and matthew dowd, looks like a normal convention. but this is no ordinary convention, no ordinary time. >> i don't think you can underestimate what's going on in the country, and with the republican party. we have immense social, cultural, and political and a billionaire is taking over a party and the establishment. >> and martha raddatz, it comes against the backdrop of so much turmoil around the world. and the theme tonight, make america safe again. >> people are scared. you look at nice, paris, and san bernardino. and donald trump is talking right to these fears. donald trump, they say, will make america safe. he says waterboarding, bomb isis. these are complex problems, he doesn't have detailed plans, but this is what he's saying. >> and david muir, one of the never trump trouble. >> some real tense moments to start the convention. there are still real divisions on full view. the never trump faction, the stop trump faction, they've been in existence since trump started to gain steam. trying to force a roll call vote on the rules,

matthew dowd, tomorrow night, eric trump as well.he big star tomorrow night, mike pence, vice presidential nominee. trump really hoping that he unifies the party as well. >> the last two nights are what ultimately drives in numbers. the vp nominee and thursday, the biggest speech of donald trump's life coming. you judge the convention, it's been well orchestrated tonight. but the next two nights will determine if it's a successful convention or not. >> last night got a little off the rails but there is optimism of some of the delegates. >> there is. on the floor tonight, as we started here, it was like a light switch went on. and donald trump is the nominee. and i said, what do you want to hear? and they said, we want to see who he wants in his cabinet. this is the nominee. he wants to have those things. sounds like chris christie is running for attorney general. >> they want him in the cabinet and the supreme court. one of them was the speaker of the house, paul ryan, he also spoke tonight. took a while for him to come around to end

as you said, matthew dowd, he's done this, this will be his tenth time. and he loves it. >> he's gotten very, very good at this. but as martha said, this is the first time he has to turn the stage over to somebody else in a big way, and it's his wife. >> the signs of "america" out there. i think there's a little jump there to the stage. >> thank you. >> he is ready to get started. >> thank you. >> hair so much whiter than when he accepted the nomination in 1992. >> thank you. thank you. thank you. thank you. thank you. in the spring of 1971, i met a girl. the first time i saw her, we were appropriately enough, in a class on political and civil rights. she had thick blond hair, big glasses. wore no makeup. and she exuded this sense of strength and self-possession that i found magnetic. after the class, i followed her out. intending to introduce myself. i got close enough to touch her back, but i couldn't do it. somehow i knew this would not be just another tap on the shoulder. that i might be starting something i couldn't stop. i saw her several more times

had a litany, matthew dowd, what kind of a man is he? much more blunt than michelle obama, much more traditional and direct. >> full frontal attack on donald trump. last week, former prosecutor chris christie prosecuted a case against hillary clinton, now former college professor elizabeth warren just graded the paper of donald trump. >> and terry moran, down on the floor, her we believe litany speaking directly to bernie sanders supporters and their issues. >> it has been completely raucous down here and this is ground zero. the california delegation, some of the most passionate sanders supporters. we hear some booing, some jeering. are you disrupting this convention or are you improving it, do you think? >> i think that we're making our views known. i'm a sanders delegate, we haven't even had an opportunity to vote for sanders yet here, nor has she been actually nominated yet. >> let me ask you, what's more important to you? the principles that you followed bernie sanders for, or defeating donald trump in november? what would you say?

matthew dowd, that raises the question, did she do what she needed to do tonight? >> well, we'll find out in the next week or so to see if there's a bump back to where she was before this. the other thing, george, i was struck, if you think about bill clinton's speech in 1992, this speech on policy was less bill and more bernie, when you look at the policies of this. >> that was so interesting. she reached out, jon karl, to the sanders supporters right at the top of the speech. there was a tactical reason for that. there were a l thes in the hall. but she reached out to disaffected republicans, that line about morning in america. and we were talking about trying to reach out to those working class voters who are so angry right now. >> explicitly in several places, reaching out to republicans, and that morning in america line, but also, praising john mccain as a hero who deserves our respect, praising mike pence and his service in the marines, and making this an argument that was not going at republicans in a certainly went after donald trump in a very sharp way, me

