G.O.P. Prays For McCain's Campaign Slogan, Salutes Jesse Helms

The first evening session of the Republican convention opened with an invocation from a minister who prayed that America's leaders would put "country first" – which, completely coincidentally, just so happens to be John McCain's campaign slogan and a phrase that is plastered all over the Xcel Energy Center.

After he finished, John Boehner, the House Majority Leader, introduced a tribute to Republican office-holders who have died since the last convention, in 2004. (The Democrats did the same thing at their convention, with a tribute that mistakenly identified the late Eugene McCarthy as Joseph McCarthy.)

The G.O.P. video was appropriately respectful, but the crowd's reaction to the names that flashed on the screen varied widely. For instance, there was no audible response when the name of Evan Mecham, who was impeached as Arizona's governor in 1988 (and who was bitterly opposed by many in his own party – including John McCain) popped up.

But when Jesse Helms' and Henry Hyde's names appeared, there was loud applause and cheering. The most vocal response, though, was reserved for Tony Snow, the former Bush press secretary who lost his battle with cancer a few months ago.

The parade of names ended with Gerald Ford, who was then saluted in a brief mini-documentary (it lasted about three minutes). Ford's most famous action as president – his pardon of Richard Nixon – wasn't mentioned, but delegates were told that "Gerald Ford was the first American president ever to visit Japan."