Schumer says Senate is ready to pass bill to avoid shutdown ‘if all goes well in the House’
(WASHINGTON) — The House is expected to hold a vote Wednesday afternoon on a bill that would avert a government shutdown at the end of the month.
House leaders are confident the short-term measure, which will keep the government funded until Dec. 20, will achieve a two-thirds majority and pass the chamber under a suspension of the rules with the help of Democrats.
The move comes after Speaker Mike Johnson’s push to pass a funding measure that included the SAVE Act — a bill that would require proof of citizenship to vote — failed last week due to Democratic opposition and several Republican defections.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said he supports the funding measure, but he pointed out that it has been House Democrats that have helped Republicans avoid shutdowns during the current Congress.
“Can anyone name a single thing that extreme MAGA Republicans in the House have been able to do on their own to make life better for the American people? A single thing? Just one,” he asked. “Can the American people name a single thing that extreme MAGA Republicans have done to make their lives better? Zip, zero. So that is the track record that will be presented to the American people,” he said.
Former President Donald Trump had called on congressional Republicans to allow the government to shut down over the SAVE Act.
Johnson told ABC News, “I am not defying President Trump” when asked if the former president approved of the new solution to avoid a shutdown.
“I’ve spoken with him at great length, and he is very frustrated about the situation,” Johnson said at his weekly press conference on Tuesday. “His great concern is election security, and it is mine as well. It is all of ours.”
Johnson asserted Trump “understands the current dilemma” with House Republicans and said, “there’s no daylight between us.”
The White House and congressional Democrats all slammed Johnson’s attempt to tie the voter eligibility legislation to government funding, noting that it’s already illegal for noncitizens to vote in federal elections.
But the “clean” short-term measure to avert a shutdown was praised by Democratic leaders and the Biden administration.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer on Wednesday said the Senate will “immediately move” to pass the measure as soon as the House sends it over, and “if all goes well in the House, the Senate should be sending President Biden a bill before the end of today.
“Americans can breathe easy that because both sides have chosen bipartisanship, Congress is getting the job done,” Schumer said on the Senate floor. “We will keep the government open. We will prevent vital government services from needlessly coming to a halt. We will give appropriators more time to fully fund the government before the end of the year. And I’m especially pleased we’re getting the job done with some time to spare.”
In addition to funding the government through Dec. 20, the bill includes funds to replenish FEMA and $231 million for the U.S. Secret Service in the wake a second apparent assassination attempt against Trump.
The White House Office of Management and Budget on Tuesday released a statement calling for “swift passage of this bill in both chambers of the Congress to avoid a costly, unnecessary Government shutdown.”
ABC News’ Allison Pecorin contributed to this report.
(CHICAGO) — After the excitement sparked by the Obamas Tuesday night, Democrats will try to keep to momentum going when vice presidential nominee Tim Walz headlines the third night of speakers.
He’ll be joined earlier by another former president — Bill Clinton — as well as Nancy Pelosi and Pete Buttigieg.
Here’s how the news is developing:
Bill Clinton scrapped version of speech after watching 1st night of DNC: Sources
Former President Bill Clinton scrapped a version of his speech after the watching the first night of the convention, several people familiar with the speech told ABC News.
Clinton, who is speaking Wednesday night, revised his speech to make sure the “substance meets the moment” and wanted to strike a more “joyful” tone, after he was struck by the energy of the convention floor, one source said.
A senior adviser to Clinton told ABC News that “it was clear to him that, in the spirit of Mario Coumo, we needed more poetry, not prose.”
Cuomo gave the keynote address at the 1984 Democratic convention, saying, “We Democrats must unite so that the entire nation can unite, because surely the Republicans won’t bring this country together.”
-ABC News’ Rachel Scott and Katherine Faulders
Mindy Kaling hosts tonight
Actress Mindy Kaling is tonight’s celebrity host.
In 2019, she and Harris went viral for a video in which they prepared masala dosa, a South Indian dish.
In her introduction, Kaling referred to herself as “the woman who courageously outed Kamala Harris as Indian in an Instagram cooking video.”
Democrats lean on celebrities to energize crowd on Wednesday
Democrats have already brought out multiple celebrities Wednesday, including musical legend Stevie Wonder and comedian Kenan Thompson. The crowd roared each tome in surprise.
John Legend will also perform later.
Both parties have used celebrities, including wrestler Hulk Hogan at the Republican National Convention.
Kenan Thompson of ‘SNL’ lampoons ‘Project 2025’
Veteran “SNL’ actor Kenan Thompson performed a bit of a stump speech and variety skit at the DNC that poked fun at “Project 2025.”
Thompson brought the prop “Project 2025” book and talked with people across the country about how the conservative policies would harm them drawing boos and laughs from the crowd.
Vulnerable House Democrat attending DNC tonight to support Walz
Many vulnerable Democrats have skipped the convention in Chicago — but not Marcy Kaptur.
The Ohio Democrat, the longest-serving woman in congressional history, now represents a much redder seat after redistricting.
A spokesperson said she traveled to Chicago today to hear Walz — her former House colleague — in person after calling for Harris to choose a running mate from the heartland.
Her presence underscores how the new Harris ticket has reenergized Democrats and given even threatened members of the party hope that they can defend their seats in November and retake the House of Representatives.
