“I know there are people of different political persuasions watching tonight. And I want you to know: I pledge to be the President of all Americans.” In front of the United Center where American flags are waving, with thousands of women dressed in white in honor of the suffragettes, Kamala Harris, the first woman of color at the top of the ticket, at 9:45 accepts the Democratic Party’s nomination for the White House.
US Presidential Elections, Kamala Harris Accepts Nomination: “I Will Be President of All Americans”
Thousands of white, red and blue balloons are released from the ceiling, submerging the stage where husband Doug Emhoff and vice presidential candidate Tim Walz and his wife Gwen have climbed. Their families join them in a jubilation that resonates with the high notes of Beyoncé’s Freedom.
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The Convention closes its doors with an enthusiasm that was unthinkable in the Democratic ranks just a month ago. With a parade of VIPs (Eva Longoria, Stephen Curry, Kerry Washington), artists (Pink who sang What About Us, and The Chicks who sang the anthem) and all the elite – current and past – of the Democratic Party.
It is a passing of the baton that goes beyond the Biden-Harris relay and underlines how a new generation of leaders is taking the keys to what was the party of Kennedy, Bill Clinton and Biden and in which the architects are Michelle and Barack Obama, those who most electrified the Convention by indicating the way to challenge Trump. Let’s do something, “Do something” Michelle Obama had told the Democratic people on Tuesday evening, borrowing what Kamala’s mother told her daughter: “If there is an injustice, don’t complain, do something”.
The speech given in front of the delegates in the stands of Michael Jordan’s home stadium and millions of people in front of their TVs in America’s homes was the most difficult and important of the career of Kamala Harris, 59, vice president since 2021.
She had been working on it for weeks, since she was still “just” Biden’s vice. Then the leap from number two to candidate for the White House required more than an adjustment. She completed it in the suite of the Hyatt Park Hotel in Chicago together with her closest collaborators Lorraine Voles and Sheila Nix and the speechwriter Adam Frankel, already on Obama’s team.
The speech lasted thirty minutes and unfolded along three strands.
In the first part, Kamala introduced herself “in her own words”, as one of her collaborators had anticipated to the Americans. She talked about her origins, being raised by an Indian woman who immigrated alone at 19 to arrive in the Bay Area with the dream of being the scientist who defeats breast cancer. Her marriage to her Jamaican father, from which Kamala and her daughter Maya were born (also on stage yesterday), then the divorce. “Mom raised us,” said Kamala, who dedicated large parts of her speech to her mother’s example. Just like Michelle Obama did.
The first rental apartment is in the East Bay area of San Francisco. “In the Bay, you either live on the hill or in the lowlands. We lived on the plains, a great working-class neighborhood with firefighters, nurses, construction workers, everyone taking care of their gardens with pride,” Kamala said, describing a community of supportive neighbors where the family expands in a network of collaborations and basic help.
He drew on these roots when he explained what the backbone of America is: “We know that a strong middle class has always been central to America’s success. And building that middle class will be the defining goal of my presidency. It’s personal to me, the middle class is where I come from.”
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The vice president talked about how the spark for her legal career was ignited. «When I was in high school, Kamala Harris tells the story, I started to notice something about my best friend Wanda. She was sad at school. There were times when she didn’t want to come home. One day I asked her if everything was OK, and she confided in me that she was being sexually abused by her adoptive father. I immediately told her that she needed to stay with us. And she did. That’s one of the reasons I became a prosecutor, to protect people like Wanda.”
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Then Harris, emphasizing how the path that led her to the nomination was anomalous, “like other paths in my life”, opened the chapter of the opposition between her and Trump.
Without articulating policy proposals – though her advisers confirm that they will be developed in the coming weeks – Harris said that “with this election, our nation has a precious and elusive opportunity to move beyond the bitterness, cynicism and divisive battles of the past. An opportunity to chart a New Way Forward, not as party leaders but as Americans.” For this, the vice president added, “I will be a president who unites us around the highest aspirations. A president who leads and listens. Who is realistic. Practical and sensible. And who always fights for the American people. From the courtroom to the White House, which has been my life’s work.”
The convention drew a stark contrast between Trump, who is wrapped up in his own interests and, in Bill Clinton’s definition, who thinks of “me, me and me,” and Kamala Harris, who thinks of the needs of the people. In her life, Kamala Harris said, “I’ve only had one client, the people, while Trump has only had himself.” This is the dualism that marked the Convention and that Kamala substantiated in her speech by talking about how her presidential mandate would be compared to Trump’s.
“We know what a second Trump term would look like. It’s all explained in Project 2025. In many ways, Donald Trump is a non-serious man. But the consequences of Donald Trump returning to the White House are extremely serious. Consider the power he will have, especially after the US Supreme Court just ruled that he would be immune from criminal prosecution.”
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The themes he touched on to outline the two visions are abortion, weapons, immigration, the economy and foreign and security policy. “We will strengthen global leadership, Trump encouraged the invasion of allies. As commander in chief I will stand solidly on the side of Ukraine and with the NATO allies.”
The Gaza issue is also a thorny one in light of the DNC’s refusal to guarantee a slot on stage for a pro-Palestinian activist. Harris reiterated Israel’s support and right to defend itself, “I will ensure the tools for it to defend itself,” but emphatically stressed that now “it is time to have a ceasefire” and that “too many innocent people have died.” A few scattered slogans shouted from the stands (Free Palestine) were quickly drowned out by applause.
The fourth evening was also marked by patriotism. A theme that the Democrats chose not to leave to Trump’s America first rhetoric. The delegates waved stars and stripes and danced and sang to the rhythm and lyrics of Born in the USA by Bruce Springsteen and Living in America by James Brown. Adam Kinzinger, a former Republican congressman to whom the Democrats granted prime time slots, remarked: “Dear Republicans, I tell you that the Democrats are as patriotic as you.”
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Tim Walz said Wednesday night: “We love this country.” And last night Kamala – this is the third element of her speech – reiterated this love. “My fellow Americans, I love our country with all my heart. Everywhere I go, in everyone I meet, I see a nation ready to move forward. Ready for the next step on the incredible journey that is America.” And again: “I see an America where we cling to the fearless belief that built our nation. That inspired the world. That here, in this country, anything is possible. Nothing is out of reach.”
Because, he concluded, it is “our turn to do what other generations have done before us.” America remains in Kamala-Thought the place of welcome, exceptionality and opportunity. The place where she, the daughter of two middle-class immigrants with the dream – within reach of the presidency – makes her say: «I feel the privilege and pride of being American». Applause, flags and balloons. The season of the Conventions is over. Now for the «two Americas» the TV duel opens on September 10.
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