2016 Democratic convention

Donald Trump has officially weighed in on Hillary Clinton's acceptance speech. It appears he didn't like it. The GOP nominee posted the following on Facebook on Friday morning:

Hillary Clinton’s speech was an insulting collection of clichés and recycled rhetoric. She spent the evening talking down to the American people she’s looked down on her whole life.

Hillary Clinton talks about unity, about E Pluribus Unum, but her globalist agenda denies American citizens the protections to which they are all entitled – tearing us apart. Her radical amnesty plan will take jobs, resources and benefits from the most vulnerable citizens of the United States and give them to the citizens of other countries. Her refusal to even say the words ‘Radical Islam’, or to mention her disaster in Libya, or her corrupt email scheme, all show how little she cares about the safety of the American people.

It’s a speech delivered from a fantasy universe, not the reality we live in today.

Hillary Clinton says America is stronger together. But in Hillary Clinton’s America, millions of people are left out in the cold. She only stands together with the donors and special interests who’ve bankrolled her entire life. Excluded from Hillary Clinton’s America are the suffering people living in our inner cities, or the victims of open borders and drug cartels, or the people who’ve lost their jobs because of the Clintons’ trade deals, or any hardworking person who doesn’t have enough money to get a seat at Hillary Clinton’s table.

Donald Trump, who once promised a "monumentally magnificent" and "brilliantly staged" Republican convention, now says he wasn't really involved with producing the event.

"I didn't produce our show," Trump told the New York Times' Jim Rutenberg when asked about how it differed from the Democratic convention. "I just showed up for the final speech on Thursday."

The GOP nominee says he's happy with how things turned out, even if he wasn't the master planner. 

"I thought our stage in Cleveland was much more beautiful," Trump said at a campaign event in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, on Thursday night. "I also liked my children better than their stars." (Trump's kids — Donald Jr., Ivanka, Eric and Tiffany — all spoke during primetime.) 

Trump told the Washington Post in April that he would inject some "showbiz" into the GOP convention, but his campaign managed to attract only a few celebrities to appear at the event. 

Hillary Clinton drew raucous applause when she acknowledged the historic nature of her presidential run.

“Tonight, we've reached a milestone in our nation's march toward a more perfect union: the first time that a major party has nominated a woman for President,” she said.

Female leadership has been a major theme of the DNC’s convention. Clinton added that her nomination isn’t just a benchmark for females.

She said she was also happy for men “because when any barrier falls in America, for anyone, it clears the way for everyone. When there are no ceilings, the sky's the limit.” 

Continuing on with President Barack Obama's plea for his coalition to "carry" Hillary Clinton to victory on Election Day, she said, "With your help I will carry all of your stories and voices with me to the White House." 

Even those that don't vote for her she promises.

She says she'll fight "for all Americans together."

Basketball star Kareem Abdul Jabbar took the stage at the DNC with a curious introduction.

"I'm Michael Jordan and I'm here with Hillary,” he said to laughter. “I said that because I know that Donald Trump couldn't tell the difference.”

Hillary Clinton's campaign has released some advance excerpts of tonight's speech. Here are the released portions:

"America is once again at a moment of reckoning. Powerful forces are threatening to pull us apart. Bonds of trust and respect are fraying. And just as with our founders there are no guarantees. It truly is up to us. We have to decide whether we’re going to work together so we can all rise together.

"We are clear-eyed about what our country is up against. But we are not afraid. We will rise to the challenge, just as we always have.

"So I want to tell you tonight how we're going to empower all Americans to live better lives. My primary mission as President will be to create more opportunity and more good jobs with rising wages right here in the United States. From my first day in office to my last. Especially in places that for too long have been left out and left behind. From our inner cities to our small towns, Indian Country to Coal Country. From the industrial Midwest to the Mississippi Delta to the Rio Grande Valley.

"The choice we face is just as stark when it comes to our national security. Anyone reading the news can see the threats and turbulence we face. From Baghdad and Kabul, to Nice and Paris and Brussels, to San Bernardino and Orlando, we're dealing with determined enemies that must be defeated. No wonder people are anxious and looking for reassurance -- looking for steady leadership.

"Every generation of Americans has come together to make our country freer, fairer, and stronger. None of us can do it alone. That's why we are stronger together."

In her acceptance speech tonight, Hillary Clinton will speak to all Americans -- not just core supporters, as Donald Trump did last week at the Republican convention, an aide to Clinton said.

She will describe the choice we face in this election and say we have arrived at a moment of reckoning, when the country must decide whether it will succumb to the powerful forces, both economic and social, that are trying to tear us apart, the aide said. 

As the fourth and final night of the Democratic convention opens, Donald Trump said, "Democrats have been speaking about a world that doesn’t exist. A world where America has full employment, where there’s no such thing as radical Islamic terrorism, where the border is totally secured, and where thousands of innocent Americans have not suffered from rising crime in cities like Baltimore and Chicago."

"In the Democrats’ fantasy world, there is no problem with Hillary Clinton maintaining an illegal, exposed server full of classified information that could have been hacked by any foreign enemy, and in which Hillary Clinton risked prison time to delete 33,000 emails that were simply about yoga and wedding planning," he added. "I propose a different vision for America, one where we can break up Washington’s rigged system, and empower all Americans to achieve their dreams. In our vision, we will put America First."

Donald Trump may not have gotten a bounce from the Republican convention, but it's been "yuge" for an online dating service that puts Americans terrified of living under a President Trump together with Canadians.

Joe Goldman of Maple Match says business is up 500% and continues to be going strong even as the Democratic convention is wrapping up.

"We've received hundreds of emails from people across North America asking to get matched now," Goldman said. "While anti-Trump sentiments seem to be driving some of the traffic to Maple Match, many Americans and Canadians have noted their excitement about simply dating someone on the other side of the border."

And not all the new subscribers are anti-Trump.

"We've even been getting emails from Bernie supporters talking about leaving the country regardless of who wins," Goldman said in an email.

While Goldman did not release any numbers, in an interview with NBC News when he first launched the site in May, he said 13,000 people — a quarter of them Canadians — were already subscribers.

The Texas-based matchmaker said he was inspired to launch the site, which claims it's "Making dating great again," by repeated threats from pals in Austin to move north of the border if Trump became the GOP nominee and actually wins in November.

President Obama acknowledged that Clinton's unfavorables are high, attributing it to her long career in political life.

"Look, Hillary’s got her share of critics. She’s been caricatured by the right and by some folks on the left; accused of everything you can imagine – and some things you cannot. But she knows that’s what happens when you’re under a microscope for 40 years," he said.

He added: "She knows she’s made mistakes in her 40 years of political life, just like I have; just like we all do. That’s what happens when we try. That’s what happens when you’re the kind of citizen Teddy Roosevelt once described – not the timid souls who criticize from the sidelines, but someone “who is actually in the arena…who strives valiantly; who errs…[but] who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement.”

Obama portrayed Clinton as a pragmatic lawmaker who knows the pains that come from leadership. 

“It can be frustrating, this business of democracy. Trust me, I know. Hillary knows, too. When the other side refuses to compromise, progress can stall. Supporters can grow impatient, and worry that you’re not trying hard enough; that you’ve maybe sold out,” Obama said.

“But I promise you, when we keep at it; when we change enough minds; when we deliver enough votes, then progress does happen.”

President Obama recounted his tough primary battle against Hillary Clinton in 2008, and praised her work ethic as secretary of state.

"For four years I had a front-row seat to her intelligence, her judgment and her discipline. I came to realize that her unbelievable work ethic wasn't for praise, it wasn't for attention. She was in this for everyone who needs a champion. After all these years she has never forgotten just who she's fighting for."

From Trump campaign senior policy adviser Stephen Miller:

"It is alarming that Leon Panetta would, through his silence, excuse Hillary Clinton's enablement of foreign espionage with her illegal email scheme and her corrupt decision to then destroy those emails and dissemble her 'private' server to hide her crimes from the public and authorities. He better than most should know how many lives she put at risk. At the same time, Panetta ignored Hillary Clinton's rush to war in the Middle East and her deadly and calamitous invasion of Libya which further proves her a reckless risk too grave for any American family."

