Newsletter: Your Essential Politics guide to Day 2 of the Republican National Convention

I’m Christina Bellantoni, here with your Essential Politics guide to the Republican National Convention. Tonight’s theme is Make America Work Again.

If Day 1 was any indicator, we’re in for a wild ride all week. Let’s get started.

For the next two weeks, we’ll be doing this a little different because we know time is short and you’ve got a convention to watch. (Catch up quick with this video.) For Day 2, we’ll have you covered, with a gavel-to-gavel livestream that will go live here at 2:30 p.m. Pacific. and robust live coverage round-the-clock on Trail Guide. Don’t miss a moment.

The big to-do about Day 1 surfaced soon after it adjourned for the night, as it became clear that headliner Melania Trump’s prime-time speech was strikingly similar to Michelle Obama’s 2008 Democratic convention address, using several of the same word-for-word phrases.

Javier Panzar reports each woman said she and her husband were raised to “work hard for what you want in life,” instilled with values like “your word is your bond” and “the only limit” to achieving dreams is “your willingness to work for them.” The late-night news lit up social media.

See the two speeches side-by-side and watch Melania Trump’s full speech here. (Here’s the campaign’s head-scratching response.)

Another talker for the 550 California delegates in Cleveland is that they are staying so far from Cleveland that they might as well be in, well, California. It’s hard out there for Republicans from a state where they are far outnumbered by Democrats.

Seema Mehta details how even their hotel, an African-themed resort attached to the nation’s largest indoor water park, has the feel of National Lampoon’s “Vacation” rather than a major political event.

Any other year, a vote to adopt the convention rules would be a little-noticed procedural move. But this is 2016, which means even the most arcane parliamentary steps hold the potential for mayhem. Melanie Mason, Michael Finnegan and Noah Bierman report on how anti-Trump delegates delivered a noisy rebuke over rules on the convention floor. Their efforts were unsuccessful, but they still managed to land an embarrassing jab at the GOP, which is desperately seeking to project a united front. See the video as the floor erupts in chaos.

Those three pieces serve as good primers for the day. I’ll present the best of the rest with a series of headlines.

YOUR GUIDE TO CONVENTION CONTEXT

— With a mix of putdowns and silence — Donald Trump who? — Republicans open their national convention.

— As their convention opens, Republicans are racing to unite behind their candidate.

YOUR GUIDE TO CONVENTION SPEECHES

— Day One of the convention in less than 3 minutes.

— Meet some of the interesting speakers at the convention.

— A county sheriff pits police against the Black Lives Matter movement.

— Watch Rudy Giuliani’s full speech.

— Watch Gen. Michael Flynn’s full speech.

YOUR CONVENTION BINGO CARD

From funny hats to Benghazi mentions, we have you covered.

YOUR CONVENTION PROTEST GUIDE

— “I hope to God I don’t have to use it,” says a man who brought a gun to a Cleveland Donald Trump rally.

— Early RNC protests are largely peaceful with only two arrests.

— Despite fears, initial street protests are mild at the GOP convention.

— Heat, sweat and paranoia in Cleveland: Reporter Matt Pearce’s diary from outside the GOP convention.

Again, we’ll cover every twist and turn this week and next in Trail Guide. Make sure to follow @latimespolitics if you like your news by 140 characters.

WATCH THE CONVENTIONS WITH THE L.A. TIMES

Join me, Sacramento bureau chief John Myers and columnist Robin Abcarian at free convention watch parties on Thursday and again on July 28 in downtown Los Angeles. The events will run from 6 to 9 p.m. Pacific. RSVP here.

TODAY’S ESSENTIALS

— Keep an eye on our Essential Politics news feed for some major developments in California’s U.S. Senate race this morning.

— Gearing up for a big fight over a ballot measure that would raise cigarette taxes by $2 a pack, tobacco companies dropped nearly $17 million into a campaign against the measure, Proposition 56.

— Who will win the November election? Give our Electoral College map a spin.

LOGISTICS

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