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DNC Day 1 Recap: Biden passes torch to Harris at hero's sendoff

Brendan Mcdermid | Reuters

U.S. President Joe Biden blows his nose during Day one of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Chicago, Illinois, U.S., August 19, 2024. 

This was CNBC's live coverage of the 2024 Democratic National Convention in Chicago, Ill.

The first day of the 2024 Democratic National Convention in Chicago hailed the accomplishments and the legacy of the party's outgoing leader, President Joe Biden.

  • Biden received a loving sendoff from the crowd of delegate, who chanted and waved banners and listened attentively to Biden's hourlong keynote speech.
  • Vice President Kamala Harris made a surprise appearance early in the night. The Democratic nominee was not on the official agenda, and the delegates roared when she stepped on stage.
  • Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and United Auto Workers president Sean Fain both delivered prime-time speeches that won huge applause from a fired up crowd.
Kamil Krzaczynski | AFP | Getty Images
Delegates hold up signs as US President Joe Biden arrives at the podium to speak on the first day of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois, on August 19, 2024. 
  • Chicago police say four protesters were arrested following a breach of the convention's outer security perimeter.
  • Earlier in the day, Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump laid out what his campaign called his economic agenda.

Biden says he's not angry about exiting Trump race: 'I love my country more'

Mandel Ngan | AFP | Getty Images
US President Joe Biden delivers the keynote address on the first day of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois, on August 19, 2024. 

Biden denied reports that he harbors resentments against Democratic party members calling on him to drop out of the presidential race.

"All this talk about how I'm angry at all the people who said I should step down — that's not true," Biden said. "It's been the honor of my lifetime to serve as your president. I love the job, but I love my country more."

Instead, he said he was focused on finishing out the remaining five months of his term: "I've got five months left in my presidency. I've got a lot to do. I intend to get it done."

At the end of his almost hour-long speech, Biden was joined on stage by his family, including Jill Biden, along with Harris and her husband, Doug Emhoff.

Rebecca Picciotto

Biden: Gaza war protesters 'have a point'

Robert Gauthier | Los Angeles Times | Getty Images
Chicago, Ill, Sunday, August 18, 2024 - The March For Bodies Against Unjust Laws moves along Michigan Ave to Grant Park.

The thousands of Gaza war protesters at the DNC are demonstrating for legitimate reasons, said Biden, acknowledging a conflict that has polarized the United States and created deep rifts in the Democratic party.

"We're working around the clock, my Secretary of State, to prevent a wider war and reunite hostages with their families and surge humanitarian health and food assistance into Gaza now," Biden said. "But those protesters out in the street, they have a point. A lot of innocent people are being killed on both sides."

Rebecca Picciotto

Biden shares the credit on policy accomplishments: 'Thank you Kamala, too'

Chip Somodevilla | Getty Images
US President Joe Biden speaks on the first day of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois, on August 19, 2024. 

Biden recounted the landmark achievements of his presidential term and made room to share the recognition with Harris.

"We've had one of the most extraordinary four years of progress ever, period," he said. "When I say we, I mean Kamala and me."

In what could likely be his most-viewed public appearance for the remaining months of his term, Biden listed out his administration's major policy accomplishments like the Inflation Reduction Act, the CHIPS Act and others.

As the crowd chanted, "Thank you, Joe," the president responded: "Thank you Kamala, too."

Rebecca Picciotto

Biden welcomed onstage with a four-minute standing ovation as crowd chants 'We love Joe!'

Charly Triballeau | AFP | Getty Images
US President Joe Biden speaks on the first day of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois, on August 19, 2024. 

Biden was unable to get a word in edgewise during the first minutes of his keynote speech, as he was drowned out by a riled up crowd that gave him a standing ovation and chanted "Thank you, Joe!"

The president thanked his daughter, Ashley Biden, who introduced him, along with his son, Hunter, and his wife, Jill Biden.

The overwhelming expressions of support for Biden cap a profoundly difficult month for the president, who decided to step out of the race on July 21, as the Democratic party grew increasingly concerned about his ability to beat Trump.

