Kamala Harris' Big Speech: 'I Promise to Be a President for All Americans'

With Joe Biden pushed to the sidelines, Kamala Harris had the stage all to herself Thursday evening at the Democrat National Convention.

Since becoming the nominee, she has energized Democrats. Last night, she took the opportunity to reach beyond her own party. “There are people of various political views watching tonight,” Harris told the crowd. “I want you to know: I promise to be a president for all Americans. You can always trust me to put country above party and self.”   

Despite being vice president for three and a half years, her narrative hasn’t been fully cemented.

One-third of voters don’t really know much about what she stands for. In her mission to define herself, she highlighted her career as a federal prosecutor.

“Every day in the courtroom, I stood proudly before a judge, and I said five words: ‘Kamala Harris, for the people’.” She told the story of a middle-class girl who is now fighting for the little guy.

Meanwhile, her opponent wants voters to see something entirely different. “Comrade Kamala Harris,” Trump said this week. “I call her comrade because she is a radical left Marxist.”    

In her speech, Harris had a few choice words for Donald Trump, too. She spent large portions of it attacking him. "Donald Trump is an unserious man,” she told fellow Democrats gathered in Chicago. “But the consequences of putting Donald Trump back in the White House are extremely serious."  

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But what about the seriousness of policy? Her recent economic proposal of price controls to bring down inflation went over poorly, even with liberal analysts. Thursday evening, she continued to be relatively vague. "We will create what I call an 'opportunity economy,’ an opportunity economy where everyone has the chance to compete and a chance to succeed.”   

On the Israel/Hamas War, a political situation that could cause her headaches with the far left of her party this fall, she carefully tried to navigate. “I will always stand up for Israel's right to exist and I will always ensure Israel has the ability to defend itself,” she told the crowd. “President Biden and I are working to end this war -- such that Israel is secure, the hostages are released, the suffering in Gaza ends, and the Palestinian people can realize their right to dignity, security, freedom, and self-determination.”  

It remains to be seen how detail-oriented she handles that issue and others as the campaign moves on. So far, she's been riding the momentum of positive vibes and party enthusiasm.

The next chapter could be a heavier lift.  "Harris has to convince independent voters that she is the right candidate for the next four years,” says Nathan Gonzales, Editor & Publisher of Inside Elections. “She carries some of the burdens of the past administration, but she also needs to show that she can stand on her own and voters trust that she's going to be better than Trump the next four years."  

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