Democrats and Republicans engage in a battle of optics as Democrats renew their nominations and Republicans adjust their strategies.

The GOP has also improved its optics by supporting Vice President Harris as the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee.

The House Republicans have a history of difficulty in governing, as they often struggle to pass their own legislative initiatives. This was evident when they were unable to pass the annual Financial Services and Agriculture appropriations bills due to a lack of votes. As a result, House GOP leaders decided to cut members loose a week early for the "August recess," which means there will be no House session this week and no votes in the House until at least September 9.

Although optics and governing differ, Republicans managed to strengthen their optics before the summer break.

With Harris now their main political opponent, Republicans have extra time to recalibrate their message and tune it to campaign against her. Additionally, they can attempt to link vulnerable Democrats to her.

Rep. Richard Hudson, R-N.C., Chairman of the NRCC, stated that the Vice President is unpopular because people reject their policies.

"She has always struggled to connect with young voters," said Hudson. "She is an ineffective politician."

The Vice President gave Republicans an opportunity due to their loss of floor traffic.

Elise Stefanik, the House Republican Conference Chairwoman, authored a resolution to condemn Kamala Harris for her role as "border czar" within hours of President Biden endorsing her. The House took up the resolution on Thursday, deploying it as a punctuation point for the unofficial start of the campaign season. The final vote before the recess saw the House vote 220 to 196 to condemn how Harris handled the border. All Republicans voted yea, while six moderate Democrats from battleground districts sided with the GOP. These Democrats were Reps. Jared Golden, Marie Gluesenkamp Perez, Yadira Caraveo, Don Davis, Henry Cueller, and Mary Peltola.

Republicans planned to record the vote on Harris's confirmation to either challenge Democrats or show their support for her. They would later use this specific roll call vote in advertisements against Democrats in swing districts during the fall election.

Democrats attempted to redefine Vice President Harris's role with the border after realizing their vulnerability and that of themselves. Some advocates distributed talking points to Democrats, emphasizing that there is no such position as "border czar" and that Harris was tasked with addressing the root causes of the border crisis, including reducing the flow of illegal immigration from the "Northern Triangle" countries of Honduras, Guatemala, and El Salvador.

In recent days, another batch of favorable public image opportunities landed in the hands of the Republican Party.

Last week, Republicans invited Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to speak at a Joint Meeting of Congress. While the GOP has consistently supported Netanyahu and Israel in their conflict with Hamas, Democrats are divided on the issue. Many Democrats chose to skip the speech, including Vice President Harris. Typically, the VP would preside over the meeting alongside House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La.

The invitation for Netanyahu to speak in Congress was signed by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, both Democrats from New York. However, Schumer did not shake Netanyahu's hand when he was welcomed to the chamber for his speech. Meanwhile, Rep. Rashida Tlaib, a Democrat from Michigan, sat quietly in the chamber, holding up a sign that read "War Criminal" on one side and "Guilty of Genocide" on the other.

"Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., expressed his frustration by saying, "It was preposterous. There's no place for that," after challenging a witness to a fistfight at a hearing last year. He added, "I wanted to go over there and take it away from her. I mean, I wasn't going to. But if it would have been a guy, I would have.""

Mullin added that Tlaib "shouldn’t be serving in Congress."

Inside the House chamber, Tlaib, a Palestinian-American, demonstrated quietly while protesters paraded around the Capitol. The U.S. Capitol Police erected a massive wire fence around the building, reminiscent of the barricade they put up after the 2021 riot. One protester said the barriers converted the citadel of democracy into "Fort Netanyahu."

Netanyahu was staying at the Watergate Hotel when anti-Israel activists released mealworms and maggots.

And you thought they only needed the "plumbers" at the Watergate.

As Netanyahu spoke, protesters clashed with police outside Washington’s Union Station, burning American flags and replacing the Stars and Stripes with Palestinian flags on poles in front of the station. They also spraypainted "Hamas is Comin’" on statues.

Netanyahu blasted the demonstrators as "Iran’s useful idiots."

The scene perturbed Democrats.

Rep. Jared Moskowitz, D-Fla, commented on the irony of the Prime Minister's statement about burning American flags, which was proven true by the burning of American flags in the presence of the Capitol.

Democrats were divided over the Middle East, giving Republicans the desired optic. However, the confrontations with police and flag burning intensified the images.

By nightfall, things calmed down. However, Republicans staged some additional political maneuvers.

As Rep. Brandon Williams, R-N.Y., passed Union Station on his way to late-night votes in the House, he suddenly had an idea to replace the Palestinian flags with American flags.

Johnson stated, "This place was desecrated. Our flag was burned right here. If we don't take action, we'll have a problem in this country."

A group of Republicans, including Williams and Johnson, removed Palestinian flags from the train station and re-hoisted the American flag.

"Johnson stated that it was outrageous that Palestinian flags were displayed on these poles today. He added that they were damaging public property and burning American flags, and that they would not tolerate such behavior."

Anti-Israel protesters burning the American flag are leftist, while Republican Congressmen raising the U.S. flag.

What did we say earlier about optics?

Six individuals were arrested inside the Capitol for disrupting Netanyahu's speech, resulting in a total of 23 arrests by DC police agencies in relation to the demonstrations.

The decision to drop charges against 11 protesters was met with disapproval by Republicans, who saw it as a reflection of Washington, D.C.'s "lawless" nature and "weak prosecutors." House Republicans demanded briefings on the events that transpired in the streets of D.C., and the decision to not prosecute aligned with the Republican narrative.

Republicans didn't need much legislation to boast about their success in the optics war during the August recess.