Biden’s Notes on Harris Caught by Photographer: Campaign Update
Biden Ad Centers on Coronavirus Victim: Campaign Update
(Bloomberg) -- A glimpse of Democratic nominee Joe Biden’s notes at a press conference revealed he doesn’t “hold grudges” toward potential running mate Kamala Harris. Biden has reservations about reopening professional sports. And the Republicans will formally nominate Donald Trump for president in Charlotte, North Carolina, on Aug. 24.
There are 98 days until the election.
Other Developments:
Biden’s Notes on Harris Are Captured by Photographer
The handwritten notes Joe Biden brought to a news conference Tuesday included a few bullet points on potential running mate Kamala Harris.
The notes, captured by an Associated Press photographer as the former vice president was fielding questions after a speech in Wilmington, Delaware, say: “Do not hold grudges. Campaigned with me & Jill. Talented. Great help to campaign. Great respect for her.”
The “grudges” point is likely a reference to a tense moment at a primary debate in June when Harris confronted Biden over his past positions on the use of busing to desegregate schools.
Harris, a California senator, has been considered a top pick for Biden, especially with activist groups urging him to pick a Black woman.
The Biden campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Biden Is Worried About Reopening Professional Sports (5:44 p.m.)
Biden expressed reservations Tuesday about professional sports leagues resuming games amid the coronavirus pandemic.
In particular, the Democratic nominee said he doubts Major League Baseball will be able to continue its season after more than a dozen players on the Miami Marlins tested positive for the coronavirus.
“It seems to me that it’s probably not going to be able to happen, based on what the leagues themselves are saying,” Biden said.
The former vice president said the required travel and hotel stays are likely not feasible as the virus continues to spread unchecked in much of the country. “All those things add up to a real problem,” he said.
But Biden said the National Basketball Association’s mandate that all players, coaches and media stay within a bubble in Florida “seems to work a little bit.” -- Tyler Pager
Republicans Will Nominate Trump in Charlotte on Aug. 24 (4:55 p.m.)
The Republican National Committee plans to hold the official part of its convention, including the nomination of President Donald Trump, in Charlotte, North Carolina, next month, as previously scheduled.
The plan still calls for 336 delegates to come to Charlotte to conduct formal convention business Aug. 21-24. They will formally nominate Trump for president at midday on Aug. 24, according to a Republican National Committee official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss internal plans.
As of now, events in Charlotte will be closed to the press, the official said. Speaking to reporters berfore a tour of a North Carolina facility working on a coronavirus vaccine on Monday, Trump said he’s “really happy that we’re going to be having a piece of it at least -- and a very important piece” of the convention in North Carolina.
In an interview with North Carolina television station WRAL on Monday, Trump said he would announce where he will deliver his acceptance speech either by the end of this week or early next week.
Last week, Trump canceled plans for part of the convention to be held in Jacksonville, Florida, as the state deals with a spike in coronavirus cases. That portion was scheduled after North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper refused to waive social-distancing and other measures to prevent contagion. -- Mario Parker
Twitter Suspends Donald Trump Jr. Over Purported Coronavirus Cure (10:48 a.m.)
Donald Trump Jr.’s Twitter account has been temporarily suspended after the president’s eldest son shared a video of a group of people touting hydroxychloroquine as an effective treatment for Covid-19.
The Food and Drug Administration last month revoked emergency use authorization for the drug after determining it may have deadly side effects, and the World Health Organization also said it would discontinue its own tests of hydroxychloroquine.
After an adviser to Trump Jr. reported the suspension, Twitter issued a statement saying the move was not permanent, but that the tweet “requires deletion because it violates our rules (sharing misinformation on COVID-19), and the account will have limited functionality for 12 hours.”
Republicans, including the president, have railed against social media and technology companies, saying that they’re biased against conservatives. Yesterday, Trump criticized Twitter for automated trends that portray him negatively, saying that its “ridiculous, illegal, and of course, very unfair!” -- Mario Parker
Fewer Americans Identify as Conservative (9:43 a.m.)
Fewer Americans self-identify as conservative than at the beginning of the year, according to Gallup polling.
Gallup averaged three polls taken in May and June, which showed 40% of Americans said they were conservative in polls in January and February, but that slipped to just 34% in May and June. The percentage who self-identified as liberal ticked up from 22% to 26%, while moderates stayed roughly the same.
The biggest declines came among Americans age 35 to 54, down 10 points. Those making more than $100,000 a year were down 11 points and residents of suburbs, down eight points.
The survey results are based on polls of 3,079 adults in all 50 states. The margin of error is plus or minus 2 percentage points.
Biden Ad Focuses on Coronavirus Victim (6:30 a.m.)
A new Biden ad features a Wisconsin woman talking about the death of her grandmother due to the coronavirus.
In the 30-second ad called “Didn’t Matter,” Jessica Alvarado says Trump “made a huge mistake in downplaying this virus.”
“There was a lack of leadership, a lack of responsibility and a lack of resources,” she says. “It felt like our elderly have not been a priority for this administration, that they don’t matter. And I feel like my grandmother didn’t matter.”
Alvarado’s grandmother, Susana Martinez, died of Covid-19 on April 29, according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Trump Doesn’t Like Twitter’s Trending Topics (6:30 a.m.)
Trump’s love-hate relationship with Twitter added another chapter Monday, as the president took aim at the social media site’s trending topics.
In an early evening tweet, the president said that “sooo many trends are about me, and never a good one,” saying it was “really ridiculous, illegal, and, of course, very unfair.”
Although Trump often complains about Twitter and says the platform is unfair to conservatives by muting their voices, he uses it regularly to amplify his message. Twitter’s trending topics are chosen by an algorithm, but Trump is not wrong that a lot of recent ones are about him.
A little-known Democratic group called MeidasTouch has managed to get hashtags like #ByeDonJr, #TrumpCantKeepItUp and #PardonMeTrump trending, while the conservative Lincoln Project has gotten #TrumpIsNotWell and other hashtags to trend.
After Trump’s tweet, “illegal” and #TrumpleThinSkin began trending.
Biden Has a Lot of ‘Hard Truths’ For Voters (6:30 a.m.)
In recent weeks, Biden has developed a habit of noting that he has a “hard truth” to share in prepared remarks and tweets.
“The hard truth is that it didn’t have to be this bad, but Donald Trump ignored the warnings and refused to take action,” the Democratic nominee tweeted recently about the coronavirus.
Biden most often uses the phrase to argue that Trump has mishandled the pandemic, saying it’s a “hard truth” that he downplayed the threat, that the pandemic will last longer because of him and that he failed to stop the related economic downturn.
But he’s also argued that it’s a “hard truth” that America has not yet reached gender equality, that Black Americans are more likely to die from gun violence, that “women -- and particularly women of color -- have never had a fair shot to get ahead in this country,” and that America “can’t just build back the way things were before these crises.”
Hitting back, Vice President Mike Pence said recently that it’s a “hard truth that you won’t be safe in Joe Biden’s America.”
Coming Up:
Biden will give a speech in Wilmington, Delaware Tuesday on the fourth plank of his economic recovery proposals, which centers on racial economic equity and systemic racism.
Trump will give a coronavirus briefing at 5 p.m.
Pence will visit a private school in Apex, North Carolina, on Wednesday.
Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren will host a virtual fundraiser for Biden on Friday afternoon.
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