They see Walz as one of their own: While he served in Congress, he was one of the few House Democrats to win reelection in a district that supported Donald Trump. (Democrats lost the seat when he ran for governor in 2018.)
-ABC News’ Rachel Scott and Benjamin Siegel
Democratic Senate candidates are avoiding the DNC
Kim is the third Democratic Senate candidate to address the DNC, after Angela Alsobrooks and Lisa Blunt Rochester. All three are running in safely Democratic states. By contrast, vulnerable Democratic senators like Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin and Jacky Rosen of Nevada are staying away.
—538’s Nathaniel Rakich
Stevie Wonder performs ‘Higher Ground’
“This year I prayed very hard for peace to come to our worlds nations, but also to each one of our hearts.” he said in remarks before his performance.
“Even though our hearts have been beaten and broken beyond prayer, I know the important action and now is the time to understand where we are and what it will take to win. Win the broken hearts. Win the disenchanted, when the angry spirit. Now is the time,” he said.
Congressman in viral Jan. 6 photo
New Jersey Rep. Andy Kim, who just spoke, was captured in a viral photo kneeling to clean up litter-lined floors of the U.S. Capitol after the insurrection.
“What I learned on January 6 is that all of us, all of our, are caretakers for our great republic,” Kim told the crowd.
Jan. 6 video riles crowd up
The video showing scenes from the Jan. 6 attack sparked chants of “lock him up,” which only subsided once Thompson took the stage.
The crowd has gotten very animated whenever the riot is brought up, often chanting for Trump’s imprisonment.
-ABC News’ Tal Axelrod
Former Capitol police officer attacked in Jan. 6 riot greeted with loud applause
Sgt. Aquilino Gonell, a former Capitol police officer who was attacked by rioters on Jan. 6, is now taking the stage to loud applause
Gonell told ABC News a year after the insurrection that he was reminded of the attack on the U.S. Capitol every day.
“From the way I sleep, eating breakfast, making sure I don’t hurt myself putting my shirt on. The way I walk, the way I play with my son. The phone calls from the Justice Department, from the FBI, from the department, asking ‘do I recognize this individual?’… It hasn’t been easy,” Gonell told ABC News’ “World News Tonight” anchor David Muir in an interview that aired in January 2022.
Oprah Winfrey to speak at DNC tonight: Sources
Oprah Winfrey will be on stage at the Democratic National Convention on Wednesday night, multiple sources familiar with the program confirmed to ABC News.
CNN first reported the development.
–ABC News’ Will Steakin and Katherine Faulders
Another Republican endorsement for Harris
Former Georgia Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan, another Republican endorsement for Harris scheduled during the DNC this week, said Trump is a “direct threat to democracy.”
“The only thing left to do is dump Trump,” he said, as the crowd chanted “dump Trump.”
Olivia Troye says being in Trump’s White House was ‘terrifying’ Olivia Troye, a former Trump White House National Security official, told the crowd that “being inside Trump’s White House was terrifying.”
“But what keeps me up at night is what will happen if he gets back here,” she continued.
She said she is proud to support Harris because they agree on the most important issue — “protecting our freedom.”
Immigration has been a weakness for Democrats this cycle
Democrats are trying to make progress with voters when it comes to immigration and border security.
A recent ABC News poll found Donald Trump retains the upper hand on the issue, keeping the race a closely contested one.
Trump leads Harris by 10 points in trust to handle the immigration situation at the U.S.-Mexico border, though he had led by 14 points in July.
At the DNC, speakers are bashing Trump for encouraging congressional Republicans to kill the bipartisan border deal negotiated earlier this year.
“He is a self-serving man,” Javier Salazar, the sheriff of Bexar County, Texas, just said on stage. “Just like when he killed the border bill, he just made our jobs harder.”
Former Trump official touts Harris support
Olivia Troye, a former Trump White House National Security official, is on stage — one of several Republicans scheduled to speak during the DNC this week.
Booker once had his own presidential ambitions
In 2020, the New Jersey senator mounted a campaign for the Democratic nomination after decades on the rise within the party.
The theme of his campaign was unity and love. His optimistic messaging was on display again tonight as he spoke.
“We’re not going to lose our faith,” he said. “Look, I want everybody in here to let us all say it together: I believe in America.”
The crowd repeated the phrase back to him.
Trump not serious about the border: Texas congresswoman
As the programming shifts to border security, Texas Rep. Veronica Escobar said that former President Donald Trump and his imitators see the border as a “political opportunity to exploit instead of an issue to address.”
“They are not serious people. You know who is serious? Kamala Harris,” she said, talking about Harris’ visit to El Paso engaging with stakeholders.
“She recognized that the situation at the border is complicated — as filled with challenges as it is with opportunities,” Escobar said.
Maren Morris said she split with country music over Trump-era culture
Maren Morris is now performing at the DNC.
The singer had a public break with the country music industry last year over what she said was its inability to tackle racism and misogyny.
In an interview with the Los Angeles Times, she said the Trump-era exacerbated those issues.
“After the Trump years, people’s biases were on full display,” she said. “It just revealed who people really were and that they were proud to be misogynistic and racist and homophobic and transphobic. All these things were being celebrated, and it was weirdly dovetailing with this hyper-masculine branch of country music.”
