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CNN Live Event/Special
Former Trump Rivals To Push For His Re-Election At RNC; Former Trump Rival Vivek Ramaswamy Speaks At RNC; J.D. Vance Arrives At RNC, Trump Expected Soon. Aired 8-9p ET
Aired July 16, 2024 - 20:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
JAKE TAPPER, CNN HOST: Based on what I know Governor Christie thinks about Donald Trump. I don't sense that there's a lot of optimism about it.
ABBY PHILLIP, CNN HOST: Yes. That's right.
TAPPER: But he does seem to do it, but as Dana points out, Chris Christie not only refused to endorse Donald Trump, he refused to endorse Nikki Haley against Donald Trump because he thought Nikki Haley would ultimately come speak at this convention for Donald Trump, which is -
PHILLIP: And he was -
TAPPER: -- actually happening. The news continues right now.
[20:00:23]
TAPPER: Welcome to Milwaukee where this evening's convention program is already in full swing at 8:00 PM Eastern here. Delegates anticipating Donald Trump's expected return to the arena tonight with his running mate, Senator JD Vance of Ohio. We're watching it all from our anchor position above the convention hall.
This is CNN's Special Live Convention Coverage. I am Jake Tapper, along with my friend and colleague, Anderson Cooper, and Anderson, and former trump rival, Nikki Haley is among the most highly anticipated speakers this evening.
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN HOST: Yes, without a doubt she was Trump's last and most bitter primary opponent and took her time before finally supporting him, we are told she'll make the case to uncertain voters about why she's now voting for Trump.
The Republicans are aiming to present a united front offering a stark, and perhaps intentional contrast to the Democrats' frayed public divisions over President Biden's candidacy right now.
Jake, before Haley's remarks, there are some closely watched speeches coming up, of course, in this hour as well.
TAPPER: Hi Anderson, we're starting -- standing by to hear from another former Trump rival who has become one of his biggest cheerleaders, businessman, Vivek Ramaswamy. Also, this hour, the House Speaker Mike Johnson, along with other top
Republican leaders in Congress, among Donald Trump's most first fervent defenders on Capitol Hill.
CNN's Boris Sanchez is just off-stage as those primetime speakers head to the podium. We also have Phil Mattingly and Kaitlan Collins on the convention floor. They're getting reaction from the delegates -- Anderson.
COOPER: Jake, a lot to get to. We are waiting for Elise Stefanik, the House Republican Conference Chair to speak. We'll bring you her remarks here with the team.
Scott, obviously, Nikki Haley -- probably the biggest speaker for tonight.
SCOTT JENNINGS, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Yes. Well, both of Trump's most successful rivals in the Republican Primary, Haley and Ron DeSantis and I think it's wise for them to be there.
I think it was smart for Donald Trump to reach out. I don't think there's a lot of undecided Republicans left. But I do think this, what we saw last night and what we saw tonight with a continuation here is, Donald Trump's willingness to display the Republican Party is a big tent party, big enough for people that he has feuded with in the past, big enough for people that he has different policy ideas from, heck, even big enough for a union boss to stand on a stage and say, we may not agree on everything, but as the leader of this party and as the next president, I'm willing to invite you into a conversation.
I think this juxtaposition of Trump, the convener versus Biden who is sort of campaign in chaos right now, to me, big picture, that's what I'm looking for tonight.
VAN JONES, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Well, last night was a little bit more fun than tonight is going to be. Last night you had Amber Rose, you had the leader that Teamsters talking about workers of the world unite, Florida Black congressman.
Last night was great, tonight is going to suck because it's going to be all bashing immigrants and pretending like every blue city is just overrun by terrible people. And it's all going to be mostly false or exaggerated, and divisive and terrible.
So, I hope yesterday was good.
JONAH GOLDBERG, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: You really -- so stay tuned.
JENNINGS: To give you an idea of how immigration is going for the Democratic Party, we present Van Jones, ladies and gentlemen.
ALYSSA FARAH GRIFFIN, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: But keep in mind. So --
COOPER: Do we cue the Debbie Downers? GRIFFIN: But the theme tonight is Make America Safe Again and
obviously, immigration is going to be front and center, but there's the National Security element, there's the international stage. And of course, the choice of JD Vance having someone like David Sacks kind of leaned into this isolationism. Are we going to stand with NATO? What is our position on the war in Ukraine?
I'm going to be interested to see -- I do think that Nikki Haley is going to make the case for why Donald Trump is stronger in her mind on foreign policy than Joe Biden. But I'm curious if there is some specific tone she takes around NATO standing with allies and what the Republican Party should stand for, and how it will be received by the audience.
This because this is Trump's Republican Party. it's not Nikki Haley's. So, if you're making the case for why America's leadership on the world stage matters, we'll see how this convention hall receives it.
COOPER: Jonah?
GOLDBERG: Yes, so, I agree entirely about Nikki Haley, if she's not allowed to make the forceful case for NATO and for America's role on the world, but David Sacks and those guys were allowed to do that on top of JD Vance being picked, who says he personally just doesn't care what happens to Ukraine, then that is a sign that the party is actually has -- is kind of a much smaller tent on foreign policy and stuck with this MAGA stuff.
