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is provided by... woman: a law partner rediscovers her grandmother's artistry and creates a trust to keep the craft alive. a raymond james financial advisor gets to know you, your passions and the way you enrich your community. life well planned. announcer: funding was also provided by, the freeman foundation. and by judy and peter blum kovler foundation, pursuing solutions for america's neglected needs. announcer: and now, "bbc news" >> i'm in milwaukee and this is bbc world news america. donald trump prepares to take the stage at the republican national convention, giving his first major speech since the attempt on his life. growing pressure for the biden campaign after barack obama

reportedly expresses concern about the president's path to reelection. ♪ a very warm welcome to bbc world news america broadcasting from the republican national convention in milwaukee, wisconsin. we are building up to thursday night's main event when donald trump will take the stage to formally accept his party's nomination for president. he will deliver the televised address five days after surviving and assassination attempt at his pennsylvania campaign rally. there is speculation about how that moment will shape what he says and how he says it. reviewing his remarks, his daughter-in-law, who the former president hand-picked to cochair the committee, said the president will -- former president will soft in his town. >> you may see a little bit of a

different version of donald trump tonight, perhaps a softer version than some of the people at home have seen in the past. and maybe that allows them to open themselves up to what he is saying. if you look at the policies donald trump had his first four years in the white house and the things he will talk about tonight that he wants to do in the future, they are positive impacts for everyone. making a strong on the world stage, putting money in your pocket, and making sure that your life is better. they know they had a person that did it when donald trump was in office. you didn't have to love everything he tweeted, but you cannot deny that your life was better with him in the white house and he has to remind people of that. >> down on the convention floor for us. anticipation building. give us a sense of how things are right now. >> yes, all around me, the

finishing touches are underway for that main event of course. you can see behind me the family vip box. people noticing that he was a bit more subdued. we expect more members of the trump family to be here later. melania trump we are told will be in attendance along with ivanka trump who played such a big role during donald trump's first role in the white house. his youngest son fair and will not be here. we have been seeing all day artists like kid rock performing. we are told this will be an event almost like wrestlemania. after his speech, you can already see the balloons up there getting ready to be released.

that is the moment after donald trump will officially accept the nomination as the party's presidential nominee and his family will join him on stage. everyone is just waiting for the show to begin. sumi: we heard from lara trump previewing his speech, but what can you tell us about what we know about the town. nada: we already heard that donald trump ripped up his previous speech, a real humdinger attacking president biden. instead, he says he wants to focus on unifying the country. it is all about now talking about a very personal point of view. he said this doesn't want this to be the tone of one of his rallies.

that is an image we have seen the campaign trying to project. a more toned down approach to donald trump. he is one of the most notorious politicians for being aggressive and not holding back. a key question going forward is how will this set the tone for the campaign. if he is trying to soften his image for the very few undecided voters, if he will be able to maintain that through one of the roughest part of the campaign period, the months leading up to november. we have to remember there will be key policy differences donald trump will also touch on in his speech. his speech is not going to evolve radically overnight. voters will still have two very different platforms from the parties to look at. sumi: yes, good point. thank you so much.

looking forward to talking to you later in the evening. with us now is ohio congressman mike turner, the chairman of the house intelligence committee. great to have you with us. >> you have a great spot. sumi: we certainly do. what are you anticipating and president trump's speech? rep. turner: donald trump is in a unique position because he is running for president. he is nothing incumbent, but he has been president so he not only has an ability to layout what he will do to reverse the damaging policies of the biden administration and the heightened security problem we have around the world as a result of to major in from this white house. he can cite what his record was before. he can show the problems of the biden administration, but they were reversed donald trump's policy to make those bad outcomes happen.

sumi: let's talk about some of those policies. let's start with ukraine. we have been reporting about how many u.s. allies, especially in europe, are concerned about the prospect of a trump administration and when it comes to support for ukraine. do you know what donald trump's plan would be to end the war in ukraine in 24 hours? are you confident there is such a plan? rep. turner: i'm confident in his strength to end the war. j.d. vance is policies are not going to be donald trump's policies. donald trump was the first to give lethal weapons to ukraine. sumi: you don't think j.d. vance will have influence? rep. turner: the decider is donald trump. he gave lethal weapons to ukraine the last time that the obama administration refused to get them. they used to those to defend

themselves when the russian invasion began. sumi: j.d. vance is not the only one who says it is a war of attrition that ukraine cannot win. do you agree with that? rep. turner: what i agree with with what donald trump has said is that the war needs to end. in the sense that the war can be ended in the way that ukraine benefits and decides their destiny and people stopped dying in ukraine, that is the outcome everybody wants. we have heard from president zelenskyy that it can't just be pressure get to donbas and crimea. they had it before and started this war. it is going to be one of the top issues for the president. sumi: he has also said china is perhaps the most important threat the u.s. faces. he suggested taiwan should pay for u.s. protection. do you agree with that? rep. turner: that is a common theme with donald trump. you haven't seen him in policies implement that, but he certainly did as being the negotiator he is put pressure on those

