The second day of the Republican National Convention started with a decidedly different, more positive tone, with an emphasis on Americans who say have they benefited from President Donald Trump’s policies. Here are some takeaways from the second night. LEVERAGING THE WHITE HOUSE Three ruffles and flourishes. The squeak of a Sharpie. The theatrically lit Rose Garden. Trump sought to leverage the full weight of the presidency behind his reelection effort, as he blended official acts and campaigning. In the convention’s first half-hour, the convention aired a video featuring Trump signing a pardon for Jon Ponder, an ex-convict who now runs an acclaimed prisoner reentry program. Later, military aides opened the doors to the White House Cross Hall as “Hail to the Chief” played before Trump presided over a naturalization ceremony for new Americans. Both events were taped in recent days as Trump and his reelection campaign looked to find ways to airbrush the harsher edges of his actual policies. They will add to criticism that Trump is exploiting the White House for political purposes in ways none of his predecessors have. While Trump is not covered by the federal Hatch Act, which limits the political activities of most federal workers, previous presidents have tended to draw clear distinctions between campaigning and governing. MELANIA TRUMP TALKS VIRUS, RACIAL STRIFE The use of the White House as backdrop continued when First Lady Melania Trump capped off the evening with a speech from the newly renovated Rose Garden. After the deadly toll of the coronavirus pandemic was largely ignored on the second night of the convention, Mrs. Trump began her speech by talking about its devastating impact. “I want to acknowledge the fact that since March our lives have changed drastically,” she said. “The invisible enemy, COVID-19, swept across our beautiful country and impacted all of us. My deepest sympathy goes out to everyone who has lost a loved one.” Several times she diverged from the party line, as well as from economic adviser Larry Kudlow’s repeated use, in earlier in the evening, of the past tense to talk about a virus that is still killing an average of about 1,000 Americans a day. While extolling her husband’s character and record, she also took on a number of other challenging, sorrowful concerns, including natural disasters, opioid addiction and racial injustice. And the very close-guarded first lady spoke about her own journey, which includes her family benefiting from immigration policies her husband’s administration opposes. She said she became an American citizen “after 10 years of paperwork and patience” and “with hard work and determination.” It was a speech that stood out for its sense of the genuine on a night with the contrivances were many. REPUBLICANS STAKE OUT POLICY GROUND For technical reasons, Republicans did not vote on a new platform this year, but on Tuesday they tried to make clear what they stand for. The night’s program offered snapshots both of how the GOP has changed since Trump’s insurgent candidacy took over the party four years ago and what has remained the same. There were longtime standards — opposition to abortion and hardline policies on illegal immigration — but also Trump’s rewiring of the GOP’s one-time free market orthodoxy on trade and its interventionist foreign policy. Like Democrats before them, Republicans put […]

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