Speakers at the Republican convention sought last night to soften the tough image of a wartime president and to remind voters of President Bush’s promise to be a conservative with a heart.

The party also moved to harness its star power with a prime-time speech from Governor Schwarzenegger of California.

In a relentlessly upbeat address, Mr. Schwarzenegger credited Mr. Bush with leading America out of the confusion and despair that followed the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.

“Ladies and gentlemen, America is back, back from the attack on our homeland, back from the attack on our economy, and back from the attack on our way of life. We are back because of the perseverance, character and leadership of the 43rd President of the United States, George W. Bush,” Mr. Schwarzenegger said. “Send him back to Washington for four more years.”

Mr. Schwarzenegger’s references to Mr. Bush, while effusive, were fleeting. The California governor devoted most of his remarks to recounting his remarkable life’s journey from Austrian immigrant to champion bodybuilder and from movie star to leader of America’s most populous state.

In extolling the values of freedom, Mr. Schwarzenegger spoke in a way that native-born Americans generally cannot. He told of growing up in central Europe, constantly menaced by the repressive Soviet Union. “My family like so many others lived in fear of the Soviet boot. Today, the world no longer fears the Soviet Union and it is because of the United States of America,” he declared.

However, Mr. Schwarzenegger warned that the threat posed by terrorists is even more grave.

“Make no mistake about it, terrorism is more insidious than communism, because it yearns to destroy not just the individual but the entire international order,” he said.

Mr. Schwarzenegger brought down the house when he reprised one of his most famous recent lines.

“To those critics who are so pessimistic about our economy, I say: Don’t be economic girlie men!” the governor said.

Invoking his own roots, Mr. Schwarzenegger also made an explicit appeal to immigrants to align themselves with the Republican Party.

“To my fellow immigrants listening tonight, I want you to know how welcome you are in this party. We Republicans admire your ambition. We encourage your dreams. We believe in your future. And one thing I learned about America is that if you work hard and if you play by the rules, this country is truly open to you. You can achieve any thing,” he said.

A more intimate tribute to Mr. Bush was offered by members of his own family, including his wife, Laura, and his twin daughters, Barbara and Jenna. “I remember some very quiet nights at the dinner table. George was weighing grim scenarios and ominous intelligence about potentially even more devastating attacks,” Mrs. Bush said. “I remember sitting in the window of the White House, watching as my husband walked on the lawn below. I knew he was wrestling with these agonizing decisions that would have such profound consequence for so many lives and for the future of our world. And I was there when my husband had to decide.”

While critics and protesters have painted Mr. Bush as a warmonger, his wife insisted that he is a thoughtful and reluctant warrior.

“No American President ever wants to go to war. Abraham Lincoln didn’t want to go to war, but he knew saving the union required it. Franklin Roosevelt didn’t go to-didn’t want to go to war, but he knew defeating tyranny demanded it. And my husband didn’t want to go to war, but he knew the safety and security of America and the world depended on it,” Mrs. Bush said.

In keeping with the evening’s official theme, “People of Compassion,” Mrs. Bush stressed her husband’s sensitive side.

“He treats every person he meets with dignity and respect; the same dignity and respect that he has for the office he holds. And he’s a loving man, with a big heart. I’ve seen tears as he has hugged families who’ve lost loved ones,” she said.

Mr. Bush thanked his wife in an unusual cameo appearance via satellite from North Middleton Township, Pa., where he was on a campaign trip.

“She’s been a voice of calm and comfort in difficult times. I’m a lucky man to have Laura at my side and America would be fortunate to have Laura in the White House for four more years,” he said.

During their brief appearance, the 22-year-old Bush daughters said they relished the high-profile opportunity to poke fun at their parents.

“You know all the times you’re growing up and your parents embarrass you? Well, this is payback time on live TV,” Jenna Bush joked. “Our parents are actually pretty cool. They do know the difference between mono and Bono,” she said.

The twins may have inadvertently underscored some of the criticism of Mr. Bush’s economic record when they indicated that they joined his campaign because they had little to do after they graduated from college this year.

It was the only night of the convention devoted to the party’s social values. Yet, most of the speakers managed to steer clear of the divisive issues that some delegates are most passionate about, such as abortion and gay marriage.

It fell to Senator Elizabeth Dole of North Carolina to tout the party’s positions on hot-button moral issues.

“Marriage is important not because it is a convenient invention or the latest reality show. Marriage is important because it is the cornerstone of civilization, and the foundation of the family,” Mrs. Dole said. “Marriage between a man and a woman isn’t something Republicans invented, but it is something Republicans will defend.”

“We believe in a culture that respects all human life, including the most vulnerable in our society, the frail elderly, the infirm, and those not yet born. Protecting life isn’t some thing Republicans invented, but it is something Republicans will defend,” she said.

Mrs. Dole spoke just after 8 p.m., in prime time but before the major broadcast networks began their live coverage of the convention.

Another prime time slot was given to one of the party’s most promising African-American officeholders, the lieutenant governor of Maryland, Michael Steele. Mr. Steele argued that minorities stand to benefit more from capitalism and a robust economy than from government intervention.

“What truly defines the civil rights challenge today isn’t whether you can get a seat at the lunch counter. It’s whether you can own that lunch counter in order to create legacy wealth for your children,” Mr. Steele said.

Mr. Steele drew the loudest applause when he suggested that Mr. Kerry does not appreciate the need to be forceful in the fight against terror.

“He recently said that he doesn’t want to use the word ‘war’ to describe our efforts to fight terrorism. Well, I don’t want to use the words ‘Commander-in-Chief’ to describe John Kerry,” Mr. Steele said.

On balance, the attacks on Mr. Kerry last night were tamer than on the first night on the convention. However, the Democrat’s vice presidential nominee, Senator Edwards of North Carolina, has faced repeated criticism over one of his rhetorical trademarks.

In his stump speeches, Mr. Edwards frequently contends that there are “two Americas,” essentially, the rich and the disenfranchised.

Mr. Schwarzenegger rejected that contention, saying, “Our young men and women in uniform do not believe there are two Americas. They believe there is one America and they are fighting for it.”

“We are one America and President Bush is defending it with all his heart and soul,” the governor said.

Mr. Schwarzenegger also drew sustained applause when he said that the GOP believes that America is a stronger force for freedom than the United Nations.

“If you believe this country, not the United Nations, is the best hope of democracy in the world then you are a Republican,” he said. “We are still the lamp lighting the world especially for those who struggle.”

While the Republicans’ presidential nomination process has been devoid of any suspense, Mr. Bush officially won enough votes from delegates last night to gain the party’s nod. Lieutenant Governor Mary Donohue was given the floor as the New York delegation officially cast its 102 votes for Mr. Bush.

A key swing state, Pennsylvania, was selected to put Mr. Bush over the top. The milestone, which occurred early in last night’s sessions, led to a lackluster chorus of “Four more years” from the floor. However, many delegates had not arrived in the hall and others seemed oblivious to the development.

The convention’s proceedings were punctuated with video reports from the floor, backstage and remote sites. The segments had an amateurish, local-news feel. The ersatz journalists used microphones festooned with the letters, “RNC.” The network called these hosts “convention jockeys.”

“The president is truly a person of conviction and of character,” gushed one of the jockeys, Mercedes Viana Schlapp, as she “reported” from the Ohio delegation last night.