Hello from Chicago! Democrats kicked off their convention on Monday with Joe Biden giving a fond farewell as the party boosted Harris and her running mate, Tim Walz. The day’s theme was “For the people”, with Democrats contrasting their fight for everyday Americans and reproductive freedom with Trump’s self-interest. It was a long day full of excitement, protests and logistical bumps.
Here’s what you need to know:
1 Goodbye, Joe
Well, not quite goodbye – he is still the president. But the first night of the convention was the beginning of the end for Biden’s time in public office. His friends and allies continually thanked him for his time in office and for his decision to pass the torch. And the accomplishments of his administration formed the underpinning for the party’s message on the first night.
Harris herself briefly took the stage for a surprise appearance to welcome her fellow party members, smiling before a downright raucous crowd. She praised and thanked Biden, setting up the evening’s main event. “Joe, thank you for your historic leadership, for your lifetime of service to our nation, and for all you will continue to do. We are forever grateful to you. Thank you, Joe!”
Chris Coons, the Delaware senator, led the convention in a round of thanks for the outgoing president. “We love Joe,” he concluded, kicking off a chant in the arena. During Jill Biden’s speech, the crowd held green “Jill” signs – a somewhat confusing choice given the Green party candidate is Jill Stein and uses green, of course, in her signage. Ashley Biden, presidential daughter, talked about her father as a quintessential “girl dad”.
The speeches ran much later than expected, perhaps because long lines and slowed shuttles kept people from getting into the arena for hours, though DNC officials blamed it on the crowd’s persistent applause. That put Biden on stage far later than intended – at a time that, after the last six weeks of fumbles in part attributed to late nights, could have been a concern. At nearly 10.30pm local time, Biden finally started speaking as “we love Joe” banners waved. “America, I love you!” he yelled back.
Biden shared his story of running for the presidency to defend democracy. “Democracy has prevailed. Democracy has delivered. And now, democracy must be preserved,” he said, underscoring the premier refrain of his abandoned re-election campaign. At one point, he joked about his age, saying he knew more foreign leaders by their first names than anyone because “I’m so damn old.” He ran through the list of his administration’s work the last four years and said that Trump and Maga will see the power of women this November.
He called choosing Harris as his running mate “the best decision I’ve made in my whole career”. She’s tough, experienced and she has “enormous integrity”. He joked: “And like many of our best presidents, she was also vice-president.”
He said he has five months left in his presidency and a lot left to do, and that he’s not angry at those who said he should step down. “I love the job, but I love my country more,” he said.
“America, I gave my best to you,” he said in summation.
2 Hillary Clinton’s glass ceiling
“Something is happening in America, you can feel it,” Hillary Clinton said to enthusiastic applause. “Something we’ve worked for and dreamed of for a long time.”
As my colleague Ed Pilkington wrote ahead of the convention, the specter of Clinton’s 2016 loss, and that stubborn glass ceiling, served as the “elephant in the arena”. At one point, she joked about how Trump was mocking Harris’s name and laugh. “Sounds familiar,” she chuckled.
Harris is only the second woman ever nominated for president by a major party in the country’s 248-year history. Clinton shouted out Shirley Chisholm, the Black congresswoman who ran for president in 1972, and Geraldine Ferraro, the Democratic vice-presidential nominee in the 1984 election.
You could see how 2016 was still on Clinton’s mind as she detailed how people kept fighting, even after her loss, to show how “there are no ceilings on our dreams”. Millions marched in the streets, many ran for office, she said.
“We kept our eyes on the future. Well, my friends, the future is here,” Clinton said.
On the other side of that glass ceiling, she concluded, is Harris taking the oath of office. She exited the stage to Fight Song, her 2016 campaign’s theme song, a triggering sound for those still bruised eight years later.
3 All about the bench
This summer’s public veepstakes – where a handful of men duked it out metaphorically to win a spot on the ticket – showcased a Democratic party with an increasingly strong bench of younger players.
Tuesday’s programming was all about that bench leading up to Biden’s goodbye. Speakers like US Representative Jasmine Crockett, Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear, US Representative Jamie Raskin and Georgia Senator Raphael Warnock showed the rhetorical strength of those waiting in the wings to lead the party in a new generation.
Alexandria Ocasio Cortez got a prime spot, soon before Clinton, and railed against corporate greed. She called Trump a “two-bit union buster” who would “sell this country for a dollar” to line his or his friends’ pockets. The progressive darling shared her personal story – how she was taking omelette orders as a server six years ago while her family struggled to pay bills after her father’s death.
4 The Gaza problem
Democrats protested outside the convention and worked to rally allies inside the convention to build more support for a ceasefire and arms embargo in Gaza – a sign the Gaza problem isn’t going away for Democrats.
The uncommitted movement has 30 delegates to the convention, but they have been lobbying Harris delegates to get them to pressure her on Gaza policy and articulate how she will differ from Biden on the issue.
They won an official DNC panel on Palestinian human rights, a first for the convention, which saw a few hundred people turn out to hear from a doctor who treated kids in Gaza and from people who lost family members in the war. I was in the room, where people cried at the pain and cheered to continue the ceasefire fight. For the next few days, they will keep pushing Harris and her allies to do more to stop the war. During Biden’s speech, some uncommitted delegates unfurled a banner that said “stop arming Israel”.
From the stage, Biden later said: “Those protesters out in the street, they have a point. A lot of innocent people are being killed, on both sides.”
Protesters outside, numbering in the many thousands, marched near the United Center to oppose the war and to support various progressive causes, such as reproductive rights. It was mostly peaceful, though at least two people were arrested after protesters began disabling fences put up by law enforcement.
5 Covid-19 and recovery on the menu
Speeches on Monday night put an unexpected emphasis on Covid-19, dinging Trump for downplaying the spreading illness, abandoning the country as the virus took hold and for tanking the economy in 2020. They praised Biden and Harris for the economic recovery and for vaccine delivery. A video played of comments Trump made throughout 2020 about the virus, including hits like injecting bleach and saying the virus would just go away one day.
Two speakers, Peggy Flanagan, Minnesota’s lieutenant governor, and Robert Garcia, the California congressman, shared how they lost family members during the pandemic.
And an array of unions boosted Biden and Harris for job creation through the Inflation Reduction Act and the Chips and Science Act. And Shawn Fain, the president of the United Auto Workers, had a key slot – wearing a “Trump is a scab” shirt and firing up Democrats with a working-class message.
Scenes on the ground
Check out this Kamala caftan – one of a few Harris-focused outfits we saw at the convention on the first day. Democrats were more enthusiastic than they would have been with Biden still in the race. And they all must have worked quickly to reprint signs, shirts, tote bags and other swag to reflect the change at the top of the ticket. Let’s hope they used union print shops!
What to expect tomorrow
Tuesday’s big speakers are Barack Obama and Michelle Obama. Throughout the day, Democrats will meet in caucus and council meetings to discuss how to turn out the vote this November and wrangle over policy differences, especially on Gaza.
Hopefully, the first-day logistical problems that found attendees stuck in long lines and on cross-town shuttles will be worked out by Tuesday. But just in case, if you’re here in Chicago, expect everything to take longer than it should.