Israeli American hostage’s parents push for cease-fire deal, send message to son
Jon Polin and Rachel Goldberg, the parents of Hersh Goldberg-Polin, told the crowd, many whom wore “bring them home bracelets,” that they are pushing for a cease-fire and the safe return of the hostages.
“The time is now,” he said.
Many in the crowd were in tears.
Goldberg ended the speech with a message to her son.
Michigan AG Nessel: ‘You can pry this wedding band from my cold, dead, gay hand’
Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel had a message for Republicans and the Supreme Court tonight: “You can pry this wedding band from my cold, dead, gay hand.”
“And I’m retaining a lot of water, so good luck with that,” she added.
Taking an apparent jab at Trump, Nessel said: “Kamala knows you go from the courthouse to the White House, not the other way around.”
Crowd chants ‘bring them home’ as parents of Israeli hostage address crowd
Jon Polin and Rachel Goldberg, the parents of Hersh Goldberg-Polin — one of the Israeli-American hostages, got emotional as they took the stage to a huge ovation.
“Bring them home,” the crowd chanted.
Jon Polin and Rachel Goldberg, the parents of Hersh Goldberg-Polin, one of the American-Israeli hostages, got emotional as they took the stage to a huge ovation.
Harris and Walz are ‘listening’ to calls for cease-fire, Ellison says
To those calling for a cease-fire in Gaza and “an end to the loss of innocent lives in Gaza” and to bring the hostages home, Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison had a message.
“They’re listening, friends. They agree with us,” he said.
“They listen, they care, and everyone is included in their circle of compassion,” he told the crowd.
The comments come as pro-Palestinian demonstrators have been protesting outside the DNC this week to put pressure on Harris’ campaign for a cease-fire.
Ellison cashes in progressive capital for Harris
Ellison was one of the few Muslims to serve in the House before becoming Minnesota attorney general and was one of the chamber’s most vocal progressives. He’s likely one of the few Democrats with cache within the party who also has appeal to the pro-Palestinian protesters outside, making him a potent messenger for Harris on this issue.
Trump’s tried to distance himself from Project 2025. DNC not making it easy
The controversial conservative policy blueprint has become a flashpoint in the 2024 election.
As a result, Trump has tried to put space between his 2024 campaign and the project, despite some of his close advisers and former administration officials being involved in its creation.
“I know nothing about Project 2025,” Trump has claimed on social media. “I have no idea who is behind it.”
Democrats, however, are intent on tying the policy wishlist to Trump. Speakers this week have decried its proposals on everything from reproductive rights and health care to agency regulation.
Minnesota AG plans to address DNC protesters Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, now taking the stage, indicated to ABC News earlier Wednesday that he would address the Gaza crisis directly — and protesters who have raised their voices at the DNC — during his speech.
“I don’t know how much disagreement there is. I think we all want to see the violence stop and civilians have safety and security, and to see Gaza restored. I think there’s general agreement on that,” he said.
‘Swiftie’ Gov. Jared Polis calls out Project 2025
Colorado Gov. Jared Polis brought back the Project 2025 prop book and continued the theme of slamming its conservative policy proposals.
Polis, a self-proclaimed “Swiftie,” cited one of the pop star’s famous lyrics in denouncing the ideology.
“These Project 2025 people like Trump and Vance are not just weird, they’re dangerous. They want to take us backwards. But we aren’t going back. Like ever, ever, ever,” he said to applause.
Booker jabs at Project 2025 as ‘Project 1825’
Sen. Cory Booker continued to criticize Project 2025 with a bit on how Democrats believe it will take the country backward.
“No matter where you live, so-called blue states or red states, if Donald Trump has his way, he’s going to push through their extreme agenda Project 1825,” Booker said.
“I mean, I’m sorry. I’m sorry, I’m sorry. I roll that back. I got that wrong. Project 1925. Oh, I’m sorry, I’m sorry. Project 2025. That poisonous agenda where every single state will be in a state of crisis.”
Abortion access advocates warn dangers of Trump-Vance policies
A few speakers who lead organizations focused on reproductive rights highlighted Vice President Kamala Harris’ support of reproductive rights and abortion access, saying that a Donald Trump and JD Vance administration would roll back access to abortion.
Alexis McGill Johnson, the president and CEO of Planned Parenthood, spoke about South Carolina and Florida’s six-week ban on abortion and how it impacted a Planned Parenthood patient in Georgia, who tried to go to those states because Georgia also bans abortion after six weeks.
“I’m here to tell you, in no way are Donald J. Trump and JD Vance more qualified than doctors and women to make these decisions. We decide. We trust women. We trust doctors. And we trust Kamala Harris,” she said.
-ABC News’ Oren Oppenheim
Campaign co-chair on DNC goals
Delaware Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester, the co-chair of the Harris-Walz campaign, is now on stage.
She told ABC News earlier this week that the campaign wanted to focus on how Harris and Walz will uplift the middle class during the convention.
Speakers highlight impact of bipartisan infrastructure law
Local officials and workers are taking to the stage to speak about the impact of the bipartisan infrastructure law on their communities.
