After pausing their multimillion-dollar advertising campaign to review their strategy, the Trump campaign plans to launch new ads on Monday depicting Joe Biden as a puppet "controlled by the radical left," according to two senior campaign officials.

Why it matters: The Trump campaign's most recent internal polls show the "puppet of the left" attack on Biden is beginning to resonate with voters, per two sources briefed on the polling. And it sets the campaign up to attack Biden's vice presidential selection.

Joe Biden's process for selecting a running mate highlights a fundamental difference between his campaign and the president's re-election effort: Biden is deliberative, while President Trump goes with his gut.

Why it matters: The way Biden is searching for a vice president suggests a careful and methodical approach, the opposite of Trump's style. But it also reveals a strong fear of the consequences of making the wrong choice.

Rep. James Clyburn (D-S.C.) said Sunday he believes Trump is "trying to put a cloud over the election" because he doesn't plan to leave office if he loses.

The big picture: Clyburn told "CNN's State of the Union" that "the American people had better wake up" to Trump, who he said has taken on strongman tactics. Clyburn compared Trump to Mussolini and said Russian President Vladimir Putin is akin to Hitler.

Rep. Karen Bass (D-Calif.), a contender for vice president on Joe Biden's shortlist and chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, tweeted on Saturday that she was trying to find an “area of agreement” with the Church of Scientology in a 2010 speech.

Why it matters: In the address, Bass praised the church and its founder, L. Ron Hubbard for fighting for equality. Since, former church members have leveled accusations of abuse, human trafficking and intimidation against the Church of Scientology.

Alicia Garza, co-founder of Black Lives Matters, told the San Francisco Chronicle on Saturday that Joe Biden should select a Black woman as his running mate because “Black voters are who essentially made Joe Biden the presumptive nominee."

What they're saying: Garza noted the VP on the Democratic ticket ought to be a "Black woman in particular and not just a woman of color." She did not give preference to a particular name on Biden’s shortlist, but said Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) is “very talented and qualified Black women."

Go deeper: Biden says he'll name a running mate in the first week of August

Joe Biden's campaign contends that President Trump's talk of delaying November's election is an effort to distract, and vows to be what a Biden aide called "laser-focused" on Trump's pandemic response.

Why it matters: After aides convinced the president that the issue was hurting him badly in the polls, Trump has tried for the past two weeks to show renewed focus on the coronavirus, including the restoration of his briefings.

The U.S. Postal Service is experiencing days-long backlogs of mail across the country after Trump fundraiser-turned-postmaster general Louis DeJoy "put in place new procedures described as cost-cutting efforts," the WashPost reports.

Why it matters: While postal workers are warning "that the policies could undermine their ability to deliver ballots on time, ... The backlog comes as the president ... has escalated his efforts to cast doubt about the integrity of the November vote, which is expected to yield record numbers of mail ballots because of the coronavirus pandemic."

The escalating war of words between President Trump and Democratic big-city mayors — brought it to a head by confrontations in Portland and Seattle — is a preview of what's to come in the months leading up to November.

The big picture: Trump is using Democratic mayors as the foils for his law-and-order reelection message, while they've called his deployment of federal agents in their cities "a step short of martial law" and heightened their criticism of the federal response to the coronavirus pandemic.

Top Republicans in Congress shot down President Trump's suggestion on Thursday to delay November's election, which he made on Twitter while claiming, without evidence, that mail-in voting will cause mass voter fraud.

Why it matters:: Congress, not the president, has the sole power to change the date of Election Day.

President Trump suggested delaying November's election in a Thursday tweet, again claiming without evidence that mail-in voting will lead to widespread voter fraud.

The state of play: While this is the first time that Trump has actively floated changing Election Day, he does not have the power to do so. That lies exclusively with Congress, per a Washington Post breakdown of the issue.