CLEVELAND — Completing his historic drive to the Republican presidential nomination, Donald Trump told a divided Republican Party Thursday he will be the "voice" for frustrated Americans who have been let down by government and the "elites" who run it.
"Nobody knows the system better than me, which is why I alone can fix it," Trump told a fired-up crowd of backers that packed the downtown Quicken Loans Arena.
After ascending the stage to the theme from the action film Air Force One, Trump said he "humbly and gratefully" accepted the Republican nomination to the presidency, then launched into a prepared teleprompter speech peppered with caustic asides about career politicians.
In addition to promoting his own qualifications for the White House, Trump's speech was aimed at uniting a convention in which the runner-up in the primary campaign refused to endorse him, critical delegates staged a noisy floor fight over the rules and a string of high-profile Republicans boycotted the entire event.
Trump argued that the United States is in decline under the Obama administration, citing a litany of grim statistics about crime and violence, terrorism and national security, and the rising number of Americans who have stopped looking for work.
Election opponent Hillary Clinton and other Democrats are to blame for many of the nation's ills, Trump said, and "the problems we face now — poverty and violence at home, war and destruction abroad — will last only as long as we continue relying on the same politicians who created them in the first place."
Hitting the former secretary of State for foreign policy problems ranging from Libya to the Islamic State, Trump said that Clinton's legacy is one of "death, destruction, terrorism and weakness."
Citing the recent spate of police killings and terrorism, the businessman who has never held public office promised that "the crime and violence that today afflicts our nation will soon, and I mean very soon, come to an end."
Echoing promises he has made since hitting the campaign trail 13 months ago, Trump said he will stop illegal immigration with a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border and change trade agreements that he claims have sucked manufacturing jobs out of the United States to foreign countries. He again blasted what he called the unfair trade tactics of competitors like China.
While Trump in past months has proposed a temporary ban on Muslims entering the United States, he said Thursday the suspension would apply only to immigrants "from any nation that has been compromised by terrorism."
Throughout the day, the Clinton campaign and other Democratic groups sent out statements denouncing various Trump polices as ineffectual, divisive or simply wrong-headed, and accusing him of distorting Clinton's records. They also cited Republican infighting over Trump, including the refusal of many high-profile Republicans to endorse the party's new standard-bearer.
After a Trump acceptance speech that appeared to be of record length, Clinton tweeted that "we can't let him become president."
Clinton campaign chair John Podesta said Trump painted a too-dark picture of America in a speech featuring "more fear, more division, more anger, more hate." Trump offered "just more prejudice and paranoia" rather than solutions, Podesta said, adding that "America is better than this."
In his hour-plus remarks, Trump recited a string of slogans he used at rallies across the country in the past year, including "Law and Order," "America First," a "rigged system," and — the original campaign theme — "Make America Great Again." The crowd responded with repeated ovations and chants like "build that wall!" and "U-S-A!" Trump himself occasionally joined in the "U-S-A" chants, flashing the crowd a thumbs-up.
Mocking the pro-Clinton slogan — "I'm With Her" — Trump told delegates: "I'm with you, the American people: I am your voice."
And as in previous rallies, Trump had to pause at one point as a protester heckled him and had to be removed by security.
Toward the end of his remarks, Trump said Americas is "a nation of believers, dreamers, and strivers" being led by "censors, critics, and cynics."
Speaking "to every parent who dreams for their child, and every child who dreams for their future," Trump said: "I am with you, I will fight for you, and I will win for you."
As Trump put the final touches on his speech and did a walk-though of the stage set-up, the Republican nominee took to Twitter to proclaim the convention a success.
"Other than a small group of people who have suffered massive and embarrassing losses, the party is VERY united," Trump said. "Great love in the arena!"
Other than a small group of people who have suffered massive and embarrassing losses, the party is VERY united. Great love in the arena!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 21, 2016
Daughter Ivanka Trump introduced her father to the noisy crowd that packed Cleveland's basketball arena, telling them he is a "fighter" who became "the people's nominee."
Trump prepared for his big night amid another flap over his commitment to U.S. military alliances, including NATO.
When The New York Times asked the candidate about the prospect of a Russian attack on NATO allies in the Baltic States, Trump said he would authorize help only after deciding whether those countries "have fulfilled their obligations to us."
Republicans who have questioned Trump's grasp of foreign policy reacted with indignation. Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said Trump "is essentially telling Russians/other bad actors" that the United States "is not fully committed to supporting NATO alliance."
Trump's convention ends a day after a former primary rival, Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, pointedly refused to endorse the party's nominee during his convention speech, inciting a chorus of boos and catcalls from pro-Trump delegates.
Cruz stuck to his non-endorsement Thursday, reminding a meeting of the Texas delegation that Trump has criticized his wife's looks and all but accused his father of participating in a plot to assassinate President John F. Kennedy.
"I wasn't going to come like a servile puppy dog and say 'Thank you very much' for maligning my wife and father," Cruz told angry pro-Trump delegates.
On Monday, the convention's opening day, a group of anti-Trump delegates that included Cruz backers tried to force a roll call vote on convention rules in a bid to force an "open convention" in which they could vote for any candidate they wanted. When GOP leaders blocked that effort, the anti-Trump delegates staged a noisy protest on the floor.
As Trump prepared to close out the convention on Thursday, his remarks were vetted via software that ferrets out plagiarism, seeking to avoid the kinds of problems that followed wife Melania Trump's speech on Monday.
During his walk through at the Quicken Loans Arena, Trump tested the sound system by mocking another likely target of tonight's speech: the media
“I love the media,” Trump joked. “They’re so honest ... They’re such honorable people ... It’s about time I said that, right?"
