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WASHINGTON (AP) — The Latest on the 2016 presidential campaign (all times local):
2:45 p.m.
Republican Donald Trump is blaming a “lack of leadership” for Sunday’s shooting of police officers in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
Trump says in a statement posted on his Twitter and Facebook pages that “We grieve for the officers killed in Baton Rouge today.”
Three officers are dead and three others wounded after the shooting less than 1 mile from local police headquarters.
Trump is placing the blame on a lack of leadership and demanding “law and order.”
He asks, “How many law enforcement and people have to die because of a lack of leadership in our country? We demand law and order.”
The violence comes less than a month after a pair of police shootings prompted the assassination of five police officers in Dallas.
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1:50 p.m.
Haley Barbour, former chair of the Republican National Committee, says that any GOP senators up for reelection this year should probably skip the annual convention to campaign in their home states.
The Trump campaign won’t say who will speak when at the GOP convention in Cleveland this week. But plenty of Republicans you might otherwise expect are skipping the show — including the GOP’s two living ex-presidents and its last three presidential nominees.
Barbour told CBS “Face the Nation” that Republicans should be supporting their nominee. But if they are up for reelection “they are much, much better off to take this week in their own states, for their own elections,” he said.
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11:00 a.m.
Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus says Donald Trump has “pivoted” from his proposed ban on Muslims coming into the United States.
Priebus tells CNN “there is no religious test on the table,” despite Trump’s statement in December calling for a temporary ban of foreign Muslims from entering the U.S. until elected leaders could figure out “what is going on.”
Priebus says Trump is calling for a temporary ban on immigration from countries that harbor and train terrorists until the U.S. has a better vetting system.
The proposed ban is an example of where Trump differs from his pick for vice president. Indiana Gov. Mike Pence immediately called Trump’s proposal in December unconstitutional.
Priebus says the selection of Pence shows Trump didn’t want to surround himself with “yes people.”
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10:43 a.m.
Cleveland Mayor Frank Johnson says there are no credible threats against the Republican National Convention, and that the city is prepared to handle anything that might occur.
Speaking on ABC’s “This Week,” Johnson says that includes the protests expected to begin as the convention opens Monday.
He says Cleveland is not a stranger to demonstrations and acknowledges that the city has taken out $50 million in protest insurance.
Cleveland Police Chief Calvin Williams says in a Sunday appearance on CBS’ “Face the Nation” that “everyone is coming to Cleveland to protest or exercise their First Amendment rights” throughout the convention, where Donald Trump presumably will be named his party’s presidential nominee.
Both Williams and Johnson acknowledged Ohio’s open-carry gun law and said that had been taken into account in preparations.
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10 a.m.
The chairman of the Republican Party says Donald Trump will bring a message of unity to this week’s convention, also working to attract women, young people and minorities into the party.
Speaking on “Fox News Sunday,” Reince Priebus discounted the notion that Trump’s selection of conservative Indiana Gov. Mike Pence might alienate demographic groups who in recent presidential elections have tended to vote Democrat.
Priebus described Trump and Pence as being “somewhere in the middle of each other” and says Trump plans an engagement tour soon to attract Latino voters.
Priebus says Trump understands the need to grow the party beyond white voters. He says as a whole, after Trump’s convention speech on Thursday, voters of different groups will understand why Trump should be president.
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9:25 a.m.
Reince Priebus, chairman of the Republican National Committee, says he expects Thursday night will be a turning point in Donald Trump’s bid for the presidency. Priebus says that’s when Trump will likely speak at the GOP convention, which starts Monday.
Priebus tells ABC’s “This Week” that Trump is already an intriguing figure to Americans. But Priebus says he believes Trump’s speech on Thursday will give them a chance to see his presidential side and erase any doubt about Trump’s ability to run the White House.
Priebus called Trump’s selection of Indiana Gov. Mike Pence as his running mate a “mature pick.” He also said he doesn’t expect GOP opponents of Trump will successfully disrupt proceedings this week at the GOP convention.
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5:00 a.m.
Hillary Clinton’s campaign is launching a major voter mobilization drive during the Republican National Convention.
Campaign officials say the presumptive Democratic nominee is setting a national goal of persuading more than 3 million people to register and commit to vote in the 2016 election.
Clinton intends to announce the plan on Monday in a speech to the NAACP convention in Cincinnati, followed by a stop at an Ohio voter registration event with volunteers. She is kicking off the voter drive as Republicans meet in Cleveland to nominate businessman Donald Trump at their national convention.
The mobilization effort aims to capture the energy of Democrats watching the GOP convention from home each evening and harness it into a stronger voter base.