Wednesday morning news: July 24, 2024

Party lining up behind Kamala » The Democratic presidential primary is over, again. Party leaders say Vice President Kamala Harris will be the nominee, replacing President Biden atop the ticket.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer declared on Tuesday:

SCHUMER: Last night, Vice President Harris secured a majority of delegates.

Joining him for the announcement was the top House Democrat, Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries.

The leaders wanted to make two things clear:

First, the party could not be more excited to have Kamala Harris as their nominee.

SCHUMER:  We are here today to throw our support behind Vice President Kamala Harris. I'm clapping. You don't have to.

JEFFRIES: And her candidacy has excited and energized the House Democratic Caucus, the Democratic party.

SCHUMER: And boy oh boy, are we enthusiastic!

And second, that Harris “earned” this nomination …

JEFFRIES:  … from the grassroots up and not the top down.

But one reporter noted that Democratic voters were never given a chance to weigh in, and there was no competition for the nomination after President Biden bowed out …

REPORTER: This is going to be selected by party delegates, insiders, essentially. How, what's your case to the American people and to the Democratic voters that this isn't a coronation?

SCHUMER:  The bottom line, it was a bottom up process. People just rallied right to her side. The enthusiasm in this big, diverse, representative party was amazing. You could, you could, it was palpable. You could cut it with a knife.

Biden speech today » President Biden has also thrown his support behind his vice president, vowing to hit the campaign trail on her behalf.

He said the name at the top of the ticket has changed, but the mission has not, and he will continue to work hard …

BIDEN: Both as the sitting president, getting legislation passed, as well as campaigning.

Tonight, the president will address the nation from the Oval Office to explain his decision to withdraw from the race after running and securing the party’s nomination.

He announced his decision over the weekend via social media without explanation.

Netanyahu address » Another world leader is planning a major address in Washington today. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will speak to a joint session of Congress.

He’s also meeting privately with President Biden this week. The prime minister says it will be an opportunity to discuss ….

NETANYAHU: How to advance in the critical months ahead … the goals that are important for both our countries, achieving the release of all our hostages, defeating Hamas …

And keeping Iran in check.

Netanyahu hopes to close a divide within the Democratic party in Washington over ongoing U.S. support for Israel amid the war in Gaza.

SOUND: [Shooting]

Secret Service director resigns » Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle announced her resignation 11 days after a would-be assassin nearly murdered former President Donald Trump at a Pennsylvania rally.

Cheatle’s announcement came just one day after she testified on Capitol Hill about the security failures at the Trump event.

House Speaker Mike Johnson:

JOHNSON: I'm happy to see that she has heeded the call of both Republicans and Democrats. Now we have to pick up the pieces. We have to rebuild the American people's faith and trust in the Secret Service as an agency.

Democratic Congressman Pete Aguilar agreed.

AGUILAR: I think members on both sides of the aisle, were, were shocked by the events and the assassination attempt, obviously. It's important that the Secret Service accept some responsibility.

Congress, the FBI, and the Homeland Security Department’s inspector general are all investigating the shooting which killed one person at the rally and critically wounded two others.

Delta » U.S. airline regulators are investigating Delta Airlines which is still struggling to restore operations several days after a faulty software update caused a computer systems meltdown that disrupted air travel around the world.

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg:

BUTTIGIEG:  Part of why we're opening this investigation is the scale of the problem. Over 6,000 flights have been canceled since Friday. And we estimate that more than half a million passengers have been impacted by this.

Officials say one of the aims of the investigation is “to ensure the airline is following the law and taking care of its passengers.”

I’m Kent Covington.

Straight ahead: Congressional support for Kamala Harris on Washington Wednesday. Plus, World Tour.

This is The World and Everything in It.

WORLD Radio transcripts are created on a rush deadline. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of WORLD Radio programming is the audio record.