Rebecca Picciotto

Biden dug 'deep into his soul' in deciding to drop his reelection bid, first lady says

"Joe and I have been together for almost 50 years, and still, there are moments when I fall in love with him all over again," First Lady Jill Biden tells the convention crowd.

"Those moments when I'm reminded of all he's accomplished in the name of something bigger than himself... [like] weeks ago, when I saw him dig deep into his soul and decide to no longer seek reelection and endorse Kamala Harris," she says.

The first lady is also recalling when her and the president's late son, Beau Biden, first told her about Harris.

Beau worked with Harris when they were both state attorneys general, he of Delaware and she of California.

"He told me at the dinner table one night, 'Mom, she's special, someone to keep your eye on.' And he was right," she says. "Joe and I know Kamala. We have seen her courage, her determination and her leadership up close."

Turning to Harris and Walz, Biden says "Kamala and Tim, you will win."

– Josephine Rozzelle

Who is Rep. Jasmine Crockett?

Chip Somodevilla | Getty Images
Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-TX) speaks onstage during the first day of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center on August 19, 2024 in Chicago, Illinois.

Sandwiched in the lineup of speakers between Hillary Clinton and the Biden family was Rep. Jasmine Crockett, a first-term lawmaker from Texas whose knack for creating viral moments on Capitol Hill has catapulted her into the national spotlight.

In her turn on the DNC stage, Crockett drew laughs, and tears, from the crowd as she tore into Trump and tenderly recounted her first time meeting Harris.

Crockett, 43, worked as a civil rights attorney before she was elected to the Texas state House. She was elected to represent the state's 30th congressional district in 2022.

She has experienced a rapidly rising profile, thanks in no small part to her sense of humor and her willingness to clash with her Republican colleagues, including the lightening rod conservative Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia.

At one point she reference done of her previous viral moments, as she slammed Trump over the boxes of classified materials that he kept in a Mar-a-Lago bathroom.

Kevin Breuninger

Clyburn: Trump's 'Project 2025' is 'Jim Crow 2.0'

Elizabeth Frantz | Reuters
U.S. Rep. James E. Clyburn (D-SC) speaks during Day one of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Chicago, Illinois, U.S., August 19, 2024. 

Jim Clyburn, the Democratic House Representative from South Carolina, said that Trump cannot detach himself from the controversial Project 2025 platform, which he likened to a second iteration of Jim Crow-era policies.

"While Trump falsely pleads ignorance of Project 2025, which in my opinion, is Jim Crow 2.0, Kamala has been offering the American people enlightening proposals and visionary leadership," Clyburn said.

Clyburn, a close Biden ally, had a huge influence in helping Biden win over Black voters during the 2020 election, a key demographic of the Democratic base that catapulted him to win the White House.

Rebecca Picciotto

'We have him on the run,' Clinton says of Trump. 'We can't let up'

Kevin Lamarque | Reuters
Former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton speaks at the Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Chicago, Illinois, U.S., August 19, 2024. 

Clinton just closed her remarks by rallying the arena full of Democrats to mobilize for Harris' campaign, saying, "we have [Trump] on the run!"

"No matter what the polls say, we can't let up," Clinton says, alluding to recent surveys that show Harris leading Trump by slim margins.

"For the next 78 days, we need to work harder than we ever have," Clinton says. "We need to beat back the dangers that Trump and his allies pose to the rule of law and our way of life."

– Josephine Rozzelle

Delegates chant 'Lock him up!' as Hillary Clinton mocks Trump conviction

Former Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton contrasted Harris' record as a prosecutor with Trump's recently established criminal record — prompting the DNC crowd to chant, "Lock him up!"

"As a prosecutor, Kamala locked up murderers and drug traffickers, she will never rest in defense of our freedom and safety," Clinton said.

"Donald Trump fell asleep in his own trial," she said," and when he woke up, he made his own kind of history: The first person to run for president with 34 felony convictions."

The irony was hard to miss. When Clinton was running for president in the 2016 election, Trump's campaign rally crowds routinely chanted, "Lock her up." Trump, despite recently claiming he discouraged those chants, repeatedly echoed the calls to jail Clinton.

