Beyond the major headlines, this is your weekly roundup of everything you might have missed about the presidential election from US Correspondent Logan Church.
Morning all from a hot and humid New York, where I've just returned after spending the week in Chicago at the Democratic National Convention. Now that's over, the final race for the White House is underway. And with so much bonkers stuff happening in this country, that's where this weekly diary comes in. Enjoy!
DNC Dance Party
Before moving from the Democratic National Convention, it’s worth mentioning that what could have felt like a funeral wake instead turned into a dance party. And I don’t mean that metaphorically – I mean an ACTUAL dance party. The ‘roll call’, where delegates from each state reveal who they want to be their party’s presidential candidate, was interrupted by Lil John, who performed on the convention floor. The Republican National Convention organisers will be super annoyed they didn’t think of something like that.
Beyoncé Disappointment
While there was plenty of star power at the DNC – from Oprah to Pink, there was rampant speculation on social media that Beyoncé might make an appearance. It wouldn’t be the craziest thing – her track Freedom has become the anthem of the Harris/Walz campaign. As I walked outside the convention floor just before the final night got underway, I passed a group of young twenty-somethings excitedly discussing her potential entrance. Someone else claimed they heard someone singing a Beyoncé song in the arena during the rehearsal. Crushed dreams all around.
RFK Jr bows out
The man who promised to be an alternative to one of the major party candidates, now looks to be throwing his support behind one of the major party candidates – Donald Trump.
Robert F Kennedy Jr, the nephew of JFK, was running as an independent, but while he initially gained traction, his campaign has been floundering. Not helped by the revelation that doctors found a brain worm in his brain, or his bizarre admission he dumped a dead bear in New York’s central park.
JD Vance becomes music sensation
Move over pop stars - one of the top music tracks on TikTok right now features vocals from Republican vice-presidential pic, JD Vance. Last month someone re-mixed an old interview he gave in which he said he was “a never Trump guy”. Since then, it’s gone viral. Take a listen...
America's favourite son
Regardless of political affiliation, most Americans fell in love with Tim Walz’s son, Gus, this week, who jumped up, tears in his eyes as his dad took the stage at the Democratic National Convention. Cameras caught the 17-year-old proudly shouting, “that’s my dad!” as he watched him from the front row of the convention floor. In an election campaign that has devolved into a lot of mudslinging on both sides, it was totally wholesome seeing Gus run onto stage at the end of the speech and give his dad a bear hug.
Cheeseheads
Everyone asks me about the cheese hats – they were at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee and they were there in Chicago. Why? Well, that’s the delegation from Wisconsin, a proud dairy producing state. It’s been reported the chairperson of the convention handed them out to everyone in the delegation and they were all told to always have them on hand. Does anyone else think we should make the NZ Prime Minister wear a Fonterra-branded bottle of milk on his head when he next attends a global summit?
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