Republicans to kick off 2024 convention
Trump flies to Milwaukee a day after assassination attempt
Also in today’s issue of ‘Regular Order’ for July 15, 2024:
Biden urges Americans to tone down the debate.
Democratic grumbling about 2024 continues.
RNC Day 1 is ‘Make America Wealthy Again.’
From Milwaukee, Wisconsin -
TRUMP. A day after he narrowly escaped an assassin's bullet, former President Donald Trump flew to Wisconsin to prep for this week's Republican National Convention, sending out a defiant note for supporters. "I cannot allow a “shooter,” or potential assassin, to force change to scheduling, or anything else," Trump said before flying to Milwaukee last night.
GOP. "I’ve never met anyone tougher than President Trump," said Sen. Bill Hagerty (R-TN), after the two men spoke by phone on Sunday. "He’s more ready than ever to get America back on track," added Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-OK), who also talked with the former President.
THEATER. While Trump isn’t on the convention schedule today, it really won’t surprise me if he shows up to a triumphant welcome from the delegates. You don’t have to be a Hollywood producer to imagine Trump walking out to thunderous cheers with photos of him bleeding on the big screens behind him.
LUNTZ. Obviously, I’m not the only one thinking along those lines. "Trump’s defiant pose, fist in the air as he was being led off the stage bleeding, will be the visual people remember at the polling booth when they think about Election 2024," GOP polling and messaging guru Frank Luntz said on Sunday.
SPEECH. In an interview with the Washington Examiner, Trump claimed that he was totally changing his Thursday acceptance speech because of Saturday's attack. Instead of a speech attacking Joe Biden, it will now be about unity for November. “Honestly, it’s going to be a whole different speech now.”
VEEP. Don’t forget - there is still major news for Trump to make, as he hasn’t announced his pick for Vice President yet. The vote on a running mate is set for Wednesday, so there is only so long that Trump can hang on to that announcement.
DAY ONE. The theme for the first day of the GOP convention is about the economy, and has the headline, 'Make America Wealthy Again.' Look for speeches today that emphasize Trump plans for tax cuts, maybe higher tariffs on imports, his call to end taxes on tips, and attacking Biden and Democrats over inflation and high gas prices.
TWO TIMES. There are actually two sessions on this first day for Republicans. The gavel will fall at 1:45 pm EDT for the first session. The night session starts at 6:45 pm EDT and goes until 11 pm.
RNC WEEK. The streets of Milwaukee were filled on Sunday with GOP delegates getting ready for their big convention week, as they mingled with no-names and big names at various RNC events. "Looking forward to a big week," said Patrick Morrisey, the Attorney General of West Virginia.
PARTY TIME. House Speaker Mike Johnson was at the RNC welcome event last night, the 'Red, White, and Brew' party - an invite-only event, headlined by country music star Trace Adkins. And the special RNC fireworks were spiced up by a thunderstorm, creating a double light show in Milwaukee.
PROBE. As for the attack on Trump, Congressional Republicans again made clear on Sunday they want answers on how it happened in the first place. "We need a full investigation," said Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN). "The American people need answers and the House is committed to ensuring a thorough investigation is conducted," said House Speaker Mike Johnson.
MOTIVE. The FBI said Sunday that agents have not established a motive for the attempt to kill Trump. It sort of reminds me of that awful mass shooting at a music festival in Las Vegas. We know the guy did it - but why? That question has never really been answered. And we may never really know in this case, either.
DENIAL. Last night, the spokesman for the Secret Service denied a news report that agents had been moved from Trump's rally in Pennsylvania to an event for First Lady Jill Biden. "We did not divert resources," said spokesman Anthony Guglielmi.
CATASTROPHIC. Whatever the answer, let’s be honest. This was a major security failure by the Secret Service. Americans deserve to know the answers about why it happened. The nation was maybe an inch away from a much darker outcome.
CONVENTION. It was quite surreal to get here to Milwaukee on Sunday in the aftermath of the Trump assassination attempt. While the attack was the first thing we all talked about with friends and colleagues, those events seemingly had no influence on the prep for this national Republican Party gathering.
SECURITY. "We've been working on the RNC security plan for more than a year," Audrey Gibson-Cicchino of the Secret Service told reporters at a briefing, as officials said no security changes were being made in the wake of the Saturday attack on Trump. "We are confident in the plan we have implemented."
FENCING. The area outside the convention arena is a familiar labyrinth of high metal fencing and security checkpoints in downtown Milwaukee. Reporters need one special credential just to get into the secured perimeter around the arena, and then you need another credential to get inside the convention site.
ARENA. Inside on Sunday, officials were putting the final touches on the convention hall. There were even people steaming the wrinkles out of the American flags which will be on display.
BIDEN. President Biden last night addressed the nation in the aftermath of the assassination attempt against Donald Trump, as Biden loudly denounced political violence of any kind. "There is no place in America for this kind of violence,” the President said.
VIOLENCE. "Disagreement is inevitable in American democracy," Biden said. "It's part of human nature, but politics must never be a literal battlefield," as he urged Americans to turn down the temperature in 2024. "It's time to cool it down. We all have a responsibility to do that."
BATTLE BOX. I thought Biden's words were a solid defense of democracy and of the broader political vision of the United States. But at one point, when he meant to say we settle our differences at the 'ballot box,' Biden several times said the 'battle box.'
FUTURE. I mention that miscue not to make fun of Biden - because his verbal gaffes are well known. I mention it because I thought his speech was well written. But I thought the delivery was lacking. And really, that’s what Democrats are complaining about right now with Biden - they feel like the message is getting obscured by the messenger.
