An emotional Joe Biden went all out on Monday to give his full support to Kamala Harris to succeed him as president of the United States. A month ago, Biden was still fighting to be the Democratic candidate for re-election himself. After throwing in the towel in an exercise of realism in the face of pressure from the party and public opinion, Biden is now focused on preventing Donald Trump from returning to the White House. “I love my job, but I love my country more,” he said when explaining his resignation and asking for a vote for Kamala Harris to “preserve democracy.” The president received all the love of the party, with an audience more committed than ever.
After being introduced by his daughter, Biden took almost five minutes to begin his speech, as he was prevented from doing so by the applause and chants of the audience: “Thank you Joe,” “We love you, Joe,” chanted the thousands of people at the United Center in Chicago, where the convention is being held. The communion between the president and the delegates serves as an emotional suture for the wound opened in the party by his withdrawal. The fact that Biden is passing the baton to his vice president, with whom he has a rapport and complicity, also makes things easier.
“Choosing Kamala Harris was the first decision I made when I became our nominee, and it was the best decision I have made in my entire career,” Biden said, in a speech that had something of a political testament. “I have given my best to America. I have made a lot of mistakes in my career, but I have given my best to you,” the president said.
His speech reviewed the achievements of his presidency and endorsed Harris as the heir to his legacy, but it was also dedicated to warning of the existential threat he sees in a possible return of Trump. “We saved democracy in 2020 and we are going to save it again in 2024,” said the president. “Are you ready to vote for freedom, for democracy and for the United States? Let me ask you: are you ready to elect Kamala Harris and Tim Walz?” he began his speech.
She declared her love for the United States and contrasted it with what she considers Trump’s attitude: “You can’t love your country only when you win,” she said. “Donald Trump says we are a country in decline. He says we are losing. He is the loser! He is totally wrong,” she exclaimed. “Crime will continue to go down when we put a female prosecutor in the White House instead of a convicted felon,” she said in another attack on her political rival.
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On stage came an energetic Biden, more reminiscent of the one who gave the State of the Union address in March than the one who floundered in the debate against Trump in June. His speech, in fact, was largely an anthology of previous interventions. Biden likes to repeat the phrases he considers accurate. “Wall Street did not build America. The middle class did. And unions built the middle class,” was one of many. “Donald Trump promised a week of infrastructure every week after four years, and he never built a damn thing,” another. “We are at an inflection point, at one of those rare moments in history when the decisions we make will determine the fate of our nation and the world for decades to come,” he insisted, as he has many other times. He also reiterated his idea that a “battle for the soul of the nation” is being fought. And another that, every time it is heard, announces that the speech is coming to an end: “We are the United States of America and there is nothing we cannot do if we do it together.”
The president reviewed the achievements of his presidency, including the end of the pandemic, economic recovery, record job creation, lower drug prices, investments in infrastructure and the boost to microprocessor plants.
A devoted audience
Surrounded by family and political allies, Biden received the affection of an audience that was devoted to his fleeting visit to a convention in which he is not the protagonist. Although most of the delegates were chosen in the primaries to nominate him, the Democratic Party has now become Kamala Harris’s party.
The vice president and Democratic candidate herself took the lead in the thanksgiving with a surprise intervention in the first session of the convention. To the rhythm of the song Freedom, Beyoncé’s song, which became her campaign anthem, Harris skipped the program to appear on stage on Monday afternoon. “This is going to be a great week and I want to start by celebrating our incredible President Joe Biden,” she said. “Joe, thank you for your historic leadership, for your life of service to our nation and for everything that you continue to do. We are forever grateful. Thank you, Joe,” she said, amid the euphoria unleashed by those present, a couple of hours before the president spoke. Then, after the speech, she went on stage with her husband to thank Biden for his words.
Many of the speakers had already thanked the president earlier in the day. Georgia Senator Ralph Warnock highlighted his half-century of public activity and called him “a true patriot who always puts people first.” United Auto Workers President Shawn Gain, wearing a T-shirt calling Trump a “scab,” recalled Biden’s historic picket line at last year’s auto strike. Chris Coons, Senator for Delaware, Biden’s adopted state, heaped praise on the president and first lady, to widespread applause from the audience, which drew chants of “We want Joe.” Jim Clyburn, Congressman for North Carolina, noted that one of Biden’s best decisions was “choosing Kamala Harris as vice president and endorsing her to succeed him.”
The first lady also took part in the farewell. Jill Biden, who tried to lift the president’s spirits after his disastrous June 27 debate against Trump and tried to prevent him from throwing in the towel, and the president’s daughter, Ashley Biden, have exposed the president’s human side to complete the tribute. Both took the opportunity to campaign for Kamala Harris and Tim Walz. Their declarations of love moved the president, who was moved to tears.
The red, white and blue balloons, the colours of the American flag, are already on the roof of the United Center, the Chicago Bulls’ arena where the convention is being held. When they fall on Thursday, it will be to celebrate the nomination of Kamala Harris. By then, Joe Biden will be in Santa Ynez, California, some 3,000 kilometres away, where he went tonight to spend a few days with his family after his last great service to the Democratic Party.
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