There is also a really interesting challenge for Vivek and for DeSantis, both of those guys wanted to be the sort of next generation MAGA guy, the heirs to Trumpism.
[20:05:10]
DeSantis ran in the primaries as the guy who was going to give you the Trumpism without Trump. He was going to deliver on the policy stuff. They've both just been supplanted by JD Vance as the heirs apparent and the guy who pushed JD Vance to get -- to become that person is Donald Trump, Jr., who also has some sort of scheme of being that.
So, these guys need to figure out a way to reassert themselves as leaders of something in the party and how they do that is going to be interesting.
COOPER: You think Donald Trump, Jr. is pushing JD Vance is also something Donald Trump, Jr. wants to be in politics?
GOLDBERG: Yes, very much so. I think Donald Trump, Jr. has come to the conclusion probably rightly, that there is no political future for him in a party that isn't Vance-fied. It doesn't become a MAGA party and Vance is the way to secure that.
I don't think Donald Trump, Jr. actually has a great political future ahead of him, but he doesn't know that yet.
JENNINGS: I don't know. I just take the other side of that I -- of all the Trumps, I actually think Donald Trump, Jr. is the one who most authentically speaks, sort of the current language of Republicanism right now, on the sportsman stuff, on Second Amendment stuff, on -- I mean, he -- you know, his father was not a Republican.
GOLDBERG: Yes.
JENNINGS: For a long time, but Donald Trump, Jr., I think speaks the language and sort of exudes the modern Republican ethos, maybe better than any of them. I agree with you. He may not be long for elective politics, but in terms of being a kingmaker inside the Republican Party, I hear you.
GOLDBERG: Yes, that's fair.
KATE BEDINGFIELD, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: I think in some ways tonight is probably also a test of kind of, not just the unity message that Trump and the Republicans have been -- were trying to put on display last night. But also, I think we'll see a lot of tension tonight I would imagine between -- you know, Trump is kind of the dark vision of the contrary that he often paints, particularly on issues of immigration and crime. There's a lot of echoes of, you know, you remember from his first inaugural, the sort of carnage in America language.
And I think their effort tonight is clearly going to be to try to paint the Biden administration as a failure on these issues, that people are feeling less safe. And so, how do they thread the needle in doing that in a way that doesn't sound like you're rooting against America, which is what winds up happening a lot when kind of the heart of Trumpism is on display.
So, I think it will be -- it'll be interesting to see tonight how they navigate that talent.
COOPER: It seems that though we're going to be hearing from Elise Stefanik so early on in the night. I mean, just as the sort of primetime coverage begins.
She was actually a big critic of Donald Trump's back in 2016, even early on in his presidency.
JONES: Well, she rose above it.
BEDINGFIELD: You can put it that way.
GRIFFIN: That's one way of framing it or she submitted to it.
JENNINGS: I think we treat these people who were once critics who have come around like it's some bad thing. Isn't this a testament to Donald Trump's ability to bring people around?
BEDINGFIELD: Or political ambition being a strikingly a motivating thing.
JENNINGS: Everybody acting like this is a terrible thing for Donald Trump that people used to criticize him and now they are for him, and now they're helping him. And if you're trying to build a coalition to win an election, this is what you do. You bring in former rivals and you put them in the tent.
JONES: You can see it that way and I think that that is in an abstract way of the truth. But the reality is, people are scared to be against Donald Trump because Donald Trump will smush you like a bug and be unfair and horrible to you and sic people on you on Twitter and every place else. And so, people are kind of forced to come along.
GRIFFIN: Yes, his former vice president is nowhere to be seen, somebody who are loyally served him for four years and was arguably the most loyal person to him, because he broke with him on one thing.
There is not a whole lot of room for dissent within the party, but one thing I keep an eye on that I think is so fascinating is this is also people gearing up for 2028.
JONES: Yes.
GRIFFIN: So, when people give speeches, when do they mention Trump or is it a lot about their record? I noticed Kristi Noem --
COOPER: Kristi Noem.
GRIFFIN: -- noted dog killer having to make -- to really -
JENNINGS: Baby dog. Baby dog.
GOLDBERG: Notice they have the West Virginia governor on -
JENNINGS: Yes.
GRIFFIN: Yes. But that will be interesting, with DeSantis, how much of this is about Trump and his leadership versus what I did in Florida, especially with the governors that is interesting to watch.
COOPER: Yes, also what you are looking at tonight?
JENNINGS: Well, honestly, the Senate candidates that they have been -- and we've talked a lot about the presidential, but earlier tonight, we've already seen a couple of Senate candidates and it was alluded to by Adam Schiff, Democrat in California today that if we stick with Joe Biden, we are going to lose the White House for Democrats and the Senate and the House are gone and you're seeing this group of Republican Senate candidates at the convention, all of them have an excellent chance to win.
They had a good chance to win, now they have an excellent chance to win, and you think about what it portends if Trump can get this thing and Republicans get control of both chambers, you could see major policy changes in this country and for Republicans on that floor, that will be thrilling for them.
BEDINGFIELD: But it is interesting to see the divide though. I mean, you have, obviously we heard from Kari Lake, you have Bernie Moreno. I mean, you have a lot of these candidates who really represents the most extreme wing of Trumpism sort of out front here.
