The latest from day one of the Republican National Convention

CATHY WURZER: The Republican National Convention gets underway today in Milwaukee under heavy scrutiny and security with a nation on edge. The attempted assassination of Donald Trump adds a new dimension to an already tense presidential race. We understand the former president is due to introduce his vice presidential pick later today.

And after that close call shooting in Pennsylvania, Trump's choice carries more gravity. Mark Zdechlik is in Milwaukee for the convention. He joins us right now. Hey, thanks for taking the time. I know you're busy.

MARK ZDECHLIK: Good afternoon, Cathy. You're welcome.

CATHY WURZER: So I know we're waiting for the vice presidential pick to be released. And I'm curious as to who the top picks might be.

MARK ZDECHLIK: Well, nobody really knows necessarily. There's a lot of suspense over who that will be and what delegates are going to be thinking of the selection. On Trump's short list are believed to be Ohio Senator JD Vance, Florida Senator Marco Rubio, and then, from our neighbor to the west, North Dakota governor Doug Burgum.

Governor Burgum has a history of great success in business and has been seen repeatedly with the former President at numerous rallies and that kind of thing. And we know that Trump held meetings with Vance, Rubio and Burgum last week, but we don't know what he's going to do. And all eyes are on that today.

CATHY WURZER: All right. And so do you happen to know, Mark, when the announcement might be made? Are you hearing anything?

MARK ZDECHLIK: I don't have that in front of me right now. Sorry.

CATHY WURZER: That's OK. All right. That's fine. So I know the president traveled to Milwaukee yesterday, just a day after the gunman's bullet grazed his ear during that rally. How has the assassination attempt in Pennsylvania reverberated in Wisconsin?

MARK ZDECHLIK: I think, Kathy, just as it has all over the country, everybody's talking about it, obviously. And there's a commonly held sense of how could something like that happen given all the security? And delegates right now from Minnesota are on their way into the convention for the first time. They're riding a bus.

And one of them told me that they're a bit nervous. Security is significant here. It has been beefed up in the wake of what happened over the weekend. We know some Minnesota national guard troops are helping out here in Milwaukee. There are also Bloomington police officers helping as well. It's a sprawling effort with law enforcement from all over the country lending a hand. And they're all very, very visible. Many more are not.

CATHY WURZER: There are about, what, 39 delegates in the Minnesota delegation? So what are they telling you about everything that happened over the weekend and what they expect to have happen here in the next few days in Milwaukee?

MARK ZDECHLIK: Well, one of those delegates I spoke to outside the hotel yesterday afternoon was Kip Christianson. He's 33 years old. He says under the circumstances, this year's Republican national convention will have the feel of kind of a family reunion.

KIP CHRISTIANSON: And it's a beautiful thing. And there's going to be a lot of hugs and there's going to be a lot of tears and there's going to be a lot of prayers. And there's going to be not a dry eye in the joint. And we are going to have one heck of a message for this country. And this is going to be one of the most unified seasons, I think, for this country.

MARK ZDECHLIK: Cathy, another delegate, Kelly Fenton of Woodbury, offered her condolences to the families of a man killed and two other men injured in those Saturday shootings. She told me that it was a miracle that Trump was only grazed in the ear by a bullet fired toward his head.

KELLY FENTON: To see the strength of the former President stand up and basically assure Americans, I'm OK and I'm never going to stop fighting for America, was all so chilling. Because I think people needed that at that time. They were in just such shock. And people are unified. There is no room for violence. It shouldn't be this way. And that's a consensus across the board, regardless of what political side of the aisle you're on.

MARK ZDECHLIK: Delegates, Cathy, are also expressing their desire to have the incident thoroughly investigated to determine what went wrong and what could have been a far bigger tragedy so it doesn't happen again.

CATHY WURZER: Well, as you know, President Biden said that indeed there will be a push to have a swift, independent investigation into the shooting. And as you know, he's also asking all Americans to bring down the political heat, the temperature in this campaign season. And I'm wondering, how likely is that given that we're going into a convention where the norm is to have highly charged speeches?

MARK ZDECHLIK: Yes. And we're also in a political time right now that is highly charged in general. That's a tough-- a tough order to place on people or request. It remains to be seen, Cathy. Conventions are about drawing contrasts. And Republicans aren't shy about bashing Biden and his presidency. Democrats certainly are not shy about bashing former President Trump.

All year, Trump has been dealing with fractures within his own party. And there's some thought that the shooting could help him unify the party. We know that former South Carolina governor Nikki Haley, his main primary rival who's not running for the nomination anymore, has been invited to address the convention.

We'll see if the former President and his allies can use this event to solidify his standing not only with the base, but also appeal to voters still up for grabs in places like Wisconsin and Minnesota. We'll just see how it plays out.

CATHY WURZER: OK. I know you're busy. Thanks, Mark.

MARK ZDECHLIK: You're welcome, Cathy.

CATHY WURZER: That's MPR politics reporter Mark Zdechlik, live from Milwaukee.