‘Let’s write the next great chapter’ – Harris attacks Trump as she sells his vision of the future America
Kamala Harris has taken the stage at the Democratic National Convention to officially accept her party’s nomination.
The Democratic presidential candidate takes the stage to her campaign song “Freedom” by Beyoncé and receives a standing ovation from the audience.
She tries to calm the crowd. “We have to get down to business,” she says amidst sustained cheering.
Biden’s “character is inspiring”
Mrs Harris, who currently serves as Vice President, begins by thanking Joe Biden and saying he has an “extraordinary” story.
“Your character is inspiring,” she adds. “When I think about the journey we’ve taken together, Joe, it fills me with gratitude.”
She also mentions her running mate Tim Walz, saying he will be an “incredible vice president.”
“My mother taught me never to complain about injustice – but to do something about it”
Reflecting on her past, she says her mother was 19 years old when she traveled from India to California with the dream of curing breast cancer.
“My first memories of our parents’ time together are very happy,” she says.
“In the park, my mother would always say, ‘Stay close,’ but my father would reply with a smile, ‘Run, Kamala, run, don’t be afraid, don’t let anything stop you,'” she adds.
Regarding her parents’ later divorce, she says that her mother worked long hours and “relied on a circle of trust” to raise her and her sister Maya.
She says it was her family that taught her the values of community, faith and the way she wants to be treated.
She says her mother taught her “never to complain about injustice, but to do something about it.”
“She also taught us never to do anything half-heartedly,” she adds with a laugh as she tells the crowd, “that’s an accurate quote.”
“I became a prosecutor to protect people like Wanda”
Next, she turns her attention to her career. She explains that she was inspired to become a prosecutor after her friend Wanda confided in her that she had been sexually abused.
“That’s one of the reasons I became a prosecutor. To protect people like Wanda,” says Ms. Harris.
“I believe everyone has the right to safety, dignity and justice.”
She adds that in her entire career she has “only had one customer – people.”
Harris promises to be a “president for all Americans”
“On behalf of all whose history could only be written in the greatest nation on earth, I accept your nomination for President of the United States of America,” she says, triggering thunderous shouts and cheers from the crowd.
Ms Harris tells the audience that the United States has a “precious, fleeting opportunity” to “chart a new path forward.”
“I promise to be a president for all Americans. You can always count on me to put the country above my party and my own interests,” she explains.
“I will be a president who unites us around our highest goals. A president who leads and listens, who is realistic and practical, who has common sense and who always fights for the American people.”
“From the courthouse to the White House, this was my life’s work.”
“A fight for America’s future”
As she continues to lay out her vision for the United States, she says the country is currently fighting for its future.
“We were underestimated at every turn, but we never gave up because the future is always worth fighting for,” says Ms Harris.
“And that is the fight we are fighting right now. A fight for the future of America.”
She adds that the November election is “one of the most important in the life of our nation.”
Trump is an “unserious man” – but his return could have “extremely serious” consequences
She takes aim at Donald Trump and warns that his return to the White House, although he is an “unserious man,” would have “extremely serious” consequences.
Ms Harris urged the crowd to remember his last term as president, telling them to “consider not only the chaos and disasters during his time in office, but also the gravity of the events since his defeat in the last election”.
“Donald Trump tried to throw away your votes,” she adds.
“When that failed, he sent an armed mob to the United States Capitol, where they attacked police officers.”
She cites recent fraud allegations against him, which made him the first former U.S. president to be criminally convicted, and says he has plans to “release the violent extremists” involved in the January 6 attacks.
“Think of the power he will have, especially after the United States Supreme Court just ruled that he is immune from criminal prosecution,” Harris says.
“Imagine Donald Trump without guardrails.”
“America, we are not going back”
She adds that he will use his power to “serve the only client he’s ever had – himself.”
She points to Project 2025 as an example of what a second Trump term could look like.
The project is described as a political “wish list” for the next Republican administration and includes plans to expand presidential power and create an ultra-conservative America.
“Written by his closest advisers and his sum is to be drawn, our country back to the past. But America, we are not going back,” she adds.
What about their politics?
Mrs Harris has not yet presented us with many policy ideas, but now she is laying out her plans for building a “strong middle class”.
She announces that she will create an “economy of opportunity” in which everyone has the “chance to be competitive and successful”.
“Building that middle class will be a key goal of my presidency. This is a personal issue for me. I come from a middle class background,” she says.
She adds that she Creating jobs, grow the economyAnd Reducing the cost of “daily needs”.
It will also be America’s Housing shortages, ensuring affordable healthcare and providing capital for small businesses.
In comparison, Ms Harris says Mr Trump will fight “for himself and his billionaire friends”.
To reproductive rightsa hot topic this election, she says she will sign a bill to “restore reproductive freedom.”
To border controlsShe says she will reintroduce the bipartisan border security bill that Trump “killed” and sign it into law.
“I know we can live up to our proud heritage as a nation of immigrants and reform our broken immigration system,” Ms Harris added.
Speaking of War in UkraineShe says Mr Trump has “encouraged Putin to invade our allies” and “threatened to withdraw from NATO”.
She says she will stand “firmly by the side of Ukraine” and the military alliance.
Staying on the subject of conflict, Ms Harris also says she is working “around the clock” to achieve a ceasefire in the war between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
“I will always stand up for Israel’s right to self-defense and I will always ensure that Israel has the ability to defend itself,” she says.
“At the same time, the events in Gaza over the last ten months have been devastating.
“So many innocent lives have been lost. Desperate, hungry people continue to flee safety. The scale of the suffering is heartbreaking.”
“Let’s write the next great chapter of the most extraordinary story of all time”
In concluding her remarks, Mrs Harris said she loves America with all her heart.
“Wherever I go, in everyone I meet, I see a nation ready to move forward,” she tells the crowd.
“We are the heirs of the greatest democracy in world history.
“Now it is our turn to do what the generations before us have done.”
She says people must fight for the country they love and uphold the “tremendous responsibility” that comes with the “privilege and pride of being American.”
“Let’s go out and vote for it. And let’s write together the next great chapter of the most extraordinary story of all time.”
