Tucker Carlson said "Getting Shot in the Face Changes a Man" . Apparently there is something to that . According to Selina Zito ;who talked with Trump yesterday and was just feet away when the attack occurred ,said he is tearing up the speech he prepared for his Thursday address and is rewriting one that calls for national unity .

“
The speech I was going to give on Thursday was going to be a humdinger,” he said, “Had this not happened, this would’ve been one of the most incredible speeches” aimed mostly at the policies of President Joe Biden. “Honestly, it’s going to be a whole different speech now.”.

He has switched, he said, from planning to excite his voter base to one that demonstrates his belief that the attack on him at a rally in Pennsylvania had changed the election campaign entirely. Both Republicans and Democrats have acknowledged this in the aftermath of Saturday’s shocking incident.

Trump said people all across the country from different walks of life and different political views have called him, and he noted that he was saved from death because he turned from the crowd to look at a screen showing data he was using in his speech.
“That reality is just setting in,” he said. “I rarely look away from the crowd. Had I not done that in that moment, well, we would not be talking today, would we?”
Talking as he boarded his plane in Bedminster, New Jersey, for Milwaukee, where the Republican National Convention starts Monday and lasts through Thursday, Trump said his speech will meet the moment that history demands. “It is a chance to bring the country together. I was given that chance.”



Trump rewrites Republican convention speech to focus on unity not Biden - Washington Examiner (https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/campaigns/presidential/3082180/trump-rewrites-republican-convention-speech-focus-unity-not-biden/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=newsletter_axiosam&stream=top)

It's going to be an interesting few days. It would be nice if this shooting would take something of an edge off of Trump, and yet not change his policy outlooks.

Here is another column by Zito . She really is my favorite reporter .

America’s Heart Shines Through – Even at Assassination Attempt | RealClearPolitics (https://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2024/07/15/americas_heart_shines_through__even_at_assassinati on_attempt_151262.html?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTAAAR 3aIrkQ0JDjRN9vNGk5VUD_FCMNceEVj1hjCG2hZHMyxiUGmmLU xqtDVDI_aem_C0NF-1dUDO9iNohmsYN22Q)

Ok, Tom. Tell us about Vance. Good choice? Poor choice?

The MAGA faithful like JD Vance. The compliant press hate him which is a point in his favor

When it comes to the remaining contenders, here’s what’s clear. Like most aspiring Trump running mates, Rubio and Burgum have beclowned themselves with their displays of fealty toward Trump. In a better world they’d never live down their bowing and scraping. But JD Vance would be the truly dangerous choice.


J.D. Vance is the absolute worst pick for Trump’s vice president (msnbc.com) (https://www.msnbc.com/opinion/msnbc-opinion/trump-vice-president-jd-vance-rcna158641)
Not so bold prediction on Trump VP pick (askmehelpdesk.com) (https://www.askmehelpdesk.com/current-events/not-so-bold-prediction-trump-vp-pick-851984.html)


Not a politician ;he ran for Senate and won after becoming famous for his best selling autobiography 'Hillbilly Elegy ' ;about growing up in Appalachia . It was also made into a movie by Ron Howard with Amy Adams and Glen Close doing excellent acting.

For me I learned how bad the opioid epidemic was there . It also gives some explanation why a post industrial white working class person from the region would be attracted to Trump after the region had been a reliable Dem vote. He is critical of those in the region who become addicted to the welfare state.

The theme of the 1st day of the convention was even if you weren't Trump's biggest fan in the past you can still sign on Vance had been extremely critical of Trump calling him an American Hitler . He has since become a fervent defender . As Senator he has been a MAGA faithful while at the same time working with some of the more radical Dems like Elizabeth Warren and Sheldon Whitehouse to co-sponsor legislation.

VANCE & WARREN INTRODUCE BIPARTISAN LEGISLATION TO EXPAND TRICARE ACCESS FOR RETIRED GUARDSMEN AND RESERVISTS - J.D. Vance (senate.gov) (https://www.vance.senate.gov/press-releases/vance-warren-introduce-bipartisan-legislation-to-expand-tricare-access-for-retired-guardsmen-and-reservists/)

Ohio U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance wants to eliminate a tax break for large mergers • Ohio Capital Journal (https://ohiocapitaljournal.com/2024/03/25/ohio-u-s-sen-j-d-vance-wants-to-eliminate-a-tax-break-for-large-mergers/)



He is a Yale lawyer ;an Iraq war vet He is a firm believer in Trump's foreign policy ;especially about aid to Ukraine and China

He was a venture capitalist before entering politics. His wife Usha Chilukuri is the child of immigrants from India. She clerked for John Roberts and is now a litigator lawyer .

2022 He and Trump came eye to eye and Trump's endorsement pushed his candidacy for Senator from Ohio to the finish line. It was one of the few Trump endorsements that worked out during the 'red wave'.

Clueless Joe called him a clone of Trump and that is the rhetoric the Dems will use against him.

Noticed when Trump entered the convention last night the Secret Service were all big tall men.

Vance has also been the most vocal supporter of Trump of the VP contenders.

J.D. Vance on X: "Today is not just some isolated incident. The central premise of the Biden campaign is that President Donald Trump is an authoritarian fascist who must be stopped at all costs. That rhetoric led directly to President Trump's attempted assassination." / X (https://x.com/jdvance1/status/1812280973628965109?s=46&t=Ad-wCTnPzfBDqDLTEATq3Q)

I also expect Vance will mop the floor with Kam the Sham during their debate

Kamala Harris Is Ready to Debate J.D. Vance, Biden Campaign Says - The New York Times (nytimes.com) (https://www.nytimes.com/2024/07/15/us/politics/kamala-harris-jd-vance-debate.html)

Bring it on in contrast to Clueless Joe ;Kam the Sham ;and even Trump ,Vance is articulate and quick on his feet.

