Former U.S. President Barack Obama and his wife Michelle Obama made a powerful appeal at the Democratic National Convention (DNC) on Tuesday night, rallying Americans to support Kamala Harris in her last-minute presidential bid against Republican Donald Trump.
As the first Black president, Obama is leveraging his significant political influence to back Harris, who aims to make history on November 5 by becoming the first woman, and the first Black and South Asian person, to be elected U.S. president.
“We don’t need four more years of bluster, bumbling, and chaos. We’ve seen that movie before, and we all know the sequel is usually worse,” Obama said to delegates on the second day of the Chicago convention.
“America is ready for a new chapter. America is ready for a better story. We are ready for President Kamala Harris.”
Obama also took a swipe at Trump, who succeeded him in the White House in 2017, while praising President Joe Biden, his former vice president, who was compelled to exit the 2024 race by Democratic allies concerned about his chances against Trump in November.
“History will remember Joe Biden as a president who defended democracy at a moment of great peril. I’m proud to call him my president, but even prouder to call him my friend,” Obama said, prompting chants of “We love Joe.”
Michelle Obama, who introduced her husband and remains a top contender in Democrats’ future presidential hopes, delivered a hopeful message to the audience.
“America, hope is making a comeback,” she declared, alluding to Obama’s first presidential campaign in 2008.
She also warned that Trump would attempt to distort Harris’ truth, just as he tried to “make people fear us” during his presidency.
“His limited and narrow view of the world made him feel threatened by the presence of two hardworking, highly educated, successful people who also happened to be Black,” Michelle Obama said, receiving thunderous applause.
“Who’s going to tell him that the job he’s currently seeking might just be one of those ‘Black jobs’?” she quipped, referencing Trump’s rhetoric about migrants taking jobs from Black Americans.
Trump, who launched his political career with racist attacks on Obama’s citizenship, has similarly targeted Harris.
At 63, Barack Obama played a key role in the discussions that led Biden to withdraw from the race last month and endorse Harris, his vice president.
Harris Takes Aim at Trump Kamala Harris, 59, has led a groundbreaking campaign, setting fundraising records and drawing large crowds of supporters.
Speaking virtually from a campaign rally in Milwaukee, Harris was greeted by delegates in Chicago holding signs that read “FREEDOM,” mirroring those at her Wisconsin rally.
Harris and her running mate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, took the stage in Milwaukee, the same venue where Trump formally accepted the Republican nomination last month.
In her speech, Harris criticized Trump for his lack of regret over the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2022 decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, which had protected women’s constitutional right to abortion. Three justices appointed by Trump joined the 6-3 majority.
“I do believe bad behavior should have consequences. We’ll make sure he faces those consequences at the ballot box in November,” Harris asserted.
With abortion rights as a central issue in the campaign, Harris has been at the forefront, championing the cause as vice president.
I am an experienced writer, analyst, and author. My exposure in English journalism spans more than 28 years. In the past, I have been working with daily The Muslim (Lahore Bureau), daily Business Recorder (Lahore/Islamabad Bureaus), Daily Times, Islamabad, daily The Nation (Lahore and Karachi). With daily The Nation, I have served as Resident Editor, Karachi. Since 2009, I have been working as a Freelance Writer/Editor for American organizations.
