Harris must create distance from Biden, say the Democrats. Is that possible and how far? – KVNU

CHELSEA — At the Democratic National Convention this week, President Joe Biden was celebrated as nothing less than a hero of democracy.

Party supporters also made it clear that they were ready to open a new chapter.

Speaker after speaker praised Biden’s decision to abandon his re-election race as a selfless act – one that came only after growing internal tensions forced him to act following a ruinous debate in June.

But while that praise was inevitable on the stage and in the hallways of the United Center, it was Vice President Kamala Harris’s party this week that underscored the base’s joy at having a new standard-bearer.

The balancing act will not end with the convention – Harris must run as her own candidate and run a campaign that is still being built in the air after the unprecedented circumstances that gave rise to it – all while simultaneously serving as the president’s No. 2.

“I think she needs to run as if she is currently leading our party. She needs to articulate her vision for the Middle East, articulate her vision for the economy. President Biden has passed the torch,” said Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) when asked how she should strike that balance. “I think she should not be afraid to go in a new direction… She should be comfortable changing policy decisions that she doesn’t agree with.”

Not all Democrats were so blunt, but several party officials gathered in Chicago urged Harris to view Biden’s record as a stepping stone rather than something to simply continue on from. This was already a theme for Harris when she began laying out her policy positions.

Her housing policy, which provides some first-time home buyers with a $25,000 down payment, goes well beyond Biden’s position. Her proposal to provide a $6,000 tax credit to parents of newborns is a further extension. And while she repeats Biden’s claim that Israel has the means to defend itself and opposes an arms embargo, Harris has expressed far greater concern about the humanitarian consequences of the war in Gaza.

“I think the Biden-Harris administration has laid a solid foundation, and now it’s really a scaffold. It’s building on everything they’ve done,” said Minnesota Lieutenant Governor Peggy Flanagan, a Democrat, whose boss, Gov. Tim Walz, a Democrat, is Harris’s running mate. “I think you can see that she’s acknowledging where she came from and the good work she’s done, but also that she’s paving a path that is to continue that good work.”

“I wouldn’t call it distance, but she needs to become her true personality because people are voting for her and her policies,” added former Rep. Brenda Lawrence (D-Mich.). “The housing issue is no different from Biden’s, but it’s on a different level. It’s her policy, and she needs to do more of it.”

This does not mean that Biden is outdated as a party figure.

Chants of “Thank you, Joe” and “We love Joe” rocked the arena throughout the week in recognition of his decision to drop out of the race, and Democrats insisted that Biden would be remembered as a historic figure.

“I think history will say that Joe Biden saved America twice. The first time was when he removed the malignancy of the Trump presidency and healed the nation after January 6th. And then, I think, he’s trying to save America again by putting his ego aside, stepping down and doing what’s best for the country by allowing Vice President Harris to run against Donald Trump,” said veteran Democratic strategist Peter Giangreco.

At the beginning of her speech, Harris herself explicitly praised Biden as his successor, referring in particular to his future legacy.

“To our President Joe Biden. When I think of the journey we have traveled together, Joe, I am filled with gratitude. Your accomplishments are extraordinary, as history will show, and your character is inspiring,” she said.

In addition, there is limited flexibility because Harris has to get too far ahead of Biden, especially in foreign policy.

Harris has broadly continued Biden’s policy of supporting Ukraine in its efforts to repel Russia’s bloody invasion. And while she has struck a more sympathetic tone toward the Palestinians in Gaza, her lead over the president is limited given the ongoing active ceasefire negotiations.

“I’m realistic. As vice president, she can’t stop the arms shipments today. But what commitments can she make on this before November?” said Wa’el Alzayat, executive director of the Muslim advocacy group Emgage, about US support for Israel during the Gaza war.

Still, this week’s convention marked a departure from Biden, bittersweet as it may be for the president and his party.

Rather than speaking on Thursday to accept his re-nomination as he was scheduled to do just a few months ago, Biden instead spoke on Monday, the first night of the convention, before flying to California and missing the rest of the conference. He came onstage with tears in his eyes, offering a different conclusion to his political career than he had long desired, having fought for the White House for decades before finally winning his first and only term in 2020.

He called Harris on Thursday before she made her own remarks, but he was nowhere to be found in Chicago as Democrats looked toward a future in which there seemed to be less and less room for him.

“The handoff was masterful and smooth. And she’s already laid out some policies of her own,” said Democratic Rep. Dina Titus of Nevada. “She’s going to continue some of the things he started … but she’s her own person, so she’s going to have her own ideas that build on that. Not to copy it, not to just continue it, but to build on it.”

When asked if Harris was now the party leader, Titus replied, “Oh, no question.”