The law is one of the signature policy achievements of the Biden-Harris administration. When it passed in the Senate, Vice President Harris was there to preside over the final vote.
Milwaukee Mayor Chevy Johnson made headlines for Trump remarks
Milwaukee Mayor Chevy Johnson has taken to the stage.
He made headlines in June after former President Donald Trump reportedly called Milwaukee “horrible” in a closed-door meeting weeks before the city hosted the Republican National Convention.
“Donald Trump was talking about things that he thinks are horrible. All of us lived through his presidency. So, right back at you, buddy,” Johnson said in response during a news conference at the time.
Asked at the time what he meant by the reported “horrible city” comment, Trump told Fox News he was referring to crime in Milwaukee and the 2020 election.
Cincinnati Mayor Aftab Pureval a history-making official
Cincinnati Mayor Aftab Pureval has taken the stage. He is Cincinnati’s first Asian American mayor and, like Harris, has a parent who immigrated to the U.S. from India.
Tom Suozzi vows better immigration policy under Dems
New York Rep. Tom Suozzi, who flipped a Long Island seat this winter, reiterated his message on the campaign trail about the need to solve the nation’s migrant issue.
“To be a nation of immigrants is hard sometimes, too. You have to work for it,” he said.
Democrats jump on ‘freedom’ theme
The DNC marks a culmination of decades of Democratic efforts to take back patriotism after years of Republicans owning messaging around “freedom” and the American flag.
The word “freedom” is seemingly on the lips of every attendee and speaker — and the name of Beyoncé’s hit song and now-campaign anthem. Audience chants of “USA!” puncture speakers’ remarks as they wave signs saying the same. Camo hats bearing the names of Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz pockmark the crowd. And musician Jason Isbell performed the country hit song “Something More Than Free.”
Read more here about how Democrats have been running on this message, which has long been a staple in GOP messaging.
-ABC News’ Tal Axelrod
Project 2025 in focus again
Project 2025, a playbook of controversial policy proposals intended to guide the next conservative administration, has been invoked again during the DNC, this time regarding reproductive rights.
Jessica Mackler, president of EMILYs List, the nation’s largest resource for women in politics, called Project 2025 a “blueprint for banning abortion in all 50 states” that will give extremists “the power to monitor your pregnancy.”
“Make no mistake — the threat of Project 2025 is very real,” she told the crowd. “But so is our ability to stop it.”
Reproductive rights at the forefront
Day 3 of the DNC kicked off with a focus on reproductive rights — featuring a video of women talking about the importance of the issue this election and speeches so far by Mini Timmaraju, president of Reproductive Freedom for All, and Alexis McGill Johnson, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood.
Cory Booker pays tribute to Bill Pascrell
The New Jersey senator took a moment to reflect on Rep. Bill Pascrell, who died Wednesday at the age of 87. Pascrell served in Congress for 14 terms.
“Today while we’re heartbroken, we’re all people who can hold loss and joy in our hearts because we are sad for his loss but we celebrate his life,” Booker said. “Let’s give him a round of applause.”
Chicago police investigating DNC breakfast incident
Chicago police and the FBI are investigating an incident at a DNC breakfast Wednesday morning, according to ABC Chicago station WLS.
One victim was treated and released at the scene, police said.
The Fairmont Chicago hotel, the site of the incident, released a statement confirming that “a group of individuals caused a disruption at a DNC-related breakfast event at our hotel this morning.” The hotel thanked law enforcement for its “swift response.”
-ABC News’ Ben Stein
Bill Clinton speech to be hopeful with jabs aimed at Trump: Source
Former President Clinton’s address at the DNC will be hopeful and aspirational, according to a source familiar with its contents.
The source also said it will include fiery, newsworthy jabs aimed at former President Donald Trump and will highlight the qualities that make for a responsible, qualified commander in chief in the nation’s highest office.
The speech is expected to highlight the striking differences in vision, experience and temperament between Harris and Trump, underscoring the vice president’s story and what her candidacy means for the nation.
-ABC News’ Gabrielle Abdul-Hakim
Night 3 of the DNC kicks off
The third night of the DNC is officially underway, with New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker calling the convention to order.
The theme is “A fight for our freedoms” and will feature speeches from former President Bill Clinton and Walz, as he accepts the party’s nomination for vice president.
Wes Moore, rising party star, gets prime-time spot Conventions are also about parties identifying those they view as future leaders.
Maryland Gov. Wes Moore’s coveted speaking spot tonight will not go unnoticed.
His team said this night is about the future, forward momentum, and he is grateful to be a part of that.
He knows Democrats need to show they are delivering actual results, and he thinks he has a story to tell there. A senior staffer to the governor told ABC News he will focus on the Key Bridge collapse and talk about what Biden and Harris did to support his state.
Moore also has a personal relationship with Walz, who reached out to him when he first won and has acted as a sounding board for the governor.
-ABC News’ MaryAlice Parks
The original ‘smoke-filled room’
As I reported on Monday, political conventions in Chicago have a long and storied history. And some of that history can still be found today.
At the 1920 Republican National Convention, the GOP couldn’t decide on a presidential candidate to save their life. After four rounds of balloting on June 11, no candidate had come close to clinching a majority of delegates. That night, a group of party leaders convened in Room 915 of the Blackstone Hotel and decided that Ohio Sen. Warren G. Harding would be an acceptable compromise choice. The following day, after a few more deadlocked votes, delegates decided to follow their lead and switched their votes to Harding, who won the nomination on the 10th ballot.