receiving defense support from the united states. sumi: so it is a negotiating tactic. rep. turner: we have seen that it works. you had it in nato. very few countries were paying their 2% and i one overwhelming number due to donald trump saying we are not a security guarantee, we are a military alliance and you need to pay your share. sumi: i want to ask you of course, you are a herrman a -- chairman of the house intelligence committee. the investigations into what happened at the rally are ongoing. you have said this was a security failure. to this point, do you understand what happened, what went wrong? rep. turner: clearly i think the head of secret service has got to go. she doesn't resign, president biden should fire her. the organization is in crisis and are unable to protect donald trump and president biden. what we heard yesterday in the senate briefing and the congressional briefing from the secret service, from their own timeline to us, they acknowledge

that just less than 10 minutes before donald trump took the stage, they knew that there was a threat and they allowed him to go on the stage and then after donald trump was shot, only then did they give the order to take out the shooter. those bookends of their own timeframe raise an unbelievable number of questions about protocols in addition to the perimeter, the manner in which it was controlled, what officers were doing. but those two timeline issues are really concerning. sumi: we still have a few months of election campaign to go. are you concerned about the prospect of further political violence? rep. turner: i'm very concerned that the secret service needs to up its game. director ray was included in the call and i asked him to assist the secret service. their capability is, how they are looking at a site. i certainly hope that happens because it needs to be done right away.

sumi: chairman turner, always great to have you. rep. turner: thanks so much. sumi: there are still plenty of unanswered questions surrounding saturday's assassination attempt on donald trump, but we are learning more about the 20-year-old gunman. he visited the rally location twice before the shooting, cbs reports, and 20 minutes before the attack, secret service members spotted him on the roof of a building. more than 200 interviews have been conducted and 14,000 images have been reviewed, that is according to the fbi's director. the motive is still unknown. the secret service has faced scrutiny over its handling of the security at the rally and we are now learning that the agency's, director as we were just discussing, she met with mr. trump for a private, in person briefing tuesday. she is expected to testify before the house oversight committee. meanwhile, a memorial service is being held in pennsylvania for the man killed in saturday's

rally. a former fire chief spent his final moments shielding his family from gunfire. our correspondent is outside of the memorial site. thank you so much for joining us. take us through what has been going on today. >> there has been a somber mood in the town of freeport. flags are flying at half mast. in the building behind me, hundreds of people have been queuing to pay their respects. he was 50 years old, he was a father of two daughters. he has been described as a quintessential family man. a man of deep faith and a devout republican. jumping to shield them from the shooter. we have been speaking to people who have come here today to pay their respects. one woman was a relative, she hadn't seen him for three years,

but they say it should never have happened. they have come here today to pay their respects. they said there was no room for political violence in modern america. we have also heard today, there have been reports that the former president trump has approached his widow to give his condolences and she told mr. trump that her husband was a hero. it is being reported that she rejected an approach by president biden and said that her husband would not have wanted her to speak to him as he was a staunch republican. in terms of the investigation, cbs news partners have been reporting that secret service were aware 10 minutes before mr. trump was on stage of a man acting suspiciously around the building around 100 meters from the stage.

they didn't stop mr. trump from going on the stage because the information they had was that he didn't have any weapons and he wasn't making any threats. pressure is building on the director of the secret services. she did have a private briefing with mr. trump tuesday during the convention at milwaukee at his hotel. monday, she is due to appear before the house oversight committee to answer questions and on tuesday, she is also due to testify to the homeland security committee. sumi: all right. jenny, thank you so much for that update. now, former u.s. president barack obama has become the most high-profile democrat to cast doubt on joe biden's prospects for reelection according to the washington post.

he reportedly told allies he believes the president's path to victory has greatly diminished and mr. biden needs to seriously the -- consider the viability of his candidacy. marilyn congressman jamie raskin urged him to rethink his campaign, saying the judgment you must make is not only a judgment about how you feel, but a public political one about how others feel because in the end, the people will decide the fate of this election and of our democracy itself. president biden continues to isolate at his home in delaware following his covid diagnosis. thursday, the white house said he is still being briefed on national security measures and experiencing mild symptoms. before suspending his campaign events after testing positive, he finished taping an interview on univision. >> i wasn't ready and i performed terribly. people are now saying, that was only one thing.

but he is 81 years old, what happens at 84 years old? what happens when he is 85 years old? i was smart enough to know that with age comes wisdom. i know the difference between what has to be done. sumi: our north america editor has more. >> looking frail and unsteady. it is almost painful to watch and making his way home to isolation. he has had to pause is campaigning due to catching covid days after watching donald trump get shot and walk it off. earlier, he told black entertainment television in what circumstances he would step aside. >> if there is a medical condition that emerges, something doctors said, you have this problem, that problem. >> the president of the united states. >> nancy pelosi is a party legend and a close ally.

