What's happening on the campaign trail today
- Pressure is building on President Joe Biden to drop out of the 2024 race, as more Democrats, both privately and publicly, say it's time for him to step aside.
- Sen. Sherrod Brown, of Ohio, today became the fourth Senate Democrat to call for Biden to abandon his re-election bid, following Sen. Jon Tester, of Montana; Sen. Peter Welch, of Vermont; and Sen. Martin Heinrich, of New Mexico. Today alone, 13 congressional Democrats said publicly for the first time that Biden should exit the race.
- Biden and the first lady are home in Delaware after the president tested positive for Covid on Wednesday.
- Donald Trump today spoke with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who congratulated Trump on formally accepting the GOP nomination for president. They also discussed the Russia-Ukraine war, which Trump has vowed to have "settled" if he wins in November.
- Trump's July 2019 phone call with Zelenskyy, during which he tried to pressure the Ukrainian leader into opening an investigation into then-candidate Joe Biden, led to his first impeachment.
Biden blasts Trump’s RNC speech in lengthiest response so far
Biden slammed Trump’s RNC acceptance speech in a lengthy X thread, where he laid into the former president for his policies regarding Covid, Social Security, taxes and more.
“I’m stuck at home with COVID, so I had the distinct misfortune of watching Donald Trump’s speech to the RNC,” Biden said in one post. “What the hell was he talking about?”
Biden also blasted Trump’s proposals regarding migrants and his criticism of unions.
“I’m the most pro-worker president in history. Donald doesn’t know a damn thing about protecting workers and their rights,” Biden said in a separate post. “He should be ashamed.”
Trump shooter flew drone over venue hours before attempted assassination, source says
The gunman who shot Trump in the ear at a Pennsylvania rally on Saturday flew a drone over the rally site a few hours before Trump took the stage, a source familiar with the matter told NBC News.
The camera drone made by DJI allowed 20-year-old gunman, Thomas Crooks, to get an overhead view that maybe helped him plan his attack, the source said.
Trump was shot in the ear in the assassination attempt and Crooks was killed by the Secret Service after the attack at a Trump rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.
AOC rallies to Biden’s side as progressives split over backing his 2024 campaign
At a moment of existential turmoil for Biden, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., has stepped up as a firm ally of the embattled incumbent, using her platform to speak out against the flurry of Democratic voices who are calling on him to withdraw from the 2024 presidential race.
As Trump was wrapping up his lengthy speech accepting the GOP presidential nomination last night, AOC — as she’s widely known — took to Instagram Live to speak directly to thousands of followers to make the case against Biden dropping out.
She questioned the viability of replacing Biden atop the ticket at this late stage, warning that some Republicans would challenge that legally and said doing so could lead to “a presidential election being decided by Clarence Thomas and the Supreme Court,” like in 2000.
Florida man charged over alleged threats to kill Trump, JD Vance
Authorities arrested and charged a man in Florida over alleged social media threats against Trump and his running mate, Ohio Sen. JD Vance.
Michael M. Wiseman was arrested today on charges of written threats to kill, according to a statement from the Jupiter Police Department in Florida.
“After investigating the reports and the suspect’s Facebook account, JPD detectives found that Wiseman had made multiple threats against Trump and Vance, who earlier this week became the Republican nominees for President and Vice President, respectively,” the statement said. “Threats were also made concerning bodily harm to members of the Trump and Vance families.”
Biden said he would return to the campaign trail next week. As the president recovers from Covid, his campaign said he is “more committed than ever to beat Donald Trump.” While more Democrats in the House and Senate called on Biden to end his campaign, House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries reaffirmed his support of the president. NBC News’ Kelly O’Donnell reports.
Democrats rush to decide Biden’s political future before it plunges into murky legal territory
The Democratic pressure campaign to convince Biden to get off the ticket is rushing to get ahead of deadlines that would turn a political fight into a legal one, due to state laws on ballot certification and vacancies.
Democrats are still on course to formally nominate the president again during the first week of August at a virtual delegate roll call vote before their convention later that month. And while party rules provide a clear path for Democrats to replace Biden before or after that vote, a decision to replace him for political reasons later than that gets into thorny territory, effectively becoming a lost cause by early September.
In short, Democrats may have only days after their convention to finalize their nominee or else they risk being left off the ballot in key states, risking key Electoral College votes and their ability to win the presidency along with it. By early September, trying to put a new presidential candidate on the ballot is no longer solely up to a national party once state laws on ballot certification and ballot vacancies go into effect.
Ohio Sen. Sherrod Brown calls for Biden to drop out of the 2024 race
Sen. Sherrod Brown of Ohio called on President Joe Biden to end his re-election campaign Friday, becoming the fourth Democrat in the chamber to ask Biden to drop out of the race.
“Over the last few weeks, I’ve heard from Ohioans on important issues, such as how to continue to grow jobs in our state, give law enforcement the resources to crack down on fentanyl, protect Social Security and Medicare from cuts, and prevent the ongoing efforts to impose a national abortion ban,” Brown said in a written statement shared first with NBC News. “These are the issues Ohioans care about and it is my job to keep fighting for them.”
Utah Gov. Spencer Cox pledges support for Trump in a reversal
Gov. Spencer Cox, R-Utah, pledged his support to Trump in a two-page letter that outlined the governor's belief that "God had a hand in saving" him during the assassination attempt.
The letter marked a reversal for Cox, who just days ago on CNN said he would not vote for Trump and instead write in a candidate. Cox has said that he has not voted for the top of the ticket since 2012.
"I believe in our better angels, Mr. President, and I believe you are capable of being that kind of leader for this troubled nation," Cox wrote in the open letter. "It is a huge burden to be placed on any person, but I want you to know that I pledge my support and I know that millions of others will rally to that kind of leadership."
Rep. Gabe Vasquez calls for Biden to step aside
Rep. Gabe Vasquez, D-N.M., called on Biden to bow out of the race, becoming the 34th congressional Democrat to join the calls for him to step aside.
In a statement, the frontline Democrat called Biden an "honorable public servant," adding that Americans "owe him a great debt of gratitude."
“However, I believe too many of our fundamental freedoms and the wellbeing of our nation are at risk under a Trump presidency and President Biden should step aside to give Democrats the best opportunity to win this November," Vasquez said. "With abortion rights under attack and our Democracy at stake, we must unite to defeat Donald Trump and MAGA extremists."
Vazquez narrowly defeated the Republican incumbent in 2022, garnering 50.3% of votes.
As Biden continues to recover for Covid, he appears to be growing politically isolated as calls grow louder for him to bow out of the 2024 race. NBC’s Gabe Gutierrez reports for TODAY on one of the biggest decisions of the president’s career.