NEW ORLEANS – Hundreds of Essence Festival attendees took a break from the vendor expo and parties to hear from Vice President Kamala Harris, who spent about 30 minutes celebrating achievements since she and President Joe Biden took office in 2021.
But what Harris didn’t address was the days of rumors and speculation since Biden’s disastrous debate performance in Atlanta on July 27. The hundreds of supporters in the crowd didn’t seem to mind, as they cheered Harris on and said they were ready to support the ticket in November.
Chastity Vickers, a resident of Montgomery, Alabama, said the debate didn’t affect her support for Biden in his rematch against former President Donald Trump.
“The reality is, of the two candidates one is definitely better than the other,” she said, adding that nothing she had seen made her feel that Biden should be replaced at the top of the ticket. “If he gets to the point that he feels he can’t fill his duties, that is the purpose of having a vice president.”
Harris has said repeatedly that she supports Biden, doesn’t feel he should step aside and is prepared to run with him through November. In her remarks during a 30-minute discussion on the Essence Festival stage, she reminded the crowd that they had worked hard to deliver for Black voters on issues like abortion, health care and student loan forgiveness.
“In 122 days, we each have the power to decide what kind of country we want to live in,” Harris said.
The reception to the nation’s first female and first person of color to serve as vice president was overwhelmingly positive toward both Harris and Biden. While most of the attendees said they saw no reason for Biden to retreat from the campaign, there were some who said he should let Harris lead the way.
Midtown Atlanta resident Mecoya Daniels was attending the Essence Festival with her husband, Ronney Daniels. They both said Democrats should be having the conversation now about replacing Biden on the ticket.
“I think we need to always be proactive before reactive,” Mecoya Daniels said. “I think more people will buy into his campaign if they see a transition starting to happen.”
People who were disturbed by Biden’s debate performance want to hear from Harris about how she plans to step up and “bridge the gap,” Mecoya Daniels said.
Ronney Daniels said it’s time for Harris to come out of Biden’s shadow.
“I think she needs to step forward and let people know she is highly qualified to run the United States,” he said.
Shortly before Harris took the stage, U.S. Rep. Maxine Waters gave such a vibrant pitch for Biden she left the crowd hooting and hollering. She was among a panel of Congressional Black Caucus members who gave remarks on the importance of voting as Harris’ opening act.
All of them insisted that Biden was staying in the race and encouraged the crowd to stick with him.
Waters pointed out that she, at 85, is four years older than Biden. She said his rough debate night still leaves him head and shoulders above Trump, whom she holds responsible for the breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
“Do we have to talk about the difference between the two?” she said. “I’m going to tell you no matter what anybody says, it ain’t going to be no other Democratic candidate,” Waters said. “It’s going to be Biden, and you better know it.”
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