matthew dowd, that raises the question, did she do what she needed to do tonight? >> well, we'll find out in the next week or so to see if there's a bump back to where she was before this. the other thing, george, i was struck, if you think about bill clinton's speech in 1992, this speech on policy was less bill and more bernie, when you look at the policies of this. >> that was so interesting. she reached out, jon karl, to the sanders supporters right at the top of the speech. there was a tactical reason for that. there were a lot of from test or thes disaffected republicans, that line about morning in america. and we were talking about trying to reach out to those working class voters who are so angry right now. >> explicitly in several places, reaching out to republicans, and that morning in america line, but also, praising john mccain as a hero who deserves our respect, praising mike pence and his service in the marines, and making this an argument that was not going at republicans in a partisan way. trump in a very sharp way, meant to provoke him. but she didn

matthew dowd, that raises the question, did she do what she needed to do tonight? >> well, we'll find out in the next week or so to see if there's a bump back to where she was before this. the other thing, george, i was struck, if you think about bill clinton's speech in 1992, this speech on policy was less bill and more bernie, when you look at the policies of this. >> that was so interesting. she reached out, jon karl, to the sanders supporters right at the top of the speech. there was a tactical reason for that. there were a lot of from test or thes in the hall. but she reached out to disaffected republicans, that line about morning in america. and we were talking about trying to reach out to those working class voters who are so angry right now. >> explicitly in several places, reaching out to republicans, and that morning in america line, but also, praising john mccain as a hero who deserves our respect, praising mike pence and his service in the marines, and making this an argument that was not going at republicans in a partisan way. the policies were partisa

cruz out for her own safety. >> matthew dowd?e signs of the gop war have not healed in the ted cruz family and household. he reminds me of a veteran that lost his right leg, but still feels the pain in his foot. and he got up in front of the audience, who wanted unity, and i'm told even ted cruz supporters wanted that endorseme endorsement. >> we're waiting for a speech from mike pence, we're going to take another quick break. >> abc news live coverage of the republican national co >>> back now at the republican convention, speaker paul ryan introducing mike pence. let's listen. >> i've watched this man up close, i've seen what he's made up. this is a man of solid character. this is a man who sees public service as a calling, not a career. he has served honorably, with great dignity. this is a man that led the charge to ban earmarks in congress, and he won that fight. as governor of indiana, he passed the largest state income tax cut in history. he balanced his state's budget. this man is a reagan conservative through and through

and matthew dowd, we did see donald trump get a pretty solid bounce out of his convention. >> yes, if you look at the polls leading in and the polls out today, he's even or slightly ahead of hillary clinton, and i know they need to get a bounce out of this convention. it's going to depend on tonight and it's going to depend on hillary clinton's speech tomorrow night. these are the two things that are going to get her the bounce that she needs. >> david muir, the crowd is >> they are. they are riveted by essentially what is the resume of barack obama, as the president. this is his legacy right here in front of this crowd. and as you mentioned, hillary clinton hoping that his approval rating rubs off on her. as we listen to the campaign, the debates, the hard-fought debates with bernie sanders, hillary clinton said so many times that she did not believe that president obama was getting deserves, and she likely meant that, but we also knew at the time that she was hoping the progress and success he has had would rub off on her and she would also get credit for the time she shared with hi

let me bring this to you, matthew dowd. hasn't trusted people. >> big part of the problem is lack of transparency, and some attachment to bill clinton. i think she's in a very difficult political environment. i think they recognize that. majority of the country thinks we're on the wrong track and a majority of the country doesn't want the status quo. she has a difficult thing, which is a balance between optimism and a desire for hope that's in the country, and dissatisfaction and a desire for change. she has to find that balance. >> got to thread that martha, you spent a lot of time driving across the country in the last couple of weeks, as bill clinton is watching the monitor, this film right there. what are the voters telling you they wanted to hear from her? >> well, i think they wanted to hear something relatable about hillary clinton. they want to hear something that she hasn't said before or e moted about before. they want to see the real woman. and i'll tell you, george, i covered her as secretary of state, and durin