[20:10:10]
I think for Democrats in some of these races, like yes, the map for Democrats in the Senate is tough this year. They're defending redder states, purple states, and in some cases, very red states.
There's no question the map is challenging, but I think what you will see on display, what you have seen tonight, and will continue to see is some of the most fervent element of Trumpism, which I think is -- it continues to be off putting to some of these moderate and swing voters.
And I think that as this campaign plays out over the next three-and-a- half months and that sort of, that kind of most aggressive, most extremist wing of Trumpism is on display in these states, I think that's a little bit of a tougher climb than perhaps is being given credit for right now in this moment where the race is admittedly very volatile given a lot of the things that have happened over the last couple of weeks.
JONES: I think --
COOPER: Elise Stefanik is walking out now. So, let's listen to what the Congresswoman is going to --
REP. ELISE STEFANIK (R-NY): Good evening, Milwaukee.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
We always say that this is the most important election in our lifetime, but we know deep down, this one truly is, our Constitution and the soul of our very nation are on the ballot.
Under Joe Biden, the American people have suffered crisis after crisis. From the Biden border, the most wide-open border in our nation's history, to Bidenflation the highest rate of inflation in my lifetime, devastating.
Hardworking families with skyrocketing prices for groceries, gas, and utilities, to Biden's violent crime crisis fueled by Democrats pro- criminal sanctuary cities, and defund the police policies like we have seen in my home state of New York.
All while, corrupt Democrat prosecutors and judges wage illegal and unconstitutional lawfare against President Trump in an effort to do Joe Biden's political bidding.
And around the world, the feckless and failed Joe Biden has caused chaos, weakening our National Security. From the catastrophic withdrawal from Afghanistan to Putin's invasion of Ukraine, to Hamas' terrorist attack against our most precious ally, Israel.
And let me ask you a question, what has been the response from the radical left on our college campuses, vile antisemitism, chanting "Death to Israel, Death to Jews, Death to America." This is Joe Biden's Democratic Party.
Who saw that congressional hearing with the college presidents of so- called elite universities? Oh, wait, they are former presidents.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
You know, I asked one simple question at that hearing. It was not a political question, it was a moral question and that was this: Does calling for the genocide of Jews violate your university's Code of Conduct?
And one after the other, after the other, said it depends on the context.
Let me tell you, America knows, it does not depend on the context.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
President Trump will bring back moral leadership to the White House, condemning antisemitism, and standing strong with Israel and the Jewish people.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
President Trump will once again deliver the most secure border in our nation's history and unleash the American economy and he will bring peace through strength as commander-in-chief, standing with our allies and causing our enemies to fear us. President Trump has done it before and he will do it again.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
This November, we are counting on you, we the people to save America by electing President Donald J. Trump.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
It is clear for the whole world to see nothing, absolutely nothing will stop President Trump from standing and fighting for our great country, and I have been proud to always stand in the breach during the toughest moments for President Trump.
[20:15:05]
From leading the charge against illegal impeachments, to standing for election integrity to unifying House Republicans to proudly being the first member of Congress to endorse him for re-election.
And as we embark on the difficult path ahead to save America, call upon Galatians 6:9 "And let us not grow weary of doing good for in due season, we will reap if we do not give up."
We the people will never give up on President Trump and we will never give up on the United States of America.
God bless you. God bless President Donald J. Trump and God bless the United States of America
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
COOPER: Elise Stefanik, the Republican from New York. Just ahead, we are awaiting remarks from more top House Republicans, including Speaker Mike Johnson.
Awesome question, can Nikki Haley persuade any skeptical Republicans to vote for Donald Trump? Standing by her remarks for the most important speeches of the night.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[20:20:10]
TAPPER: We are live in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where the second night of the Republican National Convention is underway. We are awaiting Donald Trump's arrival here at the convention hall.
Let's listen in to top House Republican leaders on the convention stage. Right now, we are hearing from the house majority with Congressman Tom Emmer from Minnesota. Let's listen in.
REP. TOM EMMER (R-MN): We are going to make America great again.
God bless you. May God continue to bless Donald Trump and his family and God bless America.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
ANNOUNCER: Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome the Majority leader of the United States House of Representatives, Congressman Steve Scalise of Louisiana.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
(PEOPLE CHANTING "USA")
REP. STEVE SCALISE (R-LA): God bless each and every one of you. I'm House Majority Leader Steve Scalise from the great state of Louisiana.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
I was born in New Orleans, so, I've seen some crazy things in my time.
But New Orleans has nothing on Washington, DC these past four years. Joe Biden and Kamala Harris have spent your tax dollars trashing America's finances in ways no sane or sober-minded person ever would.
Let's talk energy, they have eroded the American energy dominance that President Trump delivered. Joe Biden approved the Nord Stream pipeline for Russia, but he killed the Keystone pipeline here at home. Thousands -- thousands of American jobs gone.
(BOOING) It doesn't end there. Biden let Iran and Venezuela export their oil,
but he stopped liquefied natural gas exports here in America. President Biden is not done. President Biden waived taxes on Chinese solar panels, but he raised taxes on Americans.