Those party leaders didn’t technically have the power to nominate Harding themselves, but a popular image soon emerged of Republican elites secretly pulling the strings to get their preferred candidate elected. As an AP reporter put it (probably exaggeratedly), “Harding of Ohio was chosen by a group of men in a smoke-filled room early today as Republican candidate for president.” The phrase “smoke-filled room” captured the public’s imagination and quickly became shorthand for when party leaders coordinate behind the scenes to anoint a candidate.
History buffs will be pleased to learn that the “smoke-filled room” still exists today! Although the room (along with the whole hotel) has been completely renovated, the original fireplace is still there, and the room is decorated with political paraphernalia. If you have the coin, you can even stay there yourself! When I visited on Monday, the room was vacant, but it was booked for Tuesday through Saturday. But it isn’t a political bigwig who’s staying there this week — it’s apparently a musician!
—538’s Nathaniel Rakich
John Legend to perform at DNC Wednesday night
Singer John Legend and percussionist Sheila E. will perform at the DNC Wednesday night. They were photographed in the United Center rehearsing ahead of the convention’s third night.
Vance says DNC ‘vibes’ are not reaching voters
In an interview on “Fox and Friends” on Wednesday morning, GOP vice presidential nominee Sen. JD Vance said the DNC’s “vibes” weren’t working and reaching people, and suggested there is division within the Democratic Party.
“I don’t think it’s working very well, Ainsley, obviously, I’m not the target audience here, but when you have Barack Obama, the former democratic president of the United States, sitting there and making his big speech, and Kamala Harris is 90 miles away, I think it suggests that their party is not especially unified,” he said.
-ABC News’ Hannah Demissie
Video shows Harris reacting to roll call Tuesday night from backstage at rally
From backstage at her Milwaukee rally Tuesday night, Vice President Kamala Harris watched California Gov. Gavin Newsom cast his state’s votes during Tuesday night’s ceremonial roll call.
“California, we proudly cast our 482 votes for the next president, Kamala Harris,” Newsom can be heard saying in the video, posted by the Harris campaign.
Harris appeared overcome with emotion watching the moment.
“Congratulations,” Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, who was standing next to Harris, told the vice president before exchanging a hug.
-ABC News’ Fritz Farrow
Booker, Moore, Shapiro and more expected to speak Wednesday night
Sen. Cory Booker, and Govs. Wes Moore of Maryland and Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania are expected to take the stage Wednesday night before Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz’s Wednesday prime-time address, according to DNC Executive Director Alex Hornbrook.
Former Trump staffer Olivia Troye will also give remarks, Hornbrook told reporters.
-ABC News’ Brittany Shepherd
Harris’ campaign has raised around $500M since becoming Democratic candidate: Source
Vice President Kamala Harris’s campaign has raised about $500 million since President Joe Biden dropped out of the presidential race, according to a source familiar.
New campaign disclosure filings once again show the Harris campaign and the DNC’s cash on hand advantage over the Trump campaign and the RNC following a major fundraising boost the Democrats saw after Vice President Kamala Harris took over the top of the Democratic ticket last month.
The Harris campaign and the DNC together raised $248 million in July, out-raising The Trump campaign and the RNC, which raised $78 million, disclosures show.
The Harris campaign and the DNC entered August with $285 million in cash on hand, compared to the Trump campaign and the RNC having $250 million in cash on hand entering August.
Harris and the DNC’s latest money advantage comes after Trump and the RNC showed fundraising prowess the past few months and quickly eclipsed the cash on hand edge that Biden and the DNC previously had going into the general election.
The latest filings only show partial figures released by the campaigns and the national party committees’ figures – with full figures from the joint fundraising committees scheduled to be released in October.
-ABC News’ Lalee Ibssa, Soorin Kim and Kelsey Walsh
Tim Walz takes the convention stage
Amid lingering buzz generated by passionate speeches from Michelle and Barack Obama – vice presidential nominee Tim Walz will be the keynote speaker tonight.
The man Kamala Harris calls “Coach” will likely stress what he calls the politics of “joy” while also taking swipes at Donald Trump.
The theme tonight is “A Fight for our Freedoms.”
Other notable speakers tonight include figures beloved by Democrats – former President Bill Clinton and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
(WASHINGTON) — Sen. JD Vance and Gov. Tim Walz both claim to be champions of gun rights for law-abiding citizens and have touted personal stories of growing up in households where firearms were commonplace, but the vice presidential candidates have vastly different views on how to curb America’s gun violence epidemic.
As the Democratic National Convention begins Monday in Chicago, Vice President Kamala Harris has made gun control a top priority.
“We who believe that every person should have the freedom to live safe from the terror of gun violence, will finally pass red flag laws, universal background checks and an assault weapons ban,” Harris said at her first presidential campaign rally in Milwaukee.
Harris was appointed in September 2023 by President Joe Biden to oversee the first-ever White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention.