Some two dozen protesters used Uber cars to get as far as the parking lots at the Democratic National Convention on Wednesday night, staging a sit-in and forcing delegates to step over them.

While police were taking away the last of those demonstrators, a crowd massed outside rushed an outer security fence, with seven breaking through and getting arrested by the Secret Service, officials said.

Video from that rowdy scene outside the Wells Fargo Center also showed some protesters setting a flag ablaze -- and a woman's leg catching on fire when she tried to stomp it out.

It was the boldest night of protests since the convention began, but by the time President Obama was done addressing delegates inside the arena, the action outside had died down and the crowds were dispersing.

The group behind the Uber-powered demonstration was the progressive coalition Democracy Spring, which has been giving civil disobedience training sessions to its supporters. 

To get as close as possible to the convention site, the protesters ordered cars that took them to a drop-off point in the parking lots. 

There's a credential checkpoint for arriving Ubers but protest organizer K.C. Martel said they breezed through by flashing counterfeits.

"Yeah, security wasn't that great," he said.

They unfurled a banner and sat down in front of an entrance for delegates and other guests. Sen. Kristen Gillibrand, D-N.Y., was among those who had to be led by police around the sit-in.

The group could not have gotten farther than they did without having their credentials scanned and going through metal detectors.

"This is a militarized police zone ostensibly protecting the democratic process, but average people have been locked out of this arena and this process," Martel said.

The Democracy Spring protesters were expected to get citations and be released. 

On Monday and Tuesday, police issued 55 citations. The Secret Service also arrested four people on Tuesday night for jumping over the security fence.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren blasted Donald Trump's call for Russian hackers to seek out missing Hillary Clinton emails.

"You can't make this up. It is on emote day and we get one more piece of evidence that Donald Trump would be a danger to the United States. This man should never be allowed to come within miles of the White House," Warren told MSNBC's Rachel Maddow.

David Plouffe, the man who helped orchestrate Barack Obama's winning presidential campaign in 2008, laid down a challenge on MSNBC for Democratic voters come Thursday's end to the convention:

"They have to be as excited about Hillary Clinton winning as about Donald Trump losing."

Plouffe made the comment Wednesday to MSNBC's Chris Matthews. Earlier on MSNBC, he told a "Morning Joe" lineup, "we're not there yet."

Former CIA Director and White House Chief of Staff Leon Panetta is expected to adjust his planned remarks to directly respond to Donald Trump's comments on Russia, emails and cyber and national security, according to sources within the Clinton campaign. 

The Clinton campaign is more concerned about Russia's intrusion into the U.S. election and not just the comments by Trump today. 

Donald Trump's campaign attempted to clarify the candidate's comment that Russia should help "find" the thousands of emails that were deleted from Hillary Clinton's private email server, which she used while serving as secretary of state.

Jason Miller, senior communications adviser for the Trump campaign, told NBC News that Trump wasn't "calling on anyone to intervene or anything of the sort." He said Trump meant that if the emails could be recovered, they should be handed over to the authorities.

“I think it’s also important here to not let Hillary off the hook for why we’re even having this talk,” Miller added. “Because she illegally bungled 33,000 emails from her home server and now the DNC had their anti-Sanders smear campaign emails shared with the world."

Paul Ryan's spokesman, Brendan, Buck, released a statement on the DNC email hack: "Russia is a global menace led by a devious thug. Putin should stay out of this election."

Some security experts believe the Russian government is behind the cyberattack.

Protests at the Democratic National Convention have been much larger than those at the Republican National Convention, but there has been little chaos and only a handful of criminal charges.

A small group of protesters staged a sit-in into the lobby of the Comcast Center to complain about "mainstream media" coverage of the presidential campaign. Dozens of cops surrounded the building until 10 demonstrators were taken out. (Comcast is the parent company of NBC News).

Those detained were given citations and not hit with criminal charges in keeping with pre-convention legislation enacted that allows police to impose civil fines and avoid putting protesters into the court system.

"We've taken the position all along that as long as people are peaceful, they will be issued citations," Philadelphia Police Commissioner Richard Ross said.

On Tuesday night, the Secret Service did arrest four people who climbed over a fence ringing the Wells Fargo Center and tried to enter a secure zone. 

"It is a federal violation to enter those areas," Ross said, but added that the charges could eventually be bumped down to citations.

On Monday night, another 54 people were given citations during a well-orchestrated civil disobedience action.

There were several large rallies on Tuesday — encompassing some 5,000 people — including one led by Bernie Sanders supporters and another by Black Lives Matter activists. The latter involved an epic six-mile trek that lasted nearly eight hours, with cops blocking traffic on downtown streets while the marchers stopped at intersection after intersection.

After the two groups converged after dark near the Wells Fargo Center, there were a couple of small confrontations that were quickly defused. Right outside the gates of the DNC, a group of protesters wearing anarchist-style bandanas set a small fire, lighting up what they said was an Israeli flag.

Protests scheduled for Wednesday were mainly concentrated at the FDR Park, designated by the city for rallies. The Revolutionary Communist Party, which caused some hubbub during the RNC in Cleveland by organizing a flag-burning, announced that it plans to burn another flag on Thursday in Philadelphia.

Donald Trump said if he had used the same language as the language found in leaked Democratic National Committee emails, he "would have to run and hide and drop out of the race."

Trump, speaking to reporters in Doral, Florida, on Wednesday morning, tore into Hillary Clinton over the nearly 20,000 emails between DNC officials. Some of the emails showed top officials discussing ways to undercut Bernie Sanders's presidential campaign.

Debbie Wasserman Schultz stepped down as chairwoman after the emails became public. 

"What was said was a disgrace ... and Hillary Clinton knew about it. Debbie Wasserman Schultz could not breathe without getting approval from Hillary Clinton. It was a rigged race, it was totally rigged. Debbie Wasserman Schultz rigged it for Hillary Clinton."

Regarding Russia's role and allegations the Russians hacked the information to benefit Trump: "It is so far fetched, so ridiculous, honestly, I wish I had that power. ... I know nothing about it."

Asked about his relationship with Russia and Vladimir Putin, he said, "I never met Putin. ... I have nothing to do with Russia."

Fox News host Bill O’Reilly has picked up the ball tossed by critics who have tried to undermine first lady Michelle Obama’s popular DNC speech — and he's running with it.

On his prime-time show Tuesday, O'Reilly joined the chorus of detractors who tried to poke holes in Obama’s statement that she lives in a “house built by slaves.”

"Slaves that worked [at the White House] were well-fed and had decent lodgings provided by the government, which stopped hiring slave labor in 1802," he said on “The O’Reilly Factor." "However, the feds did not forbid subcontractors from using slave labor. So Michelle Obama is essentially correct in citing slaves as builders of the White House, but there were others working as well."

According to Politifact, the first lady is not just “essentially” correct, she is totally correct. And while not all of the laborers who built the White House were slaves, and while those that were may have been “well-fed,” that did not erase the indignity and brutality of living without their freedom — which should be a surprise to no one.

Meanwhile, the first lady’s foes continue to miss the substance of what she was trying to say: That her family’s residence in the White House is a symbol of racial progress and a tribute to how far our country has come.

But because this message was delivered by a Democratic first lady, it’s become yet another partisan talking point.

Case in point, conservative radio shock jock Rush Limbaugh complained that the Obamas "can't stop talking about slavery."

Limbaugh also took a shot at the president's multiracial ancestry: “They love to wax eloquent about the early days and how they were 3/5 of a person, even though they never have been 3/5 of a person,” he said. “He doesn't even have any slave blood. She does, but he doesn't, but they will admit they're never going to let it go.”

Bill Clinton’s keynote address at the DNC was part love story, part policy defense of a woman he called “the best darned change maker I have ever met.”