Kevin Breuninger

NBA coach Steve Kerr on Tim Walz: 'Coach to coach, that guy is awesome"

Saul Loeb | AFP | Getty Images
Golden State Warriors and Team USA head coach Steve Kerr speaks on stage on the first day of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois, on August 19, 2024. 

Golden State Warriors Coach Steve Kerr lauded the Harris-Walz ticket and pledged to spend each day until the November election trying to boost voter turnout.

"They have devoted their lives to serving other people, whether Vice President Harris was defending her community in the courtroom or Governor Walz was inspiring the next generation in the classroom or on the field," Kerr said. "By the way, coach to coach that guy's awesome."

Kerr was a late addition to the DNC speaker list. He said he only received his invitation a couple days after he wrapped up his time at the Paris Olympics where both the men's and women's U.S. basketball teams won gold.

"I know very well that speaking out about politics these days comes with risks," Kerr said. "I can see the shut up and whistle tweets being fired off as we speak."

"But I also knew as soon as I was asked that it was too important as an American citizen not to speak up in an election of this magnitude," he added.

Rebecca Picciotto

Top content creator Deja Foxx speaks alongside other creators

Creators are having their moment at the DNC this year.

Content creator and reproductive rights activist Deja Foxx spoke on the convention floor tonight, marking another indication that the campaign is focusing on attracting young voters for this year's election.

"For young people, this is a fight for our future," said Foxx. "We have a responsibility to do this, and we have a responsibility to do it right, and that's why we're going to show up for Kamala Harris and Tim Walz."

More than 200 digital content creators were given credentials to attend the convention. The creators also have their own platform on the convention floor, a lounge to work on their content and access to high profile members attending.

Foxx has over 140,000 followers on TikTok and previously worked for Harris' 2020 presidential campaign as an Influencer and Surrogate Strategist, according to her website. Four other creators are planned to speak throughout the rest of the convention, Carlos Eduardo Espina, Olivia Julianna, Nabela Noor and John Russell.

-Zach Vallese

Michigan state senator will spotlight a new Project 2025 goal every night this week

Mike Segar | Reuters
Senator Mallory McMorrow (D-MI) holds up a "Project 25" book on Day one of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Chicago, Illinois, U.S., August 19, 2024. 

Michigan State Sen. Mallory McMorrow took the DNC stage wielding what appeared to be a large bound copy of Project 2025, the 900-paged policy plan for a second Trump term drafted the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank.

McMorrow will read from the book every day of the convention this week, each night highlighting a different theme of the plan that Democrats say threatens Americans' rights and freedoms.

"Tonight, I want to tell you about just one aspect of Project 2025: Its plan to turn Donald Trump into a dictator," McMorrow said, reading from sections that discuss broadening Trump's ability to fire civil servants who disagree with him and ending law enforcement's independent status.

"That is not how it works in America," McMorrow said. "That's how it works in dictatorships, and that's exactly what Donald Trump and his MAGA minions have in mind: An expansion of presidential powers like no president has ever had or should ever have."

– Josephine Rozzelle

DNC's embrace of 'brat' and neon green visible across the convention floor

Saul Loeb | AFP | Getty Images
Delegates hold up signs reading "union yes!" on the first day of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois, on August 19, 2024. 

There is a lot more electric green at this year's DNC than ever before.

After the performer Charli XCX said Harris embodied the ethos of her megahit album "Brat," the Harris campaign embraced the messaging — and it's signature electric green hue.

The unlikely alliance between Harris and the carefree "Brat" attitude has produced viral content online that draws hundreds of millions of clicks on social media.

Now, convention VIPs are getting in on the trend. Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker was spotted wearing a neon green tie. Other attendees are sporting bright green outfits around the convention floor. Hats embroidered with "Demo(b)rat" are being sold at the DemPalooza market.

-Zach Vallese

Harris fires up crowd in surprise speech: 'We are moving forward'

Brendan Mcdermid | Reuters
Democratic presidential candidate and U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris attends Day one of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Chicago, Illinois, U.S., August 19, 2024. 

Harris made a surprise appearance to praise President Joe Biden, who is speaking later Monday night, and fire up the DNC crowd.

"This is going to be a great week," Harris said after taking the stage to a lead-in video featuring the music of Beyonce Knowles.

