2020 Daily Trail Markers: Trump to accept GOP nomination in North Carolina
Both President Trump and Vice President Pence plan to accept their party's nomination in Charlotte, North Carolina, on Monday, August 24, according to Republicans involved in the planning, reports CBS News campaign reporter Nicole Sganga. Details surrounding the president's official acceptance speech on Thursday will be revealed in a forthcoming announcement.
In an interview with a North Carolina NBC affiliate WCNC-TV, Pence said, "I know the president and I are truly honored it'll be in Charlotte, it'll be here in North Carolina that we're re-nominated by the Republican Party. And I know the president — we're all making plans for him to accept that re-nomination here in Charlotte, to acknowledge the great work of our delegates."
FROM THE CANDIDATES
JOE BIDEN
Joe Biden is staying briefed—and mocking—President Trump's recent tweets about pandemic and the election, CBS News campaign reporter Bo Erickson reports. "President Trump should stop tweeting and start doing something about [the pandemic], damn it."
But Biden also responded to one of those presidential tweets, saying Mr. Trump is "trying to scare" voters into supporting him by promising a "Suburban Lifestyle Dream that you will no longer be bothered or financially hurt by having low income housing built in your neighborhood," he tweeted on Wednesday.
The Twitter swipes came during a discussion with the Latino advocacy organization UnidosUS, during which Biden promised to send an immigration bill to Congress on the first day of his presidency and, if needed, offer greater COVID-19 testing from the federal government to undocumented persons. Biden's main focus was to embrace Latino voters: "The future of America, and this is not exaggeration…the future of America depends upon the total full, thorough integration and acceptance and embrace of the Latino community."
PRESIDENT TRUMP
"I don't think Biden is going to do too well in Texas," President Trump said at an official White House stop in Midland, Texas. "He's already written it off. He's gone. No fracking. That's part of his platform," Mr. Trump remarked at Double Eagle Energy oil rig, Wednesday, reports CBS News campaign reporter Nicole Sganga.
The energy company received between $350,000 and $1 million in PPP loans from the CARES Act, according to SBA data. But earlier this month, presumptive democratic nominee Joe Biden defended fracking in a television interview with a Pennsylvania affiliate, "Well fracking is not going to be on the chopping block," Biden said. A Biden campaign official told Erickson on July 9, Mr. Biden's "position on this has remained consistent which is no new fracking on federal lands. He has said that from the outset and that has been his position from day one of this race."
More than 10,000 new coronavirus cases were reported in Texas, Tuesday. Republican Congressman Louie Gohmert tested positive for coronavirus, Wednesday. The Texas Republican has not been wearing a mask inside the U.S. Capitol and intended to fly to Texas with President Trump on Wednesday, but tested positive for the virus during a pre-screening at the White House, several administration sources confirmed to CBS News. Republican congressional candidate from Texas, Wesley Hunt, was on his way to greet President Trump in Midland when he, too, tested positive for coronavirus, according to a statement on Twitter.
According to our latest CBS News battleground tracker poll, Mr. Trump leads by a slight margin in Texas, 46% to Biden's 45%. But Biden leads among a key demographic in the lone star state – women likely voters, by 47% to 42%. Trump Victory – a joint fundraising committee benefitting the Trump campaign, Republican National Committee and state parties—raised $7 million in the run-up to a campaign fundraiser held in Midland, according to an RNC official.
MIKE PENCE
A private charter school with a history of anti-LGBTQ practices hosted Vice President Pence and Education Secretary Besty DeVos in North Carolina today. Pence visited a classroom of 4th graders and participated in a roundtable at Thales Academy to discuss reopening schools, reports CBS News campaign reporter Musadiq Bidar.
Thales, which is a year-round private school, allowed students to return two weeks ago. The school forbids students from discussing gender identities. Its 2018-2019 handbook, says "promotion, affirmation, or discussions of behaviors associated with terms, 'sexual orientation' or 'gender identity' including homosexuality, bisexuality, and transgenderism, are expressly prohibited." This applies to students, school employees and volunteers, and the only exception is made in cases of bullying. Pence and DeVos also praised Thales' founder Bob Luddy with Pence saying Luddy has earned the administration's "admiration" for his work on expanding education opportunities.
Pence reiterated the message that reopening America is tied to reopening American schools. "We don't want our kids to fall behind academically or to miss other key services," Pence said. "We believe that with the right measures in place, we can safely operate our schools," he added. According to pool reports, the classroom that Pence visited had 11 students present. A full classroom would usually have 25 students present, but parents were given the choice between in-person learning or continuing with a virtual model.
VEEPSTAKES
SUSAN RICE
In an interview on The View, Susan Rice commented on speculation that she is under consideration to be presumptive nominee Joe Biden's running mate, reports CBS News campaign reporter Jack Turman. Rice said she only cares about Biden winning the presidency and noted that the vice presidential running mate position rests with Biden.
