In Dallas this week, the Republican Party staged its first midterm convention of the modern era — less a governing assembly than a loyalty ritual built around a president whose name will not appear on November's ballot. Donald Trump held the room for hours, acknowledging the economic weight of an ongoing war with Iran while unveiling a $5,000 payout promise to every American adult, contingent on Republican congressional victories. The gathering revealed something enduring about this political moment: that a party can be so thoroughly shaped by one figure that his absence from the ballot become