Kamala Harris: We are not going back

Kamala Harris’s speech at the Democratic National Convention was a powerful call to action for the American people as the nation faces a pivotal moment in its history. Harris, accepting the Democratic nomination for president, emphasized the urgent need for unity, freedom, and fairness as the country navigates a complex and challenging political landscape. She highlighted the serious consequences of the upcoming election and the importance of moving forward together as a nation. Harris’s speech was not just a critique of the past but a vision for the future, urging Americans to choose a path that upholds the nation’s core values.

A Call for Unity and Leadership

In her address, Kamala Harris painted a clear picture of the stakes in the upcoming election. She began by reflecting on her personal journey, recounting her experiences as a prosecutor and attorney general, where she fought for justice and equality. These experiences shaped her commitment to public service and her belief in the power of collective action. Harris stressed three key aspects of her vision for America:

1. Unity Over Division: Harris underscored the importance of coming together as a nation, setting aside partisan differences to work towards a common goal. She highlighted how unity is essential in overcoming the challenges that lie ahead.
2. Leadership with Integrity: Drawing on her own experiences, Harris emphasized the need for leadership that is grounded in integrity, fairness, and a commitment to the rule of law. She pledged to lead with these principles, ensuring that all Americans are represented and respected.
3. A Vision for the Future: Harris’s speech was forward-looking, focusing on the need for progress in areas such as justice, equality, and opportunity. She called for a collective effort to build a future that is fair and just for all Americans.

Key Lessons and Themes

Kamala Harris’s speech highlighted several key lessons and themes that resonate with the current political and social climate in the United States:

1. The Importance of Justice: Harris’s background as a prosecutor informed her commitment to justice and equality. She spoke passionately about the need to protect the rights of all Americans and ensure that justice is served without bias.
2. The Power of Unity: Throughout her speech, Harris emphasized the power of unity in achieving common goals. She urged Americans to come together to face the challenges ahead, regardless of political affiliation.
3. A Call for Leadership: Harris’s speech was a call for leadership that prioritizes the needs of the people. She highlighted the importance of leading with integrity and a commitment to the core values of the nation.
4. Addressing the Challenges Ahead: While Harris acknowledged the difficulties the nation faces, she remained optimistic about the future. She called on Americans to rise to the occasion, to fight for the future they want to see.

As Kamala Harris concluded her speech, she left the audience with a message of hope and determination. She reminded Americans of the power they hold in shaping the future of the nation and urged them to choose a path that reflects the best of America. Harris’s vision is one of unity, justice, and progress—a vision that challenges the nation to live up to its highest ideals.

Our nation with this election has a precious, fleeting opportunity to move past the bitterness, cynicism, and divisive battles of the past, a chance to chart a new way forward. Not as members of any one party or faction, but as Americans. And let me say, I know there are people of various political views watching tonight, and I want you to know, I promise to be a president for all Americans. You can always trust me to put country above party and self, to hold sacred America’s fundamental principles from the rule of law to free and fair elections to the peaceful transfer of power. I will be a president who unites us around our highest aspirations, a president who leads and listens, who is realistic, practical, and has common sense, and always fights for the American people.

From the courthouse to the White House, that has been my life’s work. As a young courtroom prosecutor in Oakland, California, I stood up for women and children against predators who abused them. As Attorney General of California, I took on the big banks, delivered $20 billion for middle-class families who faced foreclosure, and helped pass a homeowner bill of rights, one of the first of its kind in the nation. I stood up for veterans and students being scammed by big for-profit colleges, for workers who were being cheated out of the wages they were due, for seniors facing elder abuse. I fought against the cartels who traffic in guns and drugs and human beings, who threaten the security of our border and the safety of our communities. And I will tell you, these fights were not easy, and neither were the elections that put me in those offices. We were underestimated at practically every turn, but we never gave up, because the future is always worth fighting for.

And that’s the fight we are in right now, a fight for America’s future. Fellow Americans, this election is not only the most important of our lives, it is one of the most important in the life of our nation. In many ways, Donald Trump is an unserious man, but the consequences of putting Donald Trump back in the White House are extremely serious. Consider not only the chaos and calamity when he was in office, but also the gravity of what has happened since he lost the last election.

Donald Trump tried to throw away your votes. When he failed, he sent an armed mob to the United States Capitol, where they assaulted law enforcement officers. When politicians in his own party begged him to call off the mob and send help, he did the opposite. He fanned the flames. And now, for an entirely different set of crimes, he was found guilty of fraud by a jury of everyday Americans and separately found liable for committing sexual abuse. And consider what he intends to do if we give him power again. Consider his explicit intent to set free violent extremists who assaulted those law enforcement officers at the Capitol, his explicit intent to jail journalists, political opponents, and anyone he sees as the enemy, his explicit intent to deploy our active duty military against our own citizens.

Consider the power he will have, especially after the United States Supreme Court just ruled that he would be immune from criminal prosecution. Just imagine Donald Trump with no guardrails and how he would use the immense powers of the presidency of the United States, not to improve your life, not to strengthen our national security, but to serve the only client he has ever had, himself. And we know what a second Trump term would look like. It’s all laid out in Project 2025, written by his closest advisors, and its sum total is to pull our country back to the past. But America, we are not going back. We are not going back. We are not going back.