The Hill’s 12:30 Report

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The Hill’s 12:30 Report, on the ground in Cleveland: Band trolls Republicans — ‘I’m the motherf—king artist up here’ | Big day for Pence | Clinton close to VP choice | Trump’s Walk of Fame star gets a wall

Happy Wednesday from Cleveland! Filing from Facebook’s brunch, with a Bloody Mary bar staring at me, I’m Cate Martel, bringing you behind the scene at the Republican National Convention, with the events to watch and fun insider tidbits along the way (and where to find free to find free food and alcohol). 😉 Send comments, story ideas and upcoming events to cmartel@digital-stage.thehill.com, @CateMartel and on Facebook.

WHAT TO EXPECT TONIGHT: Via The Hill’s Ben Kamisar, VP pick Mike Pence‘s keynote is easily the most anticipated event of the night. Here’s what else to watch: http://bit.ly/29Tyxey

GOP’s young guns: Sens. Marco Rubio (Fla.) and Ted Cruz (Texas), and Gov. Scott Walker (Wis.) will speak.

Trump’s inner circle: Eric Trump, Newt Gingrich and his wife, Callista, will take the stage.

Theme: “Make America First Again”

Miss me?: Donald Trump could make another appearance.

YEP, THAT WAS DEFINITELY AWKWARD: Rock band Third Eye Blind used a concert at the Republican National Convention last night to play obscure songs and attack GOP positions on climate change and gay marriage, angering convention-goers. The crowd’s reaction: They all booed. Third Eye Blind’s reaction to that: Stephen Jenkins replied, “You can boo all you want but I’m the motherf—ing artist up here.” Watch: http://bit.ly/2ac6eZ1

TRUMP CAMP: CAN YOU, LIKE, NOT?: CNN anchor Chris Cuomo accused GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump‘s campaign manager of lying about Melania Trump’s convention speech this morning. Paul Manafort called on Cuomo to “move on” as he continued to deny accusations that Melania Trump’s speech Monday night copied portions ofMichelle Obama‘s speech in 2008. “But I can’t move on, because you keep lying about it so I can’t move on from it,” Cuomo responded. “Because I have to talk about what is true.” http://bit.ly/29TYleg

TRUMP REACTION: Trump later tweeted, “Good news is Melania’s speech got more publicity than any in the history of politics especially if you believe that all press is good press! … The media is spending more time doing a forensic analysis of Melania’s speech than the FBI spent on Hillary’s emails.”http://bit.ly/2aupdxu 

THAT TIME JESSE BYRNES WENT KAYAKING WITH ROB PORTMAN: Yes, that happened. Jesse Byrnes of The Hill kayaked with Sen. Rob Portman (R-Ohio) on the Cuyahoga River in Cleveland. Why it’s interesting (other than the obvious): Like most of the vulnerable Republican senators, Portman has held multiple events this week on the sidelines of the convention, but has insisted he’s not attempting to avoid Donald Trump in his home state. And fun fact: Portman used American flag paddles. http://bit.ly/29TlI7N

{mosads}NEWS TO WATCH — CLINTON’S VP PICK: Via Amy Chozick of The New York Times, Hillary Clinton is widely expected to unveil her running mate Saturday at a rally in Miami. Shortlist down to two: Chozick is reporting that Team Clinton’s shortlist includes Sen. Tim Kaine (Va.), who serves on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and retired Adm. James Stavridis, former supreme allied commander at NATO and current dean at the Fletcher School at Tufts University. Common thread: National security experience. http://nyti.ms/29UK0sO

BUT WAIT: The Washington Post’s Anne Gearan and Abby Phillip are reporting that Kaine and Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack are the finalists. Cue chatter on the common name in both reports… http://wapo.st/29V0bpY

I WONDER WHAT THE CONSTRUCTION PROCESS ENTAILED: Via Univision, a wall has emerged around Donald Trump’s Walk of Fame Star. Well. Played. The photo is worth checking out for a quick laugh: http://bit.ly/29Tyxey

ANNOUNCED THIS MORNING – BURR TO RETIRE AFTER ONE MORE TERM: Sen. Richard Burr (R-N.C.) is pledging to make his next term in the Senate his last if he wins reelection in November. http://bit.ly/2a93PPb 

 

SPOTTED AROUND TOWN:

—- Facebook hosted a “Make Brunch Great Again” event where guests created custom Bloody Marys, mimosas and ate donut kabobs and chicken and waffles. Spotted: Ben Carson, Newt Gingrich, NPR’s Robert Siegel, CNN’s Samantha Barry, IJ Review’s Alex Skatell, the National Republican Senatorial Committee’s Tim Cameron, Fox News’s Jason Ehrich, The Daily Beast’s Gideon Resnick, Newsweek’s Emily Cadei, NBC News’s Tom Brokaw, and Ozy’s Carlos Watson.

