of President Trump's leadership and accomplishments.

Here are 5 must-watch moments from real Americans at last night's Republican convention:

Maximo Alvarez, a Cuban immigrant whose family fled Castro's totalitarian regime, said, "the country I was born in is gone – totally destroyed. When I watch the news in Seattle and Chicago, Portland and other cities, when I see the history being rewritten, when I hear the promises—I hear echoes of the former life I never wanted to hear again. I see shadows I thought I had outrun."

• "President Trump, he's fighting the forces of anarchy and communism, and I know he will continue to do just that," Alvarez continued. "And what about his opponent and the rest of the DC swamp? I have no doubt they will hand the country over to those dangerous forces. You and I will decide. And here is what I've decided: my decision is very easy. I choose President Trump because I choose America. I choose freedom. And I still hear my dad: 'there is no other place to go.'"

Vernon Jones, a lifelong Democrat in Georgia, delivered a defiant message to his party leaders: "I have news for Joe Biden: We are free. We are free people with free minds. And I'm part of a large and growing segment of the Black community who are independent thinkers. And we believe that Donald Trump is the President that America needs to lead us forward."

• "Joe Biden has had 47 years to produce results. But he's been all talk and no action -- just like so many of the Democrats who've been making promises to the Black voters for decades," Jones continued. "The Democratic Party has become infected with a pandemic of intolerance, bigotry, socialism, anti-law enforcement bias, and a dangerous tolerance for people who attack others, destroy their property, and terrorize our own communities. That's what this election is all about. And that's why right now -- more than ever, more than ever before -- America needs Donald Trump in the Oval Office for another four years!"

Andrew Pollack, a father who lost his daughter in the Parkland school shooting, recounted his interactions with President Trump. "Then the President did what he said he said he would do: he took action. He formed a School Safety Commission that issued dozens of recommendations to make schools safer. But I'll bet you never heard about that. Instead, the media turned my daughter's murder into a coordinated attack on President Trump, Republicans, and our Second Amendment."

• "Far-left Democrats in our school district made this shooting possible because they implemented something they called 'restorative justice.' This policy...puts kids and teachers at risk and makes shootings more likely," Pollack continued. "The Obama-Biden administration took Parkland's bad policies and forced them into schools across America. When President Trump rescinded Obama's guidance on 'restorative justice' policies, he put an end to that, and that meant the world to me. It's hard to tell how much Mr. Biden understands about what happened at Parkland. Mr. Biden has campaigned on bringing back 'restorative justice,' as part of his 'Unity Platform' with Bernie Sanders, and has pledged to implement it in school districts across America."

Natalie Harp, whose life was saved by President Trump's Right to Try law, spoke about the coronavirus and asked viewers to "imagine what 2020 would've looked like, fighting for your life, without Donald Trump fighting for it too. In January, there would have been no China travel ban. Millions would've died. Millions more would've been infected—for there'd be no record levels of testing. No right-to-try treatments. No Fast Track for a vaccine, nor Operation Warp Speed ready to deliver it."

• "In Joe Biden's America, China would control our drug production," Harp continued. "We'd be one step closer to government-run healthcare. We wouldn't just be unable to keep our doctors, we'd be lucky if we could see any doctor. And even then, some of us would be denied care. For in socialized medicine, you don't beat the odds. You become the odds. And I would lose my Right-to-Try just like Charlie Gard, that terminally-ill British baby, whose government-run healthcare system decided it was too expensive and too 'cruel' to keep him alive."

Herschel Walker, a friend of Donald Trump's for 37 years, spoke to the kind of person he is. "I watched him treat the janitors, security guards, and waiters the same way he would treat a VIP. He made them feel special because he knew they were. He understands that they are the people who make this country run. They clean. They cook. They build. They drive. They deliver. He told me, 'Herschel, make an effort to get to know people. Remember their names.' That stuck with me."

• "It hurts my soul to hear the terrible names that people call Donald. The worst one is 'racist,'" Walker continued. "I take it as a personal insult that people would think I've had a 37-year friendship with a racist. People who think that don't know what they are talking about. Growing up in the deep south, I've seen racism up close. I know what it is. And it isn't Donald Trump. ... He keeps right on fighting to improve the lives of black Americans and all Americans. He works night and day. He never stops. He leaves nothing on the field. Some people don't like his style... the way he knocks down obstacles that get in the way of his goals. People on the opposing team didn't like when I ran over them either. But that's how you get the job done."

In addition to these fellow Americans, the first night of the convention featured President Trump meeting with frontline workers and speaking with former American hostages who were held in foreign countries but were released thanks to the Trump Administration's efforts.