She invited the crowd to kick off the week by celebrating Biden for his "historic leadership .... and for all you will continue to do. We are forever grateful to you."

The crowd briefly began to chant, "Thank you, Joe."

Harris told the audience, "We are moving forward," adding, "When we fight, we win."

Kevin Breuninger

SEIU leader: With Harris as president 'we will usher in a new era of worker power'

The head of the Service Employees International Union told the convention that, with Harris as president, "we will usher in a new era of worker power."

"We're all in for Kamala Harris because Kamala Harris has always been all in for us," said SEIU President April Verrett, one of several major labor leaders addressing the convention tonight. "She shares our vision of a modern-day union movement."

Lee Saunders, president of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, said, "Four years ago we faced a pandemic and a recession with a president who didn't care one bit for what working people were going through."

"Enter Joe Biden and Kamala Harris," Saunders said. "Within weeks they passed the American Rescue Plan, pulling the American economy back from the brink and putting us back to work ... This November we're moving forward with Kamala Harris as our president."

- Dan Mangan

Ex-MAGA supporter appeals to Republicans: 'It's never too late to change your mind'

A former self-described "full-fledged member of MAGA" turned Harris voter urged Republicans and independents who are watching the DNC to consider swearing off Trump.

"I finally stepped outside the MAGA echo chamber, I stopped listening to what Trump said and looked around with my own eyes," said Rich Logis, a Florida resident who wrote an op-ed last year about his conversion from four-time Trump voter to "Never Trumper."

"And I realized, he had been lying about pretty much everything," Logis said in a prerecorded video. "I made a grave mistake. But it's never too late to change your mind."

"You don't need to agree with everything you hear tonight to do what is right," he added. "We need to be able to trust our leaders. That's why I'm all in for Kamala Harris."

Kevin Breuninger

Gwen Walz opens up about her IVF journey as Tim Walz, Harris elevate families' stories

Jerry Holt | Star Tribune | Getty Images
Minnesota DFL (Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party) Governor Tim Walz, kissed his wife Gwen Walz, as they celebrated his election victory over Republican Scott Jensen at the Intercontinental Hotel in St. Paul, Minn., Tuesday November 8, 2022. 

Gwen Walz opens up about her fertility struggles in a new feature in Glamour Magazine.

"Our fertility journey was an incredibly personal and difficult experience," Walz says in a post to her X account, linking to the profile. "After seeing the extreme attacks on reproductive health care across the country, @Tim_Walz and I spoke out about our experience."

Tim and Gwen Walz have been outspoken about the issues they had getting pregnant, and their ultimate decision to use intrauterine insemination.

As Republicans struggle to clarify a position on reproductive rights and family planning, Gwen Walz's story is an example of how the Walz family has used their deeply personal struggles to drive home the stakes for women and families this November.

The Trump campaign has wavered on abortion ban exceptions, birth control and IVF, trying to walk the line between appealing to parts of its base that support hardline restrictions, and not alienating more moderate voters.

Click here to read the full Glamour story.

Rebecca Picciotto

Four people arrested after protestors breach outer barricade at DNC

Christian Monterrosa | AFP | Getty Images
Protesters in Union Park prepare to march before the start of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Chicago, Illinois, on August 19, 2024. 

Police have made four arrests after a group of protestors tore down a barricade outside of the DNC venue, Chicago Police spokesperson Tom Ahern tells NBC News affiliate WMAQ.

"The Chicago Police Department remains on-scene and is working to clear the area," the statement said.

"Law enforcement personnel were immediately on-scene and contained the situation," the DNC Public Safety Joint Information Center said in a statement. "At no point was the inner perimeter breached, and there was no threat to any protectees."

Marco Bello | Reuters
Riot police officers stand guard in front of demonstrators during the rally "March on the DNC" on the sidelines of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Chicago, Illinois, U.S., August 19, 2024. 

– Josephine Rozzelle

Iran's political cyber attacks, disinfo are getting more 'aggressive', say FBI and ODNI

Nazanin Tabatabaee | Via Reuters
A man walks past an anti-U.S. mural on the wall of former U.S. Embassy in Tehran, Iran January 21, 2020. 