. >> matthew dowd, not many swing voter s left out there, but an appeal like that could work. >> younow, he was pursued and thought about a race for the presidency early on and he wanted to run, now he's obvious ly supporting hillary clinton. the only reason he's supporting hillary clinton out of fear at donald trump as commander in chief. >> all right, we're going to take one more break. president obama is next. we'll be right back. >>> abc news live coverage of the democratic national convention will return in a moment. ♪ is it a force of nature? or a sales event? the summer of audi sales event is here. get up to a $5,000 bonus on select audi models. try cool mint zantac. hey, need fast heartburn relief? it releases a cooling sensation in your mouth and throat. zantac works in as little as 30 minutes. nexium can take 24 hours. try cool mint zantac. no pill relieves heartburn faster. >>> back live in philadelphia, here again is george stephanopoulos. >> and we are back at the democratic convention, president obama just minutes away. cecilia vega down on the floor. the crowd watching

he's going to do everything that had can to make hillary clinton president of the united states, matthew dowd, that is speaking directly though that crowd they call the bernie or bust crowd. >> absolutely. he's fully on board, but the revolution continues, and he said, election days come and go, he still is the leader of a revolution. >> and david muir, down on the floor, did he turn the tide in this crowd? >> you know, i got to say, when he said that hillary clinton needs to be our next president of the united states, you heard cheers in this crowd, some booing, but far more cheers than we heard earlier in the day, and george, if anyone understands what it was like on that stage tonight, think of hillary clinton eight years ago who said, barack obama is my candidate, it's virtually what we just heard from bernie sanders, who said, hillary clinton will be a great president, i am proud to stand with her. >> and he will do what he can. we're going to take one more quick break, we'll be right back. covergirl has big... ...news for lashes! the numbers are in billions of lashes have been blasted!

looking ahead this week to the lineup, going forward, matthew dowd.aigns talk about their electoral map. do you understand when paul manafort talks about expanding. is battleground to a lot of these traditional democratic states. is it possible for them to scramble a coalition and play in places that republicans haven't played for the last 25 years? >> i think it's possible to scramble the strategy. they're in la-la land if they think they're going to carry connecticut. a lot of those other states. this will be fought, fundamentally, unfortunately, over about eight or nine states. it will be the same eight or nine states we fought this over in 2012, 2008, 2004, 2000. that's unfortunate. 90% of america is left out of the conversation. people in california, new york, texas. in the course of this. this map won't be fundamentally scrambled. what's going to be scrambled is a bit of the demographics. that will be slightly scrambled. >> a lot of young supporters. i spoke to a lot this week. they're just not inspired by secretary clinton. >> but they are insp

. >> we continue with matthew dowd, chief political analyst at abc news and steve mcmahan, political strategist. in a sense the weakening of political party? >> i think you're watching something significant that occurred in america in the last 150 years, i think we're headed towered that and headed towards a growth of something influence, new party, something new, change democratic party, change republican party but we're head thread. >> rose: multiple parties? >> multiple parties. >> if you think about the common strain of the donald trump-bernie sanders campaign they are basically exaibs of agriefment and an argument to middle class voters, you don't get what you're supposed to, you are working harder and making less. trade deals, donald trump says it's trade deals and immigration, but it's trade deals. can you conceivably have a working people's party not necessarily a socialist party but it's kind of we get what we deserve kind of thing. >> rose: how much is going to depend on the group of economic people who basically have income insecurity, who feel like the best in life has pa

so, matthew dowd, we're three days in now. mike pence, bringing the crowd to its feet as david said. ted cruz mak news. where is the republican party, what doe donald trump have to do tomorrow? >> he cleaned up the living room after cruz turned the furniture over. and i think he set donald trump up. i think if the polls are going to move and the krrace is goingo close, it's up to donald trump tomorrow night. >> martha raddatz? >> the voters on the fence, d donald trump needs to let them know he has the trust and temperament to be president. >> jon karl? >> that was about unifying republicans. >> cokie roberts? time for choosing. >> choosing has to make the closing argument tomorrow. his showmanship, coming in just as ted cruz was ending, with the audience really angry with him, and coming out for pence, we will have something to watch tomorrow. >> and we'll be right here tomorrow night at 10:00 p.m. eastern. that's all for now. a special edition of "nightline" is coming up. you can always find out the latest on abcnews.com. i'

