What Donald Trump’s Veep Pick Means

If you only read one thing: Donald Trump made it official on Twitter. The presumptive Republican nominee—who just 12 hours earlier resoundingly defeated a challenge to his position—announced the selection of Indiana Gov. Mike Pence as his running-mate. The silver-haired former congressman provides experience and substantive heft to Trump’s ticket. In the end it was the conventional choice, the selection of a candidate who balances Trump’s business record with a long record in government. But that record may come back to bite Pence, who is a top target of LGBT groups over his support of controversial religious freedom protections, while he has a long list of policy positions—on trade, Obamacare, and Muslim bans—that oppose Trump’s campaign platform. Trump delayed the official press conference on the announcement until Friday over Thursday’s terrorist attack in Nice, France.

Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign is swamping Trump’s on television in swing states, as the GOP candidate still has yet to run a general election television ad. And the impact is already being noticed in the polls. Despite two of the toughest weeks for Clinton’s campaign yet, Trump has yet to improve his support in the polls. The tightened surveys are resultant of Clinton’s declining numbers, with little movement in Trump’s, as he has little appeal to voters of color.

Newt Gingrich wants to toss out the Constitution. RBG apologizes. And Tim Tebow’s rumor.

Here are your must-reads:

Must Reads

Why Donald Trump Looks Set to Pick Mike Pence as Running Mate
TIME’s Alex Altman on the unlikely pair

Attempt to Stop Donald Trump at Convention Fails Decisively
#NeverTrump meets its end, but frustrations linger [TIME]

Violence on the Campaign Trail
TIME takes you to the dangerous fringes of the turbulent 2016 campaign

President Obama Defends Stance on Police, Black Lives Matter
Family members of shooting victims, as well as law enforcement officials challenge Obama in town hall, TIME’s Maya Rhodan reports

Clinton Airing Thousands of Positive Ads While Trump Silent
He has Twitter [Associated Press]

A VP Process Spins Out of Control. Or Did It?
A very Trumpian process [Washington Post]

Sound Off

“On reflection, my recent remarks in response to press inquiries were ill-advised and I regret making them. Judges should avoid commenting on a candidate for public office. In the future I will be more circumspect.” — Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg backing off her criticism of Donald Trump

“We should frankly test every person here who is of a Muslim background, and if they believe in Sharia, they should be deported.” — Former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich on Fox News Thursday night

Bits and Bites

Ruth Bader Ginsburg Regrets Criticizing Donald Trump [TIME]

Republican Chairman Uses Secret Meeting to Head Off Rules Revolt [TIME]

Indiana Gov. Mike Pence Prepares Allies for His Selection as VP [TIME]

Donald Trump’s 5 Most Revealing Quotes From TIME’s New Cover Story [TIME]

Tim Tebow: Speaking slot at Trump convention ‘a rumor’ [Associated Press]

Mike Pence, Donald Trump’s Running Mate, Disagrees With Him on These 3 Issues [TIME]

How Mike Pence embraced Obamacare [Politico]

David Margolis, Force for Justice Department Independence, Dead at 76 [TIME]

FBI, DHS Heads Warn of Possible Violence at GOP Convention [ABC News]

Gingrich calls for deportation tests of everyone with a ‘Muslim background’ [Politico]

What’s a nice guy like Sen. Tim Kaine doing in a campaign like this? [Washington Post]