U.S. national security and intelligence agencies say Iran's attempts to influence American elections are getting more aggressive as the presidential race enters the home stretch.

"We have observed increasingly aggressive Iranian activity during this election cycle, specifically involving influence operations targeting the American public and cyber operations targeting presidential campaigns," the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, say in a new joint statement.

"This includes the recently reported activities to compromise former President Trump's campaign."

Earlier in August, the Trump campaign said foreign hackers breached its internal systems and obtained confidential documents.

The FBI says it is still investigating the potential cyberattack, but that the broader intelligence community agrees that Iran is the perpetrator.

Iran has been working to breach the cyber defenses of "both political parties," the agencies say.

Rebecca Picciotto

Trump says he will publicly release his medical records 'very gladly, sure'

Joe Raedle | Getty Images
Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump points to his ear, where the bullet of an attempted assassin grazed him after a reporter asked about his ear during a press conference at Mr. Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate on August 08, 2024, in Palm Beach, Florida. 

Trump said he will publicly release his medical records, while denying that his health was affected in any way after narrowly surviving an assassination attempt a month earlier.

Trump in a television interview with CBS News said he would share those records "very gladly, sure."

He denied that he is suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder after being grazed by a bullet from a would-be assassin at a campaign rally in western Pennsylvania.

Trump also says he just received a "perfect score" on a medical test and has "aced" two more cognitive tests.

"I think anybody that runs for president, whether they're 75 or 65 or 45, I think should take a cognitive test," Trump told CBS.

Kevin Breuninger

Trump says he'd offer Elon Musk a Cabinet slot — but might end EV tax credit

AP
Former President Donald Trump, left, during a rally at the Minden Tahoe Airport in Minden, Nevada, Oct. 8, 2022, and Elon Musk in Wilmington, Delaware, July 12, 2021.

Trump said he would offer Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk a Cabinet position or an advisory role in his administration if he defeats Harris this fall, and if Musk "would do it."

But Trump also said he would consider getting rid of a $7,500 tax credit for certain new electric vehicles, which might make Musk unhappy since Tesla sells EVs.

"Tax credits and tax incentives are not generally a very good thing," Trump told Reuters after a campaign event in York, Pennsylvania.

Kevin Breuninger

Trump shares fake AI pics showing Taylor Swift fans supporting him

Carlos Alvarez | Getty Images
Taylor Swift performs onstage during her The Eras Tour at Johan Cruijff Arena in Amsterdam on July 4, 2024.

Trump shared images purporting to show fans of popstar Taylor Swift wearing "Swifties for Trump" shirts and said he would welcome their support.

The problem: Many of the images Trump shared were generated by artificial intelligence and did not show real people at all, NBC News reported.

Another photo Trump shared in a Truth Social post on Sunday appeared to show an AI rendering of Swift dressed in an Uncle Sam costume in front of an American flag.

"Taylor wants you to vote for Donald Trump," read a caption laid over the image.

"I accept!" Trump wrote in the post above the images, which had originally been posted by accounts on X, formerly Twitter.

Swift has yet to endorse any presidential candidate in the 2024 contest.

Swift endorsed then-Democratic nominee Joe Biden in the 2020 election.

Kevin Breuninger

Labor union leaders to speak tonight, but top Teamster won't be among them

Jeff Kowalsky | AFP | Getty Images
UAW President Shawn Fain (R) speaks during a campaign event with US Vice President and 2024 Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris (L) and Minnesota Governor and 2024 Democratic vice presidential candidate Tim Walz at United Auto Workers Local 900 in Wayne, Michigan, August 8, 2024. 

Leaders of some of the largest labor unions in the country will deliver a joint address on the DNC stage tonight in support of Harris, according to the convention.

The six union leaders set to speak together are:

  • Lee Saunders, president of the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees
  • April Verrett, president of the Service Employees International Union
  • Brent Booker, general president of the Laborers' International Union of North America
  • Kenneth Cooper, international president of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers
  • Claude Cummings Jr., president of the Communications Workers of America
  • Elizabeth Shuler, president of the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations

United Auto Workers President Shawn Fain, who earlier this month campaigned with Harris and Walz at the union's headquarters, will deliver a solo address later in the evening.