matthew dowd, this is a fairly stable race even though in our polling it's tightened up a bit over the weeks. >> yeah, i think this race has stabilized a month ago within a very small range in this. and i think that's actually beneficial for hillary clinton because the range seems to be trading between even and plus or minus six or seven, which is very good news for her. we'll see in the aftermath of the convention, the course of this. the other big factor in this, how defined these two characters are and how defined the environment is. two-thirds of the environment think we're on the wrong track and want something new but donald trump's unfavorables are very high and her unfavorables are very high. this is a competition between an environment that wants change and an environment very reluctant to go with the change that donald trump is proposing. >> alex castellanos, we just heard reince priebus making the point. they think because there is a changed environment out there with the wrong track, if donald trump can sort of reassure people past that bar of acceptability, voters who want

so, matthew dowd, we're three days in now. mike pence, bringing the crowd to its feet as david said. ted cruz making a lot of the news. where is the republican party, what does donald trump have to do tomorrow? >> he cleaned up the living room after cruz turned the furniture over. and i think he set donald trump up. i think if the polls are going to move and the krrace is goingo close, it's up to donald trump tomorrow night. >> martha raddatz? >> the voters on the fence, d donald trump needs to let them know he has the trust and temperament to be president. >> jon karl? >> that was about unifying republicans. >> cokie roberts? time for choosing. >> choosing donald trump, who has to make the closing argument tomorrow. his showmanship, coming in just as ted cruz was ending, with the audience really angry with him, and coming out for pence, we will have something to watch tomorrow. >> and we'll be right here tomorrow night at 10:00 p.m. eastern. that's all for now. a special edition of "nightline" is coming up. you can always fin

and somehow bringing this nation together is really paramount on their minds, george. >> and, matthew dowd, we saw in martha's interview with general flynn yesterday, he said he was basically pro-choice. difficult for a republican vice presidential nominee especially this year, but donald trump is zeroing in on this decision now, biggest decision, as you said, of his campaign, the biggest one he has control of. other contenders, chris christie, mike pence, the governor of indiana. who would help him the most? >> well, i think this is a very important point in the time for donald trump. i mean, for two reasons this decision matters to him a lot. one, he needs to dominate the conversation again, george, in the course of this, and he's lost control somewhat of the conversation over the last month. it's important for that and, two, he needs somebody to be part of his tag team. he's been tag-teamed. he needs somebody to help him attack the other side and carry his message, and he's not had that since he's gotten the nomination or come close to getting the nomination. >> could get it in the next

. >> we continue with matthew dowd and steve mcmahon. >> i think you, you are watching something significant that occurred in america in the last 150 years. i think we are headed toward it and headed towards a growth of something new, new parties, something new, a changed, a changed democratic party, changed republican party but we are headed there. >> also this evening, jd. >> she needs to get her favorable rating up. it has at times been as high as the mid sixties, you will never get it back, there but i think that does suggest there is some give and i think the party has to put up a credible politics of hope against trump's politics of fear. and the key is credible, people who are hurting have to believe that what she wants to do will do something for them. >> and this from the democratic national convention. >> when she didn't win the nomination eight years ago, she didn't get angry or disillusioned. she -- hillary did not pack up and go home. because as a true public servant, hillary knows that this is so much bigger than her own desires and disappointments. so she proudly stepped up to

