WASHINGTON (AP) — With crises brewing beyond the White House gates, President Donald Trump is about to stand on the South Lawn to accept his party’s nomination for president.

He is presenting himself as the last barrier protecting an American way of life that’s under siege from radical forces.

Facing a fraught national moment, Trump is expected to paint an optimistic vision of America’s future as he concludes the Republican National Convention Thursday night.

But that brighter horizon can only be secured, Trump is to assert, if he defeats Joe Biden.

He is prepared to deliver a long string of blistering attacks meant to erase the Democrat’s stubborn lead in the polls.