Meanwhile, there was little acknowledgment of the nation’s gun violence scourge at the Republican National Convention last month, despite GOP presidential nominee former President Donald Trump being the victim of a would-be assassin wielding an AR-15-style rifle.
In the 2024 GOP convention platform, there was no mention of firearm violence or gun control, while in 2020, the party’s platform contained three paragraphs supporting reciprocity legislation allowing Americans to carry firearms in all 50 states regardless of which state they received a carry permit, and opposing an assault weapons ban, “frivolous” lawsuits against gun manufacturers and “any effort to deprive individuals of their right to keep and bear arms without due process of law.”
While Harris and Trump’s polarizing stances on gun control are well documented, the positions of their running mates are emerging for the first time on a national level.
Vance, the 40-year-old Ohio U.S. senator and Marine veteran, and Walz, the 60-year-old Minnesota governor and Army National Guard veteran, have portrayed themselves as strong Second Amendment advocates. But they have voiced starkly different views on gun control.
Vance’s stand on gun control
“I’m a big pro-Second Amendment guy and I know a lot of people who will strongly, stridently defend the Second Amendment. None of them think convicted felons, who have been afforded their due process rights should be able to buy firearms and then kill people,” Vance said during a June 2022 U.S. Senate election debate against his Democratic opponent, former Ohio Rep. Tim Ryan.
In a 2022 federal candidate survey for the Ohio Gun Owners and the American Firearms Association, Vance said he opposes “red flag” gun laws, legislation to ban certain semiautomatic rifles, including AR-15s; supports abolishing the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and establishing a national stand-your-ground law giving individuals the right to use reasonable force, including deadly force, to protect themselves.
Vance also checked yes on voting to repeal the 1994 Gun-Free Schools Act and supported a national Second Amendment Preservation Act that prohibits the use of federal funds to enforce gun control laws, regulations and executive orders.
“We need to fix the system we have that has problems as opposed to layering on a bunch of new regulations and laws on top of it,” Vance said during the debate against Ryan. “The thing that I don’t like is when you create a new background check system with new sets of regulations that go after law-abiding citizens.”
The National Rifle Association — which according to OpenSecrets, a nonprofit research and government transparency group that tracks money in politics and its effect on elections and policy — contributed nearly $500,000 to Vance’s senate campaign. The NRA has also endorsed the Trump-Vance ticket.
“Now, more than ever, freedom and liberty need courageous and virtuous defenders,” Doug Hamlin, executive vice president and CEO of the NRA, said in a statement in July. “President Trump and Senator Vance have the guts and the grit to stand steadfast for the Second Amendment.”
In June 2024, Vance called efforts by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer to ban bump stocks, a device that enables semiautomatic rifles to fire almost like machine guns, a “huge distraction.”
The gunman who committed the 2017 mass shooting at the Route 91 Harvest Festival concert in Las Vegas that killed 58 people and left more than 800 injured, used guns fitted with bump stocks, according to investigators.
“I think that we have to ask ourselves: ‘What is the real gun violence problem in this country?’ and are we legislating in a way that solves fake problems? Or solves real problems?” Vance told reporters in June as his name was then being floated as Trump’s running mate. “And my very strong suspicion is that the Schumer legislation is aimed at a PR problem, not something that’s going to meaningfully reduce gun violence in this country.”
While he wasn’t a member of the U.S. Senate at the time, Vance said he would have voted against the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, the first major gun safety law enacted in 30 years that Biden signed in June 2022, about a month after a teenage gunman killed 19 students and two teachers at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas.
The law enhances background checks for gun buyers under 21, closes the so-called “boyfriend loophole” to prevent people convicted of domestic abuse from purchasing guns, and allocates $750 million to help states implement “red flag laws” to remove firearms from people deemed to be dangerous to themselves and others.
“First of all, from what I’ve seen of this bill, I would not support it. I think red flag laws, in particular, they certainly are a slippery slope. They also don’t solve the problem of gun violence,” Vance said in a 2022 interview with the Breitbart News Daily podcast.
During his RNC acceptance speech, Vance — author of the bestselling memoir “Hillbilly Elegy” — told the story of how after the death of his beloved grandmother, whom he called Mamaw, his family found 19 loaded guns in her house.
“The thing is, they were stashed all over her house — under her bed, in her closet, in the silverware drawer, and we wondered what was going on,” Vance said. “It occurred to us that toward the end of her life, Mamaw couldn’t get around so well, so she was sure that no matter where she was, she was within arm’s length of whatever she needed to protect her family. That’s who we fight for. That’s the American spirit.”
Walz’s stand on gun control
Walz, a former high school geography teacher and football coach, has proudly proclaimed being an avid hunter who once received an A-rating and an endorsement from the National Rifle Association while a five-term Congressman from rural Minnesota. As a member of Congress, Walz sponsored the Sportsman’s Heritage and Recreational Enhancement Act, which expanded access to public lands for hunting and supported legislation to reform the ATF.
“I’m proud to stand with the NRA to protect our Second Amendment rights, and I’m truly grateful for their endorsement,” Walz said in a 2010 statement.
In 2016, Guns & Ammo magazine praised Walz’s record on protecting gun rights and put him on a list of top 20 politicians for gun owners.
“While most congressional Democrats have jumped on the gun control train with both feet, Tim Walz and a few others have stuck to their guns,” Guns & Ammo wrote.
