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DNC Day 1 schedule includes Biden speech. Here’s what else is on today’s agenda.
Washington — The Democratic National Convention kicks off Monday in Chicago, where the party is set to rally around its new presidential ticket after Vice President Kamala Harris officially became the Democratic nominee earlier this month.
Less than a month after President Biden announced he would step aside, shaking up the presidential race, Democrats from across the country are descending on Chicago’s United Center and McCormick Place for the convention, where the party will ceremonially anoint Harris — and her new running mate — as the party’s nominees.
The bulk of Democratic delegates voted to select Harris as the party’s nominee early this month, cementing her status atop the ticket during a virtual roll call vote ahead of the convention. DNC leaders then certified Harris as the nominee, along with her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz.
“Now the eyes of the world turn to Chicago, where our delegates will celebrate this historic ticket with a ceremonial roll call and tell the story of Vice President Harris, Governor Walz, and the Democratic Party as we prepare to defeat Donald Trump once again,” convention chair Minyon Moore said in a statement when the nominations were certified.
With the newly formed Democratic ticket, Harris and Walz are expected to continue their introduction to the party at the convention, with less than three months to go before the election. Along with speeches from big names in the party, Walz will officially accept the vice presidential nomination Wednesday night, and Harris will take the stage on the final night of the convention on Thursday to formally accept the presidential nomination.
Chris Sweda/Chicago Tribune/Tribune News Service via Getty Images
What’s on the agenda?
Each day of the convention features a theme related to the tagline, “For the People, For Our Future.” Monday’s theme is centered on the “For the People” element, where the party will outline how they argue Democrats have put the people first under the Biden-Harris administration while contrasting the record and the Harris-Walz ticket with former President Donald Trump’s record.
Mr. Biden’s time in office and decades in Washington are also expected to be featured prominently on Monday, as the party seeks to honor the president — and his decision to step aside — while celebrating its new standard bearer.
Convention programming will be held from 6:15 p.m. to 11 p.m. ET, or 5:15 p.m. to 10 p.m. CT on Monday. The ceremonial roll call vote is slated to begin on Tuesday, when delegates from around the country will come together to nominate Harris.
Who’s speaking?
While the official schedule has not yet been released, convention officials have confirmed a handful of speakers who are set to kick off the first day of the convention.
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson will address the convention Monday night, as will first lady Jill Biden and Mr. Biden, who will deliver the keynote address on the first night. A source familiar with the planning also told CBS News that former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, the party’s 2016 nominee, is also expected to speak on Monday night.
How to watch the 2024 DNC with cable
CBS television stations will have coverage beginning at 10 p.m. ET during the four days. Find your local CBS station here.
How to watch the 2024 DNC without cable
CBS News 24/7 will have coverage of the convention throughout the day and will stream each night’s keynote speeches, and can also be viewed on your mobile or streaming device. A livestream of the convention will be available on the DNC’s website, along with platforms like Instagram, YouTube and TikTok.
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Wisconsin school shooter was in contact with California man plotting his own attack, court documents say
The shooter who killed a student and teacher at a religious school in Wisconsin brought two guns to the school and was in contact with a man in California whom authorities say was planning to attack a government building, according to authorities and court documents that became public Wednesday.
Police were still investigating why the 15-year-old student at Abundant Life Christian School in Madison shot and killed a fellow student and teacher on Monday before shooting herself, Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes told the Associated Press Wednesday. Two other students who were shot remained in critical condition on Wednesday.
A Southern California judge issued a restraining order Tuesday under California’s gun red flag law against a 20-year-old Carlsbad man. The order requires the man to turn his guns and ammunition into police within 48 hours unless an officer asks for them sooner because he poses an immediate danger to himself and others.
Carlsbad is located just north of San Diego.
According to the order, the man told FBI agents that he had been messaging Natalie Rupnow, the Wisconsin shooter, about attacking a government building with a gun and explosives. The order doesn’t say what building he had targeted or when he planned to launch his attack. It also doesn’t detail his interactions with Rupnow except to state that the man was plotting a mass shooting with her.
CBS’ San Diego affiliate KFMB-TV reported that law enforcement searched the man’s home Tuesday night after the order was signed by the judge.
Police, with the assistance of the FBI, were scouring online records and other resources and speaking with the shooter’s parents and classmates in an attempt to determine a motive for the shooting, Barnes told the AP.
Police don’t know if anyone was targeted in the attack or if the attack had been planned in advance, the chief said. Police said the shooting occurred in a classroom where a study hall was taking place involving students from several grades.
“I do not know if if she planned it that day or if she planned it a week prior,” Barnes said. “To me, bringing a gun to school to hurt people is planning. And so we don’t know what the premeditation is.”
On a Madison city website providing details about the shooting, police disclosed Wednesday that two guns were found at the school, but only one was used in the shooting. A law enforcement source previously told CBS News the weapon used appears to have been a 9 mm pistol.
Barnes told the AP that he did not know how the suspected shooter obtained the guns and he declined to say who purchased them, citing the ongoing investigation.
No decisions have been made about whether Rupnow’s parents might be charged in relation to the shooting, but they have been cooperating, Barnes told the AP.
Abundant Life is a nondenominational Christian school that offers prekindergarten classes through high school. About 420 students attend the institution.
The Dan County Medical Examiner’s Office identified the two people killed Wednesday as 42-year-old Erin West and 14-year-old Rubi Vergara.
An online obituary on a local funeral site stated Vergara was a freshman who leaves behind her parents, one brother, and a large extended family. It described her as “an avid reader” who “loved art, singing and playing keyboard in the family worship band.”
West’s exact position with the school was unclear.
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