"I will leave that choice to him, but I'm ready to help him win and help him govern if that's what he wants," Rice said. Asked about how she would respond to Republicans potentially mentioning the 2012 Benghazi attack to criticize Rice if she is selected as Biden's running mate, Rice said that congressional committees investigated her role in the attack, and they found that she did not do anything wrong. But, Rice added that Republicans might still use Benghazi as a talking point if she is selected as Biden's running mate. "I don't doubt that the Republicans will use this, and they'll attack whoever is Joe Biden's choice to be his vice president, but let's be honest about what this is," Rice said. "This is dishonest, and it's a distraction."
ELIZABETH WARREN
Senator Elizabeth Warren, who set up the Consumer Finance Protection (CFPB) bureau a decade ago, is calling on the agency's current director to resign, reports CBS News campaign reporter Zak Hudak. At a Senate Finance Committee hearing Wednesday, Warren argued that under Kraninger, the CFPB has failed to protect consumers, even as the pandemic has driven complaints up by 50%. She zeroed in on CFPB Director Kathy Kraninger's guidance for the agency not to take action against lenders so long as they make "good faith" efforts to resolve disputes.
"You're getting more and more complaints from desperate consumers, but instead of using the Bureau's full authorities to enforce the law, you just told companies you're going to help them when they cheat consumers ... Your leadership has been a miserable failure," she said. "Based on your actions in this pandemic, you should resign."
TAMMY BALDWIN
Senator Tammy Baldwin reaffirmed her plans to physically attend the Democratic National Convention in Milwaukee, even as the party's national committee has scaled back in-person attendance to about 300 amid the continued spread of COVID-19, Hudak also writes. "I am planning on attending. ... I do believe that the DNC and the Biden campaign have put the health and safety of all participants front and center first and foremost in stark contrast to the campaign activities of President Trump," the Wisconsin senator said at a virtual event with the Milwaukee press Club Wednesday.
She had told local TV station WKOW earlier this month that she hoped "to be able to safely participate in some of the in-person events." During the event, Baldwin punted on questions about the potential that Biden will pick her as his running mate, but said she looks forward to his announcement. "I'm looking forward to the announcement next week. I won't have to tiptoe around any more questions any more about what's happening," she said.
CBS NEWS COVID CHRONICLES
DETROIT'S WATER SHUTOFF HAS BEEN STOPPED FOR NOW, BUT NEED FOR PERMANENT FIX REMAINS
CBS News is chronicling what has changed for the lives of Americans in 2020 amid the coronavirus pandemic. One of the key measures recommended to slow the spread of the coronavirus is to wash your hands frequently, but that advice is impossible to follow for those without running water. In the months before the pandemic forced states to shut down, thousands had their water shut off in Detroit, where shutoffs have been a point of contention for over a decade, reports CBS News campaign reporter LaCrai Mitchell. For a variety of reasons — including fear of losing custody of their children and the shame associated with not being able to pay for water — many residents who have had their water shut off hesitate to share their stories. But advocates who work directly with affected families spoke with CBS News about how COVID-19 has exacerbated their need for running water. "Water shutoffs have been devastating," said Dr. JoAnn Watson, a former Detroit city council member who has worked on this issue for years.
"How truly ironic it is for 1 out of every 7 households in the city of Detroit to have had their water shut off in a city surrounded by the Great Lakes of Michigan." From January to July 2019, there were more than 11,000 water shut-offs in Detroit according to data provided by the city's Water and Sewage Department.Though this total does not account for households that were restored through assistance programs, it's hard to tell how many of these households were occupied because that information is not tracked by the water department's billing system. In a city of more than 670,000 with an improving economy, by some accounts, one-third of the Motor City's majority-Black population lives in poverty. Wayne County—home to Detroit—comprises nearly a third of the entire COVID-19 caseload for the state of Michigan, which currently has over 78,000 confirmed cases.
On March 9, Governor Gretchen Whitmer and Detroit Mayor Mike Duggans launched a plan for the state to cover the cost to reconnect water service for Detroit residents at risk of a service interruption due to nonpayment. For $25 a month, residents can keep their water running throughout the duration of the pandemic. According to data from the Detroit Water and Sewerage Department, 1,200 households have applied for the restart program, but a quarter of those homes needed plumbing repairs before restoring water to avoid contamination and other health risks. DWSD believes that there are currently no occupied households without water but some water advocates are skeptical, asking if DWSD doesn't have records on the disconnected households, how can it be sure every resident has water?
Read more here.
BY THE NUMBERS
POLLS, POLLS, POLLS
A new Monmouth University poll shows Joe Biden and Donald Trump in a dead heat in Georgia, reports CBS News associate producer Sarah Ewall-Wice. The poll of registered voters puts the president and former vice president each at 47% while another 3% each say they'll vote third party or are undecided. In 2016, Trump won Georgia with more than 50% to Clinton's just over 45%. Biden's advantages include the support of independents, where he leads Mr. Trump 53% to 31%, Black voters with whom he leads 89% to 5%, and among White college-educated voters where he leads Mr. Trump 59% to 36% in the state.
Mr. Trump maintains his advantage among White voters overall, leading Biden 69% to 27%, and among White voters without a college degree 73% to 22%. In terms of favorability, 46% of voters in Georgia have a favorable opinion of Mr. Trump while 45% hold an unfavorable opinion; 41% view Biden favorably, while 46% viewed him as unfavorable.
