CHICAGO — Kamala Harris urged Americans on Thursday to reject political division and as an alternative forge what she called a “new path forward” as she accepted her party's nomination, mixing her biography with warnings against re-electing Donald Trump to the White House.
As she took the stage to a standing ovation on the conclusion of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, the vp argued that her personal history and background as a prosecutor made her uniquely suited to defend the interests of Americans against a former president whom she accused of only having his own interests in mind.
“With this election, our nation has a precious, fleeting opportunity to put the bitterness, cynicism and divisive struggles of the past behind us,” Harris said. “A chance to forge a new path forward. Not as members of a party or faction, but as Americans.”
The daughter of Jamaican and Indian immigrants, Harris was the primary black woman and person of South Asian descent to just accept a significant party's presidential nomination, and if elected, she could be the primary female president. Harris didn’t explicitly seek advice from the historic firsts she would set in her 40-minute speech, mentioning the words “Democrat” or “Republican” only within the context of discussing a bipartisan border bill that Trump killed earlier this 12 months and that she hoped to sign if elected.
Her address – and the Democratic convention as an entire – was intended to appeal to a broad swath of Americans, not only partisans already energized by Harris's rise after President Joe Biden ended his reelection bid. She made several implicit appeals to the big swath of voters who just a number of weeks ago were unhappy with either option for the White House, especially those unhappy with Trump. This was underscored by the looks of several individuals who have broken with the forty fifth president while supporting the policies and approach of Biden, the forty sixth.
She accompanied a big blended and mixed-race family throughout the traditional balloon toss. Beforehand, two of her great-nieces had taught people within the packed United Center easy methods to pronounce her name, which suggests lotus in Sanskrit.
“America, the path that has brought me here in the last few weeks has certainly been unexpected,” said Harris. “But I am no stranger to unusual travel.”
Harris introduces himself again
After her parents divorced, Harris was raised primarily by her mother in a small apartment in San Francisco's East Bay. She described how she was also raised by friends and caregivers who were “family out of love.” She also detailed a crucial a part of her political origin story, when Wanda, her best friend from highschool, confided in her that she was being abused by her stepfather and got here to live with Harris' family.
“That's one of the reasons I became a prosecutor. To protect people like Wanda,” Harris said.
Describing her work as a prosecutor, attorney general, senator and now vp, Harris said, “In my entire career, I have had only one client: the people.” At the identical time, she said Trump has at all times acted within the interests of “the only client he has ever had: himself.”
As she walked onto the stage, she saw a sea of female delegates and Democratic supporters wearing white—the colour of ladies's suffrage, the movement that culminated in 1920 with American women gaining the precise to vote.
Harris' speech was to mark her tenth wedding anniversary along with her husband Doug Emhoff, whom she called “Dougie” on stage and who blew her a kiss from the stands in the beginning of her speech.
She and other speakers appealed on to Republicans
Harris directly called on Republicans who don’t support Trump to place aside their party affiliation and support her as an alternative of Trump, who contested his loss to Biden within the 2020 election that inspired the rebellion on the Capitol on January 6, 2021.
“I know there are people watching tonight with different political views, and I want you to know that I promise to be a president for all Americans,” Harris said. “I promise to be a president for all Americans and to uphold America's sacred constitutional principles, the fundamental principles, from the rule of law and fair elections to the peaceful transfer of power.”
At the convention, former Illinois Rep. Adam Kinzinger, a Republican critic of Trump, gave a keynote speech. He said, “Whatever political views we hold, they pale in comparison to these basic questions of principle. Of decency. Of loyalty to this nation. To my Republican colleagues, if you still pledge allegiance to those principles, then I suspect you're in the right place.”
Harris repeatedly referred to her accuser's past and mentioned Trump's “express intention” to release those that attacked cops within the Capitol, to imprison political opponents and to make use of the military against American residents.
“Think of what he plans to do if we give him power again,” she added.
Trump called Fox News after Harris' speech and responded to the speech by asking, “Why didn't she do the things she complained about?”
“There was a lot of whining. She didn't talk about China. She didn't talk about fracking. She didn't talk about crime,” Trump continued, adding, “Other than that, it was a nice room.”
Harris guarantees to defend coalitions and access to abortion
Harris delivered her most detailed national security remarks since running for president. She pledged to strengthen U.S. ties with NATO allies and said the country must proceed to support Ukraine in its war with Russia. Trump and his running mate JD Vance have repeatedly questioned U.S. support for Ukraine.
“I will never waver in defending America's security and ideals, because in the ongoing struggle between democracy and tyranny, I know where I stand and I know where the United States belongs,” she said.
The Vice President also vowed to work toward an end to Israel's war against Hamas, which may lead to stabilization in the remainder of the region, without hesitation in protecting U.S. forces from aggression by Iran and other adversaries.
While she promised to “always stand up for Israel's right to self-defense” after the October 7 Hamas attack and pushed for the discharge of hostages and the implementation of a ceasefire agreement, she also highlighted the plight of Palestinian civilians. Pro-Palestinian protesters and members of the local “undecided” movement sharply criticized the convention organizers for not inviting a Palestinian American to the stage.
“What has happened in Gaza over the last 10 months is devastating. So many innocent people have lost their lives,” Harris said. “Desperate, hungry people keep fleeing for safety. The scale of the suffering is heartbreaking.”
Harris promised to revive nationwide access to abortion after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade and sharply criticized Trump and Republicans for allowing abortion bans in two dozen states and taking other steps in that direction.
“You are out of your mind,” Harris announced.
Harris has come under scrutiny within the month since she replaced Biden on the helm of the Democratic nomination for avoiding making concrete policy statements, making sweeping guarantees on a lot of key policy areas, including expanding voting rights, lowering housing costs, strengthening the center class through tax cuts and incentives, and securing the border.
Harris highlighted her background in law enforcement, including her time as district attorney in San Francisco and attorney general in California. She was later elected to the U.S. Senate and ran for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2020.
Her campaign failed this 12 months before a single vote was solid within the primaries, but Biden made her his running mate, catapulting her onto the national stage.
Although Harris initially struggled to realize traction as vp, her standing grew when she became the leading abortion rights advocate within the administration following the U.S. Supreme Court's overturning of Roe v. Wade. Democrats seized on her anger over that call to limit their losses within the last midterm elections.
In a speech to her supporters after her remarks, Harris expressed confidence but encouraged them to proceed campaigning as in the event that they were behind.
“You can party tonight, we have a lot to do in the next 75 days,” she said. “We're going to win this.”
Associated Press writers Chris Megerian in Washington and Jonathan J. Cooper in Phoenix contributed.
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