Maskless Trump supporters flood White House lawn

Ahead of the convention’s final night of programming, crowds of Trump supporters — the majority of whom appeared maskless — gathered on the White House South Lawn in anticipation of the president’s headliner address later in the evening.

The seating arrangement for Trump’s acceptance speech drew scrutiny on social media, especially for pictures of closely assembled white folding chairs that were in clear violation of social distancing guidance.

Roughly 1,500 spectators were in attendance as the convention was set to commence, according to a White House pool report, and most Republican members of Congress were invited.

POLITICO reported Thursday that guests at Trump’s speech would not be required to take a coronavirus test upon their arrival at the event. Guidance issued to the in-person audience encouraged them to stay home if they had recently experienced Covid-19 symptoms and to “practice social distancing whenever possible.”

The guidance also noted that guests must wear protective face coverings when arriving at the White House and in high traffic areas, but stated that they can eschew masks during Trump’s speech.

White House adviser Ja'Ron Smith defends Trump’s record on race

Ja’Ron Smith, a White House adviser and one of Trump’s most visible Black supporters, defended the president’s record on race in a speech that hit racial tensions head-on as new protests roiled the nation.

Smith praised Trump’s reaction to a series of murders of black men this year that prompted nationwide protests over racial injustice and police violence, calling out Ahmaud Arbery of Georgia, George Floyd of Minneapolis, and LeGend Taliferro of Kansas City by name.

At “a moment of national consciousness, I have seen his true conscience,” Smith said. “I just wish everyone could see the deep empathy he shows to families whose loved ones were killed in senseless violence.”

Trump has made it clear that police departments “with the highest standards” are key to safer communities, Smith said, in an implicit contrast to Democrats who Republicans accuse of wanting to do away with law enforcement.

Smith, who has been an assistant to the president for domestic policy since April 2019, shared his personal story of growing up with working-class parents, winning a spot on the varsity football team, but breaking his leg and realizing he had to work harder at school to succeed in life. Growing up, Smith said, he “had never really known a Republican,” and “believed all the stereotypes.”

“It took a meeting of Republicans who shared my values to show me I was wrong,” Smith said.

Smith also cited the president’s record on prison reform, job growth, and securing “record and permanent” funding for historically Black colleges and universities as evidence of his commitment to Black Americans.

“Donald Trump knows that in the work of revitalizing communities, America's strength is America's people. And I can tell you, he really cares. And he takes action,” Smith said.

McConnell warns against D.C. statehood

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell used his primetime address to defend the work of his Republican caucus and argue against statehood for Washington, D.C.

In a pre-recorded speech delivered from Louisville, Ky., the nation’s highest-ranking GOP lawmaker called the November election “incredibly consequential for middle America” and leaned into Trump’s culture-based attacks on Democrats.

“They want to tell you what kind of car you can drive. What sources of information are credible. And even how many hamburgers you can eat,” he said.

Continuing to condemn Democratic policy priorities, McConnell asserted that lawmakers from the opposing party “want to codify all this by making the swamp itself, Washington, D.C., America’s 51st state. With two more liberal senators, we cannot undo the damage they’ve done.”

In a historic vote two months ago, the Democratic-controlled House approved legislation to grant statehood to the District of Columbia — the first time either chamber of Congress has agreed to give congressional representation to the nation’s capital.