NBC News' Kristen Welker on covering the RNC, importance of Milwaukee and Wisconsin

Just outside the action that's buzzing inside Fiserv Forum at the Republican National Convention, hundreds of national and international journalists have set up workspaces and broadcast booths to cover the inner-workings of the convention — and the significance of the city and state that are hosting it.

For Kristen Welker, moderator of "Meet the Press" on NBC News, what's stuck out most about Milwaukee is how "every single person who I encountered feels really proud" to live in a swing state that's hosting a major political event.

"We are honored to be here," Welker told the Journal Sentinel in an interview at Good City Brewing, where NBC News has set up operations for the week. "You can feel the responsibility and the weight that the people here in Milwaukee feel about hosting this convention. And in talking to people, people are buzzing about this race."

Welker called Wisconsin "ground zero" for who wins the election. After winning the state in 2016 and losing it to President Joe Biden in 2020, former President Donald Trump "wants to win it back. That's why he's here."

"He is making a statement that these voters, that Wisconsin matters to the Republican party. I think you are going to see both candidates make an incredibly forceful play to try to win over the voters here in Wisconsin," Welker said.

NBC News is also highlighting Dane County — about 90 miles west of the convention site and home to the University of Wisconsin-Madison — as one of seven counties across the nation that will be crucial to deciding the outcome of the 2024 presidential race.

More: NBC to look at fast-growing Dane County as predictor of 2024 presidential election

There's plenty of news that Welker is still watching for in the next three days of the convention, including where voters who supported former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley in the primaries will land after her speech. And vice presidential nominee JD Vance will have the "biggest moment of his political life" when he addresses the convention Thursday night.

Trump's choice of Vance "shows that he was making this decision from a position of strength," Welker said. "Clearly this was a pick aimed at thinking about and really doubling down on the MAGA ethos, thinking about the future of the Republican party through the lens of his MAGA ideology. This is someone who very much represents the far-right of the conservative movement."

Welker noted a "somber" backdrop at the RNC following the assassination attempt on Trump over the weekend. But there's a celebratory feel at the same time, especially when Trump walked out on the convention floor Monday night with a bandage on his ear.

"(Trump) himself has said that he has softened his speech in the wake of the assassination attempt against his life, and I think that that's really the headline here — the fact that to some extent, everything has changed," Welker said.

Welker is moderating special editions of "Meet the Press NOW" each day of the RNC at 3 p.m. CT. NBC News' “Decision 2024” coverage airs from 9 p.m. to 10 p.m. Tuesday, and 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Wednesday and Thursday. Coverage is also live on NBC News NOW from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. CT Wednesday and Thursday.

More: What's happening at the 2024 RNC? See full week schedule, how to watch and livestream

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: NBC News' Kristen Welker talks covering RNC, importance of Wisconsin