“This woman had never been satisfied with the status quo. She always wants to move the ball forward,” Bill Clinton said of Hillary.

The former president used his speech to chronologically highlight the Democratic presidential nominee’s robust career. The theme – she has been a doer with the ability to bring people together. The woman he knows, Bill Clinton said, is not the one portrayed during last week’s GOP convention.

"How do you square the things I told you with the picture the Republicans painted of their opponent in Cleveland?” he asked. “You can’t."

Bill Clinton mostly avoided taking shots at Donald Trump, only making indirect jabs at Hillary Clinton’s GOP rivals.

The speech was a slight departure from the norm for the policy wonk known for his ability to make complex issues relatable. His well-received speech during the 2012 Democratic convention was largely seen as one of the best public defenses of President Barack Obama and made him a valuable surrogate.

His speech Tuesday, though, took a personal tone for the woman he met 45 years ago. 

“I married my best friend. I was still in awe of…how smart and strong and loving and caring she was,” he said.

In a not-terribly-surprising move, NBC News has confirmed that Hillary Clinton will appear before the convention via satellite tonight.

PHILADELPHIA — A protest billed as the Black DNC Resistance is in its seventh hour with one mile to go before marchers reach the Wells Fargo Center.

Several hundred demonstrators who gathered for a rally near Temple University in the mid-afternoon, slowly made their way to City Hall and then continued on toward the Democratic National Convention site, stopping frequently at intersections.

March organizers led the crowd in chants against the police and against Hillary Clinton.

"Don't vote for Hillary! She's killing black people," the protesters shouted.

Later in the evening, there were about 100 protesters at the gates. One group set some papers on fire while another threw an American flag over the fence, although the crowd for the most part was thinning and relatively calm.

The message bothered some onlookers who support the Black Lives Matter movement.

"They think if Trump gets in, he's going to help them?" said an 81-year-old African-American Korean War veteran named Tucker, who was in Philadelphia from New York to attend a different protest.

"I'm voting for Hillary Clinton."

Police accompanying the protesters blocked of traffic and did not intervene as they made frequent stops. There were no arrests along the route, though it was unclear if the group planned any civil disobedience at Wells Fargo.

On Monday, 54 protesters from the Democracy Spring coalition were rounded up and given citations for refusing to move away from the arena.

The roll-call vote to officially nominate the Democratic Party's presidential nominee is underway. Alabama went first, and cast 50 votes for Hillary Clinton and nine for Bernie Sanders.

Stay tuned for more.

After initially staying silent, Donald Trump heaped praise on Michelle Obama's DNC speech.

"I thought her delivery was excellent. I thought she did a very good job. I liked her speech," Trump told The Hollywood Reporter, an entertainment industry trade magazine.

Trump weighed in on several DNC speeches on Twitter Monday night, but notably avoided commenting on Michelle Obama's speech, which was greeted with glowing reviews.

Trump's response is notable because his wife, Melania Trump, was accused of plagiarizing lines from Michelle Obama's 2008 DNC speech in her address on the opening night of the Republican National Convention last week.

Sources close to Bernie Sanders say there is no plan for him to personally nominate Hillary Clinton tonight.The expectation, as it stands now, is that the state of Vermont wishes to go last in the Roll Call of States.At that point, after all the Clinton and Sanders delegate numbers have been announced, the Vermont delegation would nominate Hillary Clinton by unanimous consent. In effect, that would washout all of the Sanders delegate numbers (after they were announced) and the full convention would unanimously nominate Hillary Clinton.The only caveat is whether there is some last-minute change, but sources say that is unlikely tonight.

As Bernie Sanders speaks to thousands of adoring Democratic fans in the Wells Fargo, it's worth looking back at how the longtime Vermont pol exploded from a relatively nameless lawmaker into the rock star of the left. 

An NBC/WSJ poll in March of 2015 found that 54 percent of Democratic primary voters had never even heard of the senator from Vermont. 

In that poll, only about one in five Democratic primary voters said they could see themselves supporting him for the Oval Office job; the same number said they couldn't imagine backing him.

The rest said, "Who?"

What a difference a year and a half or so makes.

New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker offered a message of an America built not just on tolerance, but on "love."

"We can’t devolve into a nation where our highest aspiration is that we just tolerate each other. We are not called to be a nation of tolerance," he said. "We are called to be a nation of love."

Booker painted Trump as an agent of hate, highlighting Trump's mocking of a disabled reporter and of John McCain.

His praise of Clinton won mostly applause but a smattering of boos from Sanders supporters. A chant of "Black Lives Matter" was audible in the arena and to a television audience.

"America, we will rise," he said again and again, listing historical hurdles that the nation has overcome together, with the crowd repeating the phrase along with him.

A speech that started with a distracted audience crescendoed as Booker declared at the end of his remarks that "Love Trumps Hate," prompting wild applause in the Wells Fargo Center.

The booing of Hillary Clinton by Bernie Sanders supporters early in the convention's proceedings earlier today was a very uncomfortable scene for Democrats. The testy exchanges showed just how deep and bitter the divide remains between Sanders' diehard backers and more establishment Democratic activists.

But it's also worth keeping in mind that the folks inside the Wells Fargo arena are just that -- diehards and activists.

Here's how the Cook Political Report's Amy Walter puts it. "It’s important to remind ourselves of this as we sit in our bubbles of Cleveland and Philadelphia. The people who show up to conventions, and protest in the streets, are not representative of all voters. They are a small (very small) subsection of super-engaged and involved voters. Elections are won and lost by those who are only barely paying attention. They know that November is a long way away." 

That's not to say that drama on the convention floor - either in Cleveland or Philadelphia - doesn't matter; the more unified party almost always comes out on top in a head-to-head clash.

But it's still worth remembering that right now, in the country at large, Sanders voters are overwhelmingly supportive of Clinton, according to our July NBC News/ Wall Street Journal poll.

In the poll 76 percent of Sanders supporters said they would vote for Hillary Clinton in a matchup against Donald Trump, while just about one-in-ten -- 11 percent -- said they'd vote for Trump and 13 percent cited for "neither," "depends," or "other."

The DNC issues a formal apology to Bernie Sanders after documents released by Wikileaks show disparaging comments about Sanders, even questioning his religious beliefs.

From the DNC: 

“On behalf of everyone at the DNC, we want to offer a deep and sincere apology to Senator Sanders, his supporters, and the entire Democratic Party for the inexcusable remarks made over email. These comments do not reflect the values of the DNC or our steadfast commitment to neutrality during the nominating process. The DNC does not -- and will not -- tolerate disrespectful language exhibited toward our candidates. Individual staffers have also rightfully apologized for their comments, and the DNC is taking appropriate action to ensure it never happens again.

"We are embarking on a convention today that — thanks to the great efforts of Secretary Clinton, her team, Senator Sanders, his team, and the entire Democratic Party — will show a forward-thinking and optimistic vision for America, as compared to the dark and pessimistic vision that the GOP presented last week in Cleveland. Our focus is on electing Hillary Clinton, Tim Kaine and Democrats across the country, thanks to Democratic Party that is strong, unified, and poised for victory in November.”

The Hillary Clinton campaign will no longer be airing TV ads in battleground Colorado, NBC News has confirmed. The campaign's advertising there ends today.

But the campaign will continue to advertise in eight other states –- Florida, Iowa, Nevada, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Virginia.

An NBC/WSJ/Marist poll before the conventions had Clinton ahead in Colorado by 8 percentage points, 43 percent to 35 percent. 

It's still the beginning of convention week, but we already have a good look at the strategy Hillary Clinton and Tim Kaine will use out of the gate to try to build on momentum after the DNC.

The candidates' bus tour will hit cities in Pennsylvania and Ohio situated in counties that are largely blue islands amid a more conservative region. But a key characteristic of the surrounding areas is that they are rich with blue-collar white voters -- the same group Donald Trump hopes to woo.

Read more about the strategy here.

