The second night of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, centers on the theme of securing America with an obvious emphasis on securing the border – an issue that has been a centerpiece of former President Donald Trump’s agenda ever since he descended the golden escalator in 2015.
Tonight’s speaker line-up includes a slew of politicians past, present, and (possibly) future, including:
- Vivek Ramaswamy
- Former UN ambassador and South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley
- Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis
- Florida Sen. Marco Rubio
- Florida Sen. Rick Scott
- Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders
- Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton
- Texas Sen. Ted Cruz
- Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee
- Missouri Sen. Eric Schmitt
- Former HUD Secretary Dr. Ben Carson
- House Speaker Mike Johnson of Louisiana
- House Majority Whip Tom Emmer of Minnesota
- House Majority Leader Steve Scalise of Louisiana
- House Republican Conference Chair Rep. Elise Stefanik of New York
- Rep. Jeff Van Drew of New Jersey
We will also hear from numerous Republican Senate candidates, including Kari Lake (Arizona), Eric Hovde (Wisconsin), Bernie Moreno (Ohio), Mike Rogers (Michigan), Dave McCormick (Pennsylvania), Jim Banks (Indiana), Jim Justice (West Virginia), Sam Brown (Nevada), Tim Sheehy (Montana), and Hung Cao (Virginia).
But perhaps the most important and moving testimony tonight will be from the speakers the RNC describes as “everyday Americans,” including the family of Rachel Morin, a young woman who was murdered by an illegal immigrant.
Outside of the RNC, the news continues to focus on the disturbing revelations trickling out about the Secret Service’s failings during last Saturday’s assassination attempt against Trump.
The other big news today was a jury finding New Jersey Democrat Sen. Bob Menendez guilty on all 16 counts in his federal bribery trial. No word yet on whether he will heed Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer’s call to resign—or if Schumer will force him to.
The Democrat Media Complex is beginning its vetting feeding frenzy against Trump’s vice-presidential pick Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance. The usual suspects are declaring Vance dangerous, scary, and very bad. But the American public–which made Vance’s 2016 memoir Hillbilly Elegy a bestseller–seem to be embracing the Rust Belt senator. Sales of Hillbilly Elegy and viewership of Netflix adaptation of the book skyrocketed after he was announced at Trump’s VP pick yesterday. Vance’s book topped Amazon’s bestseller list Monday; and the film, which was released by Netflix four years ago, became the six most watched movie on the platform in the United States yesterday.
In fact, according to an anecdote shared online today by a college classmate of Joe Biden’s granddaughter, the Biden family patriarch himself was reportedly a fan of Vance’s book.
Here’s a fun little JD Vance/Joe Biden story:
I started undergrad at Penn in 2017. The summer before I arrived, the school organized the Penn Summer Reading Project, where every incoming freshman was asked to read the same book before they got to campus. It was Walter Isaacson’s…
— Sam Oshay (@samueloshay) July 16, 2024
Trump and Vance will reportedly be in attendance at the convention tonight, and their campaign announced that they will be holding a big rally in Grand Rapids, Michigan, on Saturday.
The Democrats still haven’t quite settled on their anti-Vance messaging. One New Hampshire Democrat lawmaker found an interesting line of attack. New Hampshire state Rep. Wendy Thomas (D) claimed that the infamous “Project 2025” agenda (which Trump has declared he knows nothing about) would “deport” Vance’s wife, Usha Chilukuri Vance, who is an American citizen and was born in San Diego.
Meanwhile, the Democrats continue to keep hope alive in their effort to replace Joe Biden as their nominee. We wish them well.
Follow Breitbart News for live updates below, all times Pacific.
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6:50 p.m. PT
Next up is Sen. Eric Schmitt of Missouri.
6:40 p.m. PT
And here comes Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. He gets a cheer for his throw away line about “a Weekend at Bernie’s presidency.” He also gets applause for mention how he sent migrants to Martha’s Vineyard. More red meat about DEI, vaccine mandates, the definition of women, etc.
DeSantis ended with, “fight, fight, fight,” in homage to Trump’s words on Saturday after surviving the assassin’s bullet.
6:29 p.m. PT
And here comes Nikki. It’s a shame Vivek didn’t get this time slot, but it seems that the RNC is hoping that she appeals to voters somewhere. She gets boos from the crowd here. Wow. They’re definitely not fans here, but the old Bushian neocon conservative establishment on the cable news panels love her.
