More than a thousand people are gathered on the South Lawn of the White House to witness President Trump formally accept the Republican nomination for president on the final night of the Republican National Convention, mingling closely together with many not wearing face masks.
In preparation for the night’s festivities, rows and rows of chairs spaced just inches apart were set up on the South Lawn of the White House, where Mr. Trump will deliver remarks to conclude the convention. Roughly 1,500 people were expected at the gathering, a Trump campaign official said.
According to a statement from Dr. Robert Darling, chief medical officer at Patronus Medical Corp, that was distributed by the Trump campaign, Patronus Medical “has worked in partnership with the Republican National Committee to make certain proper protocols are in place” at convention venues.
The “strict protocols,” Darling said, are in compliance with guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and the D.C. Department of Health, and health professionals from Patronus have been on site to “make sure certain screening has been done on a consistent basis to ensure the convention meets the highest standards of public safety.”
Under the District of Columbia’s reopening protocols, masks are required to be worn in large gatherings where social distance of 6 feet can’t be maintained.
Mr. Trump’s acceptance address comes as Hurricane Laura struck Texas and Louisiana and protests continued to roil Kenosha, Wisconsin, after Jacob Blake, a Black man, was shot several times in the back by a police officer and two people were shot to death at a protest.
According to early excerpts of the speech, Mr. Trump will draw a stark contrast between Joe Biden’s agenda and his own — even though this year, the GOP decided not to release a new party platform, the list of Republican goals and promises.
“At no time before have voters faced a clearer choice between two parties, two visions, two philosophies, or two agendas. We have spent the last four years reversing the damage Joe Biden inflicted over the last 47 years,” the president will say from the White House South Lawn. “At the Democrat convention, you barely heard a word about their agenda. But that’s not because they don’t have one. It’s because their agenda is the most extreme set of proposals ever put forward by a major party nominee.”
How to watch the Republican National Convention tonight
- What: Republican National Convention Night 3
- Date: Thursday, August 27, 2020
- Convention coverage on CBSN: 5 p.m. ET, 8 p.m. ET
- Convention speakers live on CBSN: 8:30-11 p.m. ET
- Convention coverage on CBS stations: 10-11 p.m. ET
- Post-convention coverage on CBSN: 11 p.m. ET
- Online stream: Live on CBSN — in the player above and on your mobile or streaming device.
- Full list of speakers here.
Highlights from the final night of the RNC
White House aide Ja’Ron Smith: Trump has shown “deep empathy” for Black Americans killed by police
Ja’Ron Smith, deputy assistant to the president and deputy director of the Office of American Innovation, shared his story of how he turned his life around, worked hard in school, and eventually went on to work for the president of the United States. Smith is one of the few high-ranking Black officials in the Trump administration.
“Growing up, I’d never really known a Republican. I believed all the stereotypes. It took meeting Republicans who shared my values to show me I was wrong,” he said.
Smith shared a rarely seen personal side to the president, insisting that he has shown empathy in the wake of the deaths of Black Americans at the hands of police.
“In the wake of the murder of Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, and LeGend Taliferro — a moment of national racial consciousness — I have seen his true conscience. I just wish every American could see the deep empathy he showed to families whose loved ones were killed in senseless violence,” he said.
“For a New Yorker, he’s got a lot of Cleveland heart,” Smith said of the president.
