Ron Elving

With the Republican Convention behind us, we consider whether GOP scored points with voters and look ahead to see how the conventions might have shifted strategies, moving forward, for both parties.

Whatever the validity of Trump's claims about the past, current reality for millions of the unemployed is dire. With the virus still far from controlled, the economic climb could get steeper as well.

With President Trump expected to accept his party's nomination Thursday night, NPR takes a look at his agenda for a second term.

We take a look the Democratic National Convention, which wrapped up on Thursday night, and look ahead to next week's Republican National Convention, to see if these events will win over voters.

Thanks to swift pacing and high production values, viewers got a compact and highly watchable two hours of political messaging each night. It was, in fact, remarkably slick.

Joe Biden will make his first speech to the nation Thursday as the Democratic Party's leader and presidential nominee. It will be the end of a long and rocky journey for him.

Just six months ago, Biden's campaign seemed all but over. But in the end, he had just enough connection, through his oft-mentioned ties to Obama and other key Democrats, to overcome his deficits.

Joe Biden announced his running mate, prompting Trump to call Sen. Harris "nasty." Congress didn't reach a deal for coronavirus relief. And, the DNC begins virtually next week.

As lawmakers fight over what to include in the next Coronavirus relief package, we look at the impact of delaying that aid. Also, do we know more about President Trump's agenda for his second term?

The U.S. saw devastating economic numbers. Negotiations over the coronavirus relief bill are at a standstill. And, a tweet about delaying the election that got a rare bipartisan fact check.

There is a lot of detail amassed in the CNN analyst's book that even Trump investigation junkies won't have seen, much having to do with behind-the-scenes strategizing and negotiating by lawyers.

The President's tone shifts on the pandemic as he resumes briefings at the White House – except he's sans experts.

The president made his career on the belief that his positive attitude could shape his way in the world. The pandemic, the economic crisis and national protests aren't accommodating that approach.

Peale signed on early with the group called Spiritual Mobilization, a creation of prominent Protestant ministers in league with some of the leading industrialists of the era.

Anne Applebaum writes in Twilight of Democracy that heir to fears and hatreds, even advanced societies are straining under repeated blows: protracted war, economic disruptions, migration, a pandemic.

The coronavirus crisis keeps on going, as cases continuing to surge in the U.S. Millions are unemployed, and the White House keeps sending mixed signals.

The virus continues to dominate headlines despite the best efforts of both presidential campaigns. And, President Trump announced late Friday he would commute Roger Stone's sentence.

When the Supreme Court ruled this week on "faithless electors," Alexander Hamilton's name appeared five times. But the story is a little more complicated than that told by the Broadway show.

On this Independence Day, we look at the state of affairs, from the president's response to the protests for racial justice to the country's spiking coronavirus infections.

We do need a holiday just now. And not just a moment of leisure but an occasion for unity, healing and hope.