Barack Obama calls Kamala Harris the 'new chapter' for US
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Michelle Obama makes a surprise presence at the DNC in Chicago to support Kamala Harris, highlighting her husband's 2008 slogan, "Hope is making a comeback."
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Former President Barack Obama speaks during the Democratic National Convention, on Tuesday, Aug. 20, 2024, in Chicago. (AP)
Former President Barack Obama declared Tuesday, when taking the stage at the Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Chicago, Illinois, to support the party's presidential nominee, that the US was ready for a new chapter with "President Kamala Harris."
Speaking to the voters, he said, "America is ready for a new chapter. America’s ready for a better story," while the crowd cheered, "Yes, she can!"
He praised Harris' record as a prosecutor pursuing large banks and child sex abusers, saying she "was not born into privilege," as he assured Democrats that Harris would "work on behalf of every American" and remain "focused" on their issues.
Obama called Harris' running mate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, an “outstanding partner” who is "the kind of person who should be in politics – somebody who was born in a small town, served his country, taught kids, coached football and took care of his neighbors."
'Defended democracy in danger'
Meanwhile, Obama took the chance to call out Harris’ Republican opponent, former President Donald Trump, calling him “dangerous".
He said, "The truth is, Donald Trump sees power as nothing more than a means to his ends. He wants the middle class to pay the price for another huge tax cut that would mostly help him and his rich friends,” adding, "He doesn't seem to care if more women lose their reproductive freedoms since it won't affect his life."
Obama emphasized the achievements of the Biden administration, particularly in the areas of the economy and healthcare, further claiming that history will remember Joe Biden as a president who "defended democracy at a moment of great danger."
“And at a time when the other party had turned into a cult of personality, we needed a leader who was steady and brought people together and was selfless enough to do the rarest thing there is in politics: putting his own ambition aside for the sake of the country."
Speaking at the DNC in Chicago on Monday, US President Joe Biden said the nation is at an "inflection point" and the results of the November presidential election will shape the course of the nation for many years to come.
Biden supported Harris to defeat "loser" Donald Trump in November's elections as he referred to one of Harris' prior positions by advising Americans to "put a prosecutor in the Oval Office instead of a convicted felon."
He warned the crowd that the world is watching the upcoming elections closely to see “if we can actually pull it off.”
“No nation, no society has ever tried to build a democracy as big and diverse as ours before – one where our allegiances and our community are defined not by race or blood, but by a common creed,” he stated.
“That’s why when we uphold our values, the world’s a little brighter. When we don’t, the world’s a little dimmer, dictators and autocrats feel emboldened, and over time we become less safe.”
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Obama believes that the US “shouldn’t be the world’s policeman,” but it “can be, must be, a force for good – discouraging conflict, fighting disease, promoting human rights, protecting the planet from climate change, defending freedom.”
“That’s what Kamala Harris believes – and so do most Americans”.
'More than ready'
In Chicago, where she was raised and where Barack Obama started his political career, former first lady Michelle Obama also stole the show on Tuesday night.
In her speech, referring to a slogan from her husband's 2008 presidential campaign, she told the crowd on Tuesday, “Hope is making a comeback” as she expressed, "Something magically wonderful is in the air... It's the contagious power of hope".
She related to Harris' background and said, "Even though our mothers grew up an ocean apart, they shared the same belief in the promise of this country. That’s why her mother moved here from India at 19."
"It’s why she taught Kamala about justice, about our obligation to lift others up and about our responsibility to give more than we take," she said, adding that Harris worked her way up from a middle-class household to become the vice president.
"Kamala Harris is more than ready for this moment."
Switching sides
Harris' keynote address is set for this Thursday, but on Tuesday, she surprised everyone at the convention by showing up in person for her massive rally in Milwaukee with Tim Walz, which was broadcast live from Chicago. It was the perfect opportunity for her to simultaneously energize two huge crowds.
In Milwaukee, Harris called out Trump for earlier comments saying he had “no regrets” about the landmark case of Roe v. Wade.
Surprisingly, former press secretary for Donald Trump Stephanie Grisham was brought out by the DNC to provide a closer look at the Republican contender.
Donald Trump, according to Grisham, a Republican strategist and former first lady Melania Trump's spokesperson, "has no empathy, no morals and no fidelity to the truth."
In private, she said, “Trump mocks his supporters. He calls them basement dwellers. On a hospital visit one time when people were dying in the ICU, he was mad that the cameras were not watching him.”
Prior to Grisham, Alabama voter Kyle Sweetser declared to the convention attendees that while he had previously supported Trump and given to his campaign, he was now voting for Harris because "I'm not leftwing, period. But I believe our leaders should bring out the best in us, not the worst. That’s why I’m voting for Kamala Harris.”
John Giles, mayor of Mesa, Arizona, declared as well, “I have a confession to make. I’m a lifelong Republican. But I feel more at home here than in today’s Republican party.”
