Two days down, two to go at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee.
Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio) is slated to deliver the keynote remarks Wednesday — his highly anticipated first speech since former President Trump announced him as his running mate.
Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), who is running for the Senate, made waves Wednesday with a call for President Biden to withdraw from the 2024 race. And the Trump campaign poked at the uncertainty around the Democratic ticket later in the day, when it rejected a proposed date for Vice President Harris to debate Vance, saying it wasn’t clear who the vice presidential candidate would be.
Among the other featured speakers Wednesday night are former President Trump’s eldest child, Donald Trump Jr., and Usha Vance, the vice presidential nominee’s wife.
How will the day play out? Follow along here for live updates.
Hours after his release from prison, former Trump adviser Peter Navarro arrived at the RNC and spoke to Breitbart News, per a video from the network.
Navarro is expected to give a speech to the RNC Wednesday evening.
The ex-Trump White House trade adviser served a four-month sentence for refusing to comply with a congressional subpoena related to the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol.
— Julia Mueller
Two signs have been placed on delegates seats in anticipation of the third night of the convention, which is set to focus on foreign policy.
One states “Make America Strong Again!” — the theme of the third day, while another states that Trump will bring the war between Russia and Ukraine to an end.
The war has raged on for more than two years since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Trump has vowed that if elected he would end the war in “24 hours.”
Some attendees are starting to arrive onto the floor ahead of the night’s programming.
— Jared Gans
Sen. JD Vance’s (R-Ohio) address to the Republican National Convention is expected to heavily focus on his personal story and how it ties in with some of former President Trump’s key issues.
Vance’s remarks will be his first speech since being tapped to be Trump’s vice presidential nominee.
According to a source familiar with the planned address, Vance will touch on trade, immigration, foreign policy and the drug epidemic when he takes the stage at Fiserv Forum.
“Expect a powerful story of a boy who grew up in poverty, with no father in his life, and a drug-addicted mother… who is on the verge of becoming the next VPOTUS,” the source familiar told The Hill, adding the speech will contain “a lot of bio.”
“A lot of people in middle America are going to see themselves and their community in his story. And it’s going to connect that life experience to the Trump policies,” the source familiar continued. “Basically how his firsthand experience in that upbringing shaped his views on a lot of the biggest issues in the campaign.”
— Al Weaver
Rep. Tim Burchett (R) said he doesn’t know who influencer Amber Rose is, while also casting doubt on the impact her inclusion as a speaker would have in broadening the party’s appeal.
“I wouldn’t have known her if she came to my front porch although my wife might question why she’s on our front porch,” Burchett said.
“I get it trying to get young folks to the to the bringing young people in and widening the tent, but it generally doesn’t work,” Burchett said, saying he instead thinks it will be Trump’s message that picks up “more Black folks and more Hispanic folks.”
— Aris Folley
They swear they’re not trolling.
Two men have a both set up at the Republican National Convention (RNC) selling a 300-page hard-cover, green bound book featuring former President Trump’s tweets — or “the great work, the collected poems of Donald J. Trump” as they call it.
Each page features a singular post from the social platform now called X. For example, page 270 features one of Trump’s “most-minimal works”: the word “we.”
It divides the posts into sections including, “loathing,” “introspective musings” “big, bigger, biggest,” “like a dog” and “free verse.” Free verse “leaves the confounds of the English language behind and soars to new heights.”
When asked again whether they were trolling, one of the men smiled and insisted he was not. After some back and forth, he said doesn’t know whether he’ll vote for Trump in November.
He only knows Trump as a poet. “Is he running for something?”
— Cate Martel
The Trump campaign on Wednesday said it would not commit to a date for a vice presidential debate, suggesting it was still uncertain who would be on the Democratic ticket.
“We don’t know who the Democrat nominee for Vice President is going to be, so we can’t lock in a date before their convention,” senior Trump campaign adviser Brian Hughes said in a statement. “To do so would be unfair to Gavin Newsom, JB Pritzker, Gretchen Whitmer, or whoever Kamala Harris picks as her running mate.”