Dem ads about him will focus heavily on his comments about Trump from 2016 . Vance a long time ago reconciled with Trump and admitted he was wrong.


“I don’t hide from that. I was certainly skeptical of Donald Trump in 2016. But President Trump was a great president and he changed my mind. I think he changed the minds of a lot of Americans because, again, he delivered that peace and prosperity.”

“I bought into the media’s lies and distortions. I bought into this idea that somehow he was going to be somehow he was going to be so different, a terrible threat to democracy. It was a joke.”

J.D. Vance Responds To Sean Hannity's Question About Calling Donald Trump "America's Hitler" And Other Insults (deadline.com) (https://deadline.com/2024/07/j-d-vance-hitler-donald-trump-sean-hannity-1236011278/)

“I don’t hide from that. I was certainly skeptical of Donald Trump in 2016. But President Trump was a great president and he changed my mind. I think he changed the minds of a lot of Americans because, again, he delivered that peace and prosperity.”

“I bought into the media’s lies and distortions. I bought into this idea that somehow he was going to be somehow he was going to be so different, a terrible threat to democracy. It was a joke.”I think that will sell.

He's not alone . Michael Rappaport decided to watch the tape of Trump's Charlottesville address and realized he had been lied to by the Dems and the compliant press. Clueless Joe has yet to admit it and still uses that as a premise and justification for his Presidency.

"I Was WRONG!" - Michael Rapaport Admits Being Wrong About Donald Trump (youtube.com) (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6b8StTGxSEE)

: Vance acts as a magnet for particularly heated vitriol from the spokesmen and platforms of the American ruling class. Why? Because they see him as a former insider who turned on them. In other words, just like Donald Trump, Vance was once considered part of the “club” of elites, given his educational pedigree and experience in finance. Moreover, the huge success of his book and movie made him, briefly, the toast of the town in places like Silicon Valley and Hollywood. Like Trump, he could have continued on that path of lucrative deals and constant adulation from the supposed “important people.”
Instead, to pursue better lives for Americans in circumstances he knew as a child and young man, Vance chose the more difficult path as a populist political thinker and officeholder. He knowingly passed on rewards and accolades for higher patriotic goals, which speaks to his true character as a man and as a candidate.


Top Five Reasons J.D. Vance Is the Perfect VP Pick | RealClearPolitics (https://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2024/07/16/top_five_reasons_jd_vance_is_the_perfect_vp_pick_1 51271.html)

interesting tidbit . Both Vance And Vivek Ramaswamy were classmates at Yale Law school and Vivek is a friend of Vance's wife Usha . Vance's 2nd child's name is Vivek.

Vance became a baptized Catholic in 2019 after he had been atheist . He had abandoned his Christian faith .It was his wife's deep Hindu faith that helped him rediscover his own Christian faith .



http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/111778602.cms?utm_source=contentofinterest&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=cppst

Kam is going to have a hard time debating Vance. Here he is taking down Tim Ryan on the issue of abortion exception for rape. Vance deftly turns it into an issue about the rapist .


J.D. VANCE: I've always believed in reasonable exceptions. This is a misrepresentation of my view. But let's hear it from me, not Congressman Ryan. I absolutely think that the 10-year-old girl, the case that we've of course heard a lot about, it's an incredibly tragic situation. I mean, look, I've got a 9-year-old baby girl at home. I cannot imagine what that's like for the girl, for the family, God forbid something like that would happen.


I said repeatedly on the record that I think that girl should be able to get an abortion if she and her family so choose to do so. But let's talk about that case. Why was a 10-year-old girl raped in our community, raped in our state in the first place?


The thing the media and Congressman Ryan, they talk about this all the time, the thing they never mention is that poor girl was raped by an illegal alien. Somebody that should have never been in this state in the first place.


You voted so many times against border wall funding, so many times for amnesty, Tim. If you had done your job, she would have never been raped in the first place. Do your job on border security, don't lecture me about opinions I don't actually have.


J.D. Vance vs. Tim Ryan: If You Did Your Job, Pregnant 10-Year-Old Would Have Never Been Raped By Illegal Immigrant | Video | RealClearPolitics (https://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2022/10/10/jd_vance_vs_tim_ryan_if_you_did_your_job_pregnant_ 10-year-old_would_have_never_been_raped_by_illegal_immigra nt.html)

Trump's acceptance speech was way too long. I began to drift off when he finished his discussion of the assassination attempt and how he wants to unify the nation. Then he went into a Bubba -like filibuster of policy agendas . His whole address should've been inspirational and aspirational .

He also missed a chance at a perfect opening line . He should've parodied Marc Anthony . something like this .... 'Friends Americans countrymen lend me your ear '.

Same thing is true of most SOTU speeches. Way too long and far too much detail.

He missed an opportunity . Here on the east coast it began at 10 PM and went 90 minutes on a night when people have to get up early and commute to work . Reagan's first acceptance speech went half as long and it inspired most of the country .

Ronald Reagan's Acceptance Speech at Republican National Convention, July 17, 1980 (youtube.com) (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SBP2gvZTnwM)

Republican National Convention Acceptance Speech, 1980 | Ronald Reagan (reaganlibrary.gov) (https://www.reaganlibrary.gov/archives/speech/republican-national-convention-acceptance-speech-1980)