Trump's Crowning Moment at the RNC

What's Happening

Politics

Trump's Crowning Moment at the RNC

What's going on: Last night, none other than former President Trump closed out the fourth and final day of the Republican National Convention. But not before Hulk Hogan ripped off his shirt to reveal some new merch: a Trump-Vance 2024 tank top. Or before Kid Rock belted out a remix of “American Bad A**” — yes, he’s talking about Trump. If the internet had thoughts, we wonder how Melania feels about all this (yes, she was there). Back to Trump: In his first speech since the assassination attempt, the former president accepted the GOP nomination and recounted the moment a gunman tried to take his life, saying “I had God on my side.” Trump outlined his vision for a second term and called out Democrats for “destroying our country.” Somewhere in between, he brought up The Silence of the Lambs…again. This comes weeks after Trump became the first former US president to be convicted (of 34 felonies to be exact), and marks the culmination of his efforts to go from being perceived as a loose cannon within the Republican party to becoming the face of it.

What it means: The 2024 RNC was arguably one of the GOP’s most successful and unified to date. Now that it has wrapped, the Trump-Vance ticket is ready to enter the next phase of the campaign. The pair will be hitting the campaign trail, with Grand Rapids, Michigan, as their first stop, and working to maintain Trump's lead in seven swing states. They’ll aim to win not only the White House but the majority in the House and Senate — a trifecta that hasn’t been achieved since Trump was in office. This time around, a Trump-led America would likely include mass deportations, tariffs coupled with tax cuts, and a level of support from his fellow Republicans that critics warn could leave Trump’s power unchecked. More on that in our explainer on Project 2025 below.

Related: Oops. JD Vance’s Venmo Account Is Public, and His Contacts List Is...Interesting (Wired)

Politics

Biden Could Bow Out of the Race As Early As This Weekend

What's going on: President Biden’s run as the presumptive Democratic nominee could be coming to an end, with reports suggesting he could exit the race as soon as this weekend. Former President Barack Obama became one of the latest top Democrats to tell allies that Biden seriously needs to reconsider his campaign for the presidency. Meanwhile, former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) has told some House Democrats she thinks Biden can be convinced to drop out of the race soon, according to The Washington Post. In a recent private chat with the president, Pelosi warned him that his choice to remain on the ballot could ruin their party’s shot of winning the House. Now, some Democrats say it’s not a matter of if Biden drops out, but when.

What it means: It’s not unprecedented for former presidents to call it quits on their reelection bids, as Harry Truman and Lyndon B. Johnson did. However, if Biden were to step aside, he'd be the first to drop out this late in the campaign cycle (less than four months before Election Day). If he ends his campaign before the DNC, his pledged delegates would be released to support another candidate. Things could get complicated if Biden doesn’t give an endorsement, and it could turn into a free-for-all to clinch the nomination. If he doesn’t pass the baton to VP Kamala Harris, their over $100 million from donors could be refunded or transferred to the DNC to support the next candidate.

Related: Why Kamala Harris Is Likely To Be Tapped To Run for President (Axios)

Sports

This WNBA Team Is Hiking Up Ticket Prices — Will Players See The Cash? 

What's going on: You gotta pay to see talent play. That appears to be the message the Chicago Sky sent to its season ticket holders earlier this week when it said prices are going up for next year’s season. By how much? The Chicago Tribune said courtside seats saw a nearly 150% increase in pricing (or from $4,500 to $11,000) for the entire 2025 home schedule. Lower-level seats nearly tripled in some cases. Meanwhile, the average ticket price was $88 this year — up from 2021’s $43 on average. It’s not the only team to raise prices. Front Office Sports says fans have called out similar increases in Phoenix and Las Vegas. 

What it means: Not everyone is happy to see these ticket prices, um, Sky-rocketing, but some folks say they wouldn’t mind paying more if the Sky shared where the money was going. But, so far the team hasn’t commented. It also didn’t give a reason for the price hikes. It could be great to see the players get a cut of this new cash (and a raise), especially with all the talk about how little WNBA stars make (compared to the men). In the meantime, with the WNBA’s popularity scoring points — thanks in part to rookies like Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese — the hike seems to make sense as a game plan. It comes as the league sees greater investment too.

Related: LA Sparks Rookie Cameron Brink’s Update Post-Surgery Will Make You Laugh (People)

Quick Hits

👀 A new report listed the best and worst states for women's health. Where does yours stack up?

