Vice President Kamala Harris accepted the Democratic Party’s nomination for president in an almost 40-minute speech in Chicago Thursday night. We asked the Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s opinion contributors what they thought. Here are their responses:
An epic acceptance speech for the ages
Credit: Rebecca Breyer
Credit: Rebecca Breyer
The 2024 Democratic National Convention in Chicago will go down in the annals of American history as a pivotal event that catapulted Vice President Kamala Harris to becoming the first woman elected president of the United States. The convention was well attended by an estimated 20,000 Democratic loyalists, delegates, enthusiasts and supporters in a capacity-filled United Center. The TV audience was 22 million strong.
Over a four-day period, I was a riveted viewer of the convention, which featured a litany of high-profile speakers, including former presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton, former first ladies Michelle Obama and Hillary Clinton (the 2016 Democratic nominee for president), senators, members of Congress, governors, mayors and prominent celebrities such as TV mogul Oprah Winfrey, NBA Coach Steve Kerr and actresses Kerry Washington, and Eva Longoria.
The culminating pinnacle of the convention, however, was Harris’ acceptance speech, as the democratic nominee for president. Harris embodies the best of America. The product of immigrant parents from India and Jamaica, Harris is the contemporary quintessential model of leadership, exuding intelligence, confidence, tenacity and grit.
Harris stood tall and delivered. She spoke about the strength of our nation, our diversity, our values and the standing of the United States as the leader in the free world. With 75 days left before Election Day, Harris used the powerful art of storytelling, crafting a vision of unity, patriotism and a positive future of America. Her speech was powerful and inspirational, resonating with Americans across the country. She addressed the challenges facing our nation, including political polarization, economic disparities between the upper and middle classes, and the ongoing global conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East. Harris promised to be a president for all Americans, working tirelessly to unite the nation and move forward together.
Harris’ historic nomination marks a significant milestone in American history, breaking barriers and shattering glass ceilings. It is a proud moment for me as the father of a daughter and as a grandfather of a granddaughter. Her candidacy represents progress in our nation and hope for future generations of women. Her message of unity, empathy and hope will strike a chord with voters, inspiring them to believe in a better future for our country.
The energy and enthusiasm at the convention were palpable, with supporters chanting “Harris for president” and waving signs in support of the historic nominee. Harris’s speech was met with thunderous applause and standing ovations as she outlined her vision for a brighter future for America. Her message of hope and unity resonated with voters of all backgrounds, promising a new era of leadership and opportunity for the American people.
Harris’ epic speech at the Democratic National Convention will be remembered as a turning point in American history. Her message has inspired millions of Americans to believe in a brighter future for our nation. With Harris, the country stands poised to make history again, electing the first woman president and ushering in a new era of progress and prosperity for all. — John H. Eaves
Parties end. What comes next matters.
Credit: Handout
Credit: Handout
It’s true: The Democratic National Convention definitely put the “party” in Democratic Party, with Lil Jon and the Georgia delegation setting the tone during roll call. Giving credit where it is due, that moment looked like a lot of fun.
But parties end, and people go home.
Even after Vice President Kamala Harris’ nomination acceptance speech, no one — not DNC delegates nor everyday Americans — knows much about the Harris-Walz ticket on a policy level. Their priorities, specific policy positions and how they plan to accomplish them is a mystery. At best, the tenets of the DNC platform were rattled off in Harris’ speech among her misleading or half-truth rants against the Republican nominee, former President Donald Trump.
In her own words, we cannot allow Harris to be “unburdened by what has been.” It is the everyday American who continues to shoulder the burden of the Biden-Harris administration’s policies over the past three years. Gas prices are up more than 50%, energy bills are up more than 30%, and groceries are up more than 21%. These are not grounds for a career promotion, but rather a termination.
