mixed reported speech 1

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Reported Speech Mixed Exercise

ENGLISH 4U English Language Learning

• GRAMMAR EXERCISES
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• IRREGULAR VERBS

Reported Speech - Exercise 7

Click here to view the solution of this exercise

1. She told him to shut the door. 2. He said (that) he was going home then. 3. Sam asked her if she had got 20 pounds. 4. He wanted to know which picture was the most famous one. 5. She said (that) she had been biking the day before. 6. He was told to fill in the form. 7. She said (that) she was doing her homework. 8. They asked me if Paul had lost the match. 9. He told her not to call him before 7 o'clock. 10. Mother said to me (that) she would buy that book for me. 11. Cathy asked me if the movie was interesting or boring. 12. She said to him (that) she had invited him to her party. 13. They wanted to know when my birthday was. 14. Susan said (that) she liked classical music. 15. She asked me where I had met her.

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Topic: REPORTED SPEECH (indirect)

Level: intermediate.

Reported Speech - mixed exercise

Write the following sentences in indirect speech. Pay attention to backshift and the changes to pronouns, time, and place.

• Two weeks ago, he said, “I visited this museum last week.” → Two weeks ago, he said that   . I → he|simple past → past perfect|this → that|last …→ the … before
• She claimed, “I am the best for this job.” → She claimed that   . I → she|simple present→ simple past|this→ that
• Last year, the minister said, “The crisis will be overcome next year.” → Last year, the minister said that   . will → would|next …→ the following …
• My riding teacher said, “Nobody has ever fallen off a horse here.” → My riding teacher said that   . present perfect → past perfect|here→ there
• Last month, the boss explained, “None of my co-workers has to work overtime now.” → Last month, the boss explained that   . my → his/her|simple present→ simple past|now→ then

Rewrite the question sentences in indirect speech.

• She asked, “What did he say?” → She asked   . The subject comes directly after the question word.|simple past → past perfect
• He asked her, “Do you want to dance?” → He asked her   . The subject comes directly after whether/if |you → she|simple present → simple past
• I asked him, “How old are you?” → I asked him   . The subject comes directly after the question word + the corresponding adjective (how old)|you→ he|simple present → simple past
• The tourists asked me, “Can you show us the way?” → The tourists asked me   . The subject comes directly after whether/if |you→ I|us→ them
• The shop assistant asked the woman, “Which jacket have you already tried on?” → The shop assistant asked the woman   . The subject comes directly after the question word|you→ she|present perfect → past perfect

Rewrite the demands/requests in indirect speech.

• The passenger requested the taxi driver, “Stop the car.” → The passenger requested the taxi driver   . to + same wording as in direct speech
• The mother told her son, “Don’t be so loud.” → The mother told her son   . not to + same wording as in direct speech, but remove don’t
• The policeman told us, “Please keep moving.” → The policeman told us   . to + same wording as in direct speech ( please can be left off)
• She told me, “Don’t worry.” → She told me   . not to + same wording as in direct speech, but remove don’t
• The zookeeper told the children, “Don’t feed the animals.” → The zookeeper told the children   . not to + same wording as in direct speech, but remove don’t

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Reported Speech (Indirect Speech)

Exercises on reported speech.

If we report what another person has said, we usually do not use the speaker’s exact words (direct speech), but reported (indirect) speech. Therefore, you need to learn how to transform direct speech into reported speech. The structure is a little different depending on whether you want to transform a statement, question or request.

When transforming statements, check whether you have to change:

• present tense verbs (3rd person singular)
• place and time expressions
• tenses (backshift)

→ more on statements in reported speech

When transforming questions, check whether you have to change:

Also note that you have to:

• transform the question into an indirect question
• use the interrogative or if / whether

→ more on questions in reported speech

→ more on requests in reported speech

Additional Information and Exeptions

Apart from the above mentioned basic rules, there are further aspects that you should keep in mind, for example:

• main clauses connected with and / but
• tense of the introductory clause
• reported speech for difficult tenses
• exeptions for backshift
• requests with must , should , ought to and let’s

→ more on additional information and exeptions in reported speech

Statements in Reported Speech

• no backshift – change of pronouns
• no backshift – change of pronouns and places
• with backshift
• with backshift and change of place and time expressions

Questions in Reported Speech

Requests in reported speech.

• Exercise 1 – requests (positive)
• Exercise 2 – requests (negative)
• Exercise 3 – requests (mixed)

Mixed Exercises on Reported Speech

• Exercise on reported speech with and without backshift

Grammar in Texts

• „ The Canterville Ghost “ (highlight direct speech and reported speech)

Change the direct speech into reported speech

• 1. “Don’t do it!”
• She told me not to do it.
• 2. “I’m leaving tomorrow”
• She said (that) she was leaving tomorrow (the next day).
• 3. “Please get me a cup of tea”
• She asked me to get her a cup of tea.
• 4. “She got married last year”
• She said (that) she got married last year.
• 5. “Be quick!”
• She told me to be quick.
• 6. “Could you explain number four, please?”
• She asked me to explain number four.
• 7. “Where do you live?”
• She asked me where I lived.

