Day three of the Democratic National Convention will see Senator Kamala Harris accept the party's nomination for vice president of the United States.
But there's a long way to go before we reach the business end of the evening. Titled "A More Perfect Union", tonight's roster includes remarks from Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton, showing the depth of the party's leadership after Clinton (Bill) and Obama (Michelle) featured in the previous two nights.
Book-ended by actress Kerry Washington and singer Jennifer Hudson, day three will also hear from Elizabeth Warren and Nancy Pelosi while topics will include climate change, gun control and immigration.
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Trump pushes back against reproach from former President Barack Obama, who is set to speak at the Democratic National Convention
Trump said in a Wednesday evening news conference that the reason he is now in the White House is because Obama and Joe Biden, his opponent this November, did not do a good job.
Trump said, "They did such a bad job that I stand before you as president."
He said if they had done a good job, he wouldn't have even run for president in 2016. He says, "I would have been very happy. I enjoyed my previous life very much."
Excerpts of Obama's remarks released ahead of Wednesday's convention show he will portray his successor as having unleashed America's "worst impulses" and treated the presidency as a reality show "to get the attention he craves."
Trump said in a Wednesday evening news conference that the reason he is now in the White House is because Obama and Joe Biden, his opponent this November, did not do a good job.
Trump said, "They did such a bad job that I stand before you as president."
He said if they had done a good job, he wouldn't have even run for president in 2016. He says, "I would have been very happy. I enjoyed my previous life very much."
Excerpts of Obama's remarks released ahead of Wednesday's convention show he will portray his successor as having unleashed America's "worst impulses" and treated the presidency as a reality show "to get the attention he craves."
Associated Press
OPINION: Tonight could make or break the election for the Democrats
For Independent Voices, John T Bennett writes that after a doom-and-gloom couple of days, Democrats should bear that in mind for the third night of their national convention.
Democrats, having torn down voters for two nights, have a chance to use the virtual convention's final four hours showcasing Biden's vision and providing some uplifting and forward-looking ideas.
Meanwhile, at the Kanye West National Convention...
Rapper Kanye West's presidential campaign has run into trouble on his first day of attempting to get on the ballot in Wyoming after election officials said signature-gatherers were too close to polling stations.
People who were gathering signatures for West and another presidential candidate for the upcoming election were stationed too close to polling stations, election officials said, the Associated Press reported.
Police were called to polling locations in and around Cheyenne after election officials approached signature-gathers who were not staying 100 feet away from places.
One concern about the signature-gathers at polling places in Wyoming was the signs that they carried. Ms Lee told the publication that one side had "registered voters sign here" on the front and then "Kanye West" on the back, with the concern voters would think they needed sign-up in order to vote.
Similar violations were also reported in Casper.
Andrew Yang going to a dark place tonight
While the Yang Gang didn't get a crisp preview of Andrew Yang's remarks from the DNC like Obama and Clinton, the former Democrat candidate did give some insight into his remarks during an interview with Washington Post on Facebook Live.
And in his own assessment, he's going to go to a dark place painting a "picture as to just how bad it is for many of us".
"This is truly the darkest time any of us has ever seen, and you have to ask yourself, 'How are we going to get out of this mess?' And signing up for 4 more years of Trump is a completely irrational way to try and get out of this mess because people sense that he's not a leader who's going to be trying to utilize our government to solve many of the problems we see," he said.
Hillary Clinton says she doesn't want to see second loss to Trump in convention remarks that reflect on her 2016 election defeat
The previews of tonight's speeches have dropped and there are some interesting tidbits buried within, including some reflection by Clinton on her defeat to Donald Trump
"For four years, people have said to me, 'I didn't realize how dangerous he was.' 'I wish I could go back and do it over.' Or worst, 'I should have voted.' Well, this can't be another woulda coulda shoulda election," Clinton says in the remarks shared ahead of tonight's broadcast.
"If you vote by mail, request your ballot now, and send it back as soon as you can. If you vote in person, do it early. Bring a friend and wear a mask. Become a poll worker. Most of all, no matter what, vote. Vote like our lives and livelihoods are on the line, because they are."
The previews of tonight's speeches have dropped and there are some interesting tidbits buried within, including some reflection by Clinton on her defeat to Donald Trump
"For four years, people have said to me, 'I didn't realize how dangerous he was.' 'I wish I could go back and do it over.' Or worst, 'I should have voted.' Well, this can't be another woulda coulda shoulda election," Clinton says in the remarks shared ahead of tonight's broadcast.
"If you vote by mail, request your ballot now, and send it back as soon as you can. If you vote in person, do it early. Bring a friend and wear a mask. Become a poll worker. Most of all, no matter what, vote. Vote like our lives and livelihoods are on the line, because they are."
Donald Trump treats presidency like a 'reality show', says Barack Obama
Barack Obama will attempt to kick Donald Trump in the ego tonight as he lays the blame for 170,000 dead Americans at the feet of a president who treats the office like as a "reality show".
In a preview of his remarks ahead of tonight's' Democratic convention address, Obama says he hoped that Trump might feel the weight of the office and take the job seriously when they first met in the Oval Office.
"But he never did. He's shown no interest in putting in the work; no interest in finding common ground; no interest in using the awesome power of his office to help anyone but himself and his friends; no interest in treating the presidency as anything but one more reality show that he can use to get the attention he craves," Obama says.
"Donald Trump hasn't grown into the job because he can't. And the consequences of that failure are severe. 170,000 Americans dead. Millions of jobs gone. Our worst impulses unleashed, our proud reputation around the world badly diminished, and our democratic institutions threatened like never before."
Barack Obama will attempt to kick Donald Trump in the ego tonight as he lays the blame for 170,000 dead Americans at the feet of a president who treats the office like as a "reality show".
