The Hill’s Morning Report – Democrats launch 11-week sprint to Nov. 3 with virtual convention

 

 

 

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Total U.S. coronavirus deaths reported as of this morning: 170,052.

National Democrats kick off a historic national convention tonight as they convene around the country instead of shoulder to shoulder inside a Milwaukee hall to nominate former Vice President Joe Biden as the party’s choice to try to unseat President Trump in November. 

 

Biden and the party begin a scaled-down, virtual event with the wind at their backs after introducing Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) as the Democratic vice presidential nominee last week. New polls show the former vice president leading Trump by a significant margin nationally and in key battleground states that will determine the next president.

 

As The Hill’s Jonathan Easley writes, the four-day confab offers Biden and his supporters a chance to persuade voters the nominee is best prepared to lead a nation through a pandemic, economic wreckage and a racial reckoning around the country.

 

The oddities of the first of two August nominating conventions for the two major parties will be lost on no one. There will be no applause for the applause lines, no crowds to roar on cue, no spontaneous floor skirmishes or impromptu cutaway glimpses of the colorful, excited delegates and guests who breathe excitement into presidential contests every four years (The New York Times). 

 

Instead, the Democratic convention will feature just eight hours of prime-time speeches (many of them prerecorded) during a week in which Americans have many things competing for their attention. 

 

Democrats who support Biden or just want to defeat Trump are buoyed by recent polls showing the incumbent trailing, yet some in the party catalog all the ways Biden’s lead could shrink through debates with Trump. It happened to Hillary Clinton in 2016, they argue.

 

Put simply, they have no desire to see a 2020 sequel. 

 

Jonathan Allen: On convention eve, Democrats are apprehensive.

 

The Associated Press: The possibility of Trump’s reelection motivates Democrats to rally behind Biden, Harris.

 

ABC News: Poll: Election advantage stays with Biden; enthusiasm deficit eases, but remains.

 

The Hill: Harris looks to complete Biden path to presidency.

 

Niall Stanage: Five things to watch at the Democratic National Convention.

 

As The Hill’s Amie Parnes writes, the Democratic theme tonight will be “We the People,” featuring speakers who “have risen up to face three defining challenges”  in today’s America: the COVID-19 pandemic, the recent unemployment spike and racial injustice.

 

Headlining tonight’s addresses will be former first lady Michelle Obama, one of the most popular figures in the party, if not the most popular. After delivering a rousing address four years ago in Philadelphia, she is tasked with repeating the feat and setting the tone for the remainder of the week. 

 

The former first lady is expected to deliver a speech that will shine a harsh light on the president and urge Democrats to get out and vote. 

 

“I think she’ll come hard at Trump, in the most artful way. I think it will be one of the most defining and memorable speeches of this entire cycle” one ally of the former first lady said. “She has the most powerful voice to get out the vote.”

 

Also slated to speak tonight are politicians on each side of the political spectrum of Biden supporters: Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and former Ohio Gov. John Kasich (R).

 

Cleveland.com: Kasich is speaking at the DNC. Will it matter?

 

The New York Times: Sanders lost again, but this time he’ll deliver a victory speech.

 

Dan Balz: Democrats head to convention united against Trump, but expecting conflict once the election is over.

 

The Washington Post: Biden, often defined by words, faces his biggest (and strangest) speech yet.

 

On the GOP side, Trump and his allies will engage in a week full of counter-programming during the Democrats’ week in the sun. Today, the president will travel to Wisconsin and Minnesota for events. He will campaign in Scranton, Pa., on Thursday, where he is expected to assail the former vice president in Biden’s hometown only hours before he officially accepts the Democratic nomination.

 

 

 

THE HILL CONVENTIONS 2020

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LEADING THE DAY

Although the unusual virtual format of the Democratic National Convention may inspire some headlines this week, Biden and Harris hope viewers focus on issues that draw sharp contrasts with the Trump-Pence ticket.   

 

> Appealing to voters of faith: Biden’s campaign plans to use the convention to appeal to religious voters, specifically to whittle away at the evangelical vote that mostly sides with Trump (The Hill). In battleground Arizona, Mormons are organizing against the president, whose relative weakness with members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is now a political liability, reports The Associated Press.

           

> Reckoning over race, justice: Black Lives Matter will be woven throughout the Democratic National Convention this week, underscoring how opposition to racial inequality and police misconduct galvanized Americans of all ages and across party lines following George Floyd’s murder in Minnesota in May (The Hill). 

 

C-SPAN plans to cover the entirety of the Democratic and Republican nominating conventions via broadcast and online. News networks plan extensive coverage, but without the traditional live-from-the-convention-floor immediacy because of the move away from large gatherings during the coronavirus crisis (The Baltimore Sun). 

