Republican convention: Who will speak on Tuesday?

The title of the Day 2 program pretty much sets up how the Republicans would like to frame the election choice, said GOP consultant William F.B. O’Reilly: 

“Land of opportunity versus socialism.”

“It’s pretty clear a message they need to come out with that this is still the culture wars,” O’Reilly said.

He said Trump allies will want to paint Democratic nominee Joe Biden and his allies as the “scary left,” and tied to crime and chaos.

“Using the culture war might help him keep his base,” O’Reilly said. “He might be able to frighten some Biden-leaning Republicans back into the Republican camp.”

The secretary of state will address the RNC while on a diplomatic mission to Israel. Why is this generating attention?

In doing so, Pompeo will be breaking decades of precedent for sitting secretaries of state to avoid overt partisan political activity.

The State Department has said that Pompeo will be speaking in his own personal capacity and won’t violate laws against federal employees participating in public political events while on duty. Additionally, the agency says that no taxpayer money will be used in the production of Pompeo’s video, and that staff attorneys have reviewed the secretary’s speech and determined it doesn’t cross ethical lines, reported The Associated Press.

Pompeo is expected to tout Trump’s international policies, as well as trade agreements.

But Democrats and watchdogs have called it inappropriate and unprecedented. They also say it might violate the Hatch Act, the prohibition on political activity by federal employees.

They noted that then-Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice was out of the country and didn’t address the 2008 RNC. Also, neither John Kerry nor Hillary Clinton — Rice’s predecessor — addressed Democratic conventions in 2012 and 2016.

Politico reported that Pompeo’s decision to address the RNC might even violate a State Department policy he approved himself, which limits appointees’ political activity.

First Lady Melania Trump will deliver a speech from the White House Rose Garden, which sits just outside the Oval Office.

Like Pompeo, she will be breaking political norms.

Federal rules prohibit the White House from being used for expressly political events, according to multiple media reports. But the Trump family will be the first to use the mansion for a political convention.

The First Lady will highlight the recently overhauled garden as she makes a personal pitch for her husband. But some critics wonder if showing off a decorative garden will strike a wrong note at time when so many Americans are out of work or struggling.

Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul will deliver a speech likely to frame the election as a choice between “overbearing government versus political freedom,” O’Reilly said. Paul could help draw civil libertarians to Trump — or more accurately, help the Republicans retain a small but important group of supporters from 2016.

Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds and former Florida attorney general Pam Bondi also hail from states Trump needs to win again this year.

The Democrats worked in multiple Biden appearances each night of their convention, often showing him in one-on-one or close settings with activists or average citizens to highlight his ability to connect with people. This was ahead of Biden’s actual acceptance speech on the convention’s final night.

Convention planners have said they expect Trump to appear each night of the RNC in the final hour, from 10 to 11 p.m. It’s unclear if these will be prerecorded videos or unscripted remarks.