Change the direct speech into reported speech. Choose the past simple of ‘ask’, ‘say’or ‘tell’:

• 8. “We went to the cinema and then to a Chinese restaurant”
• She said (that) they went (had been) to the cinema and then to a Chinese restaurant.
• 9. “I’ll come and help you at twelve”
• She said (that) she would come and help me at twelve.
• 10. “What are you doing tomorrow?”
• She asked me what I was doing tomorrow (the day after).
• 11. “Don’t go!”
• She told me not to go.
• 12. “Do you work in London?”
• She asked me if I worked in London.
• 13. “Could you tell me where the post office is?”
• She asked me to tell her where the post office was.
• 14. “Come here!”
• She told me to come here (there).
• 15. “I’ve never been to Wales”
• She said (that) she had never been to Wales.
• 16. “Have you ever seen ‘Lord of the Rings’?”
• She asked me if I had ever seen ‘The Lord of the Rings’.
• 17. “I don't like mushrooms”
• She said (that) she didn't like mushrooms.
• 18. “Don't be silly!”
• She told me not to be silly.
• 19. “Would you mind waiting a moment please?”
• She asked me to wait a moment
• 20. “How often do you play sport?”
• She asked me how often I played sport.

English Practice Downloadable PDF Grammar and Vocabulary Worksheets

Reported speech (b1).

• RS013 - Reported Speech
• RS012 - Reported Questions and Commands
• RS011 - Reported Speech
• RS010 - Reported Speech
• RS009 - Reported Commands
• RS008 - Reported Questions
• RS007 - Reported Speech
• RS006 - Reported Speech
• RS005 - Reported Speech
• RS004 - Reported Speech
• RS003 - Reported Speech
• RS002 - Reported Speech - Mixed Exercises
• RS001 - Reported Speech - Mixed Exercises
• Adjective - Adverb
• Gerund and Infinitive
• Modal Verbs
• Reported Speech
• Passive Voice
• Definite and Indefinite Articles
• Quantifiers
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Reported Speech

Perfect english grammar.

Reported Statements

Here's how it works:

We use a 'reporting verb' like 'say' or 'tell'. ( Click here for more about using 'say' and 'tell' .) If this verb is in the present tense, it's easy. We just put 'she says' and then the sentence:

• Direct speech: I like ice cream.
• Reported speech: She says (that) she likes ice cream.

We don't need to change the tense, though probably we do need to change the 'person' from 'I' to 'she', for example. We also may need to change words like 'my' and 'your'. (As I'm sure you know, often, we can choose if we want to use 'that' or not in English. I've put it in brackets () to show that it's optional. It's exactly the same if you use 'that' or if you don't use 'that'.)

But , if the reporting verb is in the past tense, then usually we change the tenses in the reported speech:

• Reported speech: She said (that) she liked ice cream.

* doesn't change.

• Direct speech: The sky is blue.
• Reported speech: She said (that) the sky is/was blue.

Click here for a mixed tense exercise about practise reported statements. Click here for a list of all the reported speech exercises.

Reported Questions

So now you have no problem with making reported speech from positive and negative sentences. But how about questions?

• Direct speech: Where do you live?
• Reported speech: She asked me where I lived.
• Direct speech: Where is Julie?
• Reported speech: She asked me where Julie was.
• Direct speech: Do you like chocolate?
• Reported speech: She asked me if I liked chocolate.

Click here to practise reported 'wh' questions. Click here to practise reported 'yes / no' questions. Reported Requests

There's more! What if someone asks you to do something (in a polite way)? For example:

• Direct speech: Close the window, please
• Or: Could you close the window please?
• Or: Would you mind closing the window please?
• Reported speech: She asked me to close the window.
• Direct speech: Please don't be late.
• Reported speech: She asked us not to be late.

Reported Orders

• Direct speech: Sit down!
• Reported speech: She told me to sit down.
• Click here for an exercise to practise reported requests and orders.
• Click here for an exercise about using 'say' and 'tell'.
• Click here for a list of all the reported speech exercises.

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Reported speech - 1

Reported speech - 2

Reported speech - 3

Worksheets - handouts

Reported speech

Worksheets - pdf exercises.

• Reported statements - worksheet
• Worksheet - reported questions
• Reported yes/no questions
• Worksheet - reported speech
• Reported speech - exercises pdf
• Indirect speech - exercises
• Reported speech - exercises
• Mixed reported speech 1
• Mixed reported speech 2
• Reported speech 1 
• Reported speech 2  
• Reported speech 3 
• Reported speech 4
• Reported speech 5
• Reported wh- questions
• Reported speech - worksheet 
• Reported commands
• Reported questions
• Reported speech 1
• Reported speech 2
• Reported requests and orders
• Reported speech exercise
• Reported questions - worksheet
• Indirect speech - worksheet
• Worksheets pdf - print
• Grammar worksheets - handouts

Grammar - lessons

• Reported speech - grammar notes
• How to use reported speech - lesson
• Tense changes - grammar

https://first-english.org

Reported speech - indirect speech

• English year 1
• English year 2
• English year 3
• English year 4
• You are learning...
• Reported Speech
• 01 Reported Speech rules
• 02 Pronouns change
• 03 Pronouns change
• 04 Change place and time
• 05 Simple Present
• 06 Introduction Simple Pres.
• 07 Backshift
• 08 Backshift Tenses
• 09 Simple Past negative
• 10 Simple Past negative
• 11 Questions
• 12 Questions
• 13 Past - Past Perfect
• 14 Past - Past Perfect
• 15 Past Perfect negative
• 16 Past Perfect negative
• 17 with-out question word
• 18 with-out question word
• 19 Perfect Past Perfect
• 20 Perfect - Past Perfect
• 21 Perfect - Past Perfect
• 22 Perfect - Past Perfect
• 23 Questions without qw.
• 24 Questions with qw.
• 25 will - would
• 26 Will-Future
• 27 Will-Future negative
• 28 Will-Future negatives
• 29 Will-Future Questions
• 30 Will-Future will - would
• 31 Commands
• 32 Commands Reported
• 33 Commands negative
• 34 Commands negative
• 35 Mixed exercises
• 37 Questions all tenses
• 38 Questions all tenses
• 39 Commands all tenses
• 40 Commands all tenses
• 41 all forms all tenses
• 42 all forms all tenses
• 43 Change place and time
• 44 Change place and time
• 45 Test Reported Speech
• English Tenses
• Simple Present Tense
• Simple past Tense
• Present perfect
• Past Perfect
• Simple Future
• Future Perfect
• Going-to-Future
• Continuous Tenses
• Present Continuous
• Past Continuous
• Present perfect Progr.
• Past Perfect Continuous
• Simple Future Continuous
• Future 2 Continuous
• Comparison of Tenses
• Passive exercises
• If clauses - Conditional

