Trump tries to set new tone with RNC acceptance speech
Former President Donald Trump accepted the Republican Party's nomination last night in a historically long speech. In the beginning, he struck a calm, uniting tone, saying, "We are Americans. Ambition is our heritage. Greatness is our birthright. But as long as our energies are spent fighting each other, our destiny will remain out of reach." This is a noticeable difference from past speeches, likely spurred by Saturday's attempted assassination. He also brought the firefighting helmet and protective coat worn by Corey Comperatore, who was killed at Saturday's rally in Pennsylvania, on the stage to pay tribute to him and his family.
In a particularly touching moment, Trump declared, "I'm not supposed to be here tonight," to which attendees yelled out, "Yes, you are!" But Trump insisted, “Thank you. But I’m not. I stand before you in this arena only by the grace of almighty God.”
Around the 30-minute mark, however, Trump reverted to his "greatest hits," well known by rallygoers, though he only mentioned President Joe Biden once.
At the end, former first lady Melania Trump seemingly surprised Trump onstage. This, as well as anecdotes from UFC's Dana White and Trump's granddaughter Kai from the night before, aimed to humanize the former president.
Read more of Mabinty Quarshie, Naomi Lim, Amy DeLaura, Marisa Schultz, David Sivak, and Haisten Willis's reporting at the RNC.
Pressure mounts on Secret Service director to step down
Frustration with Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle has grown as the agency's flubbed response to Saturday's attempted assassination of Trump draws the ire of congressional Republicans.
“I was slower to say she should [resign]. It's never my guttural response,” Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-ND), one of those GOP senators who encountered Cheatle, told the Washington Examiner's Ramsey Touchberry . “But after her behavior and her clear stonewalling of people who have every right in the world to know the answers, she has to step down.”
Cheatle was cornered Wednesday night on the GOP convention floor by a group of senators, including Sens. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), John Barrasso (R-WY), and James Lankford (R-OK), who asked her questions about the shooting that have gone unanswered. Eventually, she managed to dodge the group with her Secret Service detail putting space between them.
Though Cheatle initially made a statement assuming responsibility for the attack, she has refused calls to step down.
“Continuity of operations is paramount during a critical incident, and U.S. Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle has no intentions to step down,” an agency spokesperson said in a statement. “She deeply respects members of Congress and is fiercely committed to transparency in leading the Secret Service through the internal investigation and strengthening the agency through lessons learned in these important internal and external reviews.”
Some members have suggested defunding the director's salary until she steps down.
On a call with House lawmakers, Ronald Rowe, deputy director of the Secret Service, said the agency knew for about 20 minutes there were reports of a suspicious man with a rangefinder, a firearm accessory, Ashley Oliver reports. Blackburn asked why someone would be allowed onstage if this was known, to which Cheatle responded that it was not the forum to address concerns. The director will appear before the House Oversight Committee on Monday in response to a subpoena issued by Chairman James Comer (R-X).
Click here to read more of Ramsey Touchberry's reporting on how Cheatle has explained the failure at Trump's rally and Ashley Oliver's reporting on the Secret Service's communications.
Both parties court Jewish voters with party platform positions on Israel
Despite the Democratic Party's left-flank supporting pro-Palestinian protesters, the party platform set to be adopted in August at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago is a full-throated support for Israel. The 80-page document, portions of which were obtained by the Washington Examiner, says the U.S. supports Israel in the fight against Hamas and commits to Israel's right to defend itself.
The document also details the goal of a two-state solution “in a manner that does not allow Hamas to rearm.”
“I think the surprising thing for some may be that the Democratic platform is so strong and is a full-throated support of Israel,” said Julie Rayman , managing director of policy and political affairs at the nonpartisan American Jewish Committee.
“I'm sure that there are a number of Democrats who are more critical of Israel, who are looking at this and wishing that there was more or different, but from a Jewish communal perspective, there's so much in there that is exactly what the Jewish community was hoping for and was looking to see,” Rayman added.
The much shorter 16-page Republican platform similarly supports Israel, though through a more American lens.
“We will stand with Israel, and seek peace in the Middle East,” it says. “We will rebuild our alliance network in the region to ensure a future of peace, stability and prosperity.”
The platform also vows to replicate Israel's Iron Dome missile defense system to defend the U.S.'s southern border in line with Trump's attitude. The document says the party vows to “DEPORT PRO-HAMAS RADICALS AND MAKE OUR COLLEGE CAMPUSES SAFE AND PATRIOTIC AGAIN.”
The previous Republican platform, agreed to in 2016, went further in its support for Israel. In that document, Israel was mentioned 19 times — in this year's, the Jewish state is mentioned only once.
Rayman said this was likely to give Republicans "wiggle room" for strategy, but others say it's noticeably weak.
Dennis Lennox , a Republican strategist from Michigan, called the document “arguably weaker than the Democratic platform on Israel.”
Click here to read more of Samantha-Jo Roth and Marisa Schultz' s reporting.
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On your radar
Biden is still recovering from COVID-19 with no events on his schedule. Vice President Kamala Harris, Trump, and Vance all have no public appearances scheduled.
The House and Senate are out.
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