DNC Night 1 Highlights: Joe Biden Urges ‘Beat Donald Trump’ in Nearly 50-Minute Speech; Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Fires Up Crowd
Joe Biden took the stage as the final speaker at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago on Monday night, with more than three minutes of applause and frequent chants of “We love Joe” from the audience. The 49-minute speech ran long during a night that was already behind schedule.
During the speech, audience members unfurled a banner reading “Stop arming Israel,” several attendees reported, and other people tried to rip the banner away. The disruption didn’t cause much of a ripple due to the vast size of the arena.
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“We are in the battle for the very soul of America,” Biden said, reciting a long list of his administration’s accomplishments in infrastructure, health care, climate, jobs and manufacturing. “Union Joe,” chanted the audience as Biden spoke of his union support.
As many delegates began leaving the hall as his speech continued, Biden proclaimed, “I know more foreign leaders by their first names and know them better than anyone alive, just because i’m so damn old.”
He then took up the subject of reproductive rights. “Donald Trump is going to find out the power of women in 2024,” Biden said, flubbing his statement “women are not without electoral power” as “electrical power” instead.
“America, I gave my best to you,” he concluded. “We just have to remember who we are.”
Hillary Clinton
Hillary Clinton, who fell short of becoming the first woman president, told Democrats she believes America is on the verge of breaking through and electing Kamala Harris.
In her speech at the Democratic convention in Chicago, Clinton drew on the legacy of women on the national stage, from Shirley Chisholm to Geraldine Ferraro, and said that Harris will make history.
“I want my children and grandchildren to know I was here at this moment,” she said. “We were here. We were with Kamala Harris every step of the way. This is when we break through. The future is here. Let’s go win it.”
Kamala Harris
Harris kicked off the convention with a brief appearance, sending a jolt of excitement through the delegates on hand. The Night 1 crowd at the United Center was jubilant about the historic prospect of electing the first female president. The sense of history moving on was buttressed later in the night — as the program ran very long — when attendees started clearing out well before President Joe Biden’s address.
“This is going to be a great week!” Harris said during her brief appearance Monday. She gave a heartfelt thank-you to Biden. “We are forever grateful to you.”
Harris’ appearance followed a brief biographical video, narrated by Jeffrey Wright and accompanied by Beyonce’s song “Freedom.”
Tony Goldwyn
The vice president then gave way to emcee Tony Goldwyn, the actor who played the president on the ABC show “Scandal.” Goldwyn was among a handful of entertainers on stage, following Jason Isbell, who sang “Something More Than Free,” and Mickey Guyton, who performed “Ain’t We All American?”
Goldwyn promised that the week would offer an introduction to Harris and a clear contrast between Donald Trump’s agenda and her vision for the future.
“It is a message that’s joyful, not mean spirited,” Goldwyn said. “Public service — not self service, optimism and opportunity, not chaos and division. It’s a message that has woken us up to who we are.”
The Democratic speakers offered tributes to Biden and Harris, but also sought to prosecute the case against Trump. Many attendees were overheard buzzing in corridors about the most recent Trump outrage — falsely claiming to have been endorsed by Taylor Swift.
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the New York Democrat who has become one of the youthful faces of the party, was one of most anticipated speakers on the schedule and she was effective in firing up the crowd. Earlier in the day, Donald Trump’s campaign sought to link Harris to Ocasio-Cortez’s positions on issues like defunding the police and the Green New Deal.
When it was her turn at the podium, Ocasio-Cortez didn’t waste time attacking Trump as a plutocrat. AOC demonstrated her muscle as one of the most prominent young Democratic stars to come along in years. Her speech was drowned out in multiple instances by screaming and applause — especially when she took aim at Trump.
“I for one am tired of hearing about how a two-bit union buster thinks of himself as more of a patriot than the woman who fights every single day to lift working people out from under the boots of greed trampling on our way of life,” she said. “The truth is, Don, you cannot love this country if you only fight for the wealthy and big business. To love this country is to fight for all people, working people, everyday Americans.” Ocasio-Cortez also reminded the crowd how important support for House and Senate races are. “We can’t send Kamala Harris and Tim Walz to Washington alone,” she said.
Hitting Back at Trump
Clinton also didn’t hold back against Trump, saying he “fell asleep at his own trial,” and woke up to find himself convicted on 34 felony counts. In a twist of history, the crowd chanted “Lock him up!” — an echo of chants at Trump rallies eight years ago calling for Clinton to be jailed.
Clinton also drew parallels between Trump’s attacks on her and those on Harris.
“He’s mocking her name and her laugh – sounds familiar,” Clinton said. “But we have him on the run now.” Clinton may have lost the 2016 race against Trump but she remains a rock star with hardcore Democrats.
The convention scene
Spotted in the basement of the United Center were Marisa Tomei, J.J. Abrams and producer Bruce Cohen. They said they had “high hopes” for the campaign. Abrams and his wife, Katie McGrath, have given more than $3 million to Democratic committees this cycle. Cohen is also a prolific donor.
With the convention speeches running late, James Taylor was cut from his scheduled performance before Biden’s speech.
As Democrats got ready for opening night, downtown Chicago was humming Monday with flags, bunting, bootleg t-shirt vendors and all the usual trappings of a political circus come to town.
Delegates from all over the country took time out before the major speechifying at the United Center this evening to look around the city. A rally in support of Palestinians in Gaza drew about 15,000 people, organizers with the Coalition to March on the DNC told ABC News Chicago.
But generally speaking, the downtown scene seemed calm. Further south near the warren of hotels housing delegates, the scene was quiet even outside of the gleaming silver Trump Tower that looks out over the city’s Riverwalk.
Another hub of activity was on the east side of town at the sprawling McCormick Place center that the hosted DemPalooza showcase featuring a range of left-leaning organizations and causes. There were stages for discussions and Q&As but they were sparsely attended. The five-mile distance between McCormick Place and the United Center has obvious advantages for security and crowd control. But it also makes attendees heavily dependent on the DNC shuttles operating among the hotels and the two venues. The security perimeter around United Center is so large that ride share drivers and even public transit can’t get too close.
Elections are often defined in slogans and there was plenty of sloganeering displayed on the lapels, polo shirts and blouses of delegates, from “Remember Jan. 6” to “Keep Kamala and Carry On,” “Another Cat Lady for Kamala” and “Make Lying Wrong Again.”
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