Live: Barack Obama to rip into Trump by name during Democratic convention speech
Bart Jansen, Maureen Groppe, John Fritze and Ledyard King USA TODAYDay 3 of the Democratic Convention is set to begin. You can follow along through the night by refreshing this page for live coverage.
Pelosi will charge Trump with not respecting women
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, the nation’s highest elected female, will go after President Donald Trump’s treatment of women in her remarks at the Democratic National Convention.
“As speaker, I’ve seen firsthand Donald Trump’s disrespect for facts, for working families, and for women in particular – disrespect written into his policies toward our health and our rights, not just his conduct,” Pelosi will say, according to excerpts of her remarks released hours before her appearance. “But we know what he doesn’t: that when women succeed, America succeeds.”
Pelosi is scheduled to speak during Democrats’ observance of the 100-year anniversary of women getting the right to vote. That segment of the schedule is titled: “A More Perfect Union...Means Women Lead.”
Pelosi, the nation’s first female House speaker, owes her current gavel to the female candidates, campaign contributors and voters who flipped the House in 2018 after Trump’s 2016 victory of Hillary Clinton galvanized women across the country.
“We come together again, not to decry the darkness, but to light a way forward for our country,” Pelosi will say. “That is the guiding purpose of House Democrats. We are fighting for the people.”
- Maureen Groppe
Hillary Clinton: don’t make this another 'woulda coulda shoulda election'
Hillary Clinton said she still hears from Americans who say they didn’t realize how “dangerous” Donald Trump would be as president.
On Wednesday, the former secretary of state who ran – and lost – to Trump in 2016, is expected to urge those voters not to be complacent this time.
“This can’t be another woulda coulda shoulda election,” she’s expected to tell viewers during the third day of the Democratic National Convention according to excerpts released by the DNC.
“If you vote by mail, request your ballot now, and send it back as soon as you can. If you vote in person, do it early,” she’s expected to say. “Bring a friend and wear a mask. Become a poll worker. Most of all, no matter what, vote. Vote like our lives and livelihoods are on the line, because they are.”
More: Democrats argue case for Joe Biden as empathetic. Now what would a President Biden do?
Trump, who lost the popular vote to his Democratic rival four years ago, still brings up Clinton from time to time. Last week, he tweeted that Clinton “was much smarter and sharper” than Biden to show why he believes he’s well-positioned to win re-election.
Clinton Wednesday is expected to say the country was experiencing “heartbreak” even before the coronavirus pandemic struck but Trump has made it worse.
“But, as the saying goes, the world breaks everyone, and afterward, many are strong at the broken places,” she’s expected to say. “Joe Biden knows how to heal, unify, and lead, because he’s done all of that for his family and his country.”
— Ledyard King
Kamala Harris to call for a more inclusive nation
In her speech tonight as the first woman of color nominated for a presidential ticket by a major party, Kamala Harris will paint a vision of a country where everyone is welcome and looks out for each other – “no matter what we look like, where we come from, or who we love.”
“Today, that country feels distant,” she will say, according to excerpts of her remarks released hours before her address will cap the penultimate night of the Democratic National Convention
Harris will also lash into President Donald Trump, charging that his “failure of leadership” is costing “lives and livelihoods.”
“Right now, we have a president who turns our tragedies into political weapons,” Harris will say in her remarks from Wilmington, Del. “Joe (Biden) will be a president who turns our challenges into purpose.”
If the Biden/Harris ticket wins in November, Harris will be the first Black woman and first Asian American woman to serve as vice president.
Harris is the daughter of the late Shyamala Gopalan, a breast-cancer scientist who immigrated from India, and Donald Harris, a professor of economics who immigrated from Jamaica.
— Maureen Groppe
Obama to rip into Trump by name at Democratic convention
Former President Barack Obama will offer some of his most pointed criticism of President Donald Trump during remarks at the Democratic convention Wednesday, arguing that his successor “hasn’t grown into the job because he can’t.”
“I never expected that my successor would embrace my vision or continue my policies,” Obama will say, according to excerpts of his remarks released hours before his address. “I did hope, for the sake of our country, that Donald Trump might show some interest in taking the job seriously; that he might come to feel the weight of the office and discover some reverence for the democracy that had been placed in his care.”
Though Obama frequently discusses Trump administration policies, he almost never mentions the current president by name – even as Trump has slammed his administration on a near daily basis.
“He’s shown no interest in putting in the work; no interest in finding common ground; no interest in using the awesome power of his office to help anyone but himself and his friends,” Obama will assert in a live address to be delivered from Philadelphia.
“Donald Trump hasn’t grown into the job because he can’t,” Obama will say. “And the consequences of that failure are severe.”
— John Fritze
Rep. Dent focuses on 'right and wrong'
Former Republican Rep. Charlie Dent of Pennsylvania announced his support for Joe Biden Wednesday.
Dent didn't support President Donald Trump in 2016, and told CNN that he was not going to help reelect the president in 2020. Dent said that right now for him it's not about "Right or Left," but about "right and wrong."
"I feel that we need to return some sense of normalcy to the function of government," Dent told CNN"s Jake Tapper. "We simply don't have that now. And that's why I'm going to be voting for Joe Biden for President."
Dent, a moderate Republican, retired in May 2018 from Congress. In his farewell speech to Congress, Dent lamented that "too many Republicans expect unquestioning — blind, unquestioning — loyalty and obedience to President Trump, no matter how absurd or disruptive the comment or behavior."
— Rebecca Morin
How to watch
DNC speeches will be broadcast from 9 p.m. to 11 p.m. ET Monday through Thursday.
The event will be broadcast on all major television networks. Viewers also can tune in using Amazon Prime and Amazon Fire devices, including listening via Alexa, as well as watching on Apple TV and Roku TV.
Who is speaking?
Within the theme of "A More Perfect Union," the lineup includes some of the Washington officials who have drawn prolonged criticism from Republicans. The speakers will cover a variety of subjects that are priorities for Democrats.
Two women will discuss their goal of reducing gun violence. DeAndra Dycus' son was paralyzed by a stray bullet at 13. Former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz., survived being shot in head at a community event while serving in Congress. Her husband, former astronaut Mark Kelly, is running to unseat Republican Sen. Martha McSally in the presidential battleground state.
New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, whom Biden considered as his running mate, will speak about climate change. A video will describe Biden's $2 trillion proposal to spur development of clean energy and youth activists will chat about the plan.
Billie Eilish will sing a song.
Sylvia Sanchez, an undocumented worker in North Carolina, will talk about immigration policy. Her daughter, Jessica, is nicknamed a "dreamer" for seeking to legitimize her status.
Prince Royce, a Dominican American singer, will perform.
Suffrage is on the agenda on the 100th anniversary of women winning the right to vote. Hillary Clinton, a former secretary of state and 2016 nominee for president, and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., will speak about women leaders.
A video will describe one of Biden's legislative achievements, the Violence Against Women Act. Ruth Glenn, CEO of National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, will speak about it.
Hilda Solis, a former labor secretary and former House member from California, will speak about the economy. Ohio Sen. Sherrod Brown, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti and Iowa Rep. Cindy Axne will talk to small business owners.
A former primary rival of Biden, Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, will speak before Obama and Harris complete the night.
Via PakapNews