by Kristina Karisch | The Hill
In a show of party unity, the GOP’s next generation took the stage at the Republican National Convention on Tuesday.
A day after former President Trump announced Ohio Sen. JD Vance as his vice-presidential pick, his erstwhile primary rivals, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, both spoke in support of the Republican nominee. DeSantis, who threw his support behind Trump shortly after exiting the race, was a confirmed speaker ahead of the convention. Haley, the last of the former president’s challengers to drop out, only recently urged her delegates to support Trump and was not originally scheduled to speak.
Haley, who had described Trump as unfit for office during her campaign, encouraged her supporters to vote for him over President Biden Tuesday, “for the sake of our nation.”
We should acknowledge that there are some Americans who don’t agree with Donald Trump 100% of the time,” Haley said. “Take it from me. I haven’t always agreed with President Trump. But we agree more often than we disagree.”
Here are five takeaways from the second day of the convention.
Vance, DeSantis and Haley are part of a crucial group as the Republican Party shifts further to the right — embracing “Make America Great Again” populism as established leaders, such as Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), take a step back. With Vance on the November ticket, there’s a new wrinkle in the succession fight, write The Hill’s Brett Samuels and Al Weaver.
Vance is now in early pole position to become the GOP standard-bearer in a post-Trump era should the two win in November. Trump’s vice-presidential decision was always going to have major ramifications, but those are magnified further as he is limited to a single term. Vance, 39, has now rocketed toward the top of the list in the eyes of many top Republicans who argue that a successful stint as vice president would put him in a prime spot to lead the America First agenda.
“We’re getting ahead of ourselves a little bit here, but he’s got a very bright future, and obviously if we are successful and can serve as vice president, he, I’m sure, will be on a lot of people’s lists … for a long time to come,” said Sen. John Thune (S.D.), a top contender to become Senate Republican leader next year.
- CNN and Politico: The U.S. intelligence community has received an increasing amount of evidence to suggest that Iran is actively working on plots to kill Trump, potentially in the lead up to the election in November.
- Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Five police officers from Columbus, Ohio, shot and killed an armed man early Tuesday afternoon just west of downtown Milwaukee — under a mile from the security perimeter for the Republican National Convention.
- The Hill: Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) needled his rival, former Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), Tuesday on the convention floor, tauntingly asking McCarthy when he was slated to speak.
ACROSS THE AISLE, the debate around whether Biden should withdraw from the race was put on pause in the immediate aftermath of the attempted assassination on Trump. Now, The Hill’s Amie Parnes reports it appears to be grinding to a halt. Many Democrats said the inter-party fight is unhelpful, particularly as Trump appears to be well ahead in the presidential contest.
“It’s over,” said one prominent Democratic strategist. “There’s been no meaningful movement in a week. There is little to no time left. People are focused elsewhere. It’s a collective action problem and we have no solution. Game over.”
Still, some Democrats say they have held onto hope that it’s not too late to replace Biden at the top of the ticket. Among them is Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), who is running for Senate and warned during a private donor meeting Saturday that his party was likely to suffer overwhelming losses in November if Biden remained the nominee (The New York Times). And former Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) gave the distinct impression that she wanted Biden to take himself off the ticket, a battleground House Democrat told Politico.
But as Biden continues in the race, he faces major hurdles — from the issue of his age to swing state polls and the ramifications of the assassination attempt against Trump. The Hill’s Niall Stanage breaks down the president’s four biggest challenges.
Axios: Since his disastrous debate, Biden has embraced a laundry list of left-wing policy proposals and strong-armed the party’s nomination process.