Mixed reported speech exercises

When you report someone ' s words you can do it in 2 ways:

Direct speech

1. You can use direct speech with quotation marks. Example: He said: I work in a bank.

Reported speech

2. You can use reported speech. Example: He said he worked in a bank. The tenses, word-order, pronouns may be different from those in the direct speech sentence.

English Reported speech exercises

Reported speech - indirect speech with free online exercises, Reported speech - indirect speech examples and sentences. Online exercises Reported speech - indirect speech, questions and negative sentences.

Online exercises English grammar and courses Free tutorial Reported speech - indirect speech with exercises. English grammar easy to learn.

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business Real Estate

Comerica Bank Tower has a new owner

Repositioning the building with 1.5 million square feet of office space into a ‘mixed-use destination’ is the goal..

By Anna Butler

6:00 AM on May 24, 2024 CDT

There’s a new owner for the 60-story Comerica Bank Tower in downtown Dallas.

Last week, an affiliate of Slate Asset Management acquired full ownership of the building at 1717 Main Street.

Slate Asset Management was previously the lender on the property. The global alternative investment platform worked with the last owner , 1717 Tower Owner, LLC, which most recently counted Dallas’ TriGate Capital and Pacific Elm Properties, a Woods Capital Company, as guarantors.

Related: Uptown Dallas’ The Quad development is ready for office, restaurant goers

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The Slate Asset Management affiliate plans to reposition the property into a “mixed-use destination,” the firm said in a statement. It currently spans 1.5 million square feet of office space. The available square footage in the building stands at more than 535,000 square feet, according to the building’s website.

It has brought on Dallas-based commercial real estate firm Stream Realty Partners as part of the redevelopment effort. Stream will also aid in leasing and operations moving forward.

“Comerica Bank Tower has been an iconic fixture in the Dallas skyline for nearly 40 years, and we are pleased to be stewarding this tower’s evolution, so it can best serve the Dallas community today and for decades to come,” a statement from Slate Asset Management said.

“Our step into ownership is a testament to the depth and breadth Slate brings to the table as a real estate developer, operator, owner, and investor. We have a highly skilled team with a strong track record of executing visionary development projects, and we look forward to cementing Comerica Bank Tower as an exciting destination for Dallas residents, visitors, and workers,” the statement continued.

Upon the 2023 purchase of the building, Woods Capital and TriGate, alongside Pacific Elm Properties, planned renovations for the building that included adding residential units and hotel rooms on as many as 20 floors .

Prior to that, the tower, designed by architect Philip Johnson, had been owned by a partnership headed by TriGate Capital since 2015 .

The building, first opened in 1987, underwent previous updates in 2020. The tower is Dallas’ third tallest building at 787 feet.

Stream’s Ramsey March, who serves as managing director and partner, Office, noted the firm’s work on Trammell Crow Center in its approach to Comerica Bank Tower.

“It’s the centerpiece of Downtown and deserves a redevelopment befitting its importance to the city of Dallas,” said March.

Stream recently completed its redevelopment of The Quad , a mixed-use project located in nearby Uptown. It spans a new office building and five restaurant buildings.

Anna Butler , Real estate reporter . Anna is a real estate reporter for The Dallas Morning News. She previously served as managing editor and real estate editor of the Dallas Business Journal. She is a graduate of Wake Forest University. A seventh generation Texan, Anna grew up in Austin.

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Chiefs kicker Butker congratulates women graduates and says most are more excited about motherhood

FILE - Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker speaks to the media during NFL football Super Bowl 58 opening night Monday, Feb. 5, 2024, in Las Vegas. Butker railed against Pride month along with President Biden’s leadership during the COVID-19 pandemic and his stance on abortion during a commencement address at Benedictine College last weekend. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel, File)

The Benedictine College sign is seen Wednesday, May 15, 2024, in Atchison, Kan., days after Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker gave a commencement speech that has been gaining attention. Butker’s speech has raised some eyebrows with his proclamations of conservative politics and Catholicism, but he received a standing ovation from graduates and other attendees of the commencement ceremony on Saturday, May 11. (AP Photo/Nick Ingram)

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KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The commencement speaker at Kansas’ Benedictine College , a private Catholic liberal arts school, congratulated the women receiving degrees — and said most of them were probably more excited about getting married and having children.

Harrison Butker, the kicker for the Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs, is getting attention for those and other comments last weekend in which he said some Catholic leaders were “pushing dangerous gender ideologies onto the youth of America.”

Butker, who’s made his conservative Catholic beliefs well known, also assailed Pride month , a particularly important time for the LGBTQ+ rights movement, and President Joe Biden’s stance on abortion.

“I think it is you, the women, who have had the most diabolical lies told to you,” Butker said.

AP AUDIO: Chiefs kicker Butker congratulates women graduates and says most are more excited about motherhood

A Super Bowl champion kicker is in hot water after comments he made during a college commencement speech. Correspondent Gethin Coolbaugh reports.

