Kamala Harris' speech to the DNC showed that she is ready to fight Trump

Harris made it clear that while Donald Trump is “an unserious man in many ways,” the consequences of “Donald Trump's return to the White House would be extremely serious.”

“Think of the power he will have – especially after the Supreme Court of the United States just ruled that he is immune from prosecution. Imagine Donald Trump without guardrails,” Harris said.

The vice president laid out a vision that contrasted with the “fire and brimstone” image of America promoted by Trump. “The freedom to live safe from gun violence in our schools, communities and houses of worship,” she said. “The freedom to love who you love openly and proudly. The freedom to breathe clean air and drink clean water and live free from the pollution that fuels the climate crisis. And the freedom that unlocks all other freedoms, the freedom to choose.”

Harris addressed a wide range of issues, including the need to protect reproductive rights, pass bipartisan legislation to secure the border and provide immigrants with a path to citizenship, and the ongoing war and humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

While pro-Palestinian protests erupted throughout the convention, urging Harris to support a ceasefire in Gaza and an arms embargo on Israel, the vice president used her speech to reiterate her support for “Israel's right to self-defense,” but added, “The events of the last ten months in Gaza are devastating.”

“President Biden and I are working to end this war so that Israel is safe, the hostages are released, the suffering in Gaza ends, and the Palestinian people can exercise their right to dignity, security, freedom and self-determination,” Harris said.

Harris's path to the nomination was short and unexpected, but in the month since President Joe Biden dropped out of the 2024 presidential race, the vice president has managed to completely change the party's perspective less than three months before the November election.

Harris has campaigned on a message of unity, progress and joy, advocating for empowering the middle class through economic reform and protecting reproductive freedom and civil liberties. DNC attendees throughout the convention — including President Joe Biden, former Presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton, Hillary Clinton, Michelle Obama, a number of Democratic lawmakers and even Oprah and Stevie Wonder — supported Harris' forward-thinking vision for the nation.

While Harris and her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, are generating enough enthusiasm among voters to put Democrats back on the offensive after the disastrous debate that ultimately forced Biden out of the race, the battle between her and Trump remains incredibly close. In her speech, Harris, like many others who spoke at the DNC this week, warned voters that they need to stay engaged over the next few months and cautioned against overconfidence.

Harris noted that the campaigns and prosecutorial battles of her career have not been “easy,” nor have “even the elections that put me in these offices.”

“We were underestimated at virtually every turn,” she said. “But we never gave up, because the future is always worth fighting for. And that is the fight we are fighting right now. A fight for the future of America. Dear Americans, this election is not just the most important of our lifetime. It is one of the most important in the life of our nation.”

The conclusion of the DNC marks the beginning of the race for the White House in earnest, with Harris and Walz now officially at the top of the list of candidates. The battle has already taken on a different tone than the one Biden waged against Trump, with the party shelving its “when they go low, we rise high” approach and instead opting to beat Republicans at their own game. Walz regularly calls Trump and his running mate JD Vance “weird,” Harris' campaign team has been quick to slam the Republican slate online, and several speakers at the DNC have outright derided Trump – speaking of the former president less as if he were a domineering force bent on destroying democracy and more as if he were a tired, pathetic buffoon out only for his own enrichment.

Trump has noticed. “Did you see Barack Hussein Obama taking little jabs at him last night?” he asked Wednesday after Obama took a few jabs at Trump on Tuesday night. “He took a shot at your president, and Michelle did, too. You know, they always say, 'Sir, please stick to politics, don't get personal,' but these people get personal all night long.”

The former president has been attacking Harris all week, calling her “comrade” and claiming she will turn America into a communist state. It's unclear whether attacking Harris as a radical leftist and predicting the end of the world if she wins will resonate with voters. But what is true today that wasn't six weeks ago is that Trump is losing ground in the polls and is heavily on the defensive.

Harris responded forcefully to the attacks from Trump and Republicans on Thursday night. “My mother had another lesson that she always taught,” she said. “Don't let anyone tell you who you are. Show them who you are.”

“America, let us show each other and the world who we are,” she added. “And what we stand for. Freedom, opportunity, compassion. Dignity, fairness and endless possibilities.”