She wins the crowd back over when she declares, “Donald Trump has my strong support. Period.” She is delivering what the RNC hoped she would by offering a unifying message. She’s listing all of the things that she and Trump agree on. One does get the impression that this speech is her job audition for the next Trump administration (or for the 2028 election).
6:24 p.m. PT
Attorney General Brenna Bird of Iowa takes the stage and talks about Republican law and order.
6:16 p.m. PT
Randy Sutton, a former police lieutenant, takes the stage as the crowd chants “back the blue.” He says, “Donald Trump is the best friend we will ever have.” He says America is facing a “plague of crime” that has “made America more dangerous than ever before.” He says Trump and Republicans stand on the “thin blue line” with police. He says the “war on cops” is real and getting police officers killed. He talks about the left’s efforts to “defund and destroy” policing and undermine law and order. He ends by saluting Trump, which Trump returns smiling.
I must say, Trump seems different since Saturday, and for the better. He seems more serious and — dare I say it — more statesman-like.
6:08 p.m. PT
Texas Sen. Ted Cruz thanks God for protecting Trump and prays for the protection of all of our leaders and asks for prayers for the victims of Saturday’s assassination attempt, including Corey Comperatore, the firefighter and Trump supporter who died while protecting his wife and children.
Cruz talks about the “evils” of Americans open border and the victims of these policies.
6:03 p.m. PT
And here comes the Big Man himself! Lots of love from this crowd for the bandaged American Lion.
5:55 p.m. PT
The Hillbilly has arrived! J.D. Vance gets a rock star welcome from this crowd. Trump is also expected to arrive at the convention tonight. This is, of course, a difference from past conventions where the tradition was to keep the nominees from attending until they officially accepted the nomination via a speech. But traditions have changed, just as the purpose of these conventions have changed over the years. Party conventions are no longer really about “deciding” who the nominee is. Those decisions are made well in advance. Conventions are now basically political theater. They’re “earned media” for political parties to tell Americans “here’s why you should vote for us.”
That said, if there is any hope for ever seeing a major American political party hold a “messy” contested convention, it will be the Democrats this year.
5:54 p.m. PT
Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson talks about why he is no longer a Democrat. He says the Democrats don’t care about building safe neighborhoods for black and brown communities. He touts his record of achieving three straight years of violent crime reduction and has become one of the safest major cities in the country. He says that 11 of the top 15 safest cities are led by Republicans.
5:45 p.m. PT
Next up is reality television star Savannah Chrisley, who talks about her parents’ tribulations with the judicial system in Fulton County, where they are serving a 12 and seven year prison sentence. She calls out the law-fare tactics against Trump and even mentions former Trump adviser and Breitbart News chairman Steve Bannon, who is currently serving a four month prison sentence in Connecticut for defying a Congressional subpoena.
5:33 p.m. PT
Okay, now it’s gonna get lively… Here comes Vivek, a Breitbart fan fav. He gives a classic stem winder. He rattles off a popular agenda in the style of “If you want…” and then ends the sentence with “vote Trump,” which the crowd joins him in repeating.
He says Donald Trump is actually a man who can unite the country through actual deeds because “the success is unifying.” He addresses Black Americans and says that Republicans do care about Black communities and want for them what they want for everyone — peace, prosperity, equal justice.
He praises his immigrant parents and all legal immigrants, but has tough words for illegal immigrants. He praises Trump for being willing to “actually tells the truth… even if it comes with some mean tweets from time to time.”
He tells Gen Z that they are the one who will save the country and encourages them to be a “rebel” by embracing traditions like marriage, faith, etc.
It was vintage Vivek.
5:28 p.m. PT
House Speaker Mike Johnson takes the stage and opens by promising the crowd that the Republican-led House is conducting an “immediate and thorough” investigation of Saturday’s assassination attempt.
5:20 p.m. PT
House Majority Leader Steve Scalise end his speech by talking about being the victim of political violence in the 2017 shooting at the Congressional baseball game. He said that Trump was first person to call and console his family after the shooting.
5:16 p.m. PT
House Majority Whip Tom Emmer of Minnesota takes the stand and touts the House GOP’s record. Emmer could potentially be the next speaker if House Republicans retain their majority and decide to replace Speaker Johnson. Emmer calls out the Democrats’ record on trade and China. It’s hard to overstate how much Trump’s populist economic trade message has destroyed the old “free trade” Cato Institute blather that dominated the GOP for decades.
