CHICAGO ― In a speech that drew wild applause and left some in tears, Vice President Kamala Harris on Thursday formally accepted her party’s nomination for president, laid out her vision for the country and wasted no time spelling out how dangerous a reelected Donald Trump would be for women, middle-class Americans and the rule of law itself.
Harris cast herself as a seasoned fighter, drawing a through-line from her years as a prosecutor fighting for women and children against abusers, to her stint as the California attorney general taking on big banks and gun cartels, to her fights to win tough elections, to her current fight to protect American democracy from Trump.
“In many ways, Donald Trump is an unserious man,” Harris said. “The consequences of putting Donald Trump back in the White House are extremely serious.”
She described the “chaos and calamity” that marked Trump’s first term as president and then the gravity of what came next: Trump incited an insurrection on Jan. 6, 2021, to try to prevent the votes for Joe Biden to become president from being counted. On top of that, Trump was impeached twice and, since leaving office, has been convicted of 34 felony counts in the hush-money case and was found liable for committing sexual abuse and defamation.
“Consider what he intends to do if we give him power again,” Harris warned. “Consider the power he will have, especially after the United States Supreme Court just ruled he would be immune from criminal prosecution.”
The vice president homed in on Trump’s attacks on women’s reproductive rights. She described meeting with women around the country in her capacity as vice president and hearing horror stories about women miscarrying in parking lots, getting sepsis and losing the ability to ever have children again ― all because doctors in their states were afraid of going to jail for providing them with abortion care. And she emphasized that he and his allies want to keep chipping away at reproductive rights.
“Simply put, they are out of their minds,” Harris concluded, to deafening cheers.
Thursday night’s speech was arguably the best Harris has ever given. She wasn’t nearly as comfortable or engaging on a national stage when she ran for president in 2020. But now that she’s served more than three years as vice president, Harris demonstrated Thursday that she’s evolved into a much more compelling and powerful speaker ― and the crowd ate it up.
“America, we are not going back,” Harris declared several times.
“Not going back! Not going back!” thousands roared in response.
Somehow, it’s only been a month since Harris became the nominee. It’s been a stunning but remarkably smooth process of Harris stepping in after President Joe Biden dropped out of the race on July 21, following a pressure campaign based on concerns about his age and mental acuity.
In her speech, Harris acknowledged the unusual path that led her to the stage, comparing it to the family journey that led her immigrant parents to the United States.
“America, the path that led me here in recent weeks was no doubt unexpected. But I’m no stranger to unlikely journeys,” she said, before describing her mother’s journey as an immigrant and single mother.
Harris threw her support behind countless issues that matter to Democrats, promising to protect people’s freedoms in schools, communities and places of worship, in their decisions on whom they love and their fight for basic access to clean air and water.
Beyond whipping up Democrats, though, Harris appealed to Americans watching on TV who may not share her political views. She promised to be a president for them, too.
“With this election, our nation has a precious, fleeting opportunity to move past the bitterness, cynicism and divisive battles of the past,” she said. “A chance to chart a new way forward. Not as members of any one party or faction, but as Americans.”
Harris vowed to be a president who “unites us around our highest aspirations. A president who leads and listens, who is realistic, practical and has common sense.”
And just as she began, Harris returned to her roots as a fighter in her call on Americans to join her to fight to protect democracy from Trump.
“It is now our turn to do what generations before us have done. Guided by optimism and faith, to fight for this country we love,” she said with a rising voice. “To uphold the awesome responsibility that comes with the greatest privilege on earth: the privilege and pride of being an American.”
Harris added, “Let’s get out there and let’s fight for it.”