“Some of you may go on to lead successful careers in the world, but I would venture to guess that the majority of you are most excited about your marriage and the children you will bring into this world. I can tell you that my beautiful wife Isabelle would be the first to say that her life truly started when she started living her vocation as a wife and as a mother,” he said.

Butker said that his wife embraced “one of the most important titles of all. Homemaker.“

“Harrison Butker gave a speech in his personal capacity,” NFL senior vice president and chief diversity and inclusion officer Jonathan Beane said in a statement. “His views are not those of the NFL as an organization. The NFL is steadfast in our commitment to inclusion, which only makes our league stronger.”

Butker also criticized as disparaging to the Catholic Church an article by The Associated Press highlighting a shift toward conservativism in some parts of the church.

The three-time Super Bowl champion delivered his roughly 20-minute address Saturday at the Catholic private liberal arts school in Atchison, Kansas, which is located about 60 miles (97 kilometers) miles north of Kansas City. He received a standing ovation from graduates and other attendees.

Butker, 28, referred to a “deadly sin sort of pride that has a month dedicated to it” in an oblique reference to Pride month. Butker also took aim at Biden’s policies, including his condemnation of the Supreme Court’s reversal of the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision and advocacy for freedom of choice — a key campaign issue in the 2024 presidential race.

Biden, who is Catholic, has a fraught history on the issue. He initially opposed the Roe v. Wade decision, saying it went too far . He also opposed federal funding for abortions and supported restrictions on abortions later in pregnancy.

Butker also tackled Biden’s response to COVID-19, which has killed nearly 1.2 million people in the U.S., according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

“While COVID might have played a large role throughout your formative years, it is not unique,” he said. “Bad policies and poor leadership have negatively impacted major life issues. Things like abortion, IVF, surrogacy, euthanasia, as well as a growing support for degenerate cultural values and media all stem from pervasiveness of disorder.”

Graduates had mixed views on the speech. ValerieAnne Volpe, 20, who graduated with an art degree, lauded Butker for saying things that “people are scared to say.”

“You can just hear that he loves his wife. You can hear that he loves his family,” she said.

Elle Wilbers, 22, who is heading to medical school, said she was shocked by Butker’s criticism of priests and bishops and his reference to the LGBTQ+ community, one that she described as “horrible.”

“We should have compassion for the people who have been told all their life that the person they love is like, it’s not OK to love that person,” Wilbers said.

Kassidy Neuner, 22, who will spend a gap year teaching before going to law school, said being a stay-at-home parent is “a wonderful decision.”

“And it’s also not for everybody,” Neuner added, saying, “I think that he should have addressed more that it’s not always an option. And, if it is your option in life, that’s amazing for you. But there’s also the option to be a mother and a career woman.”

The Chiefs declined to comment on Butker’s commencement address.

The 2017 seventh-round pick out of Georgia Tech has become of the NFL’s best kickers, breaking the Chiefs’ franchise record with a 62-yard field goal in 2022. Butker helped them win their first Super Bowl in 50 years in 2020, added a second Lombardi Trophy in 2023, and he kicked the field goal that forced overtime in a Super Bowl win over San Francisco in February.

It has been an embarrassing offseason for the Chiefs, though.

Last month, voters in Jackson County, Missouri, soundly rejected a ballot initiative that would have helped pay for an $800 million renovation to Arrowhead Stadium, home of the Chiefs. Many voters criticized the plan put forward by the Chiefs as catering primarily to VIPs and the wealthy.

The same week, wide receiver Rashee Rice turned himself in to Dallas police on multiple charges, including aggravated assault, after he was involved in a high-speed crash that left four people with injuries. Rice has acknowledged being the driver of one of the sports cars that was going in excess of 100 mph (160 kph).

Last week, law enforcement officials told The Dallas Morning News that Rice also was suspected of assaulting a person at a downtown nightclub. Dallas police did not name Rice as the suspect in detailing a report to The Associated Press.

Chiefs coach Andy Reid said he had spoken to the receiver and the team was letting the legal process play out.

Associated Press writer Heather Hollingsworth in Mission, Kansas, contributed to this story.

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

Trump just made more promises to oil industry campaign donors

The pledges to oil executives came a day before Senate Democrats launched a probe of Trump seeking $1 billion in donations from the oil industry.

In a rambling fundraising pitch to oil executives in Houston on Wednesday, former president Donald Trump promised them that he would immediately approve their projects and expand drilling in a second term — just as he worked to expedite the controversial Dakota Access and Keystone XL pipelines soon after taking office in 2017.

Trump said that if he returned to office in January, he would issue “immediate approvals for energy infrastructure. That’s pipelines, power plants,” according to the detailed notes of one attendee at the fundraiser who shared them on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to comment publicly.

“I approved the Keystone pipeline, and I approved the Dakota Access pipeline,” Trump said at the fundraiser at Houston’s Post Oak Hotel, according to the notes.

The event, organized by three oil executives, underscores how Trump is courting an industry that ranked as a main beneficiary of his time in the White House, as he seeks to narrow President Biden’s fundraising advantage . Less than 24 hours later, Senate Democrats launched an investigation of Trump’s fundraising dinner last month at his Mar-a-Lago Club in Palm Beach, Fla., where he asked oil executives to steer $1 billion to his campaign and pledged to reverse dozens of Biden’s environmental policies.

One co-host of Wednesday’s fundraiser was Kelcy Warren, the billionaire chairman and CEO of Energy Transfer Partners, the builder of the Dakota Access pipeline. During the GOP presidential primaries, Warren donated tens of thousands of dollars to one of Trump’s main rivals, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), according to Federal Election Commission filings .

