You can listen to the Front on your smart speaker every morning to hear the latest episode. Just say play the news from The Australian. From the Australian, here's what's on the Front. I'm Christinamiot. It's Wednesday, July seventeenth. The International Monetary Fund isn't optimistic about Australia's growth prospects. It's downgraded the nation's economic outlook and its warned stubborn inflation could see households hit with further interest rate hikes in
the coming months. America will drag Australia into a new World war. That's the warning from Senator David hue Bridge. The Greens defense spokesperson, says his party will push to cut defense spending and shred the government's nuclear submarine scheme in hopes of keeping the country out of a new global conflict. That story from our exclusive series on the Greens is live right now at the Australian dot com
dot au. Donald J. Trump is officially the Republican Party's nominee for president, and he's named a risky running mate as his second in charge. Just days after an attempt was made on the former president's life at a rally in Pennsylvania. Trump has changed his tune, But how long will it last? That's today's episode.
Today, people look at me, at my job and my Ivy League credentials and assume that I'm some sort of genius that only a truly extraordinary person could have made it to where I am today.
That's the Ohio Senator jd Vance, reading an excerpt from his New York Times best selling book, He'll Billy Elegy.
With all due respect to those people, I think that theory is a load of bullshit.
Released in twenty sixteen, Hill Billy Elegy is a memoir about growing up poor in America's Appalachian Mountains.
I am not a senator, a governor, or a former Cabinet secretary.
That changed in early twenty twenty three when Jada Vance was sworn in as a senator in the one hundred and eighteenth United States Congress.
So I didn't write this book because I've accomplished something extraordinary. I wrote this book because I've achieved something quite ordinary, which doesn't happen to most kids who grew up like me.
On Tuesday, this happened. That announcement just made former President Donald Trump announcing he has chosen Ohio US Senator JD. Vance as is running me on his Truth social media platform just within the last hour. Here. Cameron Stewart is The Australian's chief international correspondent. He's in Wisconsin for the Republican National Convention where Jdvan was announced as Donald Trump's
running mate. Cam Many Australians will know JD. Evans the author, But tell me what do we know about Jedvance the politician.
Well, we don't know an enormous amount in the sense that he was only elected to the Senate in twenty twenty three, so it's only been a senator for eighteen months, so really not very long at all. But he has been very outspoken on issues. He's been very much a Trump ally, a Maga warrior if you like. He's taken quite hardline positions on abortion, choice, on border security, especially on Ukraine. He very much opposes US assistance for Ukraine.
He's quite an isolationist. He's very conservative on family of values and issues like that. He's very much a Trump acolyte if you like. He's not a different type of Republican, which is unusual because when you choose a running mate, you usually go for someone who's a bit different to make your whole ticket a bit of a broad church. Donald Trump hasn't done that in this case, and I think that's probably a fairly high risk decision that he's made.
Jade Vans and Donald Trump haven't always been on the same page.
Yes, you're right, certainly. In twenty sixteen, Jady Vance was very critical of Donald Trump. He said he would be Americus Hitler. He said he was no piod on society. He was very very critical. He said he was never Trumper, and it certainly didn't look like he was ever going to be a fan of Donald Trump. But about twenty eighteen, Vance started to soften his view, and then in twenty twenty he said, I'm wrong Trump, You've been a great president.
And then of course he wanted to get elected to the Senate and he apologized for his previous criticisms of Trump, and Trump came to the party, Trump backed him, and so it's been a journey for both men, I think. But I think that Vance has been so outspoken in the last couple of years in support of Trump. He really is one of his biggest and loudest allies, and so whatever, thanks there was betweenty two. I think he's long gone.
Last weekend, the presidential race was fundamentally altered when twenty year old Thomas Matthew Crooks opened fire on Donald Trump at a pre convention rally in Pennsylvania. In the day since, Donald Trump has restyled himself as America's great unifier. So what does that mean for Trump two point zero?
Well, all of America is looking at this question. I mean, it's a fascinating concept. Donald Trump has a genuine near death experience and within forty eight hours, so the Republicans, he says, calm down, we're going to be unifiers here. But Donald Trump's whole modus operandi as a politician has been an US and them idea. That's what he does.