When we elect Donald Trump as our next president and expand our Republican House Majority, we will end the Democrat's assault on American energy once and for all.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
Now let's look at taxes. Biden and Harris want a $5 trillion tax hike. In our first hundred days, President Trump and the Republican majority will make the Trump tax cuts permanent.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
And yes, we will end taxes on tips and deliver another tax cut for working families.
On the border, Biden and Harris opened it up to the entire world. Prisons are being emptied, President Trump and the Republican majority will re-pass HR 2, the strongest border security bill in decades. We will lock down the border, and yes, we will finish building the wall.
(PEOPLE CHANTING "BUILD THAT WALL")
On voting, our most sacred right as citizens, voting. Biden and Harris want illegals to vote now that they've opened up the border.
Republicans will repass the Save Act to block illegal aliens from voting in our elections. On foreign policy, Biden and Harris brought us weakness and war. President Trump and the Republican Majority will begin rebuilding our military and will end the woke indoctrination in its ranks. We will restore American power and peace.
On education, Biden and Harris oppose school choice. They actually investigated parents at school boards.
[20:25:03]
President Trump and the Republican majority will pass legislation expanding school choice and will repass the Parents' Bill of Rights. Parents should be free to choose what their children are taught and where.
Now lastly, I need to say something about Saturday's attempt on President Trump's life. Many of you know I was the survivor of a politically motivated shooting in 2017. Not many know that while I was fighting for my life, Donald Trump was one of the first to come console my family at the hospital.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
That is the kind of leader he is -- courageous under fire, compassionate towards others. Let's put Donald Trump back in the White House this November, so we
can make America great again. God bless you.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
May Donald Trump continue to receive God's blessing and God bless this great United States of America.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
ANNOUNCER: Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, Mike Johnson of Louisiana.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
REP. MIKE JOHNSON (R-LA): Good evening, my friends. What an amazing crowd and what a great time it is to unite our party and to send President Donald Trump back to the White House. That's what we're going to do.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
But we're not just uniting as Republicans, we are uniting today as Americans, in the wake of the assassination attempt on the life of President Trump. Everyone hear me clearly and listen to me at home and make no mistake, the House is conducting an immediate and thorough investigation of these tragic events.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
And that work has already begun. The American people deserve to know the truth and we will ensure accountability, I promise you that. I promise you that.
This has always been an important principle to us. We, in the Republican Party are the law-and-order team. We always have been and we always will be the advocates for the rule of law and we all know that that principle as well as many others is in serious jeopardy today. So, we've come to a moment in America, where the basic things that we once took for granted, are being openly challenged like never before.
My friends, we are no longer just in a battle between two opposing political parties. We are, but it's not just Rs versus Ds anymore, we are now in the midst of a struggle between two completely different visions of who we are as Americans and what our country will be. The Republican Party stands for the foundational truths that made America the greatest nation in the history of the world.
We are the most free, the most powerful, the most benevolent nation that has ever been, it is not even close. It's not even close. But we have no guarantee that this grand experiment itself governance can endure, unless we respond to the call to keep it.
Two hundred forty-eight years ago, we boldly proclaimed in our Declaration that all men are created equal, not born equal, created equal, and that were endowed by our creator with certain inalienable rights. See, we understand that our rights do not come from government, they come from God.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
There's another thing that we recognize. We recognize that we are made in His image and because of that, every single person has inestimable dignity and value and your value is not related in any way to the color of your skin, what zip code you live in, where you come from, what your talents are, or what you can contribute to society. Your value is inherent, because it is given to you by your Creator. That's what we stand for.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
I speak a lot about what I call the seven core principles of American conservatism. What do we stand for as Republicans they want to know? I think it boils down to a few things, individual freedom, limited government, the rule of law, peace through strength, fiscal responsibility, free markets, and human dignity. Indeed, those are the seven core principles of American conservatism. But they're actually the -- the core principles of our republic itself.
[20:30:15]
And while they resonate in our hearts and in the hearts of most Americans, listen to me. The radical woke progressive left has disdain for those principles, all right? They have a very different vision for what America should become. They want to tear down those foundations and remold us into some sort of borderless, lawless, Marxist, socialist utopia. We're here to say, not on our watch. We will not allow that to happen.
(CHEERING)
(APPLAUSE)
JOHNSON: It was just three weeks ago that Kelly and I dropped off our oldest son at the Naval Academy.
(CHEERING)
(APPLAUSE)
JOHNSON: And -- that's right.
(CHEERING)
(APPLAUSE)
JOHNSON: And in four years, he'll graduate. And he'll join the 1.3 million active duty service members who bravely defend our country.
(CHEERING)
JOHNSON: We're so proud of Jack and all our children. But like most parents today, we're concerned about their future. America can't risk four more years of Joe Biden's weakness that has invited so much aggression by our enemies. We can't survive the dramatic increases in violence, crime and drugs that the Democrats policies have brought upon our communities. And we cannot allow the many millions of illegal aliens they've allowed to cross our borders to harm our citizens, drain our resources, or disrupt our elections. We will not allow it.
