The Republican convention in Cleveland was supposed to be about the Grand Old Party, its brand, its candidate, and its bid to reclaim the White House and to copperfasten control of Congress. At least to some extent. But it was not to be. " The 'Party of Lincoln' has become the 'Party of Trump'," the The Nation magazine observes.
It's all about Trump, his brand and style, his family – Donald himself, Melania, Donald Jnr, Tiffany, Eric, Ivanka and even the manager of Trump Winery, all on stage – his election, and now his party ... what one writer has called "the triumph of narcissism".
These conventions have turned more theatrical over the years but Cleveland has ascended entirely new heights of showbiz hype – this is Hollywood's The Hunger Games in form and message, a dystopian vision of America, of ruin all around, contrasted to the glitz of the brilliantly lit stage and its cast of phoney super-optimists and their hero-saviour. All cheered to the echo by an audience baying for Clinton blood: "Lock her up. Lock her up."
Trump secured 1,725 votes to just 484 for Texas Senator Ted Cruz (Rubio - 123, Kasich - 125 .... Bush - 3). Three delegates abstained. The capture of the party is complete, a rout.
But there is no sign of healing or reconciliation. House Speaker Paul Ryan appealed to delegates to put their past disputes behind them, but his endorsement of Trump was hardly convincing – along the lines of "well he is the candidate, we have to support him".
The convention represents a campaign turning point between the “phoney war” of the primaries and the real battle for power. Party leaders had hoped it would also see Trump acknowledge that he too now had to change gear, a moderation in tone and programme, a reaching out to the middle ground.
But Trump who proudly acknowledges he has no time for conventional campaign wisdom and has rewritten the book, sees no reason to change a winning formula now. His staging of the triumphalist convention is a sticking up of two fingers to conventional wisdom.
As David Brooks of the New York Times puts it of his rhetoric, both his delivery and its content, Trump is Trumpier than ever. But the cracks and amateurism are showing up and will be amplified as all gaffes are in the echo chamber of the general election. Melania's plagiarism of Michele Obama matters little – this is theatre, after all, and everyone recites other people's lines – except as an expression of the haphazardness and lack of professionalism of a campaign, essentially still a one-man-band, which will be increasingly exposed.
There is a new dynamic at play – not least Trump running from behind for the first time, and in a broader constituency many of whose key parts he has already alienated. Political analysts have been repeatedly wrong about Trump riding for a fall – that does not mean the fall may not be coming.