He was not the star of the convention, as he had been at so many previous Democratic conventions, nor did he close the program, as he had done twice, as the party's candidate.
But former President Clinton, speaking for the 12th time at a Democratic convention, still managed to enthuse the party faithful with a camp speech Wednesday night, in which he urged Americans to elect “Kamala Harris for the people and [not] the other guy, who has proven even more than the first time that it's about me, about myself and about me.”
“Kamala Harris will work to solve our problems, seize our opportunities, alleviate our fears and make sure that every American, regardless of how they vote, has the chance to pursue their dreams,” Clinton said during her 27-minute speech.
Clinton, who turned 78 on Monday, gave her nod to a candidate who was a young deputy district attorney in Alameda County when he won the White House in 1992.
Clinton acknowledged what many Democrats have been saying this week in Chicago: a renewed sense that the party can beat Trump with Harris as its nominee.
“We are energized. We are happy,” Clinton said. “We feel like a weight has been lifted from our shoulders and we know that we are being asked to fight the same battle that the forces of progress have had to fight for 250 years.”
She began her remarks with a tribute to President Biden, comparing him to George Washington in his willingness to leave the presidency, when both had the opportunity to seek another term. “He did something that is really difficult for a politician to do,” Clinton said. “He voluntarily gave up political power.”
Former President Carter, 99 and ailing, was unable to attend the convention, leaving Clinton as the elder Democratic statesman, and he seemed to relish his role, speaking in the slow, conversational style with which he came to power in the 1990s.
Clinton noted that Harris worked at McDonald's in her younger years, greeting customers with the question, “How can I help you?” “Now she's at the pinnacle of power,” she said, “and she still asks, 'How can I help you?'”
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He contrasted that with Trump, who he suggested would “dodge what needs to be done by dividing us, distracting us, and diverting us.”
“He keeps dividing, he keeps blaming, he keeps belittling other people,” Clinton said. “He creates chaos and then he curates it, like it’s beautiful art.”
Clinton appeared in no hurry to leave the stage and ended on a sentimental note, recalling her journey from a town called Hope, Arkansas, and her long career, including attending every Democratic convention since 1972.
“I have no idea how many more of these I’ll be able to attend,” he said.
“Let us listen to the words of a man who once had the honor of being called at this convention ‘a man of hope,’” he concluded. “We need Kamala Harris, the president of joy, to lead us.”