(CHEERING)
(APPLAUSE)
JOHNSON: My friends were watching the principles of faith, family and freedom that wants to find our nation now being trampled underfoot by the radical left. As President Trump raised his fist and gave a rally cry on Saturday. Now is our time to fight and we will.
(CHEERING)
(APPLAUSE)
(CHANTING)
JOHNSON: We're in a fateful battle of ideas, my friends, and we have to recognize that. But in this battle, and in November, the American people will reject the party of self-destruction. And they will elect the party of peace and prosperity and opportunity. The GOP will grow our House majority. We will take back the Senate and we will return Donald J. Trump to the White House.
(CHEERING)
(APPLAUSE)
JOHNSON: And standing arm in arm, we will make America safe again.
(CHEERING)
(APPLAUSE)
JOHNSON: Listen, we -- we reach out tonight to everyone watching at home, we invite all Americans who believe in the promise of our great nation to join us in this fateful battle. We can, and we will reverse this current decline. We can restore our founding principles, and we can preserve this exceptional nation that God has entrusted to us. And what Abraham Lincoln referred to as the last, best hope of man on the earth. Thank you so much. God bless you. God bless our troops. And God bless America.
(CHEERING)
(APPLAUSE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Ladies and gentlemen, now please welcome businessman, Vivek Ramaswamy of Ohio.
(CHEERING) (APPLAUSE)
VIVEK RAMASWAMY (BUSINESSMAN): I Love it. Thank you guys. Thank you for the warm welcome. It's good to be back in Milwaukee. This time last year, I was the candidate for U.S. president, and I'm proud to say that I achieved the impossible, which is that most of you actually know how to say my name by now, so. So thank you for that.
(CHEERING)
(APPLAUSE)
RAMASWAMY: It's good to be back. We're in the middle of a national identity crisis right now. Faith, patriotism, hard work, and family have disappeared, only to be replaced by race, gender, sexuality and climate. But we're not going to win this election just by criticizing the other side. We're going to win this by standing for our own vision of who we really are. What does it mean to be a Republican in the year 2024? What does it mean to be an American in the year 2024?
[20:35:09]
It means we believe in the ideals of 1776. It means we believe in merit that you get ahead in this country, not on the color of your skin, but on the content of your character and your contributions.
(CHEERING)
(APPLAUSE)
RAMASWAMY: It means we believe in the rule of law, and I say this as the kid of legal to this country. That means your first act of entering this country cannot break the law. That is why we will seal the Southern border on day one. Thank you.
(CHEERING)
(APPLAUSE)
RAMASWAMY: It means the people who we elect to run the government ought to be the ones who actually run the government, not unelected bureaucrats in the deep state. These are not Black ideas or White ideas. They are not even Democrat ideas or Republican ideas. They are American ideas that we fought a revolution to secure. And the man who will revive these ideals in the United States of America is your next President, the 47th President of the United States, Donald J. Trump.
(CHEERING)
(APPLAUSE)
RAMASWAMY: If you want to seal the border, vote Trump. If you want to restore law and order in this country, vote Trump.
CROWD: Vote Trump.
RAMASWAMY: If you want to reignite the economy in this country, vote Trump.
CROWD: Vote Trump.
RAMASWAMY: If you want to revive national pride in this country, vote Trump.
CROWD: Vote Trump.
RAMASWAMY: If you want to make America great again, vote Trump.
CROWD: Vote Trump.
RAMASWAMY: But there is one more reason I'm going to ask you to vote Trump, and it's the most important one. It's the one the media won't talk about, but it's the truth. Donald Trump is the President who will actually this country, not through empty words, but through action because you know what? Success is unifying. Excellence is unifying. That's who we are as Americans. That's who we've always been.
To those of you watching this at home tonight, I'd like to deliver a message that the media doesn't want you to hear from the Republican Party. Our message to Black Americans is this. The media has tried to convince you for decades that Republicans don't care about your communities, but we do. We want for you what we want for every American, safe neighborhoods, clean streets, good jobs, a better life for your children, and a justice system that treats everyone equally, regardless of your skin color and regardless of your political beliefs.
(CHEERING)
(APPLAUSE)
RAMASWAMY: Our message to every legal immigrant in this country is this. You're like my parents. You deserve the opportunity to secure a better life for your children in America. But our message to illegal immigrants is also this. We will return you to your country of origin, not because you're all bad people, but because you broke the law, and the United States of America was founded on the rule of law.
(CHEERING)
(APPLAUSE)
RAMASWAMY: Our message to millennials, speaking as one myself, yes, it's true. Our government sold us a false bill of goods with the Iraq war and the 2008 financial crisis, loading up our national debt that falls on our generation's shoulders, telling us that if we took out college loans, we'd somehow get a head start on the American dream when it hasn't worked out that way.
But we can't just be cynical about our country because the United States of America is still the last best hope that we have, and we deserve a better class of politician, one who actually tells us the truth, even if it comes with some mean tweets from time to time.
(CHEERING)
(APPLAUSE)
RAMASWAMY: Our message to Gen Z is this. You're going to be the generation that actually saves this country. You want to be a rebel? You want to be a hippie? You want to stick it to the man? Show up on your college campus and try calling yourself a conservative.