5:15 p.m. PT
Rep. Elise Stefanik uses the word “Bidenflation”–a term coined by Breitbart News–to call out Biden’s inflationary policies.
4:59 p.m. PT
Hung Cao, the Virginia Senate candidate, opens with a sound that his Vietnamese parents heard when they fled the fall of Saigon. He’s a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy and a Navy Special Operations vet who served in Iraq and Afghanistan. He gets the crowd chanting, “USA!”
“I love this country so much that I wrote a blank check up to and including my life,” he says. He calls out his Democrat opponent (“Hillary Clinton’s running mate”) Tim Kayne.
4:53 p.m. PT
Tim Sheehy, another veteran, takes the stage. He is running against Democrat Sen. Jon Tester in Montana, calls out Biden’s disastrous Afghanistan withdrawal.
4:52 p.m. PT
Nevada Senate candidate Sam Brown, a war veteran who bears the scars from America’s wars, gave a poignant anti-war message. “Look at my face. This is the price of war… I’ve been through the fire.” He calls out Biden’s dangerous warmongering record and the suffering that endless war brings.
4:41 p.m. PT
Indiana’s own Jim Banks, who is running for Senate, is next. And what a tough act to follow after Baby Dog! Banks, who currently represents Indiana’s 3rd congressional district in the U.S. House, is also well known to Breitbart readers. In an interview today with Breitbart, he praised Trump’s decision to pick Vance as his running mate. Banks, who is a conservative in the same populist mold as Vance, told Breitbart that Trump “cementing the future of the America First movement” with the Vance pick.
Banks says that his union worker dad was a Democrat but is now a Trump voter. He talks about how Trump brought back American manufacturing and took on China with tariffs.
4:40 p.m. PT
West Virginia Gov. and U.S. Senate candidate Jim Justice takes the stage with his dog “Baby Dog.” It’s unclear to me why he brought Baby Dog, but I love it. Justice says, “Baby Dog has a prediction…” And, according to Justice, Baby Dog predicts only great things for Republicans. Gotta love West Virginia.
Gov. Jim Justice brings out “baby dog” to the RNC: @DailyCaller pic.twitter.com/ViI6DjAlyq
— Henry Rodgers (@henryrodgersdc) July 16, 2024
4:26 p.m. PT
Dave McCormick, who is running for Senate in Pennsylvania, takes the stage. McCormick was at the rally on Saturday and witnessed the attempted assassination. He says that he “witnessed firsthand from a front row seat in Butler” how “the president rose to the challenge.” And that’s all he says about that. It’s interesting that we have not heard more from the speakers about the assassination attempt. It’s feels like the elephant in the room.
4:22 p.m. PT
Next up is the Great Lake State’s own Mike Rogers, who is running for Senate. He gives a shout out to the hard working people of Michigan. And, of course, the man running in the state that’s home to the Motor City calls out Biden’s idiotic electric vehicle agenda and the Democrats’ efforts to give U.S. tax dollars to a Chinese EV company in Michigan. He gets a huge cheer when he dunks on EVs.
4:16 p.m. PT
Bernie Moreno, who is running for Senate in Ohio, takes the stage. Moreno is well known to regular Breitbart readers. He’s another Rust Belt populist in the mold of J.D. Vance, who he touts tonight, calling Vance his friend. He talks about securing the border, ending the wars, and being peace.
4:10 p.m. PT
MAGA favorite Kari Lake, who is running for Senate in Arizona, takes the stage. And she immediately calls out the “fake news media” for lying about everything from Trump, to the economy, to the open borders, to the Hunter laptop, and even Joe Biden’s health. She slams her Democrat opponent’s stance on the open border. She starts a “build the wall” chant.
“And while we’re building the wall, lets lick the Bidenomics to the curb and bring back the MAGAnomics,” she says.
Lake then cribs a line from former Alaska Gov. and Republican Vice Presidential nominee Sarah Palin by talking about mama bears protecting their cubs. She says she heard somewhere that “the most dangerous place on planet earth is between a mama bear and her cubs.” (She heard it from Palin. Take it from this writer, who was a Palin speechwriter.)
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