Now, Warren appears to be firmly in Trump’s camp. In addition to co-hosting the Houston fundraiser, where attendance cost $250,000 per person, he donated $800,000 to the Trump campaign throughout the 2024 campaign cycle. The event lasted many hours and included pictures. The speech lasted about an hour, and Trump mingled with attendees, taking pictures with high-dollar contributors.

On Thursday, Democrats on the Senate Budget Committee and the Senate Finance Committee launched a joint investigation of the Mar-a-Lago meeting last month. The senators voiced concern that Trump’s request at the dinner may have been a quid pro quo and may have violated campaign finance laws, although experts say his conduct probably did not cross the threshold of being illegal .

During his speech Wednesday, Trump did not ask the oil executives for a specific amount of campaign donations, according to the notes from the attendee.

“Be generous, please,” he said to end his speech, after making policy promises and touting his energy record. One person involved in the event said it raised more than $25 million.

Trump said he would “lift the natural gas export ban, cancel all unnecessary energy-killing regulations … [and] open up more federal lands” to drilling, the notes said, drawing cheers from the audience.

He told attendees that he would immediately reverse Biden’s pause on approvals of new liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports . Lifting the pause could directly benefit Energy Transfer Partners, whose pipelines serve several LNG export terminals that ship the fuel overseas. The company also clashed with the Biden administration last year when it refused to extend a permit for its LNG export terminal in Lake Charles, La.

Another co-host of the Houston fundraiser was Harold Hamm, the executive chairman of the oil giant Continental Resources and a pioneer of the country’s fracking boom. During the event, Trump lobbed a joke at Hamm about his singular focus on fossil fuels.

“He’s my original oil guy that taught me so much about oil,” Trump said of Hamm, according to the attendee’s notes. “This guy knows more about oil and gas ... that’s all he knows. That’s the problem. He’s so boring to be with, you know, because all he wants to talk about is oil and gas.”

The third co-host of the fundraiser was Vicki Hollub, the CEO of Occidental Petroleum who has touted what she calls “net-zero oil” — a seemingly paradoxical term that refers to oil produced using carbon dioxide captured from drilling .

Spokespeople for Energy Transfer Partners, Continental Resources and Occidental Petroleum did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Asked for comment, Trump campaign spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt did not directly answer questions about the fundraiser. In an emailed statement, she said that “President Trump is supported by people who share his vision of American energy dominance to protect our national security and bring down the cost of living for all Americans.”

Despite the oil industry’s complaints about Biden’s policies, the United States now produces more oil than any country ever has , pumping nearly 13 million barrels per day on average last year.

At the Houston fundraiser, Trump again griped about wind energy , claiming that turbines kill bald eagles and that wind “doesn’t work,” according to the notes from the attendee, and made clear his preferences.

“So we have wind, but we want natural gas. Natural gas is clean and strong and powerful, and more gasoline and oil,” Trump said, according to the notes. He also praised North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum (R), who is orchestrating much of his energy policy and attended the event.

Trump promised the oil executives that he would open up the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) to drilling. His administration had auctioned off oil and gas leases in the refuge, one of the nation’s last unspoiled wild places, days before Trump left office.

“I had ANWR approved in Alaska. It’s the biggest oil farm,” he said, incorrectly stating the refuge holds an oil reserve “equivalent of Saudi Arabia, they think.” The U.S. Geological Survey has estimated somewhere between 4.3 billion and 11.8 billion barrels of oil lie underneath the refuge’s coastal plain, whereas Saudi Arabia has an estimated 267 billion barrels of proven crude oil reserves, according to the coalition of oil-producing nations led by Saudi Arabia and Russia.

The Jan. 6 , 2021, lease sale on the ANWR generated little industry interest, and the Biden administration later suspended those leases, saying Trump officials had done an “insufficient analysis” of how drilling would affect critical habitat for threatened polar bears and migrating caribou. Three of the winning bidders later pulled out, and the Interior Department last year canceled the remaining seven leases, though it is legally obligated to hold a second lease sale there by the end of this year.

Returning to a familiar theme, Trump bashed electric vehicles at the Houston fundraiser. He promised to “end the EV mandate immediately” — mischaracterizing ambitious rules that the Environmental Protection Agency recently finalized . The rules require automakers to reduce emissions from car tailpipes, but they don’t mandate a particular technology such as EVs.

The batteries in electric trucks, Trump complained, are too big and too heavy. “It’s a massive battery. The battery’s bigger than a freaking army tank,” he said, according to the attendee’s notes.

He also mocked energy-efficient and water-saving appliances, calling them a “scam” and “the energy hoax.”

Despite his gripes with EVs and efficient appliances — and with Biden’s ambitious climate agenda more broadly — Trump assured attendees that he is a “big believer in the environment.”

“During the Trump administration, we had the cleanest air,” he said.

The fundraiser covered a range of other topics. He bragged about his golf game — saying he had improved over the past 25 years — and railed against the trial in New York and the other criminal indictments, the attendee said. He gave a slide presentation about other topics, such as immigration and foreign policy, the attendee said.

“We’re going to build the greatest Iron Dome over our country,” he said. “Israel has it.”

He regaled the crowd with a long story about his impeachment in 2019 — over withholding foreign aid to Ukraine as he asked the country’s leader to investigate Hunter Biden — and called Ukraine a “very corrupt country.” He said he called Ukraine’s president in 2019 only at the request of Rick Perry, the former Republican governor of Texas who was the energy secretary.

“So I was impeached, and I said, ‘Thanks a lot, Rick,’” Trump said.

He spent several minutes focused on how the special counsel questioned President Biden’s memory and mental faculties while not charging him with holding classified documents as part of a report released this year.