(CHEERING)
(APPLAUSE)
RAMASWAMY: Say you want to get married, have kids, teach them to believe in God and pledge allegiance to their country because you know what? Fear has been infectious in this country, but courage can be contagious, too. That, too, is what it means to be an American.
(CHEERING)
(APPLAUSE)
[20:40:03]
RAMASWAMY: And you know what? If you're at home and you disagree with everything I just said, our message to you is this, we will still defend to the death your right to say it because that is who we are as Americans.
(CHEERING)
(APPLAUSE)
RAMASWAMY: We are the country where we can disagree like hell and still get together at the dinner table at the end of it. That is the America I know. That is the America we miss. We do not have to be ancient Rome. We don't have to be this nation in decline. We can still be a nation in our ascent, a nation whose best days, not in some fake politician way, but in a true way, a nation whose best days are actually still ahead of us, still on our way to that shining city on a hill, that country where no matter who you are or where your parents came from or what your skin color is or how long your last name is --
(LAUGH)
RAMASWAMY: -- that you will still get ahead in this country with your own hard work, your own commitment, your own dedication, and that you know what? You are free to speak your mind at every step of the way. That is the American dream. That is what won us, the American Revolution.
(CHEERING)
(APPLAUSE)
RAMASWAMY: That is what reunited us after the Civil War. That is what won us, two world wars and the Cold War. That is what still gives hope to the free world. If we can revive that dream over group identity and victimhood and grievance, then nobody in the world, not a nation, not a corporation, not a virus, not China, is going to defeat us. That is what American exceptionalism is all about.
(CHEERING)
(APPLAUSE)
RAMASWAMY: And that is what we will revive this November when we send Donald J. Trump back to the White House. Thank you all. God bless you and your families. And may God bless our United States of America. Thank you. Thank you.
(CHEERING)
(APPLAUSE)
COOPER: Vivek Ramaswamy, briefly a Republican presidential candidate. He talked about millennials. He talked about Gen Z. Jonah Goldberg is the correspondence for Generation X. What now? What do you make of his speech?
GOLDBERG: I find Vivek Ramaswamy exhausting. I think he is, you know, Jesse Jackson once said of Bill Clinton that the problem with him is, he says, I think I can work with him, but when you look into him, all you see is appetite. And I think that's an unfair comparison to Vivek -- to -- to Bill Clinton compared to Vivek Ramaswamy, because Vivek Ramaswamy seems like appetite with a very large forehead to me.
And I don't believe his sincerity on anything. And -- but he's very good at telling people who want to like him what they want to hear. And he's -- he's -- he's another one of these younger guys who is a very old person's idea of what they want young people to be like. And he's mastered that shtick, and I do think it's shtick.
JONES: You know, I -- he's a demagogue. He's just a demagogue. He's good at it, though that whole vote Trump, vote Trump. I mean I was taking notes. That -- that -- that works, you know. You're going to, you know, try to --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Getting persuaded?
JONES: I -- I was not. But I mean look, he's -- he's -- I don't like the patronizing stuff about black folks. They -- they're trying hard to reach black folks, and I just think they don't understand. We didn't miss the fact that the Republican Party, the Party of Lincoln, a party that started as a radical anti-slavery party, became a safe haven for some white nationalists that have not been aggressively shown the door yet. We didn't miss that. African-Americans are one of the most politically sophisticated and engaged populations in the country.
When people say, act like we're dumb, we just somehow missed that there are people in the Republican Party who have been unfriendly. You just lose the audience from the -- from the door with that. There's a whole bunch of other stuff that he said that it just sounds like he's reading stuff out the crackerjack box that he thinks somebody's going to like. But there's no prize in the bottom because it's all shallow to me and being soulless, but that's just my view.
BEDINGFIELD: I think to that point a little bit, I mean there was a lot in there about rule of law. There was this constant hammering of rule of law, and, you know, he talked about, you know, the border. And if you break the law, we're sending you back, rule of law, rule of law. I don't -- that is an incredibly rich message coming from a party that has spent the last year, you know, essentially like tearing down the justice system in this country, saying it's politicized, saying, you know, Trump shouldn't be -- Trump should be above the law has really been their argument.
So I think there is a fundamental --
COOPER: Plus, the insurrection.
BEDINGFIELD: There's -- well, plus, the insurrection. So I actually think there's a fundamental tension there in that argument that's -- it -- it's -- it not particularly well delivered from the Vivek there, but also I think it's going to be a problem for Republicans if that's where they're hanging their hat.
[20:45:06]
COOPER: Scott, quickly, then we go.
JENNINGS: There's a reason he finished a distant fourth in the Iowa caucus, because the more he talks, the less people like him. And so I'm glad the speech was relatively short.
BEDINGFIELD: Still felt long, though.
COOPER: Expect Donald -- Donald Trump and J.D. Vance to arrive in the Convention Hall soon as we head into a critical hour with two of the most anticipated speakers on stage, Nikki Haley and Ron DeSantis, promoting the man they fought hard to defeat during the primary. Don't go away.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
TAPPER: Milwaukee, the center of the political universe for Republicans right now. Convention goers are waiting for the arrival of their nominee, Donald Trump, as well as his running mate, freshly announced Senator J.D. Vance. We expect to see both of them soon, along with some of the other top speakers this evening, including former Trump rivals such as Governor Nikki Haley and Governor Ron DeSantis. Phil Mattingly is on the convention floor right now. Mayor Eric Johnson of Dallas is speaking right now. Phil, what do we know about the arrival of Trump and Vance?