 

Reminder dates: Democratic National Convention, today through Aug. 20; Republican National Convention, Aug. 24-27.

 

The Democrats’ convention lineup is HERE.

 

 

 

IN FOCUS/SHARP TAKES

CONGRESS BACK TO WORK: The political controversy involving an expected surge in mailed ballots before Election Day and Trump’s opposition to anything that assists universal mail-in voting has made the U.S. Postal Service the piñata. Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) on Sunday announced the House will return to Washington this week to vote on legislation prohibiting the U.S. Postal Service from making any changes to operations it had in place starting this year (The Hill).

 

At issue for Democrats are Trump’s political motives, Postmaster General Louis DeJoy’s cost-cutting and reorganization efforts, and widespread reports of delays in U.S. mail at the same time that DeJoy, appointed in May, says the Postal Service’s capacity to deliver millions of ballots on time is in question.

 

Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.), chairwoman of the House panel that oversees the Postal Service, introduced legislation last week to prohibit the USPS from implementing any changes affecting the operations or level of service initiated by the administration after January 2020 (Reuters).

 

The House Oversight and Reform Committee called for DeJoy to testify at an “urgent” congressional hearing later this month (The Hill).

 

The New York Times: Who is DeJoy?

 

The Hill: Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) said at a news conference on Sunday that if the House passes Postal Service legislation, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) should bring the Senate back to take it up. Senators are not expected in Washington until September.

 

The Hill: White House chief of staff Mark Meadows on Sunday denied reports that the Postal Service decommissioned mail sorting machines. “There’s no sorting machines that are going offline between now and the election,” Meadows told CNN. “That’s not happening.” Meadows said if House Democrats return to Washington and negotiate Postal Service funding along with enhanced unemployment benefits, stimulus checks and small-business reform, the president would “sign that.”

 

Reuters: UPS and FedEx warn they cannot handle mail-in ballots like the Postal Service.

 

Reuters: The inspector general of the Postal Service is investigating cost-cutting and staff changes as worries rise about mail-in ballots.

 

The Hill: Montana Sen. John Tester (D), responding to reports that blue mailboxes were removed from streets in Bozeman, Lewiston and potentially Billings, asked the postmaster general for an explanation by Aug. 18. The Postal Service says some collection boxes for mail are being removed around the country to respond to the “volume of mail received.”

 

Reuters: DeJoy, a Trump donor, attracted noisy protesters outside his homes in recent days (pictured below).

 

The Hill’s roundup of Sunday talk shows: Mail-in voting controversy flares.

 

 

 

The Morning Report is created by journalists Alexis Simendinger and Al Weaver. We want to hear from you! Email: asimendinger@digital-staging.thehill.com and aweaver@digital-staging.thehill.com. We invite you to share The Hill’s reporting and newsletters, and encourage others to SUBSCRIBE! 

OPINION

“Biden Republicans,” don’t turn back, by Rahm Emanuel, opinion contributor, The Wall Street Journal. https://on.wsj.com/341X0vL 

 

The Problem: Remote learning doesn’t work for all students, by Romesh Ratnesar, columnist, Bloomberg Opinion. https://bloom.bg/3kTMi0b 

THE HILL CONVENTIONS 2020

Join The Hill for our Big Questions Morning Briefing

 

Begin each convention day with The Hill. Party leaders, pollsters and campaign veterans join our editors daily at 11AM EDT to discuss the political and policy issues shaping our nation and the 2020 campaign.

 

RSVP now for this week’s morning briefings!

WHERE AND WHEN

The House meets at 11:30 a.m. on Tuesday for a pro forma session.

 

The Senate will convene at noon on Tuesday for a pro forma session. The full Senate is scheduled to meet on Sept. 8.

 

The president will campaign in Mankato, Minn., at North Star Aviation this afternoon, beginning a tour of battleground states on the first day of the Democratic National Convention, which today includes a speech by Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D). Trump will then fly to Oshkosh, Wis., to speak about the economy before returning to Washington (Minneapolis Star-Tribune and NBC News). 

 

INVITATION: The Hill has a new virtual 2020 Conventions Hub! Be part of digital events and get the latest news about the Democratic and Republican national conventions. The Big Questions Morning Briefings begin today with pollsters, party leaders and campaign veterans moderated by The Hill’s editors. 

 

• JOIN conversations about the latest political developments shaping the country. RSVP for The Big Questions DNC and RNC morning virtual briefings starting TODAY at 11 a.m. EDT, featuring political analysts and editors who discuss up-to-the-minute trends and 2020 election developments. 

 

• PLUS, The Hill’s special virtual afternoon briefings go deeper on key issues, including Energy: Access & Reliability; Agenda for Affordable Housing; COVID-19: The Way Forward; and Energy & National Security. Check out the full schedule and RSVP! 

