President Donald Trump closed the Republican Party’s first-ever midterm convention in Dallas with a message that was unmistakably focused on the future: Republicans have delivered, and now voters have a choice about whether that agenda continues.

Speaking to a packed crowd Thursday night, Trump celebrated what he described as a dramatic turnaround after four years of Democratic leadership and urged Republicans to stay united heading into the midterm elections.

“I’m seeing spirit like we haven’t seen in this country for a long time, long time,” Trump said. “But it came back about a year and a half ago.”

Then came the contrast.

“We went through four years of embarrassment, hurt, harm, sickness, filth was bad, but now it’s good, and it’s going to soon be greater than ever before, better than ever before.”

Trump used the closing speech to preview the Republican agenda for the next two years, putting border security and the cost of prescription drugs near the center of the pitch.

One proposal would permanently codify most-favored-nation pricing for prescription drugs, locking in discounts Trump says will lower costs for Americans.

But the president’s sharpest message was reserved for the southern border.

Trump promoted his proposed “No Invasion of Our Country Act,” legislation designed to prevent future presidents from reopening the border policies that Trump says allowed illegal immigration to surge.

“We don’t want any more invasions of our country,” Trump declared.

That line captures the larger Republican argument heading into the midterms: the border is not simply another policy issue. It is a question of whether the federal government will enforce the nation’s laws and control who enters the country.

The Dallas convention was built around that larger message.

Republican candidates, policymakers, political organizations and prominent conservative personalities descended on the city for two days of speeches and events, with Trump positioned squarely at the center of the gathering.

It was, as Republican organizers dubbed it, a “Trump-a-Palooza.”

Trump also pointed to stock-market gains, efforts to reduce drug prices and lower immigration levels as evidence that his administration is moving the country in the direction voters demanded.

“Less than two years ago, the American people gave us a mandate to save America,” Trump said. “And in 19 months, I’ve delivered on every single promise I made, and I think I delivered on far more.”

Now Republicans have to prove they can keep that momentum.

For Trump, the midterms are not merely about adding seats to a congressional scoreboard. They are about protecting the political mandate he says voters handed him—and preventing Democrats from reversing the policies his administration has spent its first years putting into place.

The message from Dallas was therefore simple: the first battle may have been won, but the fight over America’s direction is far from finished.

The border, prices, energy, economic growth and the broader promise to put American interests first will all be on the ballot.

And Trump wants Republican voters to understand exactly what he believes is at stake.