Republican convention attempts to move forward business as usual

Jul 15, 2024

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TOP LINE

As the country reels in the aftermath of the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump, the Republican National Convention is hoping to go on with business as usual.

The convention kicks off today in Milwaukee, where later this week Trump will officially be named Republicans’ presidential nominee. As details continue to emerge about the shooting at Trump’s campaign rally on Saturday in Pennsylvania, Republican officials have made it clear that the convention will proceed as planned.

People attend a vigil.

People attend a vigil for former President Donald Trump at Zeidler Union Square on July 14, 2024, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. | Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images

“The security is here, and we feel very comfortable,” RNC Chair Michael Whatley said on “Fox News Sunday.” “This is going to be a facility where we’re going to be able to have 50,000 delegates and alternates and guests and members of the media who are going to be here and who are going to be safe.”

Wisconsin Republican Party Chair Brian Schimming said Sunday that the Fiserv Forum, where the convention is being held, is “probably one of the most secure areas on the face of the planet right now.” He noted that there will be no major changes to the schedule or security arrangements, a sentiment that the Secret Service echoed.

Trump’s campaign advisers also said that the convention will “continue as planned,” although it’s beefing up security at its campaign offices. Trump himself said that he was going to delay his trip to Wisconsin and come later in the week, but “decided that I cannot allow a ‘shooter,’ or potential assassin, to force change to scheduling, or anything else.”

“We need to keep moving forward,” Reince Priebus, chair of the MKE 2024 Host Committee, said on ABC’s “This Week.” “This convention’s going to be epic. … The unwavering attitude that he is bringing now to Milwaukee is going to even further energize this crowd.”

President Joe Biden on Sunday said he “directed the head of the Secret Service to review all security measures” for the convention. The president’s planned visit to Texas today was canceled, although he’ll still be participating in an interview with NBC’s Lester Holt this evening from the White House. A Biden campaign official said following that interview, “the DNC and the campaign will continue drawing the contrast between our positive vision for the future and Trump and Republicans’ backwards-looking agenda over the course of the week.”

While guns are not allowed within the convention arena or the “hard perimeter” surrounding the convention that requires credentials to enter, under state law they are permitted outside that zone. Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers “has requested that the decision to allow firearms within the soft perimeter … be reconsidered ‘immediately’ following the attempted assassination,” The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel’s Jessie Opoien and Alison Dirr reported. Earlier on Sunday, Milwaukee Police Chief Jeffrey Norman acknowledged there are “challenges” to changing that.

As politicians on both sides of the aisle, including Biden, condemned the shooting and urged keeping politics out of the conversation, there are signs it is already impacting the campaign. Shortly after the shooting, Biden’s team began pulling its ads, although they are planned to resume this week. Fundraising for down-ballot committees took a pause, but were set to start back up again after Trump’s political operation sent out an appeal Sunday afternoon.

The shooting will undoubtedly cast a shadow over the proceedings.

“I think the mood is going to [change],” Whatley said.

POLITICO reporters will be on the ground in Milwaukee this week. Make sure to follow along on our live blog, which launches at 9:30 a.m. EST.

It’s Monday. Reach me at mfernandez@politico.com and @madfernandez616.

Days until the Arizona primaries: 15

Days until the Tennessee primaries: 17

Days until the Kansas, Michigan, Missouri and Washington state primaries: 22

Days until the Hawaii primaries: 26

Days until the Connecticut, Minnesota, Vermont and Wisconsin primaries: 29

Days until the Democratic National Convention: 35

Days until the Alaska, Florida and Wyoming primaries: 36

Days until the 2024 election: 113

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Presidential Big Board

TAKE IT DOWN A NOTCH — Biden “used a rare Oval Office address on Sunday to condemn political violence and pleaded with Americans to turn down the temperature in the increasingly toxic political system after the attempted assassination” of Trump, POLITICO’s Myah Ward and Lauren Egan write. "His Oval Office address is part of the White House’s effort to navigate the delicate situation in the wake of the shooting."

BOOSTING SECURITY — Independent Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s “pleas for Secret Service … are getting a boost in the wake of the shooting,” POLITICO’s Brittany Gibson and Lisa Kashinsky report. New York Reps. Mike Lawler (R) and Ritchie Torres (D) said they plan to introduce a bill that would give “enhanced” Secret Service protection to every major presidential candidate, including Kennedy.

BUT WAIT, THERE’S MORE — More Democrats echoed calls for Biden to drop out on Friday, including Reps. Brittany Pettersen (Colo.) and Mike Levin (Calif.). Democratic Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont also said he was “simpatico” with Rep. Jim Himes (D-Conn.), who called on Biden to end his bid, and a spokesperson for the governor said that “the governor believes the decision on whether to run should be left to Biden,” per POLITICO’s Kierra Frazier.

