The Democrats opened their convention in Chicago on Monday with a farewell to President Joe Biden, who ended the evening with a handover to Vice President Kamala Harris.
Here are six takeaways:
Biden received a four-minute ovation: Biden said Choosing Harris as his running mate in 2020 was “the best decision of my entire career.”
He also sharply criticized Trump and gave a detailed account of his administration’s legislative successes.
Clinton highlights potential for the first female president: Even though she failed eight years ago, Clinton wants her grandchildren and their grandchildren to know that she was there for Harris when the “glass ceiling” finally broke.
She cited Shirley Chisholm, the first female Democratic presidential candidate, and Geraldine Ferraro, the first female vice president. “Shirley and Geri always said, ‘Keep going,'” Clinton said.
Clinton on Trump’s “familiar” attacks: Referring to Trump’s convictions in New York, she said he had “made his own kind of history: He was the first presidential candidate to have 34 felony convictions.” The crowd responded with chants of “Lock him up!” – a version of the “lock her up” chants about Clinton that were ubiquitous at Trump’s 2016 rallies.
Abortion rights: Democrats sharply criticized Trump for appointing conservative Supreme Court justices who helped overturn abortion rights protections in Roe v. Wade. Three women with experiences of abortion and reproductive care told their stories as part of their support for abortion rights, which have been Democrats’ strongest campaign issue since the Roe v. Wade ruling was overturned two years ago.
Democrats downplay Israel’s war: Few issues have divided Democrats more – along age lines, ideology lines, sometimes identity lines – than Israel’s war in Gaza. Not that anyone would have known that on Monday night. Biden spoke most extensively about Gaza, showing sympathy for the victims. But most of the prime-time speakers barely mentioned the war. It is clearly, and unsurprisingly, an issue that Democrats expect to gain little electoral traction by highlighting.
Spotlight on Project 2025: Michigan State Senator Mallory McMorrow took the stage with a major prop: a book called “Project 2025” so large it barely fit on the podium. The moment reflected how eager Democrats are to link Trump to what McMorrow called “the Republican blueprint for a second Trump term.” Although the former president has distanced himself from it, Democrats have called the playbook for a second Trump term his agenda. McMorrow left the stage with a promise that the book would return Tuesday night.
Read more about the findings.
