10 things you need to know today: July 19, 2016

The Republican National Convention stage

(Image credit: ROBYN BECK/AFP/Getty Images)

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1. GOP convention gets fiery start after failed 'Never Trump' revolt
2. Another Baltimore officer acquitted in Freddie Gray case
3. Melania Trump convention speech includes passages identical to Michelle Obama's
4. ISIS claims responsibility for stabbing spree on German train
5. Kerry urges Turkey to respect democracy as it responds to failed coup
6. Hillary Clinton calls for police reforms to ease tensions
7. White House asks Supreme Court to reconsider immigration plan
8. Murdoch sons reportedly want to force out Fox News chief Ailes
9. North Korea launches three missiles into sea
10. Obama publishes article on ObamaCare in scholarly journal

last updated 19 July 2016

1. GOP convention gets fiery start after failed 'Never Trump' revolt

The Republican convention got off to a bumpy start on Monday, when "Never Trump" delegates tried to force a floor vote on the convention's rules, hoping to revive their effort to free up Trump delegates to back someone else. Ultimately a GOP official declared the rules approved by voice vote. The convention then moved on to a more traditional series of speeches praising the candidate — including former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani, who backed Trump as the law-and-order candidate — and attacking his rival, Hillary Clinton, whom Trump supporters branded as a liar and a criminal. The mother of a Benghazi victim said she blamed Clinton "personally" for her son's death.

A judge on Monday acquitted Baltimore police Lt. Brian Rice on involuntary manslaughter, reckless endangerment, and misconduct charges in connection with the death of Freddie Gray, who suffered a fatal spinal injury while in police custody in April 2015. Rice was the highest-ranking Baltimore police officer charged over Gray's death, and the third out of four prosecuted so far to be found not guilty. A fourth case ended in a mistrial due to a hung jury. A defense attorney said Rice's failure to secure Gray with a seatbelt in a police van was "correct" because Gray was being combative.

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Donald Trump praised his wife, Melania, for her speech on the opening day of the Republican National Convention on Monday. Critics, starting with a Twitter user named Jarrett Hill, were quick to point out that several passages in which Melania Trump discussed her upbringing in Slovenia were nearly identical to lines First Lady Michelle Obama used in her speech at President Obama's 2008 nominating convention. Melania Trump said she wrote the speech mostly herself, but a campaign spokesman said a team of writers worked on it.

A 17-year-old Afghan youth stabbed and slashed at least four people on a German train on Monday before being fatally shot by police. The young man was armed with an ax and a knife. The Islamic State claimed responsibility, but authorities said it was too early in the investigation to determine a motive. The attack came four days after a driver in a truck crashed through a crowd at the end of a Bastille Day fireworks display in Nice, France, killing 84 people. French officials have called that attack terrorism.

Secretary of State John Kerry on Monday joined European officials in calling on Turkey to respect the rule of law and democratic principles as it cracks down on people suspected of supporting a failed coup. European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini suggested that Turkey could torpedo its bid for European Union membership if it brings back the death penalty to punish coup plotters. "No country can become a partner state if it introduces the death penalty," she said. Kerry added that "NATO also has a requirement with respect to democracy."

Presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton on Monday condemned the killing of police officers in Baton Rouge and Dallas, calling it a "terrible crime." Clinton, addressing an NAACP conference in Cincinnati, said that "the best way to honor our officers" is to enact police reforms to curb tensions that have escalated since the shootings of officers, and of African-American men by police. She said the next president must commit to helping restore trust, "holding police departments like Ferguson's accountable," and "creating clear guidelines on the use of force — especially lethal force."

The Obama administration on Monday asked the Supreme Court to take another look at President Obama's plan to shield up to four million undocumented immigrants from deportation once a replacement for the late Justice Antonin Scalia is confirmed and the court is at full strength. The court split on the case 4-4 last month, leaving in place a lower court ruling that blocked the plan from taking effect. If the court grants the request, the court might not rule until after Obama leaves office, as Senate Republicans have said they won't hold hearings on Obama's nominee, judge Merrick Garland.

Media tycoon Rupert Murdoch's sons, Lachlan and James, reportedly plan to oust Roger Ailes as head of Fox News, according to an article in New York. The magazine, citing two sources briefed on the matter, says that Lachlan and James Murdoch — co-chairman and CEO of parent company 21st Century Fox — determined that Ailes should go after they reviewed preliminary findings of a law firm investigation sparked by former Fox News host Gretchen Carlson's sexual harassment accusations. A 21st Century Fox spokesman said the matter was "not yet resolved."

North Korea fired three ballistic missiles into the sea on Tuesday in the latest in a string of provocative moves by the isolated communist country. The U.S. military said the missiles appeared to be two Scuds and one Rodong, a locally developed missile using Soviet-era Scud technology. North Korea has launched both types before, so the tests did not appear to indicate any technological leaps in the country's weapons program. "This smells political rather than technical to me," said researcher Melissa Hanham of the Middlebury Institute of International Studies in California.

President Obama published an article Monday in the Journal of the American Medical Association, a prestigious scholarly publication. The article, titled "United States Health Care Reform: Progress to Date and Next Steps," presents evidence that, Obama says, shows the number of Americans without health insurance has dropped dramatically under his signature health care reform law. Obama also argued that a "public option" plan could help push down the prices of prescription drugs.

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Harold Maass is a contributing editor at The Week. He has been writing for The Week since the 2001 debut of the U.S. print edition and served as editor of TheWeek.com when it launched in 2008. Harold started his career as a newspaper reporter in South Florida and Haiti. He has previously worked for a variety of news outlets, including The Miami Herald, ABC News and Fox News, and for several years wrote a daily roundup of financial news for The Week and Yahoo Finance.