CAMPAIGN INTEL

CLEARING THE FIELD — Tayler Rahm, who was running for the GOP nod to take on Democratic Rep. Angie Craig in MN-02, ended his bid to instead serve as a senior adviser for Trump in the state, per the Minneapolis Star Tribune’s Sydney Kashiwagi. That makes Joe Teirab’s path to primary victory much easier, as he now doesn’t face a primary opponent. Earlier this year, district delegates endorsed Rahm over Teirab, who has the backing of national Republicans like Speaker Mike Johnson. It’s just the latest example of Republicans getting their candidate of choice in battlegrounds this cycle and avoiding messy primaries.

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THE CASH DASH

Q2 TABS — Today is the deadline for congressional campaigns to submit their Q2 campaign finance filings, covering the beginning of April through the end of June, to the FEC. Here’s the latest roundup ahead of that deadline:

FIRST IN SCORE — WI-01 — Former Democratic Rep. Peter Barca brought in close to $800,000. He announced his bid against Republican Rep. Bryan Steil in mid-April.

SUPER PACs — MAGA Inc., the pro-Trump super PAC, raised $104 million and had $114 million on hand.

VA-Sen — Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine raised more than $2.9 million and had $7.7 million on hand.

NM-Sen — Republican Nella Domenici, who’s challenging Democratic Sen. Martin Heinrich, brought in $2.9 million across her campaign and affiliated committees, and had more than $2 million in her coffers.

MO-Gov — Republican Lt. Gov. Mike Kehoe raised more than $900,000, and American Dream, the PAC supporting him, brought in $3.6 million. Kehoe’s campaign committee had $2.3 million on hand, and the PAC had $4 million in the bank.

PARTY COMMITTEES — The NRCC raked in $37 million, which the committee said is the best election year Q2 fundraising total in its history. That includes $14.3 million raised in June. The committee had $70.8 million on hand.

… The Republican State Leadership Committee, along with its affiliated group the State Government Leadership Foundation, raised $15 million, their best second quarter fundraising haul.

NE-02 — Democratic state Sen. Tony Vargas raised around $1.35 million and had more than $2.5 million in the bank as he faces Republican Rep. Don Bacon in a rematch.

VA-02 — Republican Rep. Jen Kiggans had a close to $1.2 million haul. She had close to $2.5 million on hand.

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POLL POSITION

PRESIDENTIAL — A spate of polls conducted after last month’s presidential debate and prior to Saturday’s assassination attempt of Trump show that Biden’s standing has “not slipped markedly” and “bolstered” his “argument to remain the Democratic Party’s nominee this fall after his poor debate performance last month — while also underscoring the structural challenges his campaign has faced for months,” POLITICO’s Steve Shepard writes.

Here are some of the polls released in recent days:

… In an NPR/PBS News/Marist poll, Biden has 50 percent and Trump has 48 percent (1,174 registered voters nationally, July 9-10, MoE +/- 3.3 percentage points).

… An NBC News poll has Trump at 45 percent and Biden at 43 percent (800 registered voters nationally, July 7-9, MoE +/- 3.5 percentage points).

… A Fox News poll has Trump with 49 percent and Biden with 48 percent (1,210 registered voters nationally, July 7-10, MoE +/- 3 percentage points).

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AS SEEN ON TV

MT-Sen — Democratic Sen. Jon Tester features an independent saying he’s “worried” about Republican Tim Sheehy over his plans for public lands.

WI-Sen — Republican Eric Hovde is going after Democratic Sen. Tammy Baldwin for saying that Biden’s presidency is “one of the most successful administrations in generations.”

MO-Gov — Heartland Conservative Coalition, an outside group, hits Republican state Sen. Bill Eigel for votes he’s taken in the legislature.

AZ-01 — Democrat Andrei Cherny ties primary opponents Amish Shah, a former state legislator, and Marlene Galán-Woods to Republicans.

AZ-08 — Republican Abe Hamadeh accuses primary opponents Blake Masters and state House Speaker Ben Toma of being “never Trumpers.”

MO-01 — St. Louis County Prosecutor Wesley Bell, Democratic Rep. Cori Bush’s primary opponent, calls her attacks “flat-out dishonest.”

… DMFI PAC, a pro-Israel group supporting Bell, is running its first spot in the race, highlighting his work as prosecuting attorney.

… United Democracy Project, another pro-Israel group boosting Bell, again goes after Bush for her votes “against Biden agenda.”

NH-02 — Democrat Maggie Goodlander, a former DOJ official in the Biden administration, is running a spot on democracy.

WA-03 — Republican Joe Kent criticizes Democratic Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez over the Southern border.

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