Words matter. Kamala Harris' political genius is to talk about “freedom” and not “democracy.”

Words matter. Kamala Harris, her speechwriters and her campaign team as a whole know this very well. And her great choice of words – together with her political skills and her majority-approved policies – will take her all the way to the Oval Office.

The best example of Harris' political genius is her decision to talk about “freedom” instead of “democracy.” “Freedom” is so important to her that Beyonce's song “Freedom” became the anthem of her campaign.

And in their rhetoric, freedom beats democracy.

The New York Times analyzed how often Harris, Tim Walz and Joe Biden used different words in their speeches at the Democratic National Convention. Harris used “freedom” 11 times – “democracy” only twice. Walz never mentioned “democracy” while referring to “freedom” eight times. Biden, on the other hand, preferred “democracy” to “freedom” by a ratio of 10 to 6.

This difference has its roots in their personal history.

Old-school Joe grew up in the shadow of the Cold War, a 45-year-long struggle by the West to defend democracy against the totalitarian, anti-democratic Soviet communists.

Kamala is a child of the civil rights movement and grew up surrounded by the rhetoric of freedom. The freedom of every American, regardless of the color of their skin, to be a full and equal participant in the American dream. And as she stands to become the first American female president, she is reaping the rewards of the fight of generations of feminists for the freedom of women to pursue their ambitions – whether they want to be president, banker, teacher, plumber or homemaker – a freedom that is rooted in their right to decide their own reproductive goals.

Some readers may be wondering: So what? Democracy and freedom are both at stake. Don't they go hand in hand? They do. But there is a difference.

Democracy is abstract. Freedom is personal. People are not stupid. They know that the loss of democracy is a bad thing. But that fear is not as concrete as the loss of freedom to decide when and whether to have children – which includes the freedom of a rape victim to have an abortion, the freedom of a pregnant woman to receive necessary medical treatment, or the freedom of a couple to have a child through artificial insemination. The freedom to marry the person you love. And the freedom to be left alone by others who mind their own business.

The Founding Fathers knew the power of words. The three inalienable rights they listed in the Declaration of Independence are: “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness” – not “life, democracy and the pursuit of happiness.”

The word “democracy” does not appear in the Constitution. The word “liberty,” however, appears in the First Amendment to the Constitution, which guarantees five freedoms.

“Congress shall make no law establishing an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”

Freedom is always positive. You are free to walk, free to speak, free to disagree. It is good to be free from want, free from hunger, free from fear. Emancipation freed slaves. Freedom Riders fought against Jim Crow laws. When you ask if you can have something, it is good to hear, “Feel free.” Lynyrd Skynyrd's rock anthem is “Freebird.” The reader will think of many more.

Democracy appeals to our minds. Freedom appeals to our emotions. Defending democracy sounds like hard work. Happy warriors fight for freedom.

So let us heed Kamala's call to action. Let us join forces with Tim's philosophy of “live and let live.” Let us move forward with joy and fight for freedom. And when the war is won, let us rejoice that our victory saved democracy in America.