Donald Trump’s campaign is dispatching vice-presidential nominee Mike Pence to Arizona for two public events, “a tangible sign of Republicans’ concern that Arizona could be competitive this year,” Politico reports.
Rick Klein: “To review the bidding since the post-convention weekend… Donald Trump called Hillary Clinton the devil, said the election will be rigged, accused a local fire marshal of limiting his crowd for political reasons, and said his daughter should find another job if she were sexually harassed. He stayed on the attack against the family of a fallen service member, and saw a military mom who asked his vice-presidential candidate about that booed by Trump’s own supporters. He’s clarified his call for the Russians to hack Hillary Clinton’s email as ‘sarcasm,’ and he’s also clarified that he did know that Russia had taken over Crimea. He acknowledged that he didn’t get a letter from the NFL about debates after all. In the political realm, he offered a measure of public support to House Speaker Paul Ryan’s long-shot primary challenger, a week before that election.”
“Plenty of candidates make gaffes, though these actions amount to more than that. They veer between reckless, careless, and just plain mean. The only through-line is Trump being Trump, with no apparent strategy greater than that. At this post-convention time for party consolidation, with everything magnified in the final 100 days before Nov. 8, this looks like a candidate who senses he is losing and is not happy about it.”
First Read: “The raging Khan controversy overshadowed Hillary Clinton’s claim over the weekend that FBI director James Comey said her answers about her email use were ‘truthful.’ … The Washington Post slapped a ‘Four Pinocchio’ label on the claim on Sunday.”
“Here’s the thing: Somewhere in an alternate universe where the GOP nominee is Ted Cruz or Marco Rubio or Jeb Bush, Clinton’s claim would be leading newscasts and knocking the wind out of any post-convention bounce she earned in Philly. Instead, a debate about Trump’s lack of empathy for a Gold Star family and a crisis in the GOP is crowding out what should be a solid hit on the Democratic nominee. For as much as Trump’s unforced errors frustrate Republicans, the same can be said for Clinton and Democrats. Why did she have to exaggerate what Comey said? Why twist the interpretation of what he said where it stops resembling the truth? She has a shot at putting this race away, but this answer on emails and interpreting Comey is the explanation for why she can’t totally shake Trump. It’s his character vs her honesty.”
Stuart Rothenberg: “The last couple of weeks have been nothing short of disastrous for the Republican Party.”
“No, Donald Trump’s position in the race hasn’t worsened dramatically, nor did the Democratic convention wash away Hillary Clinton’s many political warts. When it comes to the presidential race, we will see what the post-convention polls show.”
“Things have deteriorated for the GOP because Donald Trump’s comments about Russia and Vladimir Putin have further shredded the Republican Party’s historically greatest strength: national security and defense themes. Add to that Trump’s — and GOP delegates’ — performance at their convention (‘Lock her up!’) and Trump’s positions on trade, taxes, spending and entitlements, which also contradict the long-standing Republican message, and the party is nothing short of a mess.”
For members: Will Republicans Finally Abandon Trump?
First Read: “Donald Trump’s confounding war with a Gold Star family — earning condemnation from veterans groups and lawmakers on both sides of the aisle – has started to have a distinct air over the last 36 hours of a situation that’s unraveling. It’s the latest in a long list of fights that have so far failed to sink Trump’s candidacy, but something about this particular controversy feels different. It’s pushing some neutral groups off the sidelines (see the nonpartisan VFW’s strongly-worded response), it’s undermining the GOP’s mantle as the party of reverence to the military and national security, and it’s putting Republicans like House Speaker Paul Ryan in a particularly torturous bind as they try to defend the Khan family without so much as naming their own nominee.”
“Mike Pence, Trump’s own VP, faced a question about Trump’s treatment of the Khans last night from a military mom who was booed by the crowd as Pence offered words of solace but no apology. But so far, Republicans aren’t going so far as to un-endorse their nominee as a result of the Khan controversy. (Not even John McCain, who offered the most biting statement targeting Trump yet!) This moment could provide a last exit ramp for Republicans to withdraw their support for Trump before the heat of the general election, which now seems sure to draw even more outlandish reactions from a candidate who’s shown little deference to the party. And the pressure isn’t letting up.”
“Here’s what I think about the map. It’s going to be a close race. But there isn’t any state in the battleground universe where Donald Trump will force us to play defense.”
— Clinton chief strategist Joel Benenson, quoted by the Washington Post.