Notably absent from the lineup of union leaders tonight is Teamsters President Sean O'Brien, who in July became the first Teamster to ever speak at a Republican convention.

"Sean O'Brien has not received an invite in response to our request to speak at the DNC," Teamsters spokesperson Kara Deniz told CNBC in an email.

Responding to CBS News' reporting that the Teamsters will still be represented on the DNC stage tonight, Deniz said: "I do not know about the presence."

– Josephine Rozzelle

Trump slams DNC over outdated policy document about second 'Biden' term

Michael M. Santiago | Getty Images
Republican Presidential Candidate former U.S. President Donald Trump smiles as he pauses during a campaign rally at Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza on August 17, 2024 in Wilkes Barre, Pennsylvania.

Trump attacked the DNC for presenting its party platform as an agenda for President Biden's second term, rather than updating it for the Harris campaign.

"In the JUST RELEASED Democrat Platform, they mention Crooked Joe Biden's 'second Term' over 20 times," Trump wrote on Truth Social. "It shows that the Platform is not that important to them when they won't even make the change."

The DNC Platform Committee on Sunday released its 92-page policy document, which it had written and passed on July 16, five days before Biden dropped out of the race. The document highlights Biden's first-term achievements and plans for his now-abandoned reelection bid.

The document refers to Biden's second term at least 20 times.

Trump has repeatedly attacked Biden on the campaign trail even though his election opponent is now Kamala Harris.

When Trump was running as an incumbent in 2020, the RNC decided not to adopt a new policy platform and said it would instead renew its proposals in 2024.

Rebecca Picciotto

Trump to lay out economic agenda to cut costs and boost U.S. energy, campaign says

Jeenah Moon | Reuters
Republican presidential nominee and former U.S. President Donald Trump gestures as he speaks during a campaign rally in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, U.S. August 17, 2024. 

Trump is countering the DNC kickoff and the recent unveiling of Harris' economic plan with an announcement about his own agenda to "unleash American energy and lower costs for American families," the Republican's campaign said Monday morning.

The campaign said in a press release that Trump would preserve the tax cuts he signed into law in 2017, while accusing Harris of wanting to let the cuts expire after 2025.

The press release also claimed Harris wants to ban gas-powered cars. Both accusations included links to articles from 2019, when Harris was a Democratic presidential candidate.

Trump is scheduled to hold an economy- and energy-focused campaign event at an equipment manufacturer in York, Pennsylvania, on Monday at 3 p.m. ET. Trump's running mate, Sen. JD Vance of Ohio, will speak about energy and the economy in Philadelphia earlier Monday afternoon, the Trump campaign said.

Kevin Breuninger

Trump Media shares hit post-merger low as DJT slump continues

Jaque Silva | Lightrocket | Getty Images
A Truth Social post by the Republican former president of the United States Donald Trump, after a shooting attack during a campaign event in the city of Butler, Pennsylvania. 

Shares of Trump's social media company on Monday touched their lowest price since they began trading on the Nasdaq after a merger nearly five months ago.

The recent slide of Trump Media stock came after Harris replaced Biden as the Democratic nominee, upending the race that Trump had previously been favored to win.

The company, which owns the Truth Social app platform and trades under the stock ticker DJT, this month reported a loss of over $16 million for the fiscal quarter ending June 30, while posting just $837,000 in revenue in the same period.

Trump, the majority owner of Trump Media, has also resumed periodically posting on the social media site X.

Trump last week participated in a live-streamed interview on X with the platform's owner, Tesla CEO Elon Musk.

Kevin Breuninger

Here's what we know about tonight's lineup

Vincent Alban | Reuters
The interior of the United Center, the host venue of the Democratic National Convention, in Chicago, Aug. 16, 2024.

The following VIPs will deliver speeches tonight, according to a spokesperson who just briefed reporters at a convention press conference:

  • UAW President Shawn Fain
  • Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y.
  • Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton
  • Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md.
  • Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Texas
  • Rep. Grace Meng, D-N.Y.
  • Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear
  • Sen. Raphael Warnock, D-Ga.
  • Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del.
  • First lady Jill Biden
  • President Joe Biden

– Josephine Rozzelle

Walz stops by Pennsylvania delegation breakfast, gives brief 'freedom' remarks

Elizabeth Frantz | Reuters
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, running mate of Democratic presidential candidate Vice President Kamala Harris, applauds as he attends a campaign event with Harris at the United Auto Workers Local 900 in Wayne, Michigan, Aug. 8, 2024.