“It’s probably the worst exoneration I’ve ever seen,” he said, vowing to use the special counsel’s report in the campaign.

He bragged about his ability to save Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton (R) from impeachment, saying his critics backed down after Trump weighed in to defend Paxton.

Trump said he went after Dade Phelan, the speaker of the House in Texas who led Paxton’s failed impeachment.

“I went after somebody that was not your friend. Not for that reason, but because he was not into voter fraud that was taking place in Texas,” he said, repeating false claims of fraud.

Trump repeated his false claims of the 2020 election being stolen and said Republican National Committee Chair Michael Whatley was the most important person in the room because he is “going to stop the cheating.”

“We call it save the vote, guard the vote, stop the steal,” he said, referring to what the RNC needed to be doing. The RNC has launched a program called “Bank Your Vote” to bring in early votes.

He said he picked Whatley for the job because he did not lose North Carolina “in the middle of the night” like he did some other states, when he alleged more ballots came in to cost him the election. Before his current position, Whatley was chair of North Carolina’s Republican Party.

“If you talk about it, you’re a denier,” he said of his false claims of the 2020 election, according to the notes. “I’m the greatest denier in history.”

Trump also said he was trying to post on Truth Social less frequently after midnight.

“I never go beyond 2 o’clock. 3 o’clock is like magic. They say he was truthing at 3 in the morning,” he said. “They make you look like a little bit of a nut job.”

A previous version of this article incorrectly said Donald Trump took office in 2016. He took office in 2017. The article has been updated.

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At Morehouse, Biden says dissent should be heard because democracy is 'still the way'

Stephen Fowler

Jeongyoon Han

President Biden speaks to graduating students at the Morehouse College commencement Sunday in Atlanta. Alex Brandon/AP hide caption

President Biden speaks to graduating students at the Morehouse College commencement Sunday in Atlanta.

President Biden told Morehouse College's graduating class of 2024 that he's committed to serving Black voters while defending freedom and democracy in the face of "extremist forces" that he says threaten the soul of the nation.

With just six months until the general election, the speech, which was filled with religious themes of struggle and resilience, also served as a continuation of Biden's warning to his supporters of what he thinks the country would look like if Donald Trump is elected again.

"They don't see you in the future of America, but they're wrong," he said. "To me, we make history, not erase it. We know Black history is American history."

The president's commencement address at Morehouse, a historically Black school in Atlanta, also comes as polling shows potentially lower support for his reelection efforts among Black voters and young voters, and as campus protests over conflict in Gaza have disrupted graduations around the country.

Biden said he understood angst over the direction of the country, acknowledged "dissent about America's role in the world" and said that those who have different views should have their voices heard in the name of democracy.

"That's my commitment to you," he said. "To show you: democracy, democracy democracy — it's still the way."

Graduating students at the Morehouse College commencement bow their heads Sunday in Atlanta. President Biden addressed the graduating class of 2024 and warned about "extremist forces" he says threaten the soul of the nation. Alex Brandon/AP hide caption

Graduating students at the Morehouse College commencement bow their heads Sunday in Atlanta. President Biden addressed the graduating class of 2024 and warned about "extremist forces" he says threaten the soul of the nation.

His speech is also one of many events on his recent trip aimed at speaking to Black voters, following events with plaintiffs in the historic Brown v. Board Supreme Court case, meetings with Black Greek Letter Organizations, often known as the Divine Nine, and before he headlines an NAACP dinner in Detroit.

For weeks, several college and university campuses around the country have been roiled with student protests and encampments expressing opposition against Biden and U.S. policies and involvement around conflict in Gaza.

Biden will cap off a week of outreach to Black Americans with Morehouse commencement

Biden is set for the Morehouse graduation. Students are divided

Morehouse has seen student demonstrations, but not occupation of campus spaces or clashes with law enforcement. Outside of the ceremony, a small number of protesters gathered while the commencement itself did not see any major disruptions.

Last week, Morehouse College President David Thomas said he would rather halt proceedings than have students escorted away for protesting.

"If my choice is 20 people being arrested on national TV on the Morehouse campus, taken away in zip ties during our commencement, before we would reach that point, I would conclude the ceremony," he said on NPR's Weekend Edition .

An attendee stands in protest with their back to President Biden as Biden speaks to graduating students at the Morehouse College commencement Sunday in Atlanta. John Bazemore/AP hide caption

An attendee stands in protest with their back to President Biden as Biden speaks to graduating students at the Morehouse College commencement Sunday in Atlanta.

Those concerns did not come to pass. Apart from the heightened security and increased media presence, Biden's speech was met with a similar response to a typical college graduation ceremony.

More than 400 graduating students walked across the stage Sunday, and during Biden's speech a handful of students, some wearing keffiyehs , turned their chairs around to face away from the president.

After the ceremony, Morehouse issued a statement praising the graduating class and their intentionally muted response to Biden.

"It is fitting that a moment of organized, peaceful activism would occur on our campus while the world is watching to continue a critical conversation," the statement reads. "We are proud of the resilient class of 2024's unity in silent protest, showing their intentionality in strategy, communication, and coordination as a 414-person unit."

DeAngelo Fletcher, Morehouse College's valedictorian, closed his address to his classmates by addressing global conflict, particularly the Israel-Hamas war.

"For the first time in our lives, we've heard the global community sing one harmonious song that transcends language and culture," he said. "It is my sense as a Morehouse Man, nay — as a human being — to call for an immediate and a permanent ceasefire in the Gaza Strip."

Biden's speech at Morehouse comes with intense scrutiny as many presidential horse race polls show the president lagging with young voters, Black voters and other nonwhite groups that helped propel him to a narrow victory against Trump in 2020.