I’ll borrow another phrase used by Harris and other high-profile speakers this week: “We’re not going back.” And, on that we can agree. Democrats have controlled the White House 12 of the past 16 years, and we hardworking Georgians have had enough. It’s time for us to be “unburdened by what has been,” and let Georgians keep more of their hard-earned paychecks in their pockets. — Meagan Hanson
Harris gives Democrats a lot to work with
Credit: Handout
Credit: Handout
The joy and enthusiasm of the Democrats over the new Harris-Walz ticket is palpable. They have a candidate who is in her prime, who reflects a generational change and who can take the fight to former President Donald Trump with a sharp edge. It all feels so good.
I will not shade that I loved Vice President Kamala Harris’ speech accepting her nomination. I’m sure there will be quibbles about her style or her substance, but speeches at conventions are meant to inspire — not be 15-point policy memos (as much as I might personally love these); and Harris is not slick or pretentious in her delivery; rather, she seems to be someone who actually cares. As she said, she is “for the people.”
In her speech, she leaned into patriotism and the American dream, and she placed her personal, improbable story in the long thread of the American narrative of hope, hard work, opportunity and achievement. I appreciated that she centered herself on her pragmatic credentials and drew clear lines of contrast with Trump. She is a tough prosecutor who went after criminals and corporate bad actors. Trump has been convicted of 34 felonies and is charged with a host of other crimes, from sexual assault to trying to overturn a free and fair democratic election, as we in Georgia know so well.
Harris positioned herself as someone who understands the promise of America to so many immigrants, but also understands that we must have order and integrity at our borders. Meanwhile, Trump told Republicans to scrap a bipartisan border deal because he thought it would be better for his campaign. She recognized the economic challenges that so many Americans face and laid out her plan to bring down costs — for housing, prescription drugs and groceries — as well as proposing to cut taxes for the middle class through the child tax credit and the earned income tax credit, both of which have bipartisan support. Trump’s plan? It centers around a 10 percent across-the-board tax increase on anything made overseas, which means almost everything, and that will be a tax that will fall squarely on the poor and the middle class.
Harris talked about ensuring that women have control of their own bodies and access to abortion, which at times, is a matter of life or death. Trump’s friends and supporters drafted the appalling list of Project 2025 proposals that include further extending abortion bans and limiting access to contraceptives.
She talked with strength and force about supporting our military, even as Trump repeatedly belittles and sneers at the sacrifices our soldiers have made for this country. She talked about defending America’s interests around the world, while the Republican nominee for president accommodated and cozied up to dictators while undermining international institutions such as NATO that have protected the global order and contained Soviet and now Russian aggression for generations.
I am so grateful that she is taking the fight to Trump for the things that I find most appalling: his contempt for our democracy and any notion that the laws of this land apply to him. I might not agree with her on every policy, but I have confidence that she will uphold the U.S. Constitution and she will support the laws and norms of our country that allow our democracy to function.
I know governing is going to be gritty and compromising and the shine will quickly come off these ideas as they hit the meat grinder of Congress. As a policy person, I’d like to see more details: How is she going to pay for the middle-class tax cuts and other expensive policies she has proposed? Regardless, I am far more confident that she will engage in responsible governance than Trump, who ran up the national debt during his tenure more than President Joe Biden, both with and without the coronavirus aid packages; meanwhile 24 of his former Cabinet secretaries and close advisers from his prior term do not think he has any business being back in the Oval Office.
The campaign is going to be hard. I know the negative ads are coming, but the convention gave Democrats a lot to work with in Georgia and around the country. It’s a good start.
And I can’t wait for the debates. — Carolyn Bourdeaux
Taking her place in history
Credit: handout
Credit: handout
What America and the world witnessed on Thursday night in Chicago was, in a word, extraordinary. Vice President Kamala Harris accepted the Democratic Party’s nomination for president.
It was historic, yes, but it was something that in my more than 30 years of working in and around politics, and political campaigns I have never seen before: deep unity. True American unity and diversity. And inclusion. And not just of people of color and women, or of marginalized groups, but of white men. White Republican men and women risked their own political futures, mockery and scorn from the right to both stand up for Harris and with her. And, most important, to put country over party.