Walz delivered brief remarks at the Pennsylvania delegation breakfast, where he focused on protecting freedoms, one of the primary themes of this year's DNC.

"We keep talking about freedom. Freedom to make your own health-care decisions, freedom to read your own books, freedom to send your kids to school without them being shot dead in their classroom. Those are freedoms, too," Walz said.

Walz did not mention Trump by name, but still hinted at contrasts between the Democratic and Republican tickets.

"Picture the other side trying to do these things, showing a little kindness, showing a little decency, talking to a child, lifting up someone, comforting someone who comes to a rally and say they just lost their parents, whatever it might be."

Rebecca Picciotto

Buttigieg: Trump-era stock market, energy production both lower than Biden-Harris

Andrew Harnik | Getty Images
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg speaks during an on-camera interview on the North Lawn of the White House, in Washington, July 23, 2024.

Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg is pushing back on some of Trump's frequent economic talking points, including that the stock market performed better during his presidency.

"The Dow and the S&P were worse under Donald Trump than they were under Biden-Harris," Buttigieg told MSNBC's "Morning Joe" this morning. "Energy production, one of the things you hear Republicans talk the most about, domestic energy production is higher under Biden-Harris than it was under Trump."

Both indexes hit record highs in July, and the United States produced more crude oil in 2023 than any country in history, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

"He can't afford for us to be talking about that, so every couple of days he's going to blurt out something outrageous so that we're talking about that instead," Buttigieg said.

– Josephine Rozzelle

Robert Kennedy Jr. plans to spend the week in court, not on the campaign trail

Eduardo Munoz | Reuters
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. attends a press conference in New York, U.S., May 1, 2024. 

Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is planning on spending much of this week in court, not on the campaign trail, as he fights for ballot access in several states for his long-shot White House bid.

Kennedy is scheduled to testify Tuesday in a Harrisburg, Pennslyvania, court, where a Democratic Party-aligned group has challenged the signatures of his ballot petitions and the legitimacy of his stated home address in New York.

Pennsylvania is seen as a key state — and possibly the key state — to win for the candidacies of Harris and Trump.

On Wednesday and Thursday, Kennedy plans to testify at an appeal of a ballot access case in New York, where a judge last week ordered him removed from the state's ballot after finding his claimed home address in Westchester County was not a "bona fide and legitimate residence, but merely a 'sham' address that he assumed for the purpose of maintaining his voter registration."

Dan Mangan

Jill Biden will speak about Joe Biden's character; president will make a case for Harris

Evelyn Hockstein | Reuters
U.S. President Joe Biden gestures while he speaks as first lady Jill Biden stands next to him during a campaign event at Strath Haven Middle School in Wallingford, Pennsylvania, U.S, March 8, 2024. 

The president and first lady will both take the stage tonight for speeches that are vastly different from what they planned to give just a month ago.

Aiming to cement the president's legacy of a decadeslong career in public service, the first lady will honor her husband's "strength and character" in her prime-time speech, a person familiar with her remarks told NBC News.

The president will then make a case for electing Harris and tout their administration's achievements, multiple Biden officials told NBC News. Biden will also emphasize what he believes to be a grave threat to democracy if Trump returns to the White House.

"After saving democracy in 2020, President Biden is determined to defeat the threat to democracy posed by Donald Trump," one official told NBC News.

— Josephine Rozzelle

Harris campaign launches new WhatsApp channel to reach Latino voters

Elizabeth Frantz | Reuters
U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris greets supporters in Prince George's County, Maryland, U.S., August 15, 2024. 

The Harris campaign has launched a new, bilingual WhatsApp channel called "Latinos con Harris-Walz," designed to connect with the nation's roughly 36 million voters who identify as Hispanic or Latino.