Those polls — for now — signal a drop in support for Biden but not necessarily an equal shift toward Trump. There are also signs that some of the displeasure with Biden is more pronounced among people who aren't as likely to vote in November.

While facing a nominal challenge in the Democratic presidential primary, Biden's best-performing areas have often come in places with a large share of Black voters. For example, in Georgia's primary contest 95% of Black voters pulled a Democratic ballot, and Biden won 95% of the overall vote.

While some students, faculty and alumni expressed opposition to Biden's selection as the commencement speaker, reaction on campus during the graduation ceremony was largely positive.

Dr. Tiffany Johnson, a 50-year-old who came to the campus green at 4:30 a.m. to see her son graduate, was also excited to see Biden.

"He is the leader of the free world, the most important job in the world, and for him to come to speak to [Morehouse] graduates, to inspire them, is phenomenal," Johnson said.

Johnson said Black voters who might not support Biden are part of a "bandwagon" that do not understand what he has done for the community, and said his speech would be an ideal opportunity to share his accomplishments.

In the speech, Biden touted a track record that he says makes key investments in Black communities, including a record $16 billion funding package toward historically Black colleges and universities, protecting voting rights, and creating economic policies that strengthens Black businesses.

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Biden Draws on Themes of Manhood and Faith at Morehouse Commencement

The president’s appearance at the historically Black college in Atlanta drew some respectful but noticeable protest over U.S. support for Israel’s war in Gaza.

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Biden Calls on Morehouse College Graduates to Defend Democracy

In a commencement speech at morehouse, the historically black men’s college in atlanta, president biden condemned white supremacy and “extremist forces aligned against the meaning and message of morehouse.”.

You started college just as George Floyd was murdered and there was a reckoning on race. It’s natural to wonder if democracy you hear about actually works for you. What is democracy if Black men are being killed in the street? What is democracy if the trail of broken promises still leave Black communities behind? What is democracy if you have to be 10 times better than anyone else to get a fair shot? Well that’s my commitment to you. To show you democracy, democracy, democracy, is still the way. That Black men are being killed in the streets, we bear witness. For me, that means to call out the poison of white supremacy. Graduates, this is what we’re up against: extremist forces aligned against the meaning and message of Morehouse. And they peddle a fiction, a caricature, of what being a man is about — tough talk, abusing power, bigotry. But that’s not you. It’s not us. You all know and demonstrate what it really means to be a man. Being a man is about strength of respect and dignity. It’s about showing up because it’s too late, if you have to ask. It’s about giving hate no safe harbor.

By Katie Rogers and Maya King

Katie Rogers and Maya King reported from the Morehouse College commencement ceremony in Atlanta.

• May 19, 2024

President Biden invoked scripture and lessons from his own tragic past on Sunday in a commencement address to hundreds of young Black men at Morehouse College, saying he believes there are “extremist forces aligned against the meaning and message” of the prestigious institution.

Mr. Biden’s speech, delivered at the historically Black men’s college in Atlanta, put him directly in front of hundreds who represent a slice of the electorate that is drifting away from him over the war in Gaza and growing apathy about their choices ahead of the election. Mr. Biden used the moment to say that manhood was not about “tough talk” and “bigotry” but about calling out hate.

“Their idea of being a man is toxic,” Mr. Biden told the graduates, a reference to adversaries he did not name — but, given that his other events this weekend were focused on attacking his Republican competitor, Donald J. Trump, it was little mystery who he was talking about. “That is not you. That is not us. Being a man is about strength and respect and dignity.”

Those who stormed the Capitol with Confederate flags “are called patriots by some,” he said — a clear reference to Mr. Trump. “Not in my house.”

Mr. Biden’s speech was his first significant appearance before college students since protests over the war in Gaza began roiling campuses. For a ceremony in which students are discouraged even from decorating their caps, the signs of protest were respectful but noticeable: A small group of graduates turned to sit with their backs to Mr. Biden as he spoke, and several graduates wore the kaffiyeh, a traditional scarf associated with the Palestinians, draped over their shoulders. Some parents urged their graduating sons not to protest.

Mr. Biden also called for an immediate cease-fire and said that his administration was working to secure one. He said that members of his family had been upset by the war, a group that includes Jill Biden, the first lady, who has urged her husband in private to bring a stop to it.

“What’s happening in Gaza, in Israel, is heartbreaking,” Mr. Biden said. “It’s a humanitarian crisis in Gaza.”

In a statement, Morehouse said that discussions between White House officials and students, faculty and alumni had helped shape Mr. Biden’s speech and his calls for a cease-fire in Gaza. The school also praised its graduates. “It is fitting that a moment of organized, peaceful activism would occur on our campus while the world is watching to continue a critical conversation,” the statement read.

During his 27-minute speech, Mr. Biden tried to stress to the graduates — none of whom stood for him as he took the lectern — that throughout his life he had respected and espoused the same ideas they care about.

He said he had worked throughout his life, as a public defender, senator and president, to correct inequalities. He outlined the work his administration has done that he and his advisers believe deserves more credit than it receives, including the forgiveness of large amounts of student loan debt and reducing the poverty rate for Black children.

“We know Black history is American history,” Mr. Biden said at one point, urging the crowd to “check my record,” which includes choosing the first Black female Supreme Court justice, Ketanji Brown Jackson, and the first Black woman to hold the vice presidency, Kamala Harris.

By focusing on matters of adversity and strength, Mr. Biden also sought to strike a contrast with Mr. Trump not on the grounds of politics or policy but through the lessons of keeping faith in moments of hopelessness. He spoke of the death of his first wife and daughter as well as his eldest son, Beau, from brain cancer.