Photo of Carson taking over his own Oval Office: http://bit.ly/2aun9FI

—- Former Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour, at Union Pub, attending an event with law and lobby firm Dentons. Former Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.) even gave Barbour a shout-out during his remarks.

—- Actor Billy Baldwin, on Euclid Avenue (the main drag outside of the convention), marching with some protesters. Baldwin says he supports police and Black Lives Matter. Photo: http://bit.ly/29TbksR

—- Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) addressed the New Hampshire delegation’s breakfast yesterday. But she wouldn’t answer reporters’ questions because she’s “got a head cold.” http://bit.ly/2afZf4g

—- BuzzFeed hosted a “Red, White and Blacklisted” late-night party at the Azure rooftop lounge. Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani showed up with quite the entourage towards the end of the party. Security quickly ushered him to the VIP lounge, where he smoked a cigar and drank Macallan neat. Also spotted: MSNBC’s Chris Hayes; Alex Conant, former communications director for Sen. Marco Rubio’s (R-Fla.) presidential campaign and partner at Firehouse Strategies, with his wife, Caitlin Conant, who is CBS News’s Washington communications director; Yahoo anchor Katie Couric; Chris Soules of “The Bachelor”; and Liz Meriwether of “New Girl.”

OH AND: A fight happened when BuzzFeed’s John Stanton asked former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani a question and there was a misunderstanding with hotel security staff. Oops. Full story: http://politi.co/29VuWOa

 

NOTABLE TWEETS:

The Hill’s Peter Sullivan
A protester in this park has a “Trump hut” — “A luxury protesting hut in the shape of Donald Trump’s hair” http://bit.ly/2a9vLCd

The Huffington Post’s Sam Levine (Photos on the convention floor)
Bob Dole, only one of last 5 GOP nominees here is holding court http://bit.ly/2a8MHcx [and] Ivanka Trump has joined Eric Trump http://bit.ly/29VjbHE

 

EVENTS ON TAP IN CLEVELAND:

3:30 p.m. EDT: The Hill’s Bob Cusack is hosting a “Pints and Politics” event with D.C. political veteran Ron Bonjean and others at The Hill’s Hub at Hodge’s Restaurant. Yes, free beer!

4 p.m. EDT: Ohio Gov. John Kasich speaks to the New Hampshire delegation.

5 p.m. EDT: House chief deputy whip Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.)speaks at a Morning Consult happy hour. Deetz: http://bit.ly/29Y6mxk

7 – 11 p.m. EDT: Convention speakers tonight includeFlorida Attorney General Pam Bondi, who had a spat with CNN’s Anderson Cooper live on TV after the Orlando attacks,Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, FloridaSen. Marco Rubio, who will deliver a video address,TexasSen. Ted Cruz, Eric Trump, Newt and Callista Gingrich, andTrump’s running mate, Indiana Gov. Mike Pence.

10 p.m. EDT: The Creative Coalition is hosting a benefit gala featuring country singer Martina McBride. Info: http://bit.ly/2adWQqC

10 p.m. EDT: The Washington Post and BuzzFeed are hosting a post-game party at The Butcher and The Brewer in Cleveland.

8:30 a.m. EDT tomorrow: Chief strategist of John Kasich’s presidential campaign John Weaver speaks at an event with The Atlantic.

10 a.m. EDT tomorrow: Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson (R) speaks at an event for The Hill.

 

WHAT TO WATCH:

11 p.m. EDT tonight and tomorrow: HBO’s “Real Time with Bill Maher” is airing a special installment from the Republican National Convention. http://bit.ly/29DJlyO

 

NOW FOR THE FUN STUFF…:

Today is National Ice Cream Sundae Day, National Lollipop Day and National Fortune Cookie Day!

START WORKING ON A SPELL, DON: Via Time, a new study shows that readers of Harry Potter are more likely to dislike Donald Trump. http://ti.me/2ac8PT4

And with that, here are 19 dogs that, it’s safe to say, are living life correctly. http://bzfd.it/2a0mM7x

 

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