CLEVELAND — Melania Trump soared and then fell to earth on her big night at the Republican National Convention on Monday after an initially compelling speech became mired in accusations of plagiarism.

The would-be first lady’s address focused on humanizing her husband, Donald Trump Donald John TrumpBiden leads Trump by 36 points nationally among Latinos: poll Trump dismisses climate change role in fires, says Newsom needs to manage forest better Jimmy Kimmel hits Trump for rallies while hosting Emmy Awards MORE, but its merits were overshadowed when it came to notice that a paragraph in her speech bore a notable resemblance to Michelle Obama Michelle LeVaughn Robinson ObamaTo honor Justice Ginsburg's legacy, Biden should consider Michelle Obama National Urban League, BET launch National Black Voter Day The Hill's Morning Report - Sponsored by The Air Line Pilots Association - White House moves closer to Pelosi on virus relief bill MORE’s remarks at the Democratic National Convention in 2008.

ADVERTISEMENT

That was just the last dose of controversy in a day that had plenty of it, including a last-ditch effort by anti-Trump Republicans that caused chaos on the convention floor.

Some elements of the opening day of the convention were positive for Trump.

Republican speakers sought to buttress Trump’s promise to be the “law and order” candidate just one day after three police officers were killed in a shooting in Baton Rouge, La.

Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, in particular, fired up GOP delegates with a loud and emphatic address that highlighted the day’s theme of “Make America Safe.”

Milwaukee County Sheriff David Clarke Jr. brought the crowd to its feet with his declaration that “Blue Lives Matter.”

Trump himself made a memorable, if brief, first appearance to introduce his wife.

Trump’s silhouette appeared on stage, with bright white lights flanking him from below as Queen’s “We are the Champions” played to a roaring crowd.

“Oh, we’re gonna win. We’re gonna win so big,” he said.

At the same time, the first day of the convention made clear the hurdles in Trump’s path within his own party.

The program was at times overshadowed by disorder in the arena.

Republicans unreconciled to the Manhattan business mogul’s nomination mounted a fight for a recorded vote on whether to ratify the convention’s rules. They lost, but not before sparking recrimination on the convention floor in the late afternoon.

One of Trump’s primary goals in Cleveland is to unify Republicans, and the forceful quashing of anti-Trump forces Monday likely reflected a desire to do away with the unrest on the convention’s first day.

That would leave three days for Trump to signal Republicans really are rallying behind his candidacy against presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham ClintonBiden leads Trump by 36 points nationally among Latinos: poll Democratic super PAC to hit Trump in battleground states over coronavirus deaths Battle lines drawn on precedent in Supreme Court fight MORE.

Still, the friction within the GOP went beyond the angry delegates on the floor.

Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort accused Ohio Gov. John Kasich of “embarrassing his state” on Monday by refusing to speak at the GOP convention.

Ohio GOP Chairman Matt Borges hit back in an interview with Politico, implying that Manafort’s approach was hindering the chances of Trump carrying the state in November.

Speaker Paul Ryan Paul Davis RyanKenosha will be a good bellwether in 2020 At indoor rally, Pence says election runs through Wisconsin Juan Williams: Breaking down the debates MORE (R-Wis.), for his part, said at a lunch hosted by The Wall Street Journal that Trump was “not my kind of conservative.” Ryan added, “I come from a different part and wing of the party.”

The first day of the convention at times also lacked organization and coherence.

In one glaring example, retired Lt. Gen Michael Flynn did not speak until after Melania Trump — presumably to ensure that the presumptive nominee’s wife would speak in prime time.

But that left Flynn — considered a contender to be Trump's running mate — seeking to lead a very thin crowd in an anti-Clinton chant of “lock her up."

That scheduling issue may have been caused by a lengthy speech from two survivors of the 2012 terrorist attacks in Benghazi, Libya, in which four Americans died. The two men, Mark Geist and John Tiegen, delivered a meandering address that seemed to lose the attention of many members of the audience.

The effects weren’t just felt by Flynn. The crowd even sparser by the time Sen. Joni Ernst (Iowa) came to the podium at well after 11 p.m.

Still, the presumptive nominee could initially take some satisfaction in his wife’s performance, which sought to present his softer side.

The Slovenia native, who spoke with poise in heavily accented English, paid strong tribute to the candidate’s attributes as a father and a husband.

“He is tough when he has to be, but he is also kind and fair and caring,” said Melania Trump, who has not been as prominent a presence on the campaign trial as Trump’s daughter, Ivanka.

“She knocked it out of the park,” Manafort told The Hill immediately afterward.

But the accusations of plagiarism ignited on social media, threatening to dissolve any positive impressions from the address.

Giuliani helped Trump in a more conventional way. He received the loudest cheers of the night for an impassioned defense of law enforcement.

“When they come to save your life, they don’t ask if you are black or white, they just come to save you,” Giuliani said, to roars of approval from the crowd.

Giuliani’s broader argument was an indictment of what he called “the Clinton-Obama years,” a period that he asserted was characterized by divisiveness at home and weakness abroad.

“It’s time to make America one again. One America!” Giuliani exclaimed at one point. “What happened to it? Where did it go?”

Jonathan Easley and Scott Wong contributed.