RIGHT.

WELL, COMING IN OUR WBTW NEWS POLITICAL TEAM, OF AND NIKKI ALONG WITH NICK BLUMBERG AS WELL AS HEATHER SHARON HERE IN THE STUDIO.

WE'RE JOINED NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY'S HEATHER HINDER SHOT.

OF COURSE, WELCOME EVERYBODY.

GOOD TO SEE YOU ALL DOING GREAT WORK OUT THERE.

WANT TO START COMING BACK TO BECAUSE AS WE MENTIONED, THE RNC, YOU KNOW, IT COMES ON THE HEELS OF AN AS WE WERE DISCUSSING THE ATTEMPTED ASSASSINATION OF FORMER PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP.

WHAT WAS THE REACTION FROM THE ILLINOIS DELEGATES AT THE RNC?

WAS SO AND AS I NOTED TO YOU HAD DELEGATES CHANTING, FIGHT, FIGHT, FIGHT, WHICH IS WORD THAT TRUMP HAD USE WHEN HE PUMPS HIS FIST IN THE AIR AFTER HE WAS SHOT, THAT THEY'RE PROUD ADMIT.

THEY SAY THAT THIS SHOWS JUST SORT THERE THAT THE LEADERSHIP, A MAN WHO DOESN'T STAND DOWN AND THEY BELIEVE VERY MUCH THAT THAT IS WHAT AMERICA NEEDS RIGHT NOW.

AND THEY DREW SHARP CONTRAST TO THAT.

DEMOCRATS PRESUMED NOMINEE IN PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN THAT CAME UP.

IT IS WELL DURING THE BREAKFAST FOR YOU IN THEIR FACE TO THE ILLINOIS DELEGATION MEETS EVERY MORNING AND HAS A BREAKFAST SORT OF GOES OVER WHAT PRE RALLY RALLY OF SORTS AND ONE OF THE SPEAKERS SAID THAT WE KNOW AND WE ARE UNIFIED.

WE KNOW WHO OUR NOMINEE IS GOING TO BE.

DEMOCRATS CANNOT SAY THE SAME.

I OVERHEARD ONE OF THE DELICATE SAY, YEAH, THEY'VE GOT CIVIL.

SO REALLY THEY BELIEVE SHOWING SHARP CONTRAST IN THE DIRECTION THAT THE PARTIES ARE GOING IN.

THE INDIVIDUALS THAT ARE COMEDIES ARE, BUT OF COURSE, ALSO THE POLICY.

STRONG WORDS TO USE TO USE THE TERM LIKE VEGETABLE.

SOME ARE USING THE ASSASSINATION AS A CALL FOR UNITY.

DID.

DID YOU GET A SENSE OF THAT TODAY FROM THE ILLINOIS GOP?

WELL, IT CERTAINLY GAVE REPUBLICANS A CHANCE TO SORT OF PAPER OVER ALL OF THE DIVISIONS THAT THEY HAVE BEEN DEALING WITH IN RECENT WEEKS AND MONTHS.

AND HONESTLY YEARS UNITE ANYTHING.

IT IS THAT THEY ARE ALL UNITED BEHIND FORMER PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP AND HIS SORT OF BRUSH WITH AN ASSASSIN'S BULLET SORT OF PUT THOSE THE STAKES OF THE ELECTION.

I THINK IN STARK RELIEF FOR MANY OF THE REPUBLICANS.

SO IT WAS SORT OF A WAY FOR THEM TO FOCUS ON THE PRIZE ON THE HORIZON WITH THE NOVEMBER ELECTION WITHOUT FOCUSING TOO MUCH ON THE NITTY-GRITTY DETAILS WHICH THEY DO NOT AGREE I'M HEATHER.

LET'S TAKE A STEP BACK.

YOU KNOW, WHAT SHOULD WE EXPECT FROM THIS CONVENTION PROCESS?

HOW MUCH OF A ROLE DOES ILLINOIS HAVE IN THE PRESIDENTIAL NOMINATION PROCESS?

WELL, THEY DON'T HAVE MUCH OF A ROLE.

HONESTLY, THEY'RE ONLY 64 DELEGATES FROM ILLINOIS.

IF DONALD TRUMP DID NOT WIN ILLINOIS'S DELEGATES, WHICH OF COURSE HE DID, HE WOULD STILL HAVE THE NOMINATION.

ILLINOIS IS A BLUE STATE.

AND REALLY THIS IS A CHANCE FOR THE ILLINOIS GOP TO SORT OF RESET RETRENCH, BUILD SOME NEW RELATIONSHIPS AND TRY TO FIGURE IT ALL OUT ONCE THE NOVEMBER ELECTION IS OVER.

NICK, YOU SPOKE TO SOME DELEGATES, INCLUDING SOME FIRST TIME DELEGATES FROM ILLINOIS TELLS ABOUT THEIR ROLES.

WELL, THEIR ROLE IS TO OFFICIALLY NOMINATE PRESIDENT TRUMP, EVEN THOUGH HE PRETTY MUCH DOES HAVE ZONE UP SINCE SUPER TUESDAY.

