Colbert and FiveThirtyEight return to recap the second night of the Republican National Convention

I told my readers to "stay tuned" at the end of Stephen Colbert and FiveThirtyEight recap the first night of the Republican National Convention because "if my readers enjoy this enough and I don't either get bored of it or find a shinier object, I'll repeat this kind of coverage throughout the week." So far, yesterday's entry has nearly 600 page views, placing it fourth so far for the month. Since my readers are enjoying it, I'm continuing, beginning with Melania Trump Headlines RNC Night 2 - Stephen Colbert's LIVE Monologue.

Stephen Colbert watched every minute of Night 2 of the Republican National Convention, an event he says resembled a racist spelling bee, so he could bring you this LIVE monologue breaking down the First Lady's address from the Rose Garden and the speeches by Eric Trump, Mike Pompeo and Rand Paul.

Trump's pardon from the White House, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's speech from Jerusalem, and First Lady Melania Trump's address from the Rose Garden are all examples of campaigning on the job, which would be a violation of the Hatch Act for Pompeo, at least, if not Mr. and Mrs. Trump. FiveThirtyEight's panel has more to say about that over the jump.

Before I leave Colbert, I am sharing two animated clips about the first night of the convention. First, The Trump Family Sings The ABCs Of The RNC.



With a family like this in charge, who needs facts?
Or a platform, for that matter.*

Speaking of Kimberly Guilfoyle, Tooning Out The News created Kimberly Guilfoyle is crowned Miss Fascism 2020.

After screaming her speech at the Republican National Convention, Kimberly Guilfoyle is crowned Miss Fascism 2020.

Yes, folks, it can happen here.

Enough of the silly takes on the second night of the convention. Follow over the jump for a serious examination from FiveThirtyEight.

The FiveThirtyEight Politics Podcast last night summed up the evening as RNC Night 2: Cognitive Dissonance. Sorry, no funny cold open this time, probably because Clare Malone, Nate Silver, and Micah Cohen were all missing. Those three nearly always manage to do something hilarious.

The crew reacts to the second night of the 2020 Republican National Convention.

As I mentioned above, the panel had a lot to say about the Hatch Act violations during last night, particularly the naturalization ceremony involving Chad Wolf, the illegally installed acting Secretary of Homeland Security. Unfortunately, they also agreed that this will not be a significant line of attack by Democrats, as Trump's corruption has not sparked enough outrage to stick to him. Sigh.

For more, here are the mock headlines summarizing the evening from What Went Down On Night 2 Of The RNC.

• Amelia: On the Second Night of the RNC, The Hatch Act Gets Its 15 Minutes Of Fame
• Galen: The Prime-Time Hour Shows An Inclusive And Modulated GOP
• Julia: Monday Felt Like A Party Convention. Tonight Felt Like A Trump Show.
• Nathaniel: RNC Night 2 Flouts Federal Law While Hitting Same Themes As Night 1
• Shom: All Politics Is Personal. Tonight’s Convention Was About Trump As A Person (Sort Of).
• Meena: On Night 2, Republicans Attempt To Make The Case That The Trump Campaign Is Anti-Racist And Welcoming Of Women And Immigrants
• Matt: Republicans Try a More Positive Tone on Immigration, Race And Gender
• Kaleigh: Rare Appearance From FLOTUS … And Not Much Else
• Meredith: On Night 2, Republicans Talk Up Economic Progress in the U.S. (Until the Pandemic, But Don’t Blame Them For That.)
• Geoffrey: On Night 2, Republicans Continued To Promote The Party’s Diversity

Both the panel and the live blog were more positive about the First Lady's Rose Garden speech than Colbert. One comment in particular by Geoffrey Skelley on the live blog got my attention: "Melania Trump highlights an exhibit at the White House commemorating the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment, and how she’ll be so proud to vote for her husband this November." That reminds me that today is National Women’s Equality Day. Stay tuned for a brief post celebrating the 100th Anniversary of the passage of the 19th Amendment guaranteeing women the right to vote.

*In response to reading that the GOP would not vote on a new platform, I tweeted "I am reminded of Mussolini's remark: 'The democrats of Il Mondo want to know our programme? It is to break the bones of the democrats of Il Mondo. And the sooner the better.'"