💰 Teachers, nurses, and firefighters are getting some well-deserved financial relief.

🎧 Ashlee Simpson’s surprise announcement is for the millennials. 

🎃 Is it July? Yes. Are we still going to pour over Home Depot’s new Halloween decor? Also, yes.

👏 Britney Spears isn’t here for Ozzy Osbourne’s “Toxic” energy.

Let's Unpack This

As the Trump-Vance ticket campaigns to win the White House, conservatives have created an extensive plan called Project 2025 to outline what a second Trump presidency could look like. theSkimm spoke with Nicole Hemmer, political historian and director of the Rogers Center for the American Presidency, at Vanderbilt University to ask…

What is Project 2025? 

Project 2025 is a proposed agenda for the next Republican presidential administration. It was put together by the Heritage Foundation, which is a think tank that has been putting out roadmaps for what Republican governing should look like since Ronald Reagan was president … The foundation pulled together, with the advice of 100 different institutions and more than 400 people, what they think the best possible right-wing agenda for the country looks like. All of that advice went into this 900 page document. It’s worth noting that of the people consulted, many of them were high-powered advisers, Cabinet members, and ambassadors for the Trump administration … If Donald Trump becomes president again, conservatives want to make sure he hits the ground running.

Are there certain aspects of Project 2025 that stand out to you the most?

One of the things that often gets overlooked is how invested this piece of writing is in strengthening the control the president has over the executive branch. One big part of the agenda is that the president should be able to fire all of the civil servants in the government and replace them with loyalists. That the president should have more political appointees in the Department of Justice. If you combine that with recent Supreme Court decisions, you’re looking at a much stronger presidency … We’re also talking about a document that says that pornography should be banned, that mifepristone — which is the drug that’s used in more than 50% of abortions in the US — should be taken off the market … that things like sexual orientation and gender identity should be scrubbed from all federal law, and that trans people should be banned from the military.

Former President Trump has tried to distance himself from Project 2025. Why do you think that is?

Donald Trump is distancing himself from this agenda not because he disagrees with all of it, although I think there are parts of it that he disagrees with, but he knows that there are certain parts of it that would be damaging for him in the election, particularly things like banning mifepristone. There’s no popular support for that. Trump has taken a look at the political landscape and is trying to find the message that will alienate as few people as possible because he needs to expand his base just a little bit in order to win this election.

If Trump were to be elected and follow the agenda outlined in Project 2025, could anything be done to stop it?

Legal challenges will be very difficult because of the Supreme Court, which has given a lot of leeway in its recent rulings to the president and particularly presidential control over appointments and the federal government … The thing that would prevent some of this from happening is if you had enough Democrats in the House and Senate, and some governors can throw sand in the gears for implementing things in their states. It’s worth making clear that should Trump become the president and control the federal government apparatus, there is this plan that will be very difficult to stop the implementation. 

PS: This interview was edited for length and clarity.

Featured Expert

Nicole Hemmer

Political Historian and Director of the Rogers Center for the American Presidency at Vanderbilt University

Read more:

• What is Agenda47? A Look at Trump’s Own Policy Proposals (USA Today)

• What Are Democrats Doing About Project 2025? (The Guardian)

Extra Credit

Watch

Like the character she plays in Lady in the Lake, Natalie Portman is stepping into new territory. The Apple TV+ series — which is based on the bestselling novel by Laura Lippman and released yesterday — is the Oscar winner’s first time producing and starring in a TV show. In the 1960s-set drama, Portman plays Maddie Schwartz, a Jewish housewife living in Baltimore who dives into investigative journalism following the homicides of an 11-year-old Jewish girl, Tessie Fine, and Cleo Sherwood (The Queen’s Gambit’s Moses Ingram), a Black activist and fellow mother struggling to provide for her family amid the Civil Rights Movement. But as Maddie digs deeper into Cleo’s world, she creates a terrifyingly dangerous situation for herself.

Settle This

The LL Bean "Boat and Tote" bag is having a moment, thanks to the store's monogram department. And let's just say some people got…creative. Which one speaks to you?

Game Time

Kick your weekend off with Pile-Up Poker, a brand-new game where poker meets solitaire. Create as many poker hands as possible to earn cash and climb the leaderboard. We’re all in.

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We are *here* for the women taking charge of their health. Looking to do the same? Sign up for Skimm Well. Every week, we’ll send you expert-backed advice and info to help you take care of your mind and body.