Donald Trump soared into a poll lead in the race for the White House as Hillary Clinton’s plans for a “Convention of hope” descended into bitter infighting and angry protests, with some Democrats saying they would prefer to vote for her Republican rival.

Mrs Clinton is due to become the first female presidential nominee of a major US political party at the Democratic Convention which began in Philadelphia on Monday.

It was billed as a week of optimism laying out a vision of unity and progress for America, contrasting with Mr Trump’s dark and foreboding descriptions of a country in crisis.

As the convention was set to open, a new poll from CNN showed Donald Trump leading Mrs Clinton by 44 per cent to 39 per cent.

Mike Malloy produces a two-hour podcast that can be heard online Monday through Friday from 9P until 11P ET. His radio experience includes two 50,000 watt blow-torches: WSB-AM in Atlanta and WLS-AM in Chicago. He was one of the original hosts on Air America Radio, and he wrote and produced for CNN (1984-87) and CNN-International (2000). He is the only radio talk show host in America to have received the A.I.R (Achievement in Radio) Award in both Chicago and New York City, the nation’s number three and number one radio markets respectively.