 

Hill.TV’s “Rising” program features news and interviews at http://digital-staging.thehill.com/hilltv or on YouTube at 10:30 a.m. ET at Rising on YouTube.

ELSEWHERE

➔ Coronavirus: The debate about playing college football this season during a pandemic has been scrambled by vocal support from Trump and Republicans for a regular fall season. But major conferences opted to punt until the spring and some epidemiologists feel strongly that decisions about college athletics should be guided by medical experts (The Hill). … Even as public health specialists seek to depoliticize decisions tied to COVID-19, the coronavirus plays a starring role in candidates’ campaign advertisements at a time when Americans say they believe the virus is the most important issue facing the country, ahead of the economy. Ads critical of Trump and Republicans in Washington are resonating with voters (The Hill). … New Zealand on Monday postponed its general election for a month in agreement among all political parties to deal with an outbreak of COVID-19 in Auckland (The Hill). … South Korea is battling the worst coronavirus outbreak it has seen in months, sparked in part by contagion linked to a church (Reuters). … COVID-19 precautions for in-person polling places on Nov. 3 involve voters, too (practical dos and don’ts) (Washington Post opinion).

 

➔ Tech: The futures of Uber, Lyft and dozens of other gig worker companies that have sprouted up over the last decade are up in the air after a California judge ruled that drivers for ride-sharing services must be classified as company employees rather than independent contractors. Uber and Lyft have until Thursday to appeal the decision (The Hill). 

 

➔ Administration: The Trump administration is detaining migrant children and undocumented families prior to their deportation at major hotel chains without legal protections against abuse. The practice near the border is linked to the administration’s emergency COVID-19 immigration orders (The New York Times). … Pressure is building on the United States to respond to a brutal crackdown on pro-democracy protesters in Belarus. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has signaled the administration is looking to European allies for reactions (The Hill). On Sunday, a defiant President Alexander Lukashenko, who has ruled Belarus since 1994, told demonstrators in Minsk that granting new elections would be tantamount to surrendering to NATO aggression. “If we follow their lead, we will fall into a tailspin. We’ll perish as a nation!” he said, warning that NATO would send “black-skinned, yellow-faced, and blonde-headed soldiers” (BBC).  … Trump intends to withdraw his nomination of former oil industry and property rights lawyer William Perry Pendley to head the Bureau of Land Management, a decision environmentalists support. The White House did not explain the decision, which is not expected to become official until the Senate returns in September (The Associated Press). … The president’s newest White House coronavirus adviser is Scott Atlas, a former chief of neuroradiology at Stanford University Medical Center, who has appeared on Fox News as a guest commentator. He has no expertise in virology or public health (The Associated Press). 

 

➔ International: Israel is looking to follow up the opening of diplomatic ties with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) by expanding ties with two other countries: Bahrain and Oman. Israeli Intelligence Minister Eli Cohen said Sunday that formalizing ties with the two nations is “definitely on the agenda,” with Sudan on the horizon for next year (Reuters). As for the already announced deal, individuals in Israel and the UAE were able to reach one another via telephone on Sunday, considered a breakthrough in communications (The Associated Press). … At the White House, the Israel-UAE agreement is seen as a domestic political plus for Trump with voters (The Hill). … The first Mediterranean cruise set sail on Sunday since the coronavirus pandemic effectively shuttered the industry in Italy. The MSC Grandiosa departed Genoa for a seven-night cruise of the western Mediterranean, with passengers and crew receiving coronavirus tests and temperature checks before boarding (The Associated Press). 

 

 

 

THE CLOSER

And finally … The might-be-pregnant watch, a practiced PR phenomenon at the National Zoo in Washington, D.C., is focused on Mei Xiang, a giant panda. It is possible she could deliver a cub (or two) within days, according to her medical team. She is already the mother of Tai Shan and Bao Bao, living in China, and the popular Bei Bei, who returned to China in 2019 at age 4 as part of the U.S.-China panda breeding program.

 

Baby pandas at the outset are about the size of a stick of butter, about 3.5 ounces, so panda births in captivity are dramatic. Mei, 22, who weighs 238 pounds, has delivered twins before and in both cases only one cub survived. The zoo’s chief veterinarian thought until recently that Mei, artificially inseminated on March 22, might have reached the end of her reproductive life but an ultrasound suggested otherwise. Suspense! (The Washington Post).

 

Currently, 1,864 giant pandas survive in their native habitat throughout central China. Another 600 live in zoos and breeding centers. One of the greatest threats to giant pandas’ survival is habitat loss and destruction, adding to the breeding program’s importance (Smithsonian Magazine).

 

The zoo’s popular panda cam is on. Watch HERE. CNN has a video clip of Mei getting an ultrasound HERE.