DEMOCRATS. The violent attack at Trump's rally overshadowed what was another bumpy weekend for Democrats and President Biden about the 2024 election. In group phone calls with Democratic members of Congress, Biden tried to make the case for his own candidacy, but again heard lawmakers in his own party directly call on him to step aside.
OLD CROW. "I do believe right now, unless there's a major change, that there is a high risk that we lose this election," Rep. Jason Crow (D-CO) told CBS's 'Face the Nation.' Crow had been on a Saturday call with Biden, making the case that dramatic change is needed for his party. "How are we going to change that message?" Crow asked.
LEADERS. On Saturday, the President met with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer. There really weren't any details offered, as Schumer called it a 'good meeting.' But it's been notable that Schumer has offered only mild support for Biden - knowing full well there is unrest among sitting Senators.
HOUSE. It’s the same story on the other side of the Capitol. House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries met with Biden last Thursday night, and just like Schumer, Jeffries has said precious little in public to strongly defend Biden, knowing there is unrest among the rank and file.
LONG VIEW. I heard some argue this weekend that the attack on Trump makes it even less likely that Democrats would get Biden to drop out. I don’t know if those are linked. It simply seems to me like Biden has no intention of getting out of the race - even though we all can see that he’s getting old.
SWEET SIXTEEN. Let me circle back to the GOP convention. Hard as it is to believe, this is my 16th major party convention - I have covered eight run by the Democrats and eight from the Republicans. My first was in 1988 when the Democrats gathered in Atlanta. I was on the floor when Bill Clinton gave his super-boring nomination speech for Michael Dukakis. When Clinton said, "In conclusion," there were cheers from the delegates in the Omni.
BEHIND THE SCENES. The biggest thing to do yesterday was for reporters to pick up their credentials. Those things are worth their weight in gold this week, because if you don't have the right credentials - you don’t get anywhere.
RAP SHEET. A Florida man who brought his parents inside the Capitol on Jan. 6 has been sentenced 18 months in prison. John Schubert joined rioters fighting police outside the Capitol, pushing and trying to punch officers. Schubert later helped his parents climb through a broken window to get into the Capitol. They received 18 months of probation.
MUSE OF HISTORY. July 15, 1964. On this date at the Cow Palace in San Francisco, Republican delegates voted on the first ballot to nominate Sen. Barry Goldwater of Arizona for President. The decision marked a victory for GOP conservatives over moderates in the party - but it did not pay off in November. Other than his home state, Goldwater only won five states in the Deep South - a southern voter reaction to the approval of sweeping Civil Rights legislation.
LEGISLATIVE PROGRAM:
The Republican National Convention convenes at 1:45 pm EDT.
The House is back for votes on July 22.
The Senate is back for votes on July 23.
Check President Biden’s schedule.
Follow me on Twitter @jamiedupree.
Email me at jamiedupree@substack.com
If you want to say ‘thanks’ - you can buy me a cup of coffee.
I've run across multiple THIS CHANGES EVERYTHING think pieces since Saturday night. Color me skeptical. For starters, for this race to truly change Donald J. Trump would actually be required to change. The same guy who foments political violence regularly and the guy who, for weeks, mocked the far more life-threatening attack on Paul Pelosi at campaign rallies. To truly "unify" the country, his speech this week would need to truly focus on that — uniting the country around the needs, wellbeing and safety of all Americans. The GOP platform is in direct opposition to that. Does "unifying" mean tearing up Project 2025 and cease vowing vengeance on your enemies? Becoming empathetic? Let's remember, Trump was given a similar golden campaign moment opportunity when a global pandemic was killing millions four years ago and he leaned into promoting conspiracy theories, quackery and division.
The Biden camp was smart to pull its ads and his default setting of consoler-in-chief is an asset in a situation like this. And no one is talking about whether he should get out of the race right now. Let 45 and the GOP have this week. Let's see how truly "unifying" Trump's speech actually is. My guess? As the Gen Zers like to say, Trump will be "back on his bullshit" before the end of this week and just like all of the school kids regularly slaughtered in their classrooms in America, his ear nick will be a distant memory. But for good measure, some enterprising Dem in Congress should introduce new gun control legislation, call it the Donald John Trump Presidential Protection Sensible Gun Reform Act and then force GOPers to publicly explain why they refuse to vote for it.
This newsletter is often one of the first things I read in the morning but these last few issues just make me tired.. "You don’t have to be a Hollywood producer to imagine Trump walking out to thunderous cheers with photos of him bleeding on the big screens behind him." & "Biden has no intention of getting out of the race - even though we all can see that he’s getting old". Perhaps if he looked more like "central casting" by dying his hair yellow and wearing foundation his chances of getting elected would increase. (That's sarcasm). I plan to vote for a platform and the cabinet that the candidate surrounds themselves with and not the few years that separate these men.
And I am not sure why all of a sudden people are holding a man with a lifelong speech impediment to a different standard than the other old man who also has consistently well-documented gaffes of his own. It seems like the only Democrats who are calling on Biden to step down are the ones that will have the least to lose under another 4 years of a MAGA administration (check how the minority caucuses are backing Biden). And make no mistake, whether they call it Agenda 47 or Project 2025, even a fraction of that plan making it to reality is devastating to the vast majority of the caucuses that are backing Biden. That should be the story. This is not about the few years that separate these two men. I wish I had never watched The Handmaid's Tale because the speed at which we are walking into a Cristo-Fascist regime is startling. If the next couple of issues are still harping on about how a handful of Dem's are calling for Biden to step down, you need to consider that you need to expand your sources to include a better range of voices in the Democratic party.