But Walz said his NRA rating fell to an F-rating when his stance on gun control dramatically changed following the Feb. 14, 2018, mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, that left 15 students and two adults, including a football coach, dead.
“My job today is to be dad to a 17-year-old daughter,” Walz said during a 2018 community meeting in Minnesota while running for governor in the aftermath of the Parkland massacre. “Hope woke up as many of you did five weeks ago and said, ‘Dad, you’re the only person I know who’s in elected office. You need to stop what’s happening with this.'”
In an editorial he wrote that was published in the Minneapolis Star Tribune in February 2018 — which was titled “Tim Walz: Please understand my full record on guns” — Walz explained how the Parkland shooting forced him to reevaluate his positions on gun control.
“We all put ourselves in the place of a loved one or someone who faced that terror. It hits me as the dad of a fifth-grader and a high-school student. It hits me as a former high school geography teacher and football coach, when I think about the geography teacher and the coach at that school who gave their lives so that their students could keep theirs.”
Walz said he donated the $18,000 campaign contribution he received in his 2018 gubernatorial run from the NRA, to a charity that helps families of military personnel killed or injured while serving and came out in favor of an assault weapons ban.
In a Star Tribune editorial, he also said that during his time in Congress, he supported “common-sense” gun-control reform laws, repeatedly voted in favor of universal background checks and preventing people on no-fly lists from purchasing firearms. He also said he supported legislation to fund gun violence research by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, was a co-sponsor of a bill to ban bump stocks and voted against concealed-carry reciprocity.
Walz also confronted the NRA, writing in the editorial that the organization is “the biggest single obstacle to passing the most basic measures to prevent gun violence in America — including common-sense solutions that the majority of NRA members support.”
As governor, Walz signed in May 2023 a historic suite of gun-safety measures that created red flag laws, extended the waiting period for gun transfers between parties from 7 to 10 days and expanded background checks to include private purchases between individuals, including those made at gun shows. The laws also require anyone buying a pistol or “semiautomatic military-style assault weapons” to apply for a permit to purchase or carry such guns from their local police agency or sheriff’s department.
“As a veteran, gun-owner, hunter, and dad, I know basic gun safety isn’t a threat to the Second Amendment — it’s about keeping our kids safe,” Walz said during a ceremony to sign the gun legislation. “There’s no place for weapons of war in our schools, churches, banks, or anywhere else people are just trying to live their lives. Today is about taking meaningful action to create a safer future for our kids, and I am proud to sign this commonsense, life-saving legislation into law.”
‘The number one killer of our generation’
Timberlyn Mazeikis, who endured a Feb. 13, 2023, mass shooting at Michigan State University that left three of her classmates dead and five others injured, told ABC News that for her and many other Gen Z members the choice in this election “is simple.”
“Gun violence is the leading cause of death in our generation, and for a lot of us, we can no longer sit by and continue to watch this happen and just wait for the next massacre to occur. Because of that, we are showing up to vote,” said 21-year-old Mazeikis, now a senior at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities.
Mazeikis, who will be voting in her first presidential election in November, said the MSU mass shooting “took a toll on me” as she recounted being barricaded in the school gym for hours, terrified that the shooter would burst through the doors at any minute.
After the shooting, she became a volunteer leader for Students Demand Action, an organization that fights for gun control legislation.
“I felt that I could no longer sit back and watch as further communities were destroyed by gun violence,” Mazeikis said. “And that experience of being on campus and the fear that I felt that day and losing my classmates and my sense of security has really worked as a catalyst to push me in this movement and to realize that we can no longer live this way.”
She said that while she views Trump and Vance as a “gun extremist dream ticket,” she said Harris and Walz have given her “hope.”
“The choice is simple. Our lives are on the line,” Mazeikis said. “We either go back with Trump and Vance or we go forward with Harris and Walz.”
Mazeikis also said Walz’s transformation from a strong pro-gun politician into one who now favors sensible gun regulations doesn’t concern her, saying, “his stance on gun violence prevention is one of strength and one of courage to change.”
“He is living proof that the gun lobby and the gun industry are lying to us, that you can be a responsible gun owner and still want to keep your community safe and believe in gun safety,” Mazeikis said.
However, Rob Doar, vice president of the Minnesota Gun Owners Caucus — the largest gun rights group in Minnesota with more than 10,000 dues-paying members — told ABC News that he’s been following Walz’s policies and actions on guns for about a decade and was surprised he was picked to be Harris’ running mate.
“Initially, my thought was that it was not a good pick if the goal of the campaign was to try to appeal to maybe disaffected Republicans and moderates, just because he has had some flip-flopping on contentious issues like firearms,” Doar said. “But then as I saw more of the campaign strategy roll out, it seems like the goal has been to more highlight him as an example of what progressive leaders can do. In that vein, I think that he’s probably serving the campaign very well, given the high number of progressive policies that Minnesota’s passed recently.”
Doar said his organization does not endorse presidential candidates and noted that his members don’t necessarily like Trump.