she has told him he cannot be donald trump and he listens to her. democrats are panicking. he won't just lose the white house but also the house and senate too. he called into the morning show tv show last week to say he is not standing aside. today, the presenter had a message aimed at his closest advisors. >> it is really incumbent on people around joe biden to step up at this point and help the president. and help the man they love. and do the right thing. >> no wonder the mood is so joyful at the republican convention in milwaukee. they seem positively blessed by good news. and at a fringe event, they heard from donald trump for the first time since he was shot. >> it is a close call. >> we love you. >> in many ways, it changes your

attitude, your viewpoint on life. >>'s running mate, j.d. vance, got his moment in the spotlight. he might want to work on how he waves to avoid misunderstandings. he talked about the america he says he wants to restore. >> a country where working-class boy born far from the halls of power can stand on this stage as the next vice president of the united states of america >> this could be a rare election where voters are paying attention to the vice presidential candidates. >> it was just a few days ago that donald trump was almost assassinated. that is an event that looms large. as speculation mounts about when joe biden might standdown, his vice president seems the most likely to take over as the democratic candidate. but it is not clear how the party would pick a new

presidential nominee. >> sarah smith reporting. new polling shows mr. trump has extended his lead over biden among voters. the former president is up five points nationally since early july and three points across the battleground states. that is according to the latest poll by cbs news, our news partners. we can talk about all of that with my panel. stephanie murphy and rodney davis. great to have you both back on. stephanie, we keep talking about the democrats and we looked at the polls even though we are at the republican national convention. what did you make from these comments by president obama to his allies that president obama den -- president biden should reconsider staying in the race. >> he is saying what a lot of democrats have been saying for quite some time. what is remarkable is that you are now seeing the media get

reports that these things are being said, which tells me we are moving into a different stage. i think a lot of the democratic party was quietly trying to bring their concerns to president biden in the campaign and give him a chance to exit with some grace. as the time runs shorter, they are feeling more pressure. the fact that these conversations are leaking in the media is part of a media strategy to continue to apply pressure on the white house. at the end of the day, there is no process. getting the president to step aside as the nominee. that has to come from within. >> how damaging do you think this is, to have only a few months and not know at the person if the top of the ticket will remain. >> as a republican, it is

exciting to see the democrats in such disarray. what is happening is the a pity me of what americans hate about politics. it is a back room deal. if they decide to push the sitting president of the united states out of being the candidate for reelection, is he really qualified to still remain as president? what will happen if that debate comes to the forefront? i would love to think about the democrats opening up their convention assess because i will bring popcorn to the studio every night and sit and watch the disasters. sumi: you better share with us. we heard from the trunk campaign or some reporting on the trump campaign that they are well prepared to take on joe biden. if the candidate changes, they would be scrambling a bit, what do you think of that? >> i think they can adapt to any candidate that the democrats might pick in a back room deal.

this is a campaign operation not known for being agile, not known for being reactive enough to keep everybody on message. this convention has really shown me that the trump campaign team are really adept at reading the room and the nation and that is why they are doing so well and that is why those polling numbers are moving in their favor. >> it has been a remarkable campaign they have run. >> the discipline over the last 3.5 days have been remarkable. two thirds of america did not want to see a rematch between trump and biden and for 10 years the parties have been putting up people the american people didn't want. clinton, trump, trump, biden, trump. i think the party that is able to respond to the american

people begging us for change. if the democratic party can offer that up, it really is a game changer. sumi: what are you expecting to see from donald trump tonight? >> i'm expecting the country to see a new donald trump, a more humble and contrite donald trump and one who can really show the american people that he has been affected by that near-death experience. sumi: stephanie, the same or some deviation? >> i think former president trump can't help himself especially with an adoring crowd to throw some red meat out there. but will he stay away from some of the stuff that turns off independent voters and swing state voters? that remains to be seen. i imagine that his team will pray that he is sticking to the script. sumi: indeed, it will be something to watch. always great to get your analysis, thanks so much.

let's get a quick look now at some other news from around the world. bangladesh's people are under complete phone and internet blackout as the government tries to subdue days of violent clashes between student groups and security forces. the violence began as protests after a court suspended asis -- quota system for jobs. the bbc's bengali service has confirmed that 19 people have been killed. 13 died thursday. a second hearing took place in the espionage trial of evan gershkovich. it was held behind closed doors where he was arrested earlier last year. the courses closing arguments, prosecutors allege he gathered secret information for the cia. the charges carry up to 20 years in prison. at least 16 people were killed

in southwestern china in a fire at a shopping mall. media reports that it began in a 14 story building wednesday evening. at least 75 people were pulled to safety. preliminary investigations have established the fire was probably caused by construction work. now, we will have much more from the republican convention throughout the night right here on the bbc and on our website, bbc.com/news. thank you so much for watching. ♪ announcer: funding for presentation of this program is provided by... financial services firm, raymond james. announcer: funding was also provided by, the freeman foundation. and by judy and peter blum kovler foundation, pursuing solutions for america's neglected needs. ♪ ♪

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amna: good evening. i'm amna nawaz. geoff: and i'm geoff bennett. on the “news hour” tonight, all eyes are on the republican national convention here in milwaukee, where former president donald trump is set to make his first public speech since the assassinatiote