The Biden campaign earlier Wednesday said Vice President Harris had accepted an invitation from CBS News to participate in a debate against Trump’s running mate, Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio), on Aug. 12 or Aug. 13. CBS News had previously extended an invite for July 23.
— Brett Samuels
Rep. Richard Hudson (R-N.C.), the chair of the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC), lauded vice presidential candidate JD Vance for his beard, facetiously suggesting that the facial hair could help Republicans notch some votes in November.
Hudson, during an interview at the CNN-Politico Grill, said Vance’s selection will help “create some excitement” on the campaign trail.
“I do think there’s a lot of young people who aren’t necessarily engaged in politics may now engage because they see a young person. For guys, we see a guy with a beard, like that’s pretty cool. I wish I could grow a beard like that,” Hudson said.
“I think JD Vance will draw a lot of new voters in for us and create some excitement.”
Facial hair made its way into the campaign trail conversation earlier this month after The Bulwark reported that Trump’s dislike of facial hair could be a problem for Vance’s vice presidential chances.
— Mychael Schnell
Rep. Richard Hudson (R-N.C.), the chair of the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC), said he predicts Saturday’s assassination attempt on former President Trump will help the GOP nominee politically.
“I do think it’s been galvanizing for Republicans,” Hudson said at the CNN-Politico Grill about the influence the shooting will have politically. “I think the way Americans have responded to how President Trump responded to the situation, I think will benefit him politically.”
“I think it will ultimately benefit him because of, again, the way he reacted in the moment, the way he’s conducted himself since,” he added.
— Mychael Schnell
New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu said the convention is not about unifying a “MAGA brand” during an interview with CNN on Tuesday.
“I’m not a MAGA or an extremist. Nikki Haley isn’t some extremist. It’s really unifying the Republican Party around what the average American wants to see,” he said.
He called the events in Milwaukee “one of the most positive and energetic national conventions we’ve seen here in modern history,” and said Democrats would struggle to project the same unity given continued fighting over whether President Biden should remain the nominee.
— Colin Meyn
The convention floor has reopened and preparations are ramping up following Trump’s walkthrough.
Workers are moving quickly to decorate delegates’ seats with “Make America Great Again” signs while a band warms up off to the side of the stage.
— Aris Folley
Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) on Wednesday said his “goal” is for Republicans to pick up more than 10 House seats in November, underscoring the optimistic outlook the GOP has in the lead up to Election Day.
The comment — made during an interview with The Hill at the Republican National Convention — comes as former President Trump leads in key polls, President Biden’s approval rating remains underwater, and voters continue to raise alarm about issues like immigration and the economy, which have been weak spots for the incumbent.
Johnson, however, was careful to not make a prediction for the GOP’s gains in November. Asked if he expects Republicans to pick up 10 seats this year, he demurred.
“It’s my goal,” the Speaker said after a short pause. “We’re very wary of setting benchmarks and making projections, but I’ll tell you, we’re very encouraged and very bullish about November.”
READ MORE THE FULL STORY HERE.
— Mychael Schnell
Spotted: Eric Trump heading to one of the networks. His father — former President Trump — walked off the stage just moments ago.
— Sarakshi Rai
Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio) is set for the biggest moment in his young political life on Wednesday night when he addresses the Republican National Convention as former President Trump’s newly designated running mate.
Vance, who was officially tapped by Trump for the post on Monday, has been in elected office for barely a year and a half, but his impact on Republican politics has been widely felt. Since his emergence onto the political scene, he has become one of the leading voices on the former president’s “America First” agenda.
Read about three things to watch when the Ohio Republican takes the stage tonight.
— Al Weaver
Trump walked onto the stage in the convention hall on Wednesday afternoon for a mic check and walk through ahead of his Thursday speech.
He was accompanied by a coterie of aides and security.
Prior to Trump walking onto the stage, crews tested out light features that flashed red, white and blue in a preview of the grand entrance the former president will likely make on Thursday.
— Brett Samuels
The convention floor has been cleared as staff prepare for Trump’s walkthrough.
The president could make an appearance in within minutes.
— Aris Folley