. ♪ charlie: we continue with matthew dowd. can -- mcmahon. bernie sanders in prime time.st: this was supposed to be -- charlie: we have organization and big problems. guest: can't wait to see a good real convention. charlie: is this a big deal or not? guest: to the extent that it dominates the coverage tomorrow. these things rise when the convention occurs. then they fall back into their natural state which i think you will see next week. she should get a bump out of this convention. charlie: depending on the polls. some said he is up to-three points. guest: which is pretty much the bounce you normally get. what happens is like a golf ball, it works its way through and the race returns to where its natural state is. statems like the natural 's 3-4 points in hillary's advantage. that is where it ought to be. thing, wes an amazing will go through two conventions, $200 million spent, and all of finishnfare, they still third. that is what we're going to have. charlie: not always. guest: the other thing about bernie sanders, this is what happens when you start a revolution. it

john: your old friend matthew dowd work with you on to bush campaigns.ot go out there and do this today? stand shoulder to shoulder with your running mate and announce that you are the team fighting terrorism? >> why not do it tomorrow? the criticism of trump is that he fires before he aims. in a situation like this, you want to step back, understand what is going on, not look like you are shooting too fast. way, a lot of people think he cares more about his vp pick than what going on in france. mark: at the time he made this decision, they did not know all the facts. they still don't know all the facts. but imagine if isis put out a videotape saying this is the first of several attacks. i don't care who he picked, it would have been overshadowed, and the pens news was already a day old. news was already a day old. >> it says something about the times we are living in. we are in a place where we think this kind of thing could happen any week at any time. positionbe clear, my was that for the last 24 hours, this is been uncontrolled. the trump wass making

and matthew dowd, it was so interesting to watch bill clinton watch his daughter, any father of a daughter knows that kind of emotion he was feeling focused so intently on every word. >> yeah, i was watching that and you could tell that he was having a hard time in her speech, keeping his emotions together in the course of that. a total unique position, president. >> one big speech, the biggest speech of this convention coming up. let's take a look at hillary clinton preparing for that speech. she was working with her policy director jake sullivan just moments ago. and this crowd, dark, there it is, working the final tweaks in the final moments. and we're going to be back with that big speech in just a minute. >>> here is a woman, making her first marks on the world. she promising an achiever, and yet -- it was an idea. a wild "what-if." so scientists went to work. they examined 87 different protein structures and worked for 12 long years. there were thousands of patient volunteers and the hope of millions. and so after it became a medicine, someone who couldn't be cured, this is the summe

. >>> let's get more on this from our political analyst matthew dowd and so, matthew, we know on theemocratic side joe biden won't be the vice presidential pick but the republican, that one appears imminent, donald trump said to be announcing this week and so much speculation especially about that indiana governor mike pence. what does he bring to the ticket? >> well, i think mike pence is well respected by many of the conservatives. i think mike pence pick would really seek and really do unite the party. i think the problem with a mike pence pick, it does nothing abt geography, indiana is supposed to be a state republicans win and it really doesn't do anything about demoghaddam gras if i, the groups donald trump is having trouble with by h background in the course of this. >> it doesn't appear that anybody on the list would do that for donald trump. >> i think donald trump is in a difficult position because i think the list is short, one, because -- it's also short because others made it short. also, george i was strucky one of the things donald trump said -- i mean donald trump in

. >>> let's get more on all this from our political analyst matthew dowd. lot to get to this morning. matt, let's begin with this veepstakes. pretty transparent process if you take donald trump at his word and he seems to be struggling between his head and his heart. indiana governor mike pence consensus pick of his advisers, it appears, would pacify some conservatives at the convention, solid, safe choice. newt gingrich, a lot more like donald trump, unconventional choice for sure. where do you think he goes? what difference will it make? >> well, george, you and i have watched this for a year. there's no telling where he goes and there's no telling even if it is these two, we think it's these two, but there's no telling. i thought actually -- i can't let go of newt gingrich's pirate reference. there's so many things i could say about "pirates of the caribbean," on "stranger tides." are they going to call their plane the black pearl? who's captain jack sparrow, who is barbosa, there's no telling in this whole process. my bet, my gut says he goes with mike

