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Trump Begins Task Of Reintroducing Himself To American People At GOP Convention

CLEVELAND (CBSNewYork/AP) -- Republicans on Monday opened their convention in Cleveland, where they'll nominate Donald Trump to be the party's presidential standard-bearer in November.

Party chairman Reince Preibus kicked off the four-day event. He almost immediately asked for a moment of silence to remember those who been killed during recent "troubling times.''

The message Monday was about national security and immigration, but the overarching goal throughout will be to soften Trump's image and introduce vice presidential candidate Mike Pence.

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"This is a real opportunity to just control the dialogue, control the narrative and spin your message," said Mark McKinnon, former adviser to President George W. Bush.

Trump told "60 Minutes" he selected Pence to help bring Republicans together.

"Now they're saying, 'What a great pick,' you see the kind of reaction," he said. "He has helped bring the party together."

Many political pundits describe the chemistry between Trump and Pence as awkward, but Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyoming, who worked with Pence in Congress, said their differences will work well together.

"Donald Trump's speeches are lofty and big picture, but Mike's a guy that can dig into details and get the job done," he said.

Photos: Republican National Convention

CBS2's Marcia Kramer reported that Trump begins the task of reintroducing himself to the American people in a carefully crafted and scripted convention designed to combine themes for the fall campaign with a vision of the candidate as seen through the eyes of those that know him best.

Presidential nominees typically don't appear at the convention until the last day, but Trump will speak Monday night to introduce his wife, Melania, his campaign manager said.

Paul Manafort said in a news conference that Trump and his wife would fly to Cleveland in the hours before Melania's speech at the convention.

Trump said earlier in the day on "Fox & Friends'' that his wife will speak about her "love of the country'' as an immigrant from Slovenia.

Melania Trump will be the first of several members of the candidate's family who will speak at the convention to "paint a picture'' of Trump's character beyond what America "saw during the primaries,'' Manafort said.

Monday night's theme is "Making America Safe Again" -- all about national security and immigration. Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani will speak and Trump sent his advisers to sound the theme that the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria needs to be stopped.

"They are going to find a way to kill us. They want to destroy our civilization and they're happy to kill us if that's what it takes. They enjoy killing us," former House Speaker Newt Gingrich said.

Trump told "60 Minutes" that the U.S. needs to declare war on ISIS.

"We have to. We're going to declare war on ISIS. We have to wipe out ISIS. These are people that chop off heads," Trump said."

Trump is slated to return to Cleveland on Wednesday. His acceptance speech is scheduled for Thursday.

Other speakers this week include U.S. Senator Joni Ernst, of Iowa -- seen as one of the GOP's rising stars -- soap opera star Antonio Sebato Jr., and actor Scott Baio, among others.

Baio told the convention that he trusts the lives of his family with Donald Trump.

"Folks, our country right now is in a very bad spot. You can feel it and you can see it everywhere. There's no stability, nothing seems right, and all the things we hold dear are being attacked every single day," Baio said. "We need Donald Trump to fix this."

The RNC has planned for this convention for more than a year, not only the events inside the arena, but the heightened security measures outside.

Police have been setting up check-points and barriers in the wake of the deadly shooting of three police officers in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, as many people are calling for a suspension to Ohio's "open carry" gun law.

Steve Loomis, the head of the Cleveland Police Union, wanted Gov. John Kasich to ban protesters from carrying weapons.

Kasich said he doesn't have authority to suspend the state's law allowing people to openly carry guns.

(TM and © Copyright 2016 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2016 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

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