‘Whoops!’ Trump taunts New Zealand over ‘surge’ in cases

Jacinda Ardern has hit out at Donald Trump’s claim New Zealand is experiencing a “big surge” in coronavirus cases – calling it “patently wrong”.

Her comments came after the US president told a crowd in Minnesota that New Zealand was suffering a spike in the number of infections, which he called “terrible”.

Trump told his rally: “The places they were using to hold up now they’re having a big surge … they were holding up names of countries and now they’re saying ‘whoops!’”

He added: “Do you see what’s happening in New Zealand? They beat it, they beat it, it was like front-page news because they wanted to show me something … Big surge in New Zealand, you know it’s terrible.”

Ardern said there was no comparison between New Zealand’s handful of new cases a day and the “tens of thousands” reported in the US.

“I think anyone who’s following Covid and its transmission globally will quite easily see that New Zealand’s nine cases in a day does not compare to the US’ tens of thousands,” she told reporters. “Obviously it’s patently wrong,” she said of Trump’s comments.

Making Jerusalem Israeli capital ‘for the evangelicals’, says Trump

Alongside relating his conversation with God, Donald Trump claimed that he “moved the capital of Israel to Jerusalem” for “the evangelicals”.

His administration recognised Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and moved the US embassy there in 2017.

“You know it’s amazing with that the evangelicals are more excited about that than Jewish people. It’s really right,” he added.

Michelle Obama’s speech ‘incredibly powerful’ says AOC

Progressive congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said she found the former first lady’s speech “deeply moving”, while the Democrats’ vice-presidential candidate Kamala Harris said was Michelle Obama had been “speaking truth to power”.

‘Only way we’ll lose is if the election is rigged,’ says Trump

Donald Trump tried to cast further cast doubt on November’s election process – claiming that the only way he would lose the presidential race is if the election was “rigged”.

“We have to win the election. We can’t play games. Go out and vote. Do those beautiful absentee ballots, or just make sure your vote gets counted. Make sure because the only way we’re going to lose this election is if the election is rigged,” he told his supporters in Oshkosh, Wisconsin.

“Remember that. It’s the only way we’re going to lose this election, so we have to be very careful.”

Bernie Sanders compares Trump to Roman tyrant

Senator Bernie Sanders, Joe Biden’s final primary challenger, delivered a forceful takedown of Donald Trump and essentially pleaded with his progressive followers to turn out and vote for the party’s nominee on Election Day.

“Under this administration, authoritarianism has taken root in our country” he told the Democrats’ convention. “As long as I am here, I will work with progressives, with moderates, and, yes, with conservatives to preserve this nation from a threat that so many of our heroes fought and died to defeat. … The future of our democracy is at stake. The future of our economy is at stake.”

Sanders noted the party’s coming nominee has adopted many of the far left’s policy positions, calling them “mainstream”.

Sanders added: “Nero fiddled while Rome burned. Trump golfs.”

Trump ‘wrong president for our country’ says Michelle Obama

Former first lady Michelle Obama ripped into Donald Trump for being unfit for the presidency in a Democratic National Committee speech that accused him of “faking” his way through the job and stoking racial tensions.

Delivering the keynote speech of the event’s first night, she sounded emotional – frustrated, anxious and firm – as she essentially pleaded with the country to reject Trump and his version of the presidency.

Though admitting she does not enjoy the political coliseum, Ms Obama stormed into it on Monday night and took on the president – even calling him out by name in a way her husband purposely avoided four years ago when he was unable to help Hillary Clinton defeat him.

“Donald Trump is the wrong president for our country,” she said. “He is in over his head. He cannot meet the moment … You simply cannot fake your way through it.”

She also called Jo Biden a “profoundly decent man”.

Trump claims he spoke with God about economy

Donald Trump has claimed that the economic fallout following the pandemic is “God testing” him to rebuild what he called “the greatest economy in the history of the world”.

The president told his supporters in Mankato, Minnesota: “What we have achieved together and what we’re doing together is nothing short of an economic miracle and now we’re doing it again. We built the greatest economy in the history of the world and now I have to do it again.”

He said: “You know what that is? That’s right. That’s God testing me. He said, You know, you did it once. And I said, ‘Did I do a great job, God? I’m the only one who could do it.’ He said that you shouldn’t say. Now we’re going to have you do it again. I said, ‘OK. I agree. You got me.’ But I did it once. And now I’m doing it again.”

Good morning and welcome to The Independent’s live coverage of US politics.