[20:50:02]
PHIL MATTINGLY, CNN CHIEF DOMESTIC CORRESPONDENT: Well, at this point, Jake, we know the former President is on his way to the convention, on his way to the arena. We expect to see him shortly. We also expect to see his vice presidential candidate, J.D. Vance, expected to come in one after the other. And we have a sense of that right now. We're seeing the security ramp up in the entryway that he came through last night, and also the people that are filling the VIP box.
Right now, you have Eric Trump, who just walked in. Corey Lewandowski, his former campaign manager, is up there. Congressional allies like Elise Stefanik and Matt Gaetz are up there as well, all awaiting his arrival. And it's fascinating decision to be here, to watch what's coming up in the course of the next hour. As you mentioned, Nikki Haley, Ron DeSantis, former 2024 rivals, will be speaking, late invites to speak on the stage. But also Senator Ted Cruz, who, Jake, as you remember quite well, in Cleveland, eight years ago, refused to endorse the former President in his speech.
There was also some type of fight on the floor, short-lived, got a fight on the floor. And it's a full in terms of turn towards what this moment is for the Republican Party, which is a very different moment, fully unified behind the former President, pushing forward to what they believe will be a victory in November.
But we do after a very, very big moment last night where vice presidential candidate was named and sat with the former President as he was seen for the first time by a large crowd since that attempt on his life. He will have another one of those moments tonight as the former President watches two of his fiercest rivals from 2024 and one of his fiercest rivals from 2016.
TAPPER: All right, Phil Mattingly, thanks so much.
Chris Wallace, it is one of the most fascinating parts of covering conventions to see people who once used to tell voters how incredibly ill-equipped their nominee was to be president of the United States to come up there, whether it's Hillary Clinton extolling Barack Obama, George H. W. Bush, who called Reaganomics voodoo economics, or tonight, Nikki Haley and Ron DeSantis talking about what a wonderful, wonderful candidate Donald Trump is.
CHRIS WALLACE, CNN ANCHOR: It's just politics, Jake. And, you know, in the case of Nikki Haley, during the course of the campaign, she called Trump diminished, unhinged, that he was a chaos agent and stayed in the race a lot longer than Donald Trump wanted her to. She dropped out in March.
One of the reasons I think she may be the most important speech tonight is because she has a real following, even after she dropped out in what people call a zombie candidacy in March, she continued to pick up a lot of voters. I know that you're interested in the state of Pennsylvania.
TAPPER: Commonwealth. The Commonwealth --
WALLACE: Oh, my gosh. I'll never say it again. I've been practicing that all night, and I screwed it up. But in any case, she got 158,000 votes.
TAPPER: Yes, yes. WALLACE: He got 16 percent of the vote there. And in some of the collar counties, I did a deep dive in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
TAPPER: Nice.
WALLACE: In the collar counties, suburban counties around Philadelphia, she was picking up 20, 25 percent of the vote. Those are votes that one would think might be up for grabs between Joe Biden and Donald Trump. If she comes out here tonight and supposedly is going to give the reasons why, yes, even Nikki Haley voters should support Donald Trump, it'll be helpful to it.
DANA BASH, CNN ANCHOR: And I'll just add, just quickly, a source with knowledge of -- of Haley's speech says that she will address the voters who are uncertain about voting for President Trump and make the case for why she is voting for him.
KASIE HUNT, CNN ANCHOR: Yes. Well, and as someone from the suburbs of Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia, originally. And --
WALLACE: The Commonwealth.
HUNT: Once made the mistake of writing in a script for Jake Tapper's show, The State of Pennsylvania, which was a mistake I never made it. There are a ton of people I grew up with a lot of them. It is an area, and -- and these are the kinds of voters, and they are -- they are not just in the suburbs of Philadelphia. They are also in the suburbs of Atlanta, and the suburbs of Phoenix, and the suburbs of Chicago, and other places obviously --
TAPPER: The suburbs of Milwaukee, where we are right now.
HUNT: The suburbs of Milwaukee. These are people that have relatively traditional small sea conservative tendencies. They have trouble voting for Democrats, and, yes, they cannot stomach, have not been able to stomach Donald Trump. And this is exactly where President Biden's troubles collide with what Trump has experienced over the course of the last --
DAVID AXELROD, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: You know, if this is the a real question about whether these votes were totally an affirmation for Nikki Haley or protest votes against Donald Trump.
TAPPER: By the way, just to interrupt -- just to interrupt for one second, David, and I'm coming back to you. It's just on the floor. People see the vice presidential nominee, Senator J.D. Vance, a Republican of Ohio, only about 18 months into his first term as an elected official, coming in the crowd, obviously excited about him and giving him a hero's welcome. I'm sorry, Axe. Go ahead.