"Now more than ever, we must meet Latinos where they are, and creative programs like this WhatsApp channel are how this campaign will reach the voters who will decide this election and win in November," said Maca Casado, the campaign's Hispanic media director, in a statement.

WhatsApp is the #1 most popular social media platform among Hispanic and Spanish-speaking individuals, according to the Pew Research Center.

— Christina Wilkie

Dems to contrast Biden's choice to step aside with Trump, who 'puts himself first'

Brandon Bell | Getty Images
Volunteers transport bags of balloons in preparation for the Democratic National Convention at the United Center in Chicago, on Aug. 16, 2024.

The "For the People" theme will be focused on President Joe Biden's "leadership and legacy as a historic president who put the American people's interest above his own," the Democratic convention committee says in a statement.

The day's lineup will also highlight the party's view that "while Donald Trump puts himself first, Democrats are fighting for the American people."

Convention chair Minyon Moore said the four days of events are "an opportunity to bring the story of our party to the American people — not just the story of what we've achieved under the Biden-Harris administration, but how the Harris-Walz ticket is planning to build on that historic record for a new way forward into the future."

— Christina Wilkie

Harris, Walz post photos from their bus tour through Pennsylvania

Harris and her chosen running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, revived the tradition of U.S. presidential campaign bus tours, riding through Pennsylvania the day before the Democratic National Convention.

Long a staple of American campaigning, bus tours have fallen out of favor in recent cycles. Neither Donald Trump nor Hillary Clinton did much bus touring during the 2016 presidential race. Four years later, bus tours were put on hold entirely due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

— Christina Wilkie

The Bidens are going on vacation to California after tonight's speech

George Rose | Getty Images
Rows of grapevines at Happy Canyon Vineyard during a drought on August 6, 2016, near Santa Ynez, California.

The president and first lady will depart for California late Monday after the White House leader delivers his speech at the convention.

The White House daily schedule says the Bidens will fly from Chicago to Santa Barbara, then take a chopper to Santa Ynez. A local news outlet, Noozhawk, reports that airspace is restricted around the area for the rest of the week.

The Bidens' travel plans underscore the complicated role that Joe Biden currently occupies within the Democratic Party, which is preparing to "pass the torch" to Harris later this week.

It's also a reminder of the broader options available to a president who does not have to spend all his or her extra time on the campaign trail running for reelection.

— Christina Wilkie

Trump, Vance to spend the day campaigning in Pennsylvania

Elizabeth Frantz | Reuters
Republican presidential nominee and former U.S. President Donald Trump holds a campaign rally in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, U.S., July 31, 2024.

As Democrats gather in Chicago, the two Republican nominees will spend the day at separate campaign events in battleground Pennsylvania.

Trump will deliver remarks at an "economic and energy" event in York at 3 p.m. ET.

Vance will be in Philadelphia, where he will speak on the same topic at 1 p.m., according to the Trump campaign.

The New York Times polling average shows Trump and Harris neck-and-neck in the state, with Harris up one percentage point, 49% to 48%, as of Sunday.

— Christina Wilkie

Uncommitted National Movement says DNC added official panel on Palestinian human rights

As tens of thousands of protesters fill the streets, many of them pro-Palestinian demonstrators, members of the Uncommitted National Movement say the DNC has agreed to hold an official panel today at 4 p.m. ET on "Palestinian Human Rights in the Democratic Party."

The group released this speaker list:

  • Layla Elabed, founder of Uncommitted National Movement
  • Hala Hijazi, a Palestinian-American party organizer
  • Dr. Tanya Haj-Hassan, a pediatric intensive care surgeon
  • Former U.S. Rep. Andy Levin, D-Mich.
  • Keith Ellison, Minnesota attorney general
  • Jim Zogby, president of Arab American Institute

"We thank the DNC for recognizing this pivotal issue and remain dedicated to pushing VP Harris to stop providing weapons for Israel's assault on Gaza," the movement said in a statement announcing the panel.

— Christina Wilkie

Democrats project messages onto Trump Tower Chicago

As Democrats descended on Chicago, they were greeted by messages projected onto the side of Donald Trump's branded skyscraper, Trump Tower. NBC News reporter Alex Tabet captured several of them.

— Alex Tabet

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