and matthew dowd, it's been an passed. as she comes out, big, big hug there. this is a relationship that was not formed easily, but look how grateful she is for that speech he gave tonight. tears in her eyes, as well. say i saying he's proud of her. the most the most optimistic campaign. he called the deeply pessimistic vision we saw in cleveland. the question is, is this year different? >> well, i mean, there's so many articles of faith in this election that have been broken in a in. and what normally happens is, the outsider is coupled with the optimism. 1992, bill clinton. 2008, barack hussein obama, 1980, ronald reagan, but this year, the outsider is pessimistic and the insider is trump again and again and again in that speech. a president has never done that. >> george, we have never seen an outgoing lame duck president give a speech anywhere near this, like this, he went at donald trump. he sees donald trump as not a political rival, but somebody who is dangerous. this is personal. this is a campaign that he is eager to be apart of and to fight. >> pierr

matthew dowd matthew dowd ad an.e, melania trump tonight, how important the trump family and getting his message across, donna? >> first of all, they know him and can talk about donald trump as a father, as a man, as, of course, as her husband, she gets to paint the portrait that we don't see. she gets to humanize him, tell us about some fun times with donald trump. i mean donald trump is this tall, big, you know, tough guy. but, you know, soften him up. speak to mlg, speak to america about the man she knows and fell in love with. >> matt, how much of this really plays with voters? the candidate's family. >> i think it's become very important. over the last 20 or 25 years who the first lady is and who the family has become a big part of the equation. it used to be they just voted on the candidate, just the one perch, now it's i'm going to make a decision with the family. laura bush and michelle obama it helped with. voters want to see the whole picture and what it's going to be like in the white house. >> the whole p

. >>> more on this from martha raddatz who joins us from dallas and our political analyst matthew dowd from san antonio. there speaking with voters and now heading across the country to cleveland. this issue, of course, top of mind for everyone. >> reporter: it truly is, george. really everyone we've talked to has talked not only about a racial divide but the political divide and because we're in dallas and we've been around here obviously, everybody is talking about how you bridge that divide. some of the voters i talked to say they really haven't made a decision yet. that they're listening to donald trump, they're listening to hillary clinton, but keeping their children safe and somehow bringing this nation together is really paramount on their mind, george. >> matthew dowd, we saw in martha's interview with general flynn, he said he was basically pro-choice. difficult for republican vice presidential nominee but donald trump is zeroing in on this decision now, biggest decision as you said of his campaign, the biggest one he has control of. other contenders, chris christie, mike penn

will talk about that and all the drama last night as well with our political team donna brazile, matthew dowd and jon karl. and, jon, that was a few hours before ted cruz came out, didn't endorse. you saw the anger on donald trump's face when he walked in to that hall last night. he knew exactly what he was doing. but this drama is n wanted last night. >> look, it completely overshadows a very strong speech and a unifying speech by mike pence. it overshadows a very strong speech by his son eric trump. but donald trump knew this would happen. ted cruz spoke to him on monday and told him he would not be endorsing him. they had the speech at least two hours before cruz took that stage. >> so, matt, is ted cruz an outlier or is the republican party that divided? >> well, to me this was political theater at its finest. almost shakes sparian in the course of it and i think differently. it's like julius caesar but donald trump turned it around and instead of et tu, brute, it was cry havoc and let slip the dogs of war. this is his party and ted cruz walked into his party and turned over the chairs. >

more on the law and politics with our chief legal analyst dan abrams and our political analyst matthew dowdnd let's begin with the law, dan, that standard that the fbi director said, no reasonable prosecutor would bring charges. he seems to be suggesting legally this wasn't a close call. >> so on the one hand i think for a long time the clinton supporters have been minimizing happened here and i think james comey made that quite clear in laying out a sort of moral indictment. >> scathing. >> of hillary clinton. she broke rules. she violated norms. but that is not necessarily criminal. and then he laid out at the end the criminal standard. we're talking about espionage law here. people are saying, well, gross negligence. that's the espionage act and basically what james comey is saying is you want to prosecute someone under this misdemeanor or this felony of the espionage act, you need a level of intentional willful conduct that simply didn't exist here. >> matthew dowd, politically this was tough stuff from james comey and seems to hit secretary clinton on three front, competence, protectin