AXELROD: That's okay. No, the -- I mean, the predicate of her campaign was about fiscal discipline and robust internationalism and -- and particularly support for Ukraine. All the things that she ran on have been trampled over at this convention. So she's got some explaining to do when she comes here tonight, if she is addressing those people who are supporting her in those primaries.
[20:55:21]
JOHN KING, CNN ANCHOR: I think it's fascinating to wait to see how specific she is about that, because Speaker Johnson also came up for aid to Ukraine, was a key player to get to Ukraine through, was briefed by the White House, and came around on that issue. He didn't mention it.
AXELROD: He didn't mention it.
KING: But -- but here's the point about Nikki Haley. That man right there on your screen, J.D. Vance, that is proof the Trump people think they will get enough of those voters. They will get the Republican DNA voters in the Pennsylvania, Philadelphia suburbs, but they are more concerned we're turning out MAGA voters. They made a choice in their vice presidential pick. They made a choice in the tone of this convention. They've made a choice in who's in the box right now, Sarah Sanders, Marjorie Taylor Greene --
TAPPER: Yes. Look at that, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, the governor of Arkansas, former Trump communications director. Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, the firebrand --
KING: Matt Gaetz is down there as well. Let -- let's not overcomplicate this. The Trump team has made a choice that they can win their way. And if Haley helps, great. If DeSantis helps, great. That's a little bit of math on the margins, but they think they're going to do it their way.
AXELROD: And let -- let's be clear, this is not -- this convention that is the Unity Convention it's really more, and Tim Alberto from "The Atlantic" and I were talking about this, really more about surrender than unity. And tonight, several of the former President Trump's opponents are coming here basically to surrender. Scott Jennings talked earlier about the big tent. Well, his mentor, Mitch McConnell stood up under this big tent yesterday and got roundly booed.
HUNTL He is not welcome in the tent anymore.
DAVID URBAN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: So the question I have is -- is -- and I guess the answer you guys will say, no. If Nikki Haley didn't run that zombie campaign, if she would have dropped out much, much earlier and -- and kind of, you know, supplicated and supported former President Trump, do you think that the decision yesterday, announcement yesterday might have been different?
HUNT: Maybe.
URBAN: I think it might have been different. I think she might have been the -- she might have been the -- the vice presidential pick.
HUNT: I'm very skeptical of that.
TAPPER: Let me just -- I want to go down to the floor. Kaitlan Collins has an update on the attempted communication between Vice President Kamala Harris and vice presidential nominee J.D. Vance. They did not overlap in the U.S. Senate, we should note. But Kaitlan, I know the vice president reached out to J.D. Vance to congratulate him. She was not able to reach him. Do you have an update?
KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Yes, Jake, obviously, they finally have spoken now. Obviously, to -- to the point that you were making, they did not overlap in the Senate. J.D. Vance is a relative newcomer to Capitol Hill. But this is notable because these two will come face to face on the debate stage. That is something that we are told Senator Vance and Vice President Harris agreed to during a brief, but as he described it, cordial and gracious call that he had with Harris.
He talked about the fact that we reported yesterday, Harris had been trying to get in touch with him after it was announced that he was going to be Donald Trump's running mate. And he said that he essentially was getting so many phone calls right when that was announced by Trump on Truth Social a little over 24 hours ago, Jake, that it was one unknown number, and he did not recognize it, did not answer it. It ended up being Vice President Harris trying to get in touch with him.
He later described to "Newsmax" their phone call saying that he did believe it was cordial. Obviously, these are two people who pretty much disagree on policy issue, Jake. But it does stand out that today they were able to have that phone call this afternoon. They did agree to have that debate, that vice presidential debate that is scheduled for September, which will obviously be notable.
And I'll just tell you, Jake, from my reporting that when Trump was looking at his prospects of vice presidential nominees, Marco Rubio, Doug Burgum, and J.D. Vance, he was told by multiple allies that they believe J.D. Vance would likely fare the best against Harris in a debate. Obviously, she's a former prosecutor, former attorney General of California. We saw her debate Mike Pence, and now it will be her and J.D. Vance on that stage if things go as expected, Jake.
TAPPER: All right, Kaitlan Collins, thanks so much.
John King?
KING: I just want to make one more point about this is Trump's party, and he is sending a message to Nikki Haley and everybody else. He's grateful for her speaking tonight. Don't get me wrong. But Monday night, if you go to the traditional platform, Monday night is the keynote speech. They let a union leader stand there and give the longest speech of the light, and he trashed the Republican Party.
He trashed the establishment of Republican Party. He trashed the chamber of commerce. He trashed the business roundtable. He trashed the traditional foundational elements of the Republican Party. And Trump sat in the box with Vance, loving it, loving it. That's a message to the party, and it's a message to anyone speaking tonight. I'm in charge. You're welcome. Be nice to me.
WALLACE: Can we talk a little bit about what we're seeing right here? On the left, you see the vice presidential nominee, J.D. Vance. On the right, you see Elise Stefanik. Vance, a graduate of Harvard law School --
[21:00:00]
HUNT: Yale Law School.
WALLACE: Yale Law School, rather, yes. And Stefanik, a graduate of Harvard.
HUNT: Not that far apart.
WALLACE: Stefanik was a -- was a George --