“I think both tickets have problematic histories as far as a Second Amendment standpoint goes. Donald Trump was a huge advocate for the bump stock ban. Donald Trump made quotes like, ‘to take the guns first and then get due process second,’ and he’s made some other statements that have been fairly anti-Second Amendment,” Doar said. “On the other hand, you’ve got Kamala Harris, who is talking about, initially, mandatory gun buybacks for certain types of firearms. She has walked that back a little bit, but I think both tickets, as far as somebody who looks at the Second Amendment as their primary issue at the polls, have some problems.”
He said Vance’s “posturing” on gun rights is something a lot of Second Amendment supporters like.
“But these are the same kind of things that we heard out of Tim Walz when he was a representative in the first district [of Minnesota],” Doar said. “Unfortunately, JD Vance just doesn’t have the longevity of a political career to be able to back up the words that he’s saying, but I do think the way that he’s positioning himself is a way that might appeal to those who value the Second Amendment when they go to the polls.”
He said many of his group’s members have expressed concern about keeping the current conservative majority of the Supreme Court intact.
“I do hear a lot from our members that they don’t like Trump, but the sole reason they’re voting for him is because of the Supreme Court and for federal judicial nominations. So that’s not an unpopular sentiment among gun rights advocates,” Doar said. “I do think that the general consensus is that Trump would be much more favorable from a Second Amendment jurisprudence standpoint in his judicial appointments.”
(WASHINGTON) — A photography-related “incident” occurred at Arlington National Cemetery Monday during a visit by former President Donald Trump, leading to a report being filed, the cemetery said in a statement to ABC News.
While the cemetery did not immediately provide specifics, NPR reported that a source had told the publication that two Trump campaign officials engaged in a verbal and physical altercation with a cemetery staff member during Trump’s visit, which came on the third anniversary of the deaths of 13 service members during the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan.
The alleged altercation took place after the Trump campaign officials were asked not to take photos and videos in Section 60, a section of the cemetery where recent U.S. veterans are buried, NPR reported.
When contacted by ABC News on Tuesday night, a representative for the Arlington National Cemetery released a statement that confirmed an “incident” but didn’t provide specifics.
“Federal law prohibits political campaign or election-related activities within Army National Military Cemeteries, to include photographers, content creators or any other persons attending for purposes, or in direct support of a partisan political candidate’s campaign. Arlington National Cemetery reinforced and widely shared this law and its prohibitions with all participants. We can confirm there was an incident, and a report was filed,” the statement read.
On Tuesday, Trump’s campaign posted a video capturing moments from the former president’s visit to Arlington National Cemetery, including more images of his visit to Section 60 where the alleged altercation occurred, and appears to be an example of how the campaign violated the cemetery’s rules.
The TikTok video, which is overlayed by guitar instrumentals, shows a montage of Trump participating in the wreath-laying ceremony, taking photos with Gold Star families and visiting Section 60.
In the video, Trump can be heard making a political point throughout the video — blaming the Biden-Harris administration for the chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan. The video is also captioned “Should have never happened,” again condemning his political opponent’s previous actions.
In the TikTok video, Trump and some of the family members are seen smiling and holding thumbs up as they posed for photos, with overlaid captions claiming Trump didn’t lose a single soldier in 18 months, but that a “disaster” ensued after the Biden-Harris administration took over.
Trump campaign’s communications director, Steven Cheung, posted on X what he said was proof of the team’s approval to have an official photographer and videographer outside the main press pool.
“Only former President Trump may have an official photographer and/or videographer outside of the main media pool,” a screengrab of what appears to be an access guideline posted by Cheung reads. However, it should be noted that campaign officials — not professionals — were also taking photos and videos of the day’s events.
Cheung also claimed on Tuesday night after the news broke that, “There was no physical altercation as described, and we are prepared to release footage if such defamatory claims are made” in a statement to ABC News.
Trump campaign staffers posted multiple pictures and videos of Trump visiting Arlington Cemetery, including from what appears to be Section 60, using the moment to criticize Vice President Kamala Harris’ absence. Trump was at the cemetery on the third anniversary of the attack at Abbey Gate during the withdrawal from Afghanistan to pay tribute to the 13 U.S. Service members killed in the incident.
In one video posted by Trump campaign’s senior adviser Chris LaCivita, Trump can be seen laying flowers on the grave of Staff Sgt. Ryan Knauss, who died in the attack. LaCivita wrote in the post that Trump was speaking on the phone with Knauss’ family, who couldn’t make it to the ceremony on Monday.
Multiple other Trump campaign staffers posted photos from there, and some of the images were then shared by the Trump campaign on their official X account.
Prior to the event, the cemetery had been explicit in its rule that no Trump activity could be filmed during his visit to Section 60.
Monday’s press pool note read: “The family visit to Section 60 following the wreath laying is private and at their explicit request, there will be NO coverage at that location. Your POOL will wait inside the press van during this visit. POOL will then be taken to an unknown location for an OTR stop to round out the morning.”
On Tuesday, following NPR’s report, Cheung said in a statement that “there was no physical altercation as described.” He also claimed someone “decided to physically block members of President Trump’s team.”
In a statement to ABC News, LaCivita, a combat-wounded Marine, stressed that Trump “was there on the invitation of the Abbey Gate Gold Star Families to honor their loved ones who gave the ultimate sacrifice for their country,” calling the individual who attempted to block Trump campaign officials “despicable.”