CHICAGO — We have a huge edition for you this morning, including in-depth interviews with both Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries on Democrats’ prospects following the DNC. This is our last AM edition until Sept. 2 as Punchbowl News is off next week.
But first, let’s talk about Vice President Kamala Harris’ historic address to the Democratic convention and what it means for the White House race.
Harris’ big moment: Harris said Thursday night that she’s “no stranger to unlikely journeys.” The last 30 days have certainly put that to the test.
Harris, the first Black woman and first person of Asian American heritage to become a major party nominee, had a unique opportunity to completely reorient the presidential race with just 74 days left until Election Day. During her speech to a raucous crowd of party faithful, Harris acknowledged her path to the Democratic presidential nomination was “unexpected,” which is putting it mildly following the drama of the last two months.
The 59-year-old California native gave her origin story and laid out a familiar case against former President Donald Trump.
Yet Harris — who has dubbed it the “New Way Forward” — also leaned hard into a governing vision of her own on domestic and foreign policy, one that differs from President Joe Biden, who she took over for as Democratic nominee just weeks ago.
Portraying herself as the underdog against Trump, Harris tried to combat some of her biggest weaknesses, positioning herself as a center-left candidate and promising to be a “realistic, practical” president who represents all Americans. Republicans have pointed out that Harris had one of the most progressive voting records as a senator, painting her as a “radical” who’s too extreme to govern effectively.
Listen up, Congress! On the problems at the U.S.-Mexico border, a key vulnerability, Harris vowed to sign the bipartisan border deal into law. Harris noted that Trump was responsible for killing the measure in the Senate, showing she’s comfortable going on offense over an issue that Republicans have used to bludgeon her.
Unsaid, however, was the fact that many progressives hated this bill, and there would surely be resistance from the left if it’s brought up again.
On the economy, another area where Trump and the GOP have an edge, Harris called restoring the middle class a “defining goal” of her presidency. She once again laid out her vision for a so-called “opportunity economy” and promised to “lower the cost of everyday needs.” Harris unveiled part of this agenda last week, and she didn’t go into much further detail in last night’s address.
Harris also mentioned a trio of other bills that are top Democratic priorities: the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, the Freedom to Vote Act, and legislation to “restore reproductive freedom.”
Yet passing any of those would require gutting the 60-vote threshold in the Senate — and this assumes Democrats control both chambers next year. All of those scenarios are far from guaranteed. Schumer is already floating the possibility of a filibuster carve-out on abortion rights.
Trump: Harris made a forceful case against Trump, leaning heavily into the contrast of a former prosecutor running against a convicted felon. She portrayed Trump as an existential threat to the country, saying there would be “no guardrails” if the former president returned to the White House.
Harris zeroed in on the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol as well as the Supreme Court’s hugely controversial presidential immunity ruling. Harris also mentioned Trump’s civil court cases, noting he’s been found guilty of fraud and liable for sexual abuse:
Her ability to crisply articulate the case against Trump was a reminder of exactly why Democrats were so eager to see Biden pass the torch to Harris.
Harris did what she needed to during her 40-minute speech, wrapping up what was a successful convention for her and the party — especially considering the challenges they faced coming into Chicago. Now comes a sprint to the finish against Trump.
The Senate candidates: Another interesting dynamic from last night’s program centered on the battle for the Senate. Five Senate candidates and in-cycle incumbents from battleground states had speaking slots on the convention’s final night. Democrats need to hold all of these seats to keep their majority.
What they said — and didn’t say — was revealing.
Sens. Bob Casey (D-Pa.) and Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.) gave short, issue-specific speeches and did not mention their reelection race or their GOP opponents. The same went for Rep. Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.), who’s running for an open seat in Michigan. They all made direct pitches for Harris.
Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.), running for that state’s open Senate seat, made a veteran-focused pitch for Harris. During his speech, Gallego brought more than two dozen congressional Democrats who served in the military onto the stage. Gallego, a Marine veteran, didn’t mention his GOP opponent Kari Lake.
Only Rep. Colin Allred (D-Texas) named his opponent — Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) — in his remarks. Of course, Cruz is a lightning rod for Democrats nationwide, and Allred has seen a flood of out-of-state donations.
