Don’t worry if you’re not on the tour bus – here are my three things you can watch from your sofa as the hottest acts in the GOP hit the stage.
1)TRUMP AND THE TRASH-TALKERS – The presumptive nominee, Donald Trump, is promising an unprecedented political show as he officially accepts the crown. The list of speakers fits the bill: an astronaut, athletes and pretty much his whole family will take to the podium. Not speaking – the party’s two most recent nominees and its two living, former presidents. The official chorus is “Make America Great Again” but the power chords will be all about bashing Hillary Clinton. What to watch: Can the GOPers play it tough without sounding like Rage Against the Machine? (btw-lead singer of RATM? Not a Trump fan. At all.) 2)DROP THE MIKE – Yeah, I know it is mic, but in this case I mean Mike Pence … and Democrats are just aching to drop him. His introduction as Trump’s running mate was overshadowed by the turmoil overseas, but when the Indiana governor steps up for his solo at the convention the Dems are going to hit hard. Abortion rights, taxes, immigration; on all of them, they’ll pound his record like a drum. Sure, most polls show Trump trailing Clinton a bit but he’s still in serious striking range and the Dems want no chance of Pence propping up the numbers. 3)WHAT’S SO FUNNY ABOUT PEACE, LOVE AND UNDERSTANDING? – Depending on protestors and police the big story could be outside the convention. For months federal, state and local security teams have been preparing for potential unrest, and they’ve grown even busier in the wake of some anti-Trump uprisings. So you can expect to see a labyrinth of steel barriers, checkpoints, badges and lots of officers trying to keep any trouble a good distance from the festivities. Mind you, the fashion police probably can’t do anything to stop the ridiculous hats inside the hall… CNN’s Tom Foreman is going to both conventions. He may need therapy afterward.