Donald Trump reiterated that in endorsing Hillary Clinton, Bernie Sanders made a deal with the devil, the AP reports.
He went further this time, explicitly saying: “He made a deal with the devil. She’s the devil.”
Rep. Richard Hanna (R-NY) told the Syracuse Post Standard that he will vote for Hillary Clinton for president because Donald Trump is “unfit to serve our party and cannot lead this country.”
Hanna said it’s unthinkable that anyone would criticize Gold Star parents: “I saw that and felt incensed. I was stunned by the callousness of his comments.”
He added: “I think Trump is a national embarrassment. Is he really the guy you want to have the nuclear codes?”
Donald Trump said that The New York Times “is just absolutely a disaster” and “so unfair” to his campaign, Politico reports.
Said Trump: “I mean they write three, four articles about me a day. No matter how good I do on something, they’ll never write good.”
“Warren Buffett took on Donald Trump over his refusal to release his tax returns — issuing the real estate mogul a challenge to put his cards on the table,” ABC News reports.
Said Buffett: “Now I’ve got news for him, I’m under audit too. There are no rules against showing your tax returns and just let people ask us questions about the items that are on there.”
He added: “You’re only afraid if you’ve got something to be afraid about. He’s not afraid of the IRS. He’s afraid because of you.”
The New York Times reports Buffett also said that a monkey throwing darts at the stock pages in 1995, when Mr. Trump first offered stock in his Atlantic City hotels, would have come out far ahead of Trump.
A new Hinckley Institute-Salt Lake Tribune poll in Utah shows the presidential race is virtually tied with Hillary Clinton edging Donald Trump, 36% to 35%.
“That is as close as a Democratic candidate has been to victory in more than half a century.”
A new NBC News/SurveyMonkey poll finds Hillary Clinton leading Donald Trump by eight points in the presidential race, 50% to 42%.
Libertarian presidential candidate Gary Johnson told CNN that Mitt Romney was considering endorsing him for president this fall.
Romney last month: “If Bill Weld were at the top of the ticket, it would be very easy for me to vote for Bill Weld for president. So I’ll get to know Gary Johnson better and see if he’s someone who I could end up voting for. That’s something which I’ll evaluate over the coming weeks and months.”
The New York Times reports Donald Trump received five deferments during the Vietnam war, one for bone spurs and the others for education.
“His experience during the era is drawing new scrutiny after the Muslim American parents of a soldier who was killed in Iraq publicly questioned whether Mr. Trump had ever sacrificed for his country. In an emotional speech at the Democratic National Convention last week, the soldier’s father, Khizr Khan, directly addressed Mr. Trump, the Republican presidential nominee, saying, ‘You have sacrificed nothing and no one.'”
“Mr. Trump’s public statements about his draft experience sometimes conflict with his Selective Service records, and he is often hazy in recalling details.”
Ron Fournier: “Hillary Clinton may be rising in the polls as a result, which is good news for people like me across the political spectrum who find Trump to be vacuous, soulless, and temperamentally unfit for the presidency.”
“Yet I’m not angry at Trump; I expect him to be repugnant. I am angry at Clinton, because she followed up her convention with another unnecessary lie; another excuse for people to distrust her; another thin reed upon which undecided voters could justify a belated allegiance to a man who former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg called ‘a dangerous demagogue.'”
“On Sunday, the former secretary of state told FOX News’ Chris Wallace that FBI Director James Comey cleared her of misleading the public about her rogue email server at the state department… That’s wrong and she knows it, which makes it a lie.”
Washington Post: “The political fight swirling around Khan’s parents and Trump — which has dominated the presidential race in recent days — seems far removed from Section 60 of the cemetery, where row after row of white headstones stand in long grass and in air heavy with humidity on the first day of August. Most of the soldiers in the row where Khan was laid to rest also died in Iraq in 2004; their headstones are inscribed with crosses, Stars of David, medals of valor — and dates of death far too close to their dates of birth… A stream of well-wishers including the Dowells have been coming to honor Khan over the past few days.”
A new Landmark/Rosetta Stone in Georgia finds Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton deadlocked in the presidential race with 45% of the vote.
A new SurveyUSA poll shows Trump leading by four points, 46% to 42%.
For members: What to Watch For In the Next Wave of Polling
Taegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites. He also runs Political Job Hunt, Electoral Vote Map and the Political Dictionary.
Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.
Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country.
Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.
Goddard is the owner of Goddard Media LLC.