Outgoing Democratic National Committee Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz will not gavel in the party’s convention or address delegates onstage Monday, Hillary Clinton’s campaign confirmed to NBC News.

Wasserman Schultz offered her resignation Sunday over leaked DNC emails that appeared to show impartiality toward the Clinton campaign.

"I have decided that in the interest of making sure that we can start the Democratic convention on a high note that I am not going to gavel in the convention," the embattled DNC chair told the Sun Sentinel newspaper.

Tonight will be the first time Bernie Sanders has addressed a Democratic National Convention. The only other time he attended a DNC was 2008 in Denver.

Sanders has spent most of his time in politics as an independent. He became a Democrat to run for the 2016 nomination.

PHILADELPHIA -- Virginia governor and former Democratic National Committee Chair Terry McAuliffe said he was outraged after reading leaked DNC emails showing bias against Bernie Sanders.

“I don't want to get into my private conversations with people, but I made it very clear as soon as I saw it, people need to be fired immediately,” McAuliffe told reporters after addressing the Virginia delegation breakfast Monday morning. “I'm sorry. Just, if I'd been chair, they would have been fired within 5 minutes.”

The governor said his initial reaction to reading the leaked emails was "outrage."

DNC Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz announced Sunday she would step down as chair after this week’s convention. Throughout the Democratic primary battle, Sanders accused Schultz and the DNC of favoring Hillary Clinton and called for the chair’s resignation.

McAuliffe, who headed the DNC during the 2004 presidential election, said Wasserman Schultz deserved to remain on as chair until the end of the Democratic convention.

“Let her gavel open, let her gavel close. She's earned that,” McAuliffe said. “She's worked hard. Obviously there were mistakes made on this, she's resigned.”

This Democratic convention is Hillary Clinton's party.

But the person who's hovering over it — and still shaping the overall Democratic Party's policies, tone and temperament — is the man speaking Wednesday night: President Barack Obama. Here's why.

The Trump and Clinton campaigns sparred Sunday over the source of the leak of thousands of internal DNC emails.

Clinton's camp alleges that the breach was instigated by hackers working with the Russian government who aim to boost Donald Trump's campaign by sowing discord among Democrats.

"What’s disturbing to us is that experts are telling us Russian state actors broke into the DNC, stole these emails, and other experts are now saying that the Russians are releasing these emails for the purpose of actually of helping Donald Trump,” Clinton campaign manager Robby Mook said on CNN.

Trump's campaign shot back that Mook's claim was merely an attempt to "change the subject."

"You know the Clinton campaign is desperate to change the subject from the disunity at their convention when they're the ones bringing up compromised email servers," said Trump spokesman Jason Miller. "Their time would be better spent apologizing to Bernie Sanders for the mistreatment he received at the hands of the Democratic National Committee."

Donald Trump told NBC's Chuck Todd that his speech to the RNC Thursday night offered an optimistic message because "we're going to stop the problems."

And when asked about his statement that "I alone can fix it" — a sentiment blasted by critics as a flirtation with totalitarianism — Trump said his ability to solve America's problems is a binary contrast with the Democratic nominee.

"I am running against Hillary. It's not like I'm running against the rest of the world. I know people that are very, very capable that could do a very good job, but they could never get elected," he said.

Watch the full interview on Meet the Press. Full story here.

The chief financial officer of the Democratic National Committee on Saturday apologized for the "insensitive" contents of an email leaked by the website WikiLeaks which appears to refer to Bernie Sanders.

An email purportedly written by Brad Marshall in May appears to refer to Sanders, but does not name him.

The email says "ask his belief. Does he believe in a God. He had skated on saying he has a Jewish heritage. I think I read he is an atheist. This could make several points difference with my peeps. My Southern Baptist peeps would draw a big difference between a Jew and an atheist."

Read more here. 

Hillary Clinton's big moment at the Democratic convention this week caps a long journey — not just for her but for women.

Clinton will this week become the first woman to be the nominee of a major political party. The achievement comes at a time when political gender parity is closer than ever but the disparity remains stark. 

For those who work to elect women to political office, Clinton's nomination was a long time coming. 

"I've been doing work on women in politics since the mid-1970s and I never thought it would take this long," said Susan Carroll, senior scholar at the CWAP. 

Read more here. 

The mother of the U.S. ambassador killed in the 2012 attack in Benghazi has asked that Donald Trump and the Republican Party stop the "opportunistic and cynical" use of her son's name and death.

Christopher Stevens was among four Americans killed in the attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi on Sept. 11, 2012.

"As Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens's mother, I am writing to object to any mention of his name and death in Benghazi, Libya, by Donald Trump's campaign and the Republican Party," Stevens' mother, Mary Commanday, said in a short letter published in The New York Times online Saturday. 

Read the full story here. 

President Barack Obama seized his first opportunity after the Republican National Convention to reject Donald Trump’s view of America as a country in decline, challenging the pessimism that coursed throughout the GOP nominee's acceptance speech. “This idea that America is somehow on the verge of collapse, this vision of violence and chaos everywhere, doesn't really jibe with the experience of most people,” Obama said as he stood next to Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto at a joint White House press conference on Friday. Without mentioning Trump by name, Obama offered a forceful defense of the progress America has made during his presidency, from declining crime rates to improved job growth. “When it comes to crime, the violent crime rate in America has been lowered during my presidency than anytime in the last three, four decades,” he said. It was Obama’s first chance to respond to the GOP convention in Cleveland, as the likely Democratic nominee, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, prepares for her party’s gathering in Philadelphia next week. Both Obama and Pena Nieto, whose country — and at times whose citizens — have been sharply criticized by Trump, refrained from directly challenging the Republican nominee, a candidate who dispatched a GOP rival by promising to build a wall along America’s southern border.

Instead, Obama touted his own record and measured his accomplishments, and the state of the union, against former President Ronald Reagan, still a hero to many in his party, three times. “Well, it turns out that the rate of illegal migration into the United States today is lower by two-thirds than it was when Ronald Reagan was president. We have far fewer undocumented workers crossing the border today than we did in the '80s or the '90s or when George Bush was president,” he said. “That's a fact.” Pena Nieto vowed that he would not wade into US domestic politics and promised to work closely with whoever the American public elects in November. He had previously compared some of Trump’s rhetoric to dictators of the last century, like Benito Mussolini. He said today that those quotes were taken out of context.

Oklahoma Governor Mary Fallin gave skeptical conservatives the green light to support Donald Trump. 

"As Ronald Reagan once said, the person who agrees with you 80 percent of the time is a friend and an ally," she said. 

In anticipation of Donald Trump's presidential acceptance speech Thursday night in Cleveland, many delegates NBC News spoke to want to hear Trump offer policy specifics and sound more presidential. 

"A vision of what a Trump administration would look like," Wisconsin delegate Jerry Murphy said she wants to hear from Trump. 

Sharon Lane of Roanoke, Virginia said she wants Trump to "lay out some policies" and "give us some specifics."

A delegate from Washington who didn't want to be identified said he wants to hear "real plans" from Trump and if he can "hold his tongue."

"We need some major leadership and he needs to show that," New York delegate Steve Neuhaus said.

Trump has "got to be presidential," Neuhaus added. 

What they don't want to see: Trump attack Sen. Ted Cruz after Cruz didn't endorse Trump during his speech Wednesday night. 

It's showtime for the ultimate political showman tonight in Cleveland, and the stakes could not be higher. The nominee's keynote address on the final night of the convention is always high pressure. But the many problems that have nagged the GOP convention thus far have only made the spotlight on Trump even hotter. On one hand, there is no one in politics who has proven he can put on a better show than Trump. On the other, Trump has come off as flat and -- dare we say -- low energy, when delivering scripted speeches in the past. So will a disappointing speech cap what has been a disappointing week for the GOP? Or can Trump become the GOP's version of the Comeback Kid? 

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Donald Trump's campaign has released excerpts of his speech to the National Republican Convention tonight, below is what they have released:

"Americans watching this address tonight have seen the recent images of violence in our streets and the chaos in our communities.