He's very good at the politics of green events. And I just fight it hard to imagine that for the next three and a half months before the next election, that Donald Trump is not going to be Donald Trump that is going to be a kind of gentler, unifying soul. I just don't think that that is him, and I don't think he'll be able to keep doing that for very long. So my guess would be this is a very temporary thing. I think we will see Trump back to his loudest, roaring best soon.
And what does the addition of JD. Vance to this equation mean for the November election.
Vance is such a mega type of politician that he will appeal to Trump supporters, but he probably won't appeal hugely with those people who aren't Trump supporters. And what Trump chose not to do was choose, say Marco Rubio, one of the other contenders that would have appealed to the Hispanic vote, and as you say, Senator Tim Scott of South Carolina, which would have appealed to the African American vote, or even Nicki Hardey, which of course would
have appealed to women. So Trump is enormous confidence, if not hubris, in his decision. Here. He's basically saying, my party is the party of MAGA, this is my running mate. We will win regardless. But if Trump does not win in November, now he is certainly of a clear front run of the moment. But if he does not win in November, I think this decision will be looked at by many commentators as the reason why.
The Republican National Convention runs until Thursday with the focus on the economy on day one, and there will be a different theme every day for the convention.
Today's theme will be make America weleview once again.
Cam, there's still, as you said, a few days of the Republican National Convention to go. You were there, what was the vibe like and what are you expecting to see for the rest of the week.
The first night was such a piece of political theater. Trump was not on the schedule. He turned up on the screen with his WRIGHTI a bandage, and the rule was absolutely definitely it was like BMCG on Grand final Day.
Please welcome the next President of the United States, Donald J.
Trump.
I mean, it's really interesting how truly the Republican faithful adore him. It was just one of those things. He really didn't do anything. He said, walk in, smile, wave, and then walk out. But it was just really powerful political theater. And this is the sort of stuff that makes him really popular amongst his fans. And now what we're going to see for the rest of the convention is a series of really interesting speeches. Nikki Haley is
due to speak tomorrow night. Of course, she was the person that Trump vanquished for the primary it's interesting she's coming in to speak. I think that's a fascinating decision. It shows that the Republicans are trying to unify themselves. It's going to be an incredible week. And the interesting thing is that this has actually reduced to focus briefly
on Joe Biden. However, I think once this Republican convention finishes this week, we will switch straight back to the problems that Joe Biden has.
Coming up. What Donald Trump's big day means for the Democrats. Subscribers to The Australian are first to hear reporting and analysis from our correspondents in the United States. Join us at the Australian dot com dot au. It's a lot cheaper than running a presidential campaign. We'll be back after this break. A little over a month from now. On August nineteen, the Democrats will descend on Chicago for their
party's national convention. But where Donald Trump was basically a sure thing, who the Democrats will name as their nominee is less clear. Calls for the incumbent Joe Biden to step aside have mounted in recent weeks after a string of gaffes caused many to question in his fitness for the top job.
I've said before, Russia will not prevail this war, and now I want to hand it over to the President of Ukraine, who has as much courage as he has determination. Ladies and gentlemen, President putin President Prudent. You've got big President Prus, President Lenskin. I'm so focused on being putin. We gotta worry about it anyway. It's President.
I'm better.
You are a hell better. But there are also concerns about the ability of the current Vice president, Kamala Harris, to defeat Donald Trump in the November election. Here is Cameron Stewart.
Well, the great mystak of the Democratic You mention is who will be the nominee. Biden, of course, in theory, should be the nominee. But really, if the Democrats are going to make a change, and I think there is still a lot of pressure within the Democratic Party for Biden to step down, We're just not seeing it right now because of the Republican Convention this week, but I think that they will have to put that pressure on
before the Democratic invention. Whoever gets nominated at that convention, I think we'll tackle Donald Trump in November. So these are the crucial couple of weeks for the Democrats to make up their mind to sort it out. But I think the next few weeks could thribe any sort of situation. We really don't know. It's a fascinating time in American politics.
Cameron Stewart is the Australian's chief international correspondent. Come back to the front tomorrow to hear all the action from The Australian's Global Food Forum, happening today in Brisbane. And you can keep up to date with all the nation's best journalism anytime at the Australian dot com dot au