THANKS.

PRIMARY VOTERS.

THEY ALSO HAVE TO OFFICIALLY ADOPT THE PARTY PLATFORM, WHICH HAS BEEN VERY MUCH SHAPED BY FORMER PRESIDENT TRUMP.

IT'S JUST 16 PAGES DOWN FROM 66 IN 2016 REALLY SOFTENS.

THE PARTY STANDS ON ABORTION, SAYING THOSE SORTS OF RESTRICTIONS SHOULD BE LEFT UP TO THE STATES.

BUT DESPITE THAT POTENTIAL SNAG, A LOT OF ILLINOIS DELEGATES, A LOT OF DELEGATES RIGHT AROUND THE COUNTRY ARE VERY AGAINST ABORTION RIGHTS THAT PASSED A QUITE EASILY ON A VOICE VOTE EARLIER TODAY.

HEATHER DEMOCRATS HAVE RESPONDED TO THE ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT BY A PULLING ADS.

GOVERNOR PRITZKER IS NO LONGER IN MILWAUKEE.

WHY THAT SHIFT?

WELL, PART OF IT WAS JUST SAFETY CONCERNS ABOUT TRAVEL AND AND SO ON.

IT WAS AN ATTEMPT TO DE-ESCALATE THIS SORT OF VIOLENT RHETORIC AND THE AGGRESSIVE RHETORIC.

IT PUTS THE DEMOCRATS IN A BIT OF A BIND, RIGHT?

BECAUSE DURING THE RNC, WHAT THEY SHOULD BE DOING IS ATTACK ATTACK, ATTACK AND BOLSTERING THEIR OWN CANDIDATE.

IF IT HAPPENED, THEY'RE BEING AGGRESSIVE AND TURNING UP THE TEMPERATURE IN A WAY THEY DON'T WANT TO AND IT'S HARD FOR THEM TO SUPPORT THEIR OWN CANDIDATE.

WHEN THERE'S SOME DOUBT, THIS IS GOING TO BE OUR CANDIDATE MOVING FORWARD FOR THIS FOR THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY.

SO IT'S A VERY DIFFICULT POSITION.

COULD THIS BE A MOMENT TO BRING THE CONVERSATION BACK TO THE CAMPAIGN ISSUES AND, YOU KNOW, AWAY FROM THE CONVERSATION ABOUT, YOU KNOW, THE CANDIDATES AGE OR FITNESS TO BE PRESIDENT.

EXACTLY FOCUS IN ON ISSUES DECISIONS WHO'S LIKE ABORTION RIGHTS AND SO ON AND THINGS THAT RNC IS TRYING TO SHOW US OFTEN STANCE ON.

BUT I DON'T THINK THAT THAT IS THE REALITY OF THE FEELING OF THE BASE.

THEY'RE SOFTENING THEIR STANCE ON THAT.

SO THEY COULD DEFINITELY TAKE A TURN TOWARDS THE ISSUES AS HE PUT IT.

NIC, WHAT IS THE DELEGATION LOOKING FORWARD TO THIS UPCOMING WEEK?

WELL, THE FOLKS THAT I SPOKE TO TODAY ARE OBVIOUSLY VERY EXCITED ALL IN ABOUT A RE NOMINATING PRESIDENT TRUMP, BUT THEY ALL HAVE THEIR OWN INDIVIDUAL ISSUES THAT ANIMATE THEM.

WE HEARD FROM A FIRST-TIME CANDIDATE WHO ACTUALLY BECAME A U.S. CITIZEN ORIGINALLY FROM ITALY BECAUSE HE WANTED TO PARTICIPATE YET ALL SORTS OF ISSUES LIKE BORDER SECURITY, MAKING SURE THE POLICE ARE FUNDED, TAKING CARE OF VETERANS.

WE HEARD FROM ONE FIRST TIME OR WHO SAID SHE'S BEEN WATCHING THIS AND SHE WAS A LITTLE GIRL.

SHE'S EXCITED FOR THIS AS SORT OF AN EVENT.

IT REALLY IS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR, YOU KNOW, THESE DELEGATES TO MINGLE, TO POLITIC, TO GET TO KNOW, FOLKS.

SHE REALLY WANTS TO SEE THAT BIG BALL DROP.

WE ALL KNOW AND WE ALSO HEARD FROM ONE FIRST TIME OR BROKE HER FOOT.

BUT SHE SAID SHE WOULD CRAWL TO GET HERE IF SHE HAD TO.

SHE'S PARTICULARLY ANIMATED BY THE ISSUE OF WHAT SHE SEES AS LIBERAL INFLUENCE IN SCHOOL CURRICULA.

THAT'S SOMETHING WE'VE HEARD FROM A LOT OF CONSERVATIVE AND PARTICULARLY FAR-RIGHT, ILLINOIS AND AROUND THE STATE RECENT A BROKEN FOOT.

THAT IS UNFORTUNATE.

BUT IT SOUNDS LIKE SHE WAS STILL ABLE TO MAKE IT HAPPY FOR HER THAT SHE