Many have witnessed this violence personally, some have even been its victims.

I have a message for all of you: the crime and violence that today afflicts our nation will soon come to an end. Beginning on January 20th 2017, safety will be restored."

"America is far less safe – and the world is far less stable – than when Obama made the decision to put Hillary Clinton in charge of America’s foreign policy.

I am certain it is a decision he truly regrets. Her bad instincts and her bad judgment – something pointed out by Bernie Sanders – are what caused many of the disasters unfolding today."

"But Hillary Clinton’s legacy does not have to be America’s legacy. The problems we face now – poverty and violence at home, war and destruction abroad – will last only as long as we continue relying on the same politicians who created them."

"As long as we are led by politicians who will not put America First, then we can be assured that other nations will not treat America with respect. This will all change when I take office."

"My message is that things have to change – and they have to change right now.

Every day I wake up determined to deliver a better life for the people all across this nation that have been neglected, ignored, and abandoned."

"Middle-income Americans and businesses will experience profound relief, and taxes will be greatly simplified for everyone. America is one of the highest-taxed nations in the world.

Reducing taxes will cause new companies and new jobs to come roaring back into our country.

Then we are going to deal with the issue of regulation, one of the greatest job-killers of them all.

Excessive regulation is costing our country as much as 2 trillion dollars a year, and we will end it."

"With these new economic policies, trillions of dollars will start flowing into our country.

This new wealth will improve the quality of life for all Americans. We will build the roads, highways, bridges, tunnels, airports, and the railways of tomorrow.

This, in turn, will create millions more jobs.

We will rescue kids from failing schools by helping their parents send them to a safe school of their choice."

"So to every parent who dreams for their child, and every child who dreams for their future, I say these words to you tonight:I’m with you, I will fight for you, and I will win for you."

Cleveland Police confirm that two member of law enforcement, believed to be Georgia State Police troopers, have been hospitalized with injuries to their arms after an undisclosed foreign substance was put on them.

The police say officially that both are suffering from an "unknown illness."

NBC News learned earlier Thursday that a Georgia trooper on duty in Cleveland to support law enforcement efforts for the convention was being attended by medical personnel after he was bumped and his arm became irritated.

The incident is believed to have happened near the Public Square.

Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin joined the growing chorus of conservatives deploring Texas Sen. Ted Cruz’s refusal to endorse Donald Trump at the Republican National Convention Wednesday.

“Cruz’s broken pledge to support the will of the people tonight was one of those career-ending ‘read my lips’ moments,” Palin said in a statement to Breitbart News Wednesday. “I guarantee American voters took notice and felt more unsettling confirmation as to why we don’t much like typical politicians because they campaign one way, but act out another way.”

Thursday morning, Cruz said he would not vote for Hillary Clinton in November, but didn’t say whether he would vote for Trump either. "I am doing what millions of Americans are doing. I am watching and I am listening," he said. "I can tell you I'm not voting for Hillary."

Donald Trump suggested Wednesday that as president he might take a different approach toward NATO than previous administrations, including possibly setting conditions for defending members under attack.

In an interview with The New York Times, Trump said that the U.S. has shouldered too much of the cost burden for the longstanding security alliance.

Trump told the newspaper he would force some of the 28 NATO members to contribute more and would make American defense contingent upon those nations having "fulfilled their obligations to us." 

Such conditions for the defense of a fellow NATO member would appear to violate the organization's charter, signed in 1949 and updated as recently as March. The agreement establishes that "an armed attack against one or more [members] in Europe or North America shall be considered an attack against them all." It goes on to say that parties to NATO shall immediately respond with "action as it deems necessary, including the use of armed force." 

Trump told the Times the position was part of his broader approach to put "America first."

Hillary for America has filed its fundraising report for the month of June. Clinton’s campaign raised a total of $36.4 million for the month and has $44.4 million on hand. She spent $34.5 million during the month. As Alex Jaffe noted, Trump ended the month with $20.2 million cash on hand. He raised a total of $26.7 million during June.

Newt Gingrich played diplomat when he addressed the convention crowd shortly after Ted Cruz was booed off stage by attempting to translate for the Texas senator.

“I just want to point out what Ted Cruz said,” Gingrich said near the top of his remarks. “You can vote to uphold the Constitution, there is only one candidate who will uphold the Constitution.”

“So to paraphrase Sen. Cruz, if want to protect the Constitution, the only possible candidate is the Trump-Pence ticket,” the former House Speaker and 2012 presidential candidate.

Prior to Gingrich’s speech, Cruz was booed for urging candidates to vote their conscience but did not endorse Trump.

Donald Trump has filed his fundraising report for the month of June, showing that he raised $26.7 million during the month and has about $20.2 million in the bank.

The report also shows that Trump forgave the nearly $50 million in loans he had made to his own campaign.

Trump had been under pressure to forgive the loans, as some donors worried he would use fundraising from his campaign to pay himself back.

Trump's June receipts also include a contribution of over $2 million from his own pocket.

He spent about $7.8 million during the month.

Former presidential candidate Scott Walker reiterated his pledge to support any GOP candidate over Hillary Clinton while making the case for Donald Trump in his convention speech.

“Last August, I said that any of the Republicans running would be better than Hillary Clinton,” Walker said, referring to the first GOP debate. “I meant it then, and I mean it now. So let me be clear: a vote for anyone other than Donald Trump in November is a vote for Hillary Clinton.”

Walker’s speech had what many RNC speeches did not -- a call to support Trump in addition to a healthy amount of Clinton bashing.

“If she were any more on the inside, she’d be in prison,” Walker said of the presumptive GOP nominee. “America deserves better than Hillary Clinton. That is why we need to support Donald Trump and Mike Pence for president and vice president.

The third night of primetime speeches has kicked off at the RNC. Early speakers shared a common theme: You may not like Trump, but if you don’t support him Hillary Clinton will win.

“It’s time for all Americans to put down the partisan banners, vote for the survival of the greatest country in the world, and do what is right for our country – Vote for Donald Trump!” said Florida Gov. Rick Scott.

“We should all, even all you boys with wounded feelings and bruised egos, pledge to support Donald Trump now,” said conservative talk show host Laura Ingraham, who called on Trump’s primary opponents to honor their pledge to support the nominee.

The Urban League of Greater Cleveland's pop up store at the Republican National Convention has the casual feel of a weekend flea market.

But within the tent are 11 small minority-owned businesses, the types of places that represent the sort of outreach the GOP is hoping to continue as it works to combat negative perceptions among minority communities. The wares include handmade hats by Cleveland native Dee Hall and the Woodbine and Company jewelry based in Beachwood, Ohio. 

“Many of the people who are in this pop up store would never have had the opportunity to really present their items in this kind of a frame without the pop-up store," Urban League of Greater Cleveland President Marsha Mockabee told NBC BLK.”

A Donald Trump adviser is standing by his comments that Hillary Clinton should be shot by a firing squad for treason.New Hampshire state Sen. Al Baldasaro, a Marine veteran who advises Trump on veterans’ issues and has campaigned with him in New Hampshire, said in an interview with NBC News that Clinton's use of a private server should be considered treason and “as far as I’m concerned, the laws of the land on treason could be a firing squad if she’s found guilty.”

He first made the comments on the Jeff Kuhner Show, and when confronted with his earlier remarks he said he stood by them.“I stand by it because treason is treason. When you take information on a server, that’s a non classified server, classified info, and you've got names of American CIA, Secret Service, ambassadors or whatever and you’re sharing that out there, you’re giving the enemy information,” Baldasaro said.

Asked to respond to Baldasaro's comments, Trump aide Hope Hicks told NBC News "No, of course Mr. Trump does not feel this way."

Donald Trump’s daughter, Ivanka, predicted that Melania Trump would be a “powerful and impactful first woman,” but stopped short of revealing the priorities Melania Trump would focus on as first lady.