He told the Morehouse graduates, a class that weathered the chaos of the pandemic and the tumult of widespread protests over the police killings of Black men, that it was natural for them to question whether there was a place for them in democracy at all.

“What is democracy when Black men are being killed in the streets?” he said. “What is democracy when a trail of broken promises still leave Black communities behind? What is democracy when you have to be 10 times better than anyone else to get a fair shot?”

Repeatedly, Mr. Biden reached for religious inspiration, recalling that Jesus was buried on Friday and resurrected on Sunday, leaving Saturday as a day of hopelessness. He suggested that 2020 — the year he was elected, with its twin traumas of the Covid-19 pandemic and the police killing of George Floyd — had been one such Saturday.

At one point, Mr. Biden said, “I’ve learned there was no easy optimism but by faith, by faith you can find redemption.”

Mr. Biden, who has a bust of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in the Oval Office — and who is old enough to have shared his memories of Dr. King’s assassination in his speech — walked into commencement on Sunday unsure of how the crowd would receive him.

Morehouse, which was established in Atlanta in 1867, is a school whose culture is steeped in tradition. Students spend their years working toward becoming the embodiment of the Morehouse man: well traveled, well read and civically engaged. As the alma mater of Dr. King, there is also a proud history of protesting for social justice.

Mr. Biden’s visit to Morehouse drew the objections of some faculty members, alumni and students, who have voiced anger over the war in Gaza and the American government’s support for Israel. The tension drew so much attention that the school’s president, David A. Thomas, publicly warned that he would stop the commencement if graduates shouted at the president or disrupted the event.

The men of Morehouse found ways to work their opposition to the war into the ceremony. DeAngelo Jeremiah Fletcher, the class valedictorian, took the stage with the Palestinian flag pinned on his stole and on his cap.

“It is my stance as a Morehouse man, nay, as a human being, to call for an immediate and permanent cease-fire, in the Gaza Strip,” Mr. Fletcher said. Mr. Biden joined the crowd in standing up and clapping when Mr. Fletcher finished, and he shook the graduate’s hand.

But by the end of Mr. Biden’s speech, signs of support were visible, too. As Mr. Biden received an honorary doctorate of law, Mr. Thomas praised the president for listening to the concerns of the graduating class. And some people chanted “four more years” as Mr. Biden left the stage.

After addressing Morehouse, Mr. Biden was set to travel to Detroit to speak at a dinner hosted by the N.A.A.C.P.

Hitting two battleground states in eight hours was the clearest sign yet that Mr. Biden is serious about reintroducing himself to voters who carried him to the White House in 2020 and whose support he will need to win to stay in office for a second term.

In 2020 , 95 percent of Black women and 87 percent of Black men voted for Mr. Biden, according to the Pew Research Center. But in April, only 55 percent of Black voters told Pew that they approved of his job performance. A recent poll by Ipsos and The Washington Post showed that 62 percent of Black Americans planned to vote in 2024, down from 74 percent in 2020.

In recent days, both Mr. Biden and Ms. Harris have traveled outside of Washington to host events geared toward bringing those voters back into the fold.

Mr. Biden’s trip to Detroit comes as the latest New York Times/Siena College poll shows him winning support from less than half of Black voters in Michigan in a five-way race. In 2020, he won more than 90 percent of Black voters in the state, exit polls show.

The war in Gaza and concerns about the economy are driving factors behind what analysts say is an increase in apathy. In Michigan, nearly nine in 10 Black voters rated the economy as being in “fair” or “poor” condition, a higher rate than white voters, the Times/Siena poll found.

Alexis Wiley, the founder of a strategic communications firm in Detroit and a former member of the Democratic National Committee, said the Biden administration had to do more to communicate its victories.

“I think that they’re finally catching up to the fact that people aren’t feeling great,” Ms. Wiley said, “and now there’s this mad dash to try to correct it.”

Reporting was contributed by Nicholas Nehamas in Washington and Chevaz Clarke-Williams , Alan Blinder and Sean Keenan in Atlanta.

Katie Rogers is a White House correspondent. For much of the past decade, she has focused on features about the presidency, the first family, and life in Washington, in addition to covering a range of domestic and foreign policy issues. She is the author of a book on first ladies. More about Katie Rogers

Maya King is a politics reporter covering the Southeast, based in Atlanta. She covers campaigns, elections and movements in the American South, as well as national trends relating to Black voters and young people. More about Maya King

• Reported statements — mixed tenses — Exercise 2
• 1. Rachel, “I can’t help you.” Rachel told me (that) . she couldn’t help me
• 2. John, “She may be at home.” John said (that) . she might be at home
• 3. Kelly, “My friend lives in Brazil.” Kelly told me (that) . her friend lived in Brazil
• 4. Teacher, “We will discuss it tomorrow.” The teacher said (that) . they would discuss it the next day
• 5. Bill, “I have already read it.” Bill said (that) . he had already read it
• 6. Andrew, “I must be at home in time.” Andrew told me (that) . he had to be at home in time
• 7. Kate, “I don't usually sleep in the afternoon.” Kate said (that) . she didn't usually sleep in the afternoon
• 8. Walter, “My family is going to fly to Australia next month.” Walter told me (that) . his family was going to fly to Australia the following month
• 9. Chris, “They haven't come yet.” Chris said (that) . they hadn't come yet
• 10. Sam, “My computer isn't working.” Sam told me (that) . his computer wasn't working
• Reported statements — mixed tenses — Exercise 1
• Reported statements — mixed tenses — Exercise 3
• Reported statements — mixed tenses — Exercise 4
• Reported statements — mixed tenses — Exercise 5
• Reported statements — mixed tenses — Exercise 6