In a preview of his remarks ahead of tonight's' Democratic convention address, Obama says he hoped that Trump might feel the weight of the office and take the job seriously when they first met in the Oval Office.
"But he never did. He's shown no interest in putting in the work; no interest in finding common ground; no interest in using the awesome power of his office to help anyone but himself and his friends; no interest in treating the presidency as anything but one more reality show that he can use to get the attention he craves," Obama says.
"Donald Trump hasn't grown into the job because he can't. And the consequences of that failure are severe. 170,000 Americans dead. Millions of jobs gone. Our worst impulses unleashed, our proud reputation around the world badly diminished, and our democratic institutions threatened like never before."
More than $1.3 m bet on Donald Trump during Democratic National Convention
While the presidential candidates may be trading off on who is fundraising to most, Trump has gotten the edge on Biden in bets for who will win in November.
While the presidential candidates may be trading off on who is fundraising to most, Trump has gotten the edge on Biden in bets for who will win in November.
According to the Betfair exchange, about $1.3 million was placed on Trump's reelection in the past four days during the Democratic National Convention, compared to just under $1.1 million on Biden during the same period.
While Trump just edged out Biden by a rounding error during the convention, he is well ahead of Biden with almost $45 million put on Trump compared to about $24 million on Biden.
ANALYSIS: Why AOC backed Sanders, not Biden, in her DNC speech
The Independent's Griffin Connolly breaks down why Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez did not mention Joe Biden during her 90-second speech at the Democratic National Convention on Tuesday, where she backed the nomination of the second-place finisher in the presidential primaries, Bernie Sanders.
The move was not quite the snub of Mr Biden that some made it out to be, despite the insinuations of several premature, incomplete, and otherwise poorly edited tweets from prominent media outlets, including NBC News and its affiliate MSNBC.
As Ms Ocasio-Cortez later explained via Twitter, it wasn't her role to heap praise on Mr Biden: She was pegged specifically by the Democratic National Committee to second the nomination of Mr Sanders in a show of party unity and reconciliation between its competing factions.
"If you were confused, no worries!" she tweeted shortly after her speech aired.
"Convention rules require roll call & nominations for every candidate that passes the delegate threshold. I was asked to 2nd the nom for Sen. Sanders for roll call. I extend my deepest congratulations to [Mr Biden] -- let's go win in November," she wrote.
Read the full piece.
The Independent's Griffin Connolly breaks down why Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez did not mention Joe Biden during her 90-second speech at the Democratic National Convention on Tuesday, where she backed the nomination of the second-place finisher in the presidential primaries, Bernie Sanders.
The move was not quite the snub of Mr Biden that some made it out to be, despite the insinuations of several premature, incomplete, and otherwise poorly edited tweets from prominent media outlets, including NBC News and its affiliate MSNBC.
As Ms Ocasio-Cortez later explained via Twitter, it wasn't her role to heap praise on Mr Biden: She was pegged specifically by the Democratic National Committee to second the nomination of Mr Sanders in a show of party unity and reconciliation between its competing factions.
"If you were confused, no worries!" she tweeted shortly after her speech aired.
"Convention rules require roll call & nominations for every candidate that passes the delegate threshold. I was asked to 2nd the nom for Sen. Sanders for roll call. I extend my deepest congratulations to [Mr Biden] -- let's go win in November," she wrote.
Read the full piece.
Reading between the lines of what they say and where they say it
Last night, former schoolteacher Jill Biden returned to her old classroom at Brandywine High School, room 232 to speak about dark, empty rooms that should be filled by young students confined to computer screens amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Tonight, Barack Obama will deliver his live address from the Museum of American Revolution in Philadelphia.
The settings are not random. Look for Obama to make the case that American democracy is at stake, and that a change in the White House for Joe Biden and Kamala Harris will be needed to keep it.
Last night, former schoolteacher Jill Biden returned to her old classroom at Brandywine High School, room 232 to speak about dark, empty rooms that should be filled by young students confined to computer screens amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Tonight, Barack Obama will deliver his live address from the Museum of American Revolution in Philadelphia.
The settings are not random. Look for Obama to make the case that American democracy is at stake, and that a change in the White House for Joe Biden and Kamala Harris will be needed to keep it.
The DNC day three for cord cutters
The first night of the Democratic convention was a bit of a flop in the ratings, down by about 27 per cent on 2016 across the six networks of Fox News, MSNBC, CNN, ABC, NBC, and CBS.
While the ratings for night two are yet to come in, they don't account for audience across streaming and social media platforms, which it would be safe to assume would have only increased in the past four years.
For all the cord cutters out there, here is how to watch day three without a cable connection of TV tuner.
The first night of the Democratic convention was a bit of a flop in the ratings, down by about 27 per cent on 2016 across the six networks of Fox News, MSNBC, CNN, ABC, NBC, and CBS.
While the ratings for night two are yet to come in, they don't account for audience across streaming and social media platforms, which it would be safe to assume would have only increased in the past four years.
For all the cord cutters out there, here is how to watch day three without a cable connection of TV tuner.
- DNC Official Stream demconvention.com/watch.
- YouTube.com/demconvention
- twitch.tv/demconvention
- Facebook.com/demconvention
- Twitter.com/demconvention
- "Alexa, play the Democratic National Convention."
ICYMI: Joe Biden officially nominated as Democratic presidential candidate as Trump accused of 'quitting' on country
Welcome back, or welcome to, the third day of our live blog coverage of the Democratic National Convention.
If you missed last night's proceedings, The independent's John T Bennet has an in-depth wrap of to help you catch up before today gets into full swing.
(Spoiler alert - Joe Biden was nominated to be the next president because everybody hates the current president.)
Hello and welcome to The Independent's rolling coverage of the 2020 Democratic National Convention.
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