“Melania is very smart. She’s very warm. She’s got an incredible heart. She’s always been very charitable, and there are many organizations that she’s worked with, not just for a season, but over the course of many, many years and decades, in some cases. So I’ll leave it to her to put forth what her platform will be,” Ivanka Trump told People magazine.

A quick fact-check on New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie's claim that Hillary Clinton failed to react to the kidnapping of schoolgirls in Nigeria:

CHRISTIE CLAIM: "What happened because of this reckless action by the candidate who is the self proclaimed champion of women around the world? These terrorists abducted hundreds of innocent young girls two years ago.These schoolgirls are still missing today. What was the solution from the Obama/Clinton team? A hashtag campaign!”

THE FACTS: Clinton was not Secretary of State when Boko Haram kidnapped hundreds of girls in Nigeria, and the hashtag did not originate with her — or even in the U.S. #BringOurGirlsBack has been sourced to African activists, who launched a grassroots campaign that picked up quickly and was embraced by many, including an out of office Clinton and First Lady Michelle Obama. 

Former U.S. Attorney General Michael Mukasey on Tuesday told a crowd at the Republican National Convention that Hillary Clinton’s use of an email server and alleged mishandling of classified material disqualifies her to be president.

Mukasey did not mention Trump in a brief speech, but six months ago in an anti-Trump edition of the conservative National Review, Mukasey wrote "a Donald Trump presidency would imperil our national security."

Mukasey in the January edition singled out Trump’s plan to temporarily bar Muslims from entering the United States and his suggestion that the military should kill the families of terrorists.

"Trump’s proposal would assure the enmity of all Muslims, including those whose support we need if we are to prevail," Mukasey wrote in the magazine.

Tuesday, however, Mukasey attacked Clinton for allegedly exposing state secrets through use of her server, and accused her of lying about it.

"Hillary Clinton is asking the people of this country, the people of the United States, to make her the first president in history to take the Constitutional oath of office after already having violated it," Mukasey said.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell invoked the Zika virus while making the case against Hillary Clinton at the GOP convention Tuesday.

“As we sit here tonight, a terrifying mosquito-borne illness threatens expectant mothers and their babies along the Southern Coast. And just last week, Clinton Democrats in the Senate blocked a bill aimed at eradicating that virus before it spread,” he said.

Senate Democrats blocked the legislation saying the GOP included controversial additions to the spending bill.

Florida officials said Tuesday they were investigating a possible case of Zika in Florida.

A quick fact check of speaker Sen. Ron Johnson's claim about Clinton's response to the Benghazi attack:

CLAIM (Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wisc): "'What difference, at this point, does it make?' I am the guy that got under her skin and provoked that infamous response from Hillary Clinton by asking a simple question: "Why didn't you just pick up the phone and call the survivors?" 

The Facts: While Johnson did ask Clinton why the State Department didn't call the survivors to ascertain whether the Benghazi attack was inspired by the video, Clinton's "What difference, at this point does it make?" response was about whether the video inspired the attack -- not about whether or not Clinton called the survivors. 

Here’s the exchange at the Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing in January 2013.

JOHNSON: No, again, we were misled that there were supposedly protests and that something sprang out of that -- an assault sprang out of that -- and that was easily ascertained that that was not the fact, and the American people could have known that within days and they didn’t know that. 

CLINTON: With all due respect, the fact is we had four dead Americans. Was it because of a protest or was it because of guys out for a walk one night who decided that they’d they go kill some Americans? What difference at this point does it make? It is our job to figure out what happened and do everything we can to prevent it from ever happening again, Senator. Now, honestly, I will do my best to answer your questions about this, but the fact is that people were trying in real time to get to the best information. The IC has a process, I understand, going with the other committees to explain how these talking points came out. But you know, to be clear, it is, from my perspective, less important today looking backwards as to why these militants decided they did it than to find them and bring them to justice, and then maybe we’ll figure out what was going on in the meantime. 

UPDATE: A spokesman for Johnson said that the senator was speaking about the entirety of Clinton's phone call. "Ron's questioning from start to finish was about how a simple phone call could have led to the truth -- a fact that clearly got under Secretary Clinton's skin just as he described," said spokesman Brian Reisinger. "In fact, moments before her infamous outburst, Ron literally said to Secretary Clinton 'Do you disagree with me that a simple phone call to those evacuees to determine what happened would have ascertained immediately that there was no protest?' At every turn, Ron pressed the point that he recounted tonight."

After Wright State announced Tuesday it was pulling out of hosting this fall's first debate between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton, the Commission on Presidential Debates announced that Hofstra University would be the replacement venue.

In a statement the Commission said is "very much appreciates Wright State's efforts. Hofstra University served very successfully as a presidential debate site in 2012" and noted that Hofstra had earlier agreed to be an alternate site in the 2016 cycle if needed.

Wright State University president David Hopkins announced the decision to pull out as host of the debate Tuesday, citing costs that had risen dramatically more than expected, according to the Dayton Daily News.

The debate is still scheduled to take place on September 26. The second in the series is slated to be the vice presidential debate at Virginia's Longwood University on October 4, followed by the second presidential debate at Washington University in St. Louis on October 9 and the final presidential debate at the University of Nevada-Las Vegas on October 19.

The Justice Department says it has blocked access for one of its public affairs officers to the department's social media account after a tweet critical of CNN went out last night. 

The tweet addressed the controversy over last night's speech by Melania Trump.

"CNN is the biggest troll of them all IMAO #Petty," it said.

Tuesday the department issued the following statement:

"A staffer in the public affairs office erroneously used the official Department of Justice Twitter handle to post a tweet that was intended for a personal account. The tweet does not represent the Departments views and was inappropriate for the Department of Justices official account, so it was immediately deleted," the statement read. "The staffers access to the Departments social media accounts has been revoked. As a result of this incident, the Office of Public Affairs has implemented procedural changes to the way we use our social media accounts and will provide additional social media training for employees. The Justice Department takes this matter very seriously and will continue to take the appropriate steps to prevent it from happening in the future."

If it were up to the head of the Republican National Committee, the author of Melania Trump's convention speech would be axed.

Reince Priebus said Tuesday he would "probably" fire the writer of the speech, a chunk of which appeared to have been lifted straight from Michelle Obama's address at the 2008 Democratic convention.

At a Bloomberg Politics breakfast in Cleveland, the RNC chief praised the rest of Melania Trump's speech, calling it a "great immigrant story" and "very inspirational."

"I don't blame her," Priebus said. "Some of these things are pretty common types of themes."

Think it's gotten ugly in Cleveland already? The Los Angeles Times reported Tuesday that at least one and as many as a dozen members of the California delegation have fallen ill, possibly with the notorious Norovirus.

The nasty "cruise-ship" bug is "a very contagious virus that can infect anyone," according to the CDC. "You can get it from an infected person, contaminated food or water, or by touching contaminated surfaces. The virus causes your stomach or intestines or both to get inflamed. This leads you to have stomach pain, nausea, and diarrhea and to throw up."

There may be a run on hand sanitizer in greater Cleveland.

Melania Trump praised her husband as a winner ready to fight for America during his convention speech Monday night, her most high-profile foray into the public eye this campaign.

“His achievements speak for themselves, and his performance throughout the primary campaign proved that he knows how to win,” she said.

She also stressed GOP unity, adding, "it would not be a Trump contest without excitement and drama."

Trump’s wife has largely stayed out of the public eye during the campaign, delivering only sporadic comments and interviews during her husband’s whirlwind run. Donald Trump briefly introduced his wife, calling her “an amazing mother and incredible woman.”

Read the full story here.

Former New York City Mayor and failed presidential candidate Rudy Giuliani praised Donald Trump’s “big heart,” saying he often helped anonymously when tragedy struck the country’s largest city.

“I am sick and tired of the defamation of Donald Trump by the media and by the Clinton campaign,” Giuliani said.

The 2008 presidential candidate said Trump would often request anonymity when donating to the city. “He asked not to be mentioned,” Giuliani said.

He also touted his own record as mayor, saying he made New York the country’s safest big city.

