Republicans are gearing up for their convention next week while Democrats are still struggling with whether President Joe Biden should stay on as their candidate in the November election.
In a sign of how important Pennsylvania is for both parties, Vice President Kamala Harris, former President Donald Trump and first lady Jill Biden are all campaigning in the state Saturday.
Ever since President Joe Biden’s dismal debate performance Democrats have wrestled with whether he should continue on as their presumptive nominee. Biden has vowed to continue in the race.
He’s expected to meet virtually with members of the two largest Democratic caucuses on Capitol Hill as he looks to rebuild momentum for his reelection campaign, even as the number of Democrats calling for him to step aside increases.
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The Latest:
Connecticut governor says he understands call for Biden to step down
Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont says he understands why a Democratic congressman from his state has called for the president to drop out of the race.
Lamont was asked Friday about the call by U.S. Rep. Jim Himes.
Lamont said he and Himes speak often and are “simpatico.”
“I understood totally what he did and how he did it,” Lamont said, according to a recording of his answer.
“We agree on an awful lot of stuff. Maybe we try and influence the decision in different ways, but I think we come to the same conclusion,” Lamont said.
Lamont declined to elaborate further on whether he thought Biden should step aside.
Harris looks to mobilize Asian American voters
Harris is speaking this afternoon at a town hall in Philadelphia hosted by APIAVote an advocacy group focused on mobilizing Asian American voters.
Harris is the first person of South Asian descent to serve as vice president.
The speech is part of efforts by the campaign to mobilize Asian American voters.
Andrew Peng, a spokesperson for Harris said the campaign knows the power of Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander voters and has made historic investments across languages to reach them.
Harris’s speech shows “we won’t take any vote for granted this November,” Peng said.
Don’t mess with Herb Kohl in Milwaukee
Workers in Milwaukee temporarily renamed a street “Donald J. Trump Way,” as part of the setup for the Republican National Convention.
The problem? The signage covered Herb Kohl Way, the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel reported.
Kohl was a Democratic U.S. Senator for 24 years, owner of the NBA’s Milwaukee Bucks and one of the city’s best-loved citizens.
After a local television reporter took a photo of the change, Democratic Mayor Cavalier Johnson said he asked organizers to take down the temporary signage.
It’s a reflection of the tension building in the Democratic leaning city days before the opening of the Republican National Convention.
From banned to back, Facebook lifts restrictions on Trump
Facebook has lifted restrictions imposed on former president Donald Trump in the wake of the January 6 attack.
This puts Trump on equal footing on the platform with President Joe Biden.
The social media giant initially banned Trump from using its platforms in 2021 after his supporters stormed the Capitol. They later eased the ban and put some restrictions on him.
Now, those are gone too.
The company said Friday the restrictions were put in place under “extreme and extraordinary circumstances” of the Capitol attack. Trump had not done anything to run afoul of them, and the company believes people should be able to hear from presidential nominees “on the same basis,” said Nick Clegg, Meta’s president of global affairs.
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