In short, something about this election feels different.
Something feels vibrant, connected, hopeful and, yes, joyful.
And yet, the truly stunning thing to me is the journey Harris took to get to this moment. She spoke a lot about “unlikely journeys.” And boy, was her journey to this nomination stunningly unlikely. In less than a month’s time, after President Joe Biden decided he would no longer seek reelection in July, Harris had to stand up a truly national campaign. In a matter of days. And by some act of fate and faith, she did so. The nation rallied behind her with stunning speed. Black women kicked it for her with our “Black Women for Harris” call. That was followed by our white sisters. Then our Latino sisters. Asian sisters. Indigenous sisters. By Black men. And white dudes for Harris. Republicans for Harris. And, of course, we childless chicks and cat ladies for Harris.
Her team put together one of the most unified, joyful, diverse and substantive political conventions ever. As she delivered a strong, focused, passionate and visionary speech to the world, I was so very proud of my Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority sister. As a Black woman, I felt many emotions. I felt great pride in her historic achievement. I felt grateful for Shirley Chisholm, whom I had a chance to meet and get to know in my late 20s, and the doors she opened for Geraldine Ferraro, Hillary Clinton and now Harris.
More than that, I feel honored to have seen the first woman sit on the U.S. Supreme Court, the first Black president take the oath of office, the first woman be nominated for president by a major party, the first woman to become vice president, the first Black woman to sit on the Supreme Court and now the first Black and South Asian woman be nominated for president.
What a time to be alive.
History has called, and Kamala Harris has answered. — Sophia A. Nelson
Watching in stunned silence
Credit: Handout
Credit: Handout
I will be honest, it took me a little while into Vice President Kamala Harris’ speech before I was fully paying attention because I was still under the trance a Southern boy of my age gets put in anytime The Chicks (specifically Natalie Maines) do three-part harmony. It being the national anthem put it over the top, but they could’ve sang “Tip Toe Thru The Tulips” in non-captioned Cantonese, and I would’ve still been floating through the air like a cartoon dog wafting toward a pie on an old lady’s windowsill.
When I finally snapped out of it and started paying attention to what Harris was saying, I couldn’t believe my ears. “What in the world is going on right now?” I thought to myself as I sat in stunned silence (interrupted only by the sound of a string cheese being unwrapped).
Though I have been alive for several election seasons (heck, I started doing standup during George W. Bush’s administration), I’ll be the first to admit that I’ve only been paying what could loosely be described as “attention” for the past eight years. Funny how having a megalomaniac run his administration on Twitter while sitting on the toilet will make a man start getting a skosh worried about democracy and what not.
Since then, I’ve gotten used to how political speeches work. Heck, I’d go as far as to say I’ve gotten to be an expert on them. How else would I go on verbose diatribes about politics on the internet if I didn’t read about politics first, right? I mean surely there aren’t people who do that!
Point is, what I saw from Harris Thursday night did not resemble anything I’ve seen in American politics for the better part of a decade. I’d go as far as to say it was insane. It was insane because I understood every word she said clearly, and her demeanor and rhetoric did not make me want to dig a bunker in my backyard and fill it with ramen noodles and all of my wrestling memorabilia (which will be the new currency in the event of a second Trump administration)!
She talked about going forward. The other guy wants to go backward. She talked about being the president for everyone regardless of their politics. The other guy talks about getting rid of those who oppose him. She talked about the American dream as it should be: for everyone. Not just the people who look like the buffet line at Mar-a-Lago
That speech was everything it needed to be. It made me realize I’m voting for someone, not just against someone (as I thought for a while I would be).
I hope Harris wins. And I hope her presidency lasts as long as how watching a full night of the Democratic National Convention felt. — Corey Ryan Forrester
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