“What I did for New York, Donald Trump will do for America,” he said.

Three parents whose sons were killed by undocumented immigrants told emotional stories emphasizing the need to secure the country’s southern border with Mexico.

“No one listened until Donald Trump. Donald Trump is not only my hero, he's my lifesaver,” Sabine Durden said. Her son was killed by a drunk driver who was in the country illegally.

“It’s time we start caring for Americans and not illegal aliens,” said Mary Ann Mendoza, whose son was also killed in a car accident with an undocumented immigrant.

Jamiel Shaw told the story of how his son was shot and killed, saying Trump called him to ask how he was doing while other politicians shied away.

“Only Trump will stand against terrorists and illegal aliens,” Shaw said.

In an interview with NBC News' Andrea Mitchell, longtime GOP stalwart Bob Dole said some of the Republican leaders who are no-shows at the party convention in Cleveland should have made a different decision.

Dole said he understood why aging former President George H. W. Bush was not attending but said "I wish his son George would have come. And Jeb signed a pledge to support the nominee. And the nominee is Donald Trump. Now, the pledge didn't say they would attend the convention but it's implied in my view."

Asked if he thought all the rest of the primary field should have all attended the convention, Dole said "Yeah, why not? Look what the party's done for all of us who've aspired to be president and, or governor. But they decided not to come, so that's their choice. But I bet they watch it on TV."

"I'm a Republican, been one all my life," the 1996 GOP nominee said. "The party's been very good to me."

Dole, who whose presence in the hall will be highlighted Monday night, added, "I didn't have the same feeling that my friends George and George Bush had."

When asked if he had any advice for Trump for the rest of the campaign, Dole said, "No, I don't. ... I can't give him advice. He's been a great financial success, he's built a empire." What Trump "should do," he added is "speak to the people, talk about issues and -- he might mention Hillary, but let's leave everybody else alone, you know?"

Melania Trump will take the stage late tonight as the keynote speaker of the Republican National Convention’s first night, where she'll speak in support of husband Donald Trump. It’s sure to be her biggest speech and most high profile moment of her husband's 13-month campaign.

Aside from a few interviews and appearing quietly at rallies and events, Melania has been largely mum through the race. Before Trump ran for the presidency though, she was vocal and active on social media. Back in August, MSNBC took a look at her scantily clad media trail, and found out about everything from how she describes the Trumps' sex life to what kind of first lady she’d want to be.

Read all about those interviews here: Meet Melania Trump, 2016’s most surprising wife

Though Monday’s convention theme is “Make America Safe Again,” Melania Trump will focus her headliner address on showing off her husband’s softer side, according to a senior aide.

A Trump campaign advisor said she will reveal a side of the man “the media doesn’t report.”

Melania Trump’s address is expected to be a departure from the night’s theme of national security. The reason, the aide said, is to spread out the Trump family over the course of the convention.

Donald Trump is expected to introduce his wife.

No Republican has ever won the presidency without winning Ohio, the state hosting the GOP convention here.

So on the first day of the Republican convention, the Trump campaign, well, picked a fight with Ohio's governor. And the state party fought back -- all highlighting the GOP disunity in Cleveland. 

When asked on MSNBC's "Morning Joe" about Ohio Gov. John Kasich skipping the GOP convention in his own state, the Trump campaign's Paul Manafort said, "He is making a big mistake. He is looking at something that is not going to happen. He is hurting his state. He is embarrassing his state, frankly." Manafort told the Today show the same thing.

And he made a third dig at a breakfast sponsored by Bloomberg: "That's a dumb, dumb, thing," Manafort said. "Will John Kasich finally grow up? Maybe. If he does, we'll welcome him."

Kasich is no ordinary governor. He was one of Trump's opponents during the 2016 Republican primary season, winning only his home state of Ohio. Kasich also has a 58 percent approval rating in Buckeye State, according a recent Quinnipiac poll.

And state Republicans, who haven’t received prime seating at the convention despite their state’s importance as a battleground state, fired back at Manafort.

"Ohio loves our governor. He turned this state around and united Ohioans. No wonder he has a 60% approval rating," tweeted Ohio Republican Party Chair Matt Borges. 

This Kasich-vs.-Team Trump spat is only the latest sign of disunity at this Republican convention.

In the most recent NBC/WSJ poll, only 38 percent of Republican voters say they are satisfied with Trump as their nominee, versus 54 percent of Democrats who say they are satisfied with Clinton. What’s more, a combined 85 percent of all voters –- including 78 percent of Republicans –- say the GOP is not that unified or only somewhat unified. That’s compared with 48 percent of all voters (and 40 percent of Democrats) who say that about the Democratic Party. 

The anti-Trump delegates plan to force a roll call vote during the adoption of the rules governing the 2016 convention.

The roll call is an effort to reject the rules because they explicitly say delegates are bound, but also the purpose is to slow down the process and put on a show of resistance as the party is trying to unify.

To force a roll call of the states, petitions must be submitted to the secretary of the convention that show the support of a majority of delegates in at least seven states.

Organizers and supporters say they have the support of a majority of delegates in eight states and the District of Columbia.

In addition to D.C., the states are: Minnesota, Wyoming, Iowa, Utah, Colorado, Washington, Maine, and Virginia.

Former New Hampshire U.S. Sen. Gordon Humphrey told MSNBC he delivered the petitions to representative of the secretary of the convention.

Donald Trump’s top strategist Paul Manafort on Monday said protests anticipated to take place in Cleveland this week will “probably help the campaign.”

Manafort said the potential protests will show “lawlessness” and “lack of respect" for political discourse during an appearance at a Bloomberg Politics event.

The demonstrations, he said, won't disrupt what is going on in the arena.

“Frankly, that impact will probably help the campaign," Manafort added.

The Republican National Convention officially kicked off in Cleveland shortly after 1 p.m. ET on Monday as RNC head Reince Priebus gavelled in the four-day event.

The highlight of day one will be when Donald Trump’s wife, Melania Trump, takes the stage Monday night.

Donald Trump's campaign is hoping that the Republican National Convention will re-introduce the business mogul to the American public.

"Our goal all week is to present a picture of Donald Trump that is broader than just the campaign image that people have developed from the primary season," campaign manager Paul Manafort told reporters. "We recognize as a key part of the purpose of this convention to, is the opportunity to introduce the candidate to a broader spectrum of America that will be paying attention at this convention."

Manafort added that the campaign hopes the RNC will show another side of Trump -- as a father, businessman and "compassionate human being that he is when the spotlights aren't on and he wasn't running for president."

"Stop Trump" protesters are planning to march in Cleveland this afternoon.

Mick Kelly, the organizer of this rally, told NBC News that while his permit estimates 1,000 people will join the protest, he can't give a good estimate because they just got final approval last week. This rally was organized by the "Coalition to Stop Trump and March on the RNC." Organizers say more than 40 trade unions, immigrant rights, student and anti-war organizations are part of this demonstration.

There are also about two dozen people wearing neon vests, who are assigned security or peacekeepers. They are unarmed.

CLEVELAND -- Donald Trump will accompany his wife, Melania, to Cleveland and be in the Quicken Loans Arena when she addresses the convention Monday night, campaign chairman Paul Manafort told reporters.

The couple are expected to arrive in Cleveland around 5pm today. 

Trump will address the convention again on Thursday night, after accepting the party's nomination for president. 

Manafort also doubled down on his assertion that Ohio Gov. John Kasich was "embarrassing his state" by not choosing to speak at the convention, and dismissed questions about the absence of Bush family members at the convention. 

"When the Bush family decides to participate in political process again, we hope they will join us," Manafort said. 

In their first joint interview as a ticket, Donald Trump gave his newly minted running mate a pass for his vote in favor of the Iraq war, but said that forgiveness did not extend to Hillary Clinton. 

In the "60 Minutes" interview on CBS, Trump was asked about Pence's support as a Congressman for the invasion of Iraq and his vote to authorize the war. "I don't care," Trump responded, adding, "it's a long time ago. And he voted that way and they were also misled."

