Kamala Harris officially accepts the Democratic nomination for president
Vice President Kamala Harris concluded the Democratic Party Convention by accepting her party’s nomination for president.
Vice President Kamala Harris closed the Democratic National Convention on Thursday night with her acceptance speech, which, as Jake Tapper put it on CNN, “was a speech she had not prepared for four weeks and five days ago.”
She did it, and it was a historic moment, because Harris became the first woman of color to accept the presidential nomination of a major party. Reaction to the speech was almost universally positive, even on Fox News, whose news site at times praised the DNC. That remained the case for much of Thursday, until a certain vocal audience member called in and started ranting. More on that in a moment, because this was Harris’ night, not his. Donald Trump can wait.
Back to the speech. MSNBC’s Jen Psaki called it “fierce and fearless,” which was also the general consensus.
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Maya Harris spoke to her sister Kamala
After several minutes of tumultuous applause, Harris finally silenced the crowd at Chicago’s United Center. “Let’s get down to business,” she said, and she did. She talked a lot about her childhood, her family, especially her late mother, who seemed to be a great force in Harris’ life. (Harris’ sister Maya also spoke about her in a speech Thursday night.)
Her mother, Harris said, like Michelle Obama’s mother, told her children: “Never complain about injustice. DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT. She also taught us never to do anything half-heartedly – and that’s a direct quote.”
Harris soon took Trump into the fray, challenging him on multiple fronts. “Many, many shots across the bow,” as Tapper put it. For example, when discussing the efforts of some Republicans to obstruct reproductive rights, she summed up a rather long paragraph in eight words: “Simply put, they’re crazy.”
Here, and especially when she talked about foreign policy, “she really hit her stride,” as Martha MacCallum put it on Fox News. Dana Perino said “the beginning of this speech was like winding up an old car,” but agreed that the foreign policy part was strong.
“This speech was a call and an invitation to the American voters to put the politics of the last 10 years behind us,” Terry Moran said on ABC.
For Harris, it was a balancing act: trying to take ownership of the successes of Joe Biden’s administration while forging her own path, whether on the economy, the Gaza war or other issues. She eventually found that balance, especially in the power of her speech, which was both pleasant and, to use the words of about 15 different people, powerful.
Among them was Brit Hume on Fox News, who said: “It was a powerful speech, delivered very clearly, very professionally and with emphasis. There was no stuttering, no fumbling or anything like that. But on paper, it is a speech that Joe Biden could have given.”
“What Joe Biden could not have done – in my view at any point in his presidency – was deliver that speech with the power and effectiveness that it was delivered tonight. It was very powerful.”
Tapper called it “a remarkable speech, the likes of which I have never seen delivered before – a very, very powerful speech.”
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Fox News, Donald Trump is calling
You know who didn’t say that was powerful? Trump, who wasn’t happy with the attention he was getting from the raves on his Truth Social platform during his speech and called Fox News to voice his displeasure. Baier and MacCallum mostly let him rant and ask questions, but once he’s done, what are you supposed to do?
For one thing, he’s not allowed to answer the phone. But when Trump calls Fox News, it’s a hotline.
MacCallum tried to get him to talk about his plans now that Harris was making inroads with female voters, black voters, etc. Trump responded with one of his favorite tactics, the Pee-Wee Herman defense: “I know what you are, but what am I.”
“She’s not successful,” he said. “I’m successful. I’m doing well with Hispanic voters. I’m doing well with black men. I’m doing well with women. … No, they’re only doing that in your eyes, Martha.”
Either sensing there was no journalistic value in letting Trump ramble on about anything on the night Harris made history, or simply having to stop so Greg Gutfeld’s late-night show could begin, Baier and MacCallum told Trump they had to go, and left.
Again, this was Harris’ night. Trump had his, and more.
As pundits from all sides have said time and again, this was Harris’s chance to introduce herself to people, potential voters, who don’t really know her. Stepping in when Biden dropped out of the race after a disastrous debate with Trump, her time frame is tight and her margin for error is next to zero. So far, so good.
“Tonight she had to deliver perfectly,” Chris Hayes said on MSNBC. “And she delivered perfectly.”
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