Vance and Trump Speak, Congress Probes Secret Service, Biden COVID

Donald Trump's running mate J.

What are Trump's plans for his own speech tonight?

I'm a Martinez, that's Michelle Martin, and this is up first from NPR News.

And President Joe Biden has tested positive for Covid. Is this temporary setback? One too many as he tries to hang on to his bid to keep the White House? Stay with us, we'll tell you what you need to know to start your day.

Support for this podcast and the following message come from Wise, the app that makes managing your money in different currencies easy. With Wise, you can send and spend money internationally at the mid-market exchange rate, no guesswork and no hidden fees. Learn more about how Wise could work for you at Wise..com.

It's a high-stakes election year, so it's not enough to just follow along, you need to understand what's happening so you are fully informed. Come November. Every weekday on the NPR Politics Podcast, our political reporters break down important stories and backstories from the campaign trail. So you understand why it matters to you.

Listen to the NPR Politics podcast wherever you get your podcasts.

Christian nationalists want to turn America into a theocracy, a government under biblical rule. If they gain more power, it could mean fewer rights for you. I'm Heath Druzin and on the new season of Extremely American, I'll take you inside the movement. Listen to Extremely American from Boise State Public Radio, part of the NPR Network.

The Republican National Convention wraps up tonight with an acceptance speech from the party's nominee for President, Donald Trump.

The speech comes less than a week after the former president was wounded in an assassination attempt at a rally in Pennsylvania. After the attack, he said he rewrote the speech he'll deliver at the RNC. The big moment at the convention last night came when Trump's running mate, Senator J..D. Vance, addressed the delegates. I officially accept your nomination to be Vice President of the United States of America.

NPR national political correspondent Don Gagne was there, stayed up late for us. Thank you for that and he is with us now indeed.

Well, a lot of people read the book, but that doesn't mean voters really know him. He did talk at length last night about his family's struggles, including opioid abuse and addiction, and how there was so much of all of that all around him. In the town, he survived it and joined the Marines and served in Iraq. And then after that, it was off to Ohio State University on the G.I. bill, and then eventually on to law school. But even with his success today, he talked last night about how that life still feels present.

Every now and then, I will get a call from a relative back home who asks, Did you know? So and so? And I'll remember a face from years ago, and then I'll hear they died of an overdose.

I understand his mother was in the audience.

Beverly Vance was there. She has dealt with drug addiction in her life, but introducing her, he said his mom is almost 10 years clean. He was not raised by her, his grandparents raised him and he credited his grandmother.

So does he relate all of that family history back to the campaign?

He said It all shapes who he is. Expect him to hold a ton of events in working class areas of Michigan and Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin battleground states all. He mentioned them repeatedly last night, and he did this thing. Where he ties policy decisions over the years, ones he sees as bad decisions by politicians to his youth. And it reminds people that he is of a new generation of leaders.

When I was in the fourth grade, a career politician by the name of Joe Biden supported NAFTA, a bad trade deal that sent countless good jobs to Mexico.

You hear the booing there. That line goes on to blame Biden, who was a U.S senator. He mentions bad trade deals with China, he mentions Biden's support for the Iraq war.

OK, what do we expect to hear from Trump tonight?

We all know about Trump's speeches by now, they're in your face, you know, tons of self-promotion attacks on political opponents. But Trump has said since the assassination attempt just five days ago, that he's reworked the entire speech. That it'll be more introspective, more inclusive. We'll see if it actually does seem like a different kind of Trump speech.

That is, NPR's national political correspondent Dawn Garnier Dawn, thank you.

You're welcome.

Officials in western Pennsylvania are speaking out about the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump.

Yeah, they say. The Secret Service failed to secure the building accessed by the shooter, while their officers responded quickly to reports of a suspicious person. Now, these officials have now been called to testify on Capitol Hill next week. Lawmakers are demanding answers and accountability.

NPR's congressional correspondent, Claudia Grisales is with us to tell us more about all this. Good morning, Claudia.

Good morning.

So what are lawmakers planning?

The number of congressional investigations into the security plans for this rally are growing by the day, for example, House Speaker Mike Johnson announced one of the newest probes yesterday. And that will be comprised of a bipartisan task force that he plans to launch on Monday. He says. This task force will have subpoena power and he argued they will be able to work faster. These investigations are about the lapses that led to the shooting, but the FBI is conducting its own inquiry into the gunman's motives. And President Biden ordered an independent review of what happened.

So this seems like a lot, as you just kind of pointed out, there seems to be some overlap here. Where do these various things stand?

