| Trump fights with DNC for the spotlight, comes up short President Donald Trump is not known for wanting to share the spotlight with anyone, especially not a political rival. Trump has bristled as the Democratic National Convention has soaked up headlines and television time, winning both the ratings he covets and praise for many of the speakers, getting press for insulting and attacking his administration.
He called for a boycott of Goodyear Tires after they banned employees from wearing MAGA hats, and was soundly mocked by CNN's Don Lemon and Anderson Cooper as the "biggest snowflake of them all" for it and Ohio Sen. Sherrod Brown slammed his comments as a "betrayal" of American workers.
This year marks the 100th anniversary of the Nineteenth Amendment enshrining women's right to vote in the Constitution, and Trump marked the occasion by announcing that he would sign a "full and complete pardon" of Susan B. Anthony, the suffragist who was arrested and convicted by an all-male jury in 1872 for illegally voting.
Unfortunately for the White House, no one bothered to check with the museum honoring Anthony's legacy. The Susan B. Anthony Museum and House dropped a vicious Twitter thread rejecting Trump's pardon and slamming him. Read the smackdown here.
Trump also railed against John Kasich, the former Ohio governor who ran against him in the 2016 GOP primary, for speaking at the DNC. Tweeting that Kasich was a "loser" and "desperate for relevance" might have been momentarily satisfying but unlikely to have much impact in a crowded news week.
Meanwhile, White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany gifted new material for Democrats accusing Trump of plotting some sort of election fraud or dictatorial grasp on power, telling a reporter that Trump "will see what happens" before agreeing to accept the result of November's election.
Trump's troubles don't appear to be ending next week when the Republican National Convention kicks off. He's already sore at Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell for "allowing" Democrats to hold hearings with the postmaster general next week. "Always playing right into their hands!" Trump complained, in a tweet of course. Now, back to the action with the Democrats...
More Republicans for Biden Kasich wasn't the only Republican to appear at the DNC to support a Democratic candidate for president. Cindy McCain, the widow of Sen. John McCain, offered heartfelt remarks about her late husband's friendship with Biden in an emotional tribute video. She did not expressly endorse Biden in her comments, but showed genuine warmth as she described the two men's relationship. Former Secretary of State Colin Powell also addressed the DNC, offering a more direct endorsement than McCain did, saying that America "needs a commander-in-chief who takes care of our troops in the same way he would his own family.”
More Speeches
The virtual video appearances continued to roll out at the DNC, offering a variety of perspectives and experiences, but one unifying theme: America can't handle another Trump presidential term.
Former acting Attorney General Sally Yates was blunt, saying "the future of our democracy is at stake," and slamming Trump for "his relentless attacks on our Democratic institutions, and countless dedicated public servants like me."
Former Georgia state representative and gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams dubbed Trump the "president of cowardice" in her remarks, comparing him to Biden, a "man of proven courage."
Clinton vs. Couch Potato Former President Bill Clinton tore into Trump with relish during his remarks Tuesday evening, slamming him for "spending hours a day watching TV and zapping people on social media" instead of working to fight the coronavirus pandemic.
Watch his full remarks, trashing Trump and praising Biden, here.
Meh reviews DNC Night Two got a bit of ribbing by late night hosts Tuesday, with Stephen Colbert calling it "one of the most electrifying informercials of the year," and Jimmy Fallon quipping that Michelle Obama's speech went so well that everyone wrote in her name instead of Biden's.
No longer "presumptive nominee"
But in the end, it was Biden's night, as he officially accepted the Democratic nomination for president -- to a soundtrack of Kool and the Gang. Watch the festivities, and Biden's remarks, here.
DNC NIGHT THREE
Catch the live program for the third night, as well as all the clips and highlights, via our ongoing coverage.
Night three features speakers to include: Sen. Elizabeth Warren, Speaker Nancy Pelosi, former President Barack Obama, former Secretary of State and 2016 presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, vice presidential candidate Sen. Kamala Harris, and closing remarks from the candidate himself, Joe Biden.
FIND ALL OUR DNC COVERAGE HERE
They're not baseball cards
Here's a bizarre claim from a former Trump official: former senior White House administration official Miles Taylor said on Wednesday that the president wanted to trade "dirty" and "poor" Puerto Rico for Greenland.
Taylor has endorsed Biden and been increasingly vocal in his criticism of his former boss, so we're taking the news with a grain of salt, but it doesn't sound implausible that Trump, who was harshly critical of the island territory's hurricane response, might make an offhand comment that he'd like to trade them away like a baseball card.
Osama who?
White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows decided to rewrite history on Wednesday by claiming Trump is “the only president” who ever successfully eliminated a terrorist enemy of the United States.
He apparently forgot about that day back in early May 2011 when news broke that Seal Team Six raided Osama bin Laden's compound, killing the man who plotted the September 11, 2001 terror attacks.
It's my primary, and I'll cry if I want to
Massachusetts Sen. Edward Markey is in a primary battle with his fellow Democrat and Kennedy scion, Rep. Joe Kennedy III, and the two faced off in their final debate Tuesday evening that featured a truly weird moment when the debate moderator, out of nowhere, asked both of them when was the last time that they cried.
See their answers here. 6.5.0 | 