Trump once again insisted he was "against the war in Iraq from the beginning," and maintained he was "one of the few that was right on Iraq."

"He's entitled to make a mistake every once in a while," Trump said of Pence's vote. But asked if Clinton was, he replied, "No. She’s not."

In their first joint interview as the presumptive GOP ticket, Donald Trump said that while he is comfortable calling Hillary Clinton a "liar" and a "crook," he isn't asking his vice presidential selection, Indiana Gov. Mike Pence, to do the same.

"We're different people, I understand that," Trump told CBS' Lesley Stahl. "I'll give you an example. Hillary Clinton is a liar. ... that was just proven."

"I call her 'Crooked Hillary,'" Trump said, adding of Pence, "I didn't ask him to do it, but I don't think he should do it because it's different for him."

Trump was responding to questions directed at Pence about an article he wrote in in 1991 for the conservative Indiana Policy Review Foundation in which he maintained that campaigns “ought to demonstrate the basic human decency of the candidate."

Asked in the CBS interview how that squares with Trump's campaign to date, Pence replied, "I think this is a good man who's been talking about the issues the American people care about."

Pence continued, "in the essay that I wrote a long time ago, I said campaigns oughta be about something more important than just one candidate's election. And this campaign and Donald Trump's candidacy has been about the issues the American people care about."

As the GOP tries to get their nominee to become the 45th president of the United States, it seems they're going to have a little help from the nation's first president — at least according to the Republican National Convention mobile app.

George Washington is listed in the app as the sole speaker at the convention, and he's apparently scheduled to make his posthumous appearance when the convention kicks off Monday in Cleveland.

A short bio and a picture of Washington appeared below his name in the app. What didn't show up as of Saturday afternoon were speakers for Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.

RNC convention officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment from NBC News about the convention headliner.

In reality, Speaker of the House Paul Ryan, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, RNC Chairman Reince Priebus, many members of the Trump family and dozens of others are on the lineup, according to the convention website. 

According to the app's description, it will feature a map of the venue and surrounding area, livestreams of speeches and an interactive schedule of events, which was still empty Saturday.

The GOP convention website, however, claims it has created the best app for any convention.

"Neither political party has launched an app as technologically advanced for their respective national conventions," the site says.

COLUMBUS, Ohio — While Republicans gather in Cleveland on Sunday night before the start of the Republican National Convention, Ohio Republican Gov. John Kasich will be a few hours away, speaking at the NAACP’s annual convention in Cincinnati, his staff tells NBC News.

The announcement comes days after Kasich’s former rival and presumptive GOP nominee Donald Trump’s staff confirmed that the real estate mogul would not be attending. The NAACP generally invites presidential nominees from both parties to speak at their convention. Presumptive Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton will address attendees on Monday. Kasich, who suspended his presidential campaign on May 4th, will travel to Cleveland afterward and stay in the city until Thursday, but never plans to set foot inside the convention arena.

The NAACP’s convention this year falls as the nation stands in mourning after the deaths of Alton Sterling, Philando Castile, and five police officers in Dallas. Over the course his presidential campaign, Kasich put a big focus on his work in Ohio related to police-community relations and criminal justice issues.

The latest effort to thwart Donald Trump at the Republican National Convention failed tonight when delegates easily voted down the conscience clause proposal on a voice vote.

Other anti-Trump attempts, like unbinding delegates, also failed during the late night session of the Rules Committee, which is meeting before next week's convention.

The conscience clause vote was not even close enough to even require a "standing vote," where delegates stand up for a more precise count. That was a decisive defeat.

While some grumbled about the delays during Thursday's meeting, RNC leadership appeared to deftly manage potential challenges posed by the Never Trump crowd, as well as by former Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli's primary reform/pro-Cruz effort.

The whip operation ran effectively on substantive and procedural votes throughout this long day. 

The committee goal is still to finish everything tonight. 

Procedurally, any losing vote can still attempt what's known as a "minority report" at the end of the session with a quarter of delegates (28). So the official end of the conscience clause effort would be formalized when they fail to reach 28. From all appearances when losing the vote tonight, though, it would not appear they have the 28 votes for a minority report, which is required to bring the issue to the convention floor.

Brad Gold and Leigh Ann Caldwell contributed reporting. Read more on defeat here. 

With mere days until the convention kicks off in Cleveland next week, we still don’t know who will speak at the Republican National Convention.

Presumptive nominee Donald Trump first promised a list of confirmed speakers two weeks ago. In response to media reports of the many Republican officials who would not be attending, he noted at the time that the roster was “totally filled" and said he’d release it last Wednesday. When Wednesday rolled around, Trump said he’d delay its release one day in order to spend more time talking about rival Hillary Clinton — something he struggled to do — and then didn’t release it last week at all.

On Tuesday, a senior aide told NBC News the list would be released on Tuesday. By press time at 6 p.m. EDT, it had not yet been released.

While we know that the Trump kids will be taking center stage at the four-day convention, we in fact know more about who won’t be speaking than who will.

A Republican lobbyist who said he was mistreated by Donald Trump and his aides is hoping to raise more than $1 million to support the effort to oust Trump at the Republican National Convention.

Jack Burkman, the founder of lobbying firm JM Burkman & Associates, is hosting a $1,000-a-head fundraiser at his home Friday night with the aim of raising $1-$1.2 million to support Free the Delegates, the grassroots group working to orchestrate a convention coup. Burkman intially supported Jeb Bush in the primary and in fact ran a full-page ad in the Los Angeles Daily News calling Trump a "joke" last September, but reluctantly came around to the candidate after it was clear he would be the nominee, and tried to host a fundraiser for him.

But Trump, Burkman said, refused the offer because "he couldn't control" the fundraiser, which he planned to hold at his Arlington home. Both Trump and his attorneys sent what Burkman called "nasty" letters threatening to sue him for using images that were too close to the campaign's branding, a charge Burkman dismissed.

Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, who was Donald Trump's chief rival during the tumultuous Republican presidential primary, said today that Trump has asked him to speak at the Republican convention and that he would be "happy" to do so.

After Cruz emerged from a one-on-one meeting with Trump in Washington, D.C., his office issued a statement saying, "Sen. Cruz and Donald Trump had a good meeting this morning. There was no discussion of any endorsement. Mr. Trump asked Sen. Cruz to speak at the Republican convention, and Sen. Cruz said he would be happy to do so."

A spokesman for Cruz on Wednesday denied that negotiations were underway for Cruz to speak.

Iowa Sen. Joni Ernst will have a prime-time speaking slot at the Republican National Convention where she will address national security, NBC News confirms.

Ernst is believed to be under consideration to be Donald Trump's vice presidential running mate, and the high-profile speach could help Trump soften his image among female voters. She also hails from an important battleground state.

However, Ernst told Politico that she used a recent meeting with Trump to inform him she is "focused on Iowa" and suggested Indiana Gov. Mike Pence would be a good VP pick.

Donald Trump is continuing to expand his swing-state operation with the naming of state directors in two key states: Pennsylvania and Colorado, where he's naming a handful of current advisers to more formalized roles within the campaign.

In Pennsylvania, NBC News confirms that Trump hired David Urban as senior adviser for Pennsylvania and Ted Christian as state director, as first reported by the Philadelphia Enquirer.

Urban is currently in Cleveland working on the Trump campaign's convention team as the deputy director of caucus operations, which entails acting as a liaison between the campaign and Republican National Committee staffers and delegate outreach. He'll return to Pennsylvania following the convention to work on state strategy, helping the campaign figure out how to win a swing state that would be key to his election hopes.

Another strategist heavily involved in Trump's delegate operation has been named state director in Colorado: Patrick Davis, a longtime GOP operative with experience at the state and national level.

Trump suffered a delegate blowout at the hands of Ted Cruz's better-organized grassroots operation there, and indeed a grassroots effort aimed at ousting Trump at the convention is led by a handful of Colorado delegates.