TL/DR: "With viewership much higher than the 2020 GOP convention, [Trump] has a unique chance to recast himself as a unifier beyond his base," Dan Lamb, a senior lecturer at Cornell University, told Newsweek.
The rundown: Donald Trump officially accepted the GOP's nomination Thursday as Joe Biden faces growing Democratic calls to drop out. Trump said he will usher in a "new era" of "safety, prosperity, and freedom." Here are some more key quotes from his big moment.
Why it matters:Trump accepted the Republican presidential nomination for this year's election and delivered the longest convention speech at just under 90 minutes to wrap up the RNC in Milwaukee. His speech began with a softer tone. However, he resorted to his customary inflammatory rhetoric on immigration and crime and made exaggerated claims about the economic and diplomatic achievements of his first term. While Biden fends off calls from dozens of Democratic lawmakers to drop his reelection bid, Trump has spent the last three nights at RNC basking in glowing endorsements across the Republican Party. Even his once-bitter GOP rivals have sung his praises.
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Trump RNC Speech: Key Quotes From Trump's Big Moment
What happens now? All of Trump's victories come as the Democratic Party tries to determine its next steps. Many speculate that Vice President Kamala Harris will take his place if Biden steps aside.
TL/DR: Under the Constitution, a sitting president can be removed from office if they are impeached over allegations of serious misconduct or corruption, such as bribery or treason.
The rundown: President Joe Biden could quit the presidential race within days as those close to him have privately voiced their concerns about his candidacy, according to reports.
Why it matters: Calls for Biden to end his reelection bid hit a peak after his stumbling CNN debate performance against Donald Trump on June 27. Fears over Biden's cognitive and physical ability for a second term in office continued during a recent NATO summit in Washington, D.C., where he mistakenly referred to Vice President Kamala Harris as "Vice President Trump" and introduced Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky as "President Putin. This comes after reports that former president Barack Obama has conveyed his concerns about Biden's candidacy to allies in recent days and Pelosi has privately told Biden that Democrats could lose the ability to win the House if he doesn't step aside. Here's the list of Democrats calling on Biden to step down.
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Has Joe Biden Given Himself Off-Ramp to Exit Race?
What happens now? Democrats plan to formally confirm Biden as their 2024 nominee in a virtual roll call vote during the first week of August, just before the Democratic National Committee in Chicago. Essentially, Biden is currently on course to remain president and be the Democrat's 2024 nominee in November unless he chooses to step aside himself.
TL/DR: Microsoft has warned of a "severe degradation" to its services but added that a number of its products had been restored.
The rundown: A major IT outage reportedly linked to the U.S. cybersecurity company Crowdstrike has forced many banks, airlines, and broadcasters to go offline and caused many Windows computers to crash suddenly. 911 services were affected. Here's what else we know.
Why it matters: The global software issue has forced many banks, airlines, and broadcasters to go offline and caused many Windows computers to crash suddenly. Windows 10 users worldwide with a "blue screen of death." Among the services still impacted include Microsoft Teams, on which users may still be unable to access group chats. Microsoft Purview, Microsoft 365 admin center, Microsoft Fabric, and PowerBI are all still impacted. Meanwhile, the tech giant's stock price fell 1.90 percent to $432 per share at 04:05 a.m. ET.
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FAA Orders All Airlines to Ground Planes Amid 'Communication Issue'
What happens now? Microsoft has warned of a "severe degradation" to its services but added that several of its products had been restored.
TL/DR: The Redfield and Wilton Strategies polling for Newsweek of 3,500 people gave a snapshot of American voter support for Taiwan if China invaded the island.
The rundown: Donald Trump's questioning of U.S. security arrangements for Taiwan appears to be at odds with Republican sentiment about protecting the self-governed island from a possible invasion by China, according to exclusive polling for Newsweek. Here's what the polling reveals about American voter support for Taiwan if China were to invade.
Why it matters: Despite no formal diplomatic ties between them, the U.S. is the island's most important international backer and is bound by the Taiwan Relations Act to provide the means for its defense, although Washington maintains a policy of "strategic ambiguity" on the territory Beijing says is its own, a claim rejected by Taipei. Beijing's belligerence in the South China Sea has been of mounting constant concern for Taiwan and its regional neighbors. Among Republicans, 43 percent either approved or strongly approved of American help—more than twice the 18 percent who disapproved or strongly disapproved of such a move.
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Trump Suggests He Would Not Defend Taiwan From China
What happens now? Trump's comments added uncertainty to his policy toward Taiwan should he win in November. Steve Tsang, director of the University of London's China Institute, said that Taiwan will find ways to work with Trump, should he get reelected, "and pay the insurance premium if needed."
TL/DR: The worsening Israel-Hezbollah battle has led to growing concerns of an even larger-scale war erupting in the region.
The rundown: Yemen's Ansar Allah, also known as the Houthi movement, has claimed responsibility for a deadly drone strike against Israel's major city of Tel Aviv, with a senior official of the group having revealed to Newsweek its role just before the announcement. Find out more about this development.
Why it matters: Reports first emerged early Friday local time of a massive explosion that rocked the city as Israel remained engaged in an ongoing war with the Palestinian Hamas movement in the Gaza Strip and faced repeated attacks from other factions of the Iran-aligned Axis of Resistance hailing from Lebanon, Iraq, and Yemen. Soon after, evidence of potential unmanned aerial vehicle debris at the site of the attack quickly spread throughout local and social media channels. The Israel Police have reported at least one civilian killed in an apartment that appears to have been hit by the drone, as well as at least seven more people injured.
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Exclusive: Iran Says Israel's Foes Are Winning
What happens now? Details are still emerging of what could prove to be one of the most subversive attacks on Israel's security since the large-scale Hamas-led attack that took the nation by surprise more than nine months ago.
What a JD Vance Presidency Could Look Like
Following months of intense speculation on Monday, presumptive Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump announced Ohio Senator JD Vance as his 2024 running mate.
Thus if Trump wins in November, which betmakers odds suggest he is favored to do, Vance could be just one serious illness or accident away from operating his own presidency as second-in-line. This point was rammed home on Saturday when Trump narrowly survived after a gunman opened fire on a rally he hosted in Pennsylvania, before himself being shot dead. The incident left Trump with a bleeding ear and killed one of his supporters, later identified as volunteer firefighter Corey Comperatore.
Vance was initially a fierce critic of Trump, reportedly questioning whether he could be "America's Hitler" in a 2016 text message to a friend, but has since become a loyal supporter of the Republican firebrand. Newsweek spoke to a number of political scientists about what a Vance presidency could look like, with one claiming Trump may have picked him to be "the future of the MAGA project."
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