Right? The Democratic chair of the Senate Homeland Security Panel will lead a bipartisan probe into the shooting, while several individual senators say they're conducting their own investigations. And this is also the case for several members in the House, where the Republican-led House Oversight Committee has already subpoenaed. The head of the Secret Service, Kimberly Cheadle, who is now set to appear on the Hill on Monday. And this is as the GOP-led House Homeland Security Panel is also expecting to hear testimony from Cheadle and the heads of DHS, which oversees Secret Service, and the FBI. The panel's chairman for Homeland Security, Mark Green, asked law enforcement officials with the Pennsylvania State Police and Butler County, where the shooting took place, to also testify.

So I get the sense that the local officials seem to have a different take on all this.

Exactly as we mentioned at the top, they're expected to defend their officers in detail. How the Secret Service may have had a lapse in planning, for example. One of those witnesses asked to testify, Butler County Sheriff Michael Sloop told me his deputies performed their duties at their assigned areas. They went above and beyond before and after the shooting started to help witnesses and assist police in clearing nearby buildings. And he also recounted that it was an officer from Butler Township who attempted to confront the shooter on the roof. But the shooter aimed at the officer, who had no choice but to turn back.

Where does this all leave the Secret Service?

They are in crisis. Last night, at the Republican National Convention, several U..S senators confronted Cheadle, who was there sharing this bit of a surreal moment on video where they accused her of stonewalling and saying she owes Trump answers. But we should also note this is a reminder of how much politics plays out today with these sort of recorded, confrontational moments. That said, Cheadle's testimony will be a high-stakes moment for her and the agency.

That is NPR's Claudia Grisales Claudia, thank you.

Thank you.

President Biden has tested positive for Covid. He was in Las Vegas campaigning, the White House said he developed a runny nose and a cough, so he took a Covid test and got the news.

Yeah, now he's back at his beach house in Delaware, where the White House says he'll continue his normal duties. But this comes at a time when very little in his campaign is actually normal. The health of this president and his ability to seek a second term is definitely under the microscope.

NPR senior White House correspondent Tamra Keith is with us now from Milwaukee. Good morning Tam.

Good morning.

So what do we know about how the president is doing?

Last night, as he got on Air Force One to return from Las Vegas, the White House said. He'd already taken his first dose of the antiviral drug Pax Lovid. And his symptoms were mild, with a normal respiratory rate and temperature, but his cough was quite noticeable in an interview he did just before testing positive. We know that his doctor generally says he's in good health for his age, but you know, he had that cold three weeks ago. That he blames for his very bad debate performance.

Okay, his age, he's 81. That's been a subject and issue throughout this sort of campaign season, and especially since that debate, where he really struggled to explain himself. Democrats have been asking whether he has what it takes to keep the White House, and, frankly, to govern if he does keep the White House. Now, he's got Covid.

You know, a lot of people are getting Covid right now, but talk about terrible timing. Biden was in the middle of a tour meant to shore up support with Democratic-based voters. And to show those in his party who are anxious about his chances, that they're underestimating him. That he has what it takes, that he's vigorous and has the drive to win, and now he's stuck at home instead, and the timing is really bad in another way. Yesterday, prominent House Democrat Adam Schiff called for Biden to pass the torch, adding to a growing list.

Well, so that sounds like the president is still quite insistent that he is the best candidate and that he is staying in publicly at least.

We aren't seeing any cracks from the president or his inner circle of advisers. Two weeks ago, he said, only the Lord Almighty could convince him to get out of the race. He did an interview with Bet News earlier this week, and in that interview he said that one thing that could change his mind would be some kind of serious medical condition. When he walked off Air Force One last night in Delaware, he responded to the reporter shouting questions that he was doing well. But at least for a few days. At this key moment in the campaign, with questions swirling about the viability of his candidacy, Biden is going to be largely invisible, isolating at his beach house.

That is NPR's Tamara Keith Tam, thank you.

You're welcome.

And that's up first for Thursday, July 18th. I'm Michelle Martin.

And I'm a Martinez. How about listening to consider this from NPR? We hear it up first, give you the three big stories of the day, or consider this.

Today's episode of Up First was edited by Megan Pratt, Roberto Rampton, Krishna Dev Calamore, Olivia Hampton and Alice Wolfley. It was produced by Lily Quiroz, Ben Abrams and Mansi Khurana. We get engineering support from Andy Huther, and our technical director is Carly Strange. Join us again tomorrow.

On this week's episode of Wildcard, Soccer legend Abby Wambach says the transition from.

Professional athlete to normal person can be tough.

There's this innate narcissism that is almost required in order to be a high level athlete.

I'm Rachel Martin. Join us for NPR's Wildcard podcast, the game where cards control the conversation.

I just don't want to leave a mess on Bullseye. The great Dan Aykroyd talks about the Blues Brothers, ghostbusters and his very detailed plans about how he will spend his afterlife.

I think I'm going to roam in a few places. yes, I'm going to manifest and roam.

All that and more on the Bullseye podcast from MaximumFun.