CHICAGO — Former President Barack Obama was a homecoming king on the second night of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago.
But Obama, who has called Chicago home since 1985, seemed mindful of his place as a party statesman who can shine a spotlight on Vice President Kamala Harris — and the risk that he can overshadow her.
Obama’s closing convention address, his sixth, showcased the soaring rhetoric, and cadence, for which the former president has become known as he delivered a strident defense of President Joe Biden and Harris and a takedown of former President Donald Trump before November.
“I’m feeling hopeful because this convention has always been pretty good to kids with funny names who believe in a country where anything is possible,” Obama told the crowd in the United Center Tuesday to welcome chants of “Yes we can!” “Because we have the chance to elect someone who’s spent her entire life trying to give people the same chances America gave her.
“Someone who sees you and hears you and will get up every single day and fight for you: the next President of the United States of America, Kamala Harris,” he said.
Of Biden, Obama conceded he and his former vice president were “from different backgrounds” but “became brothers,” praising his “smarts,” “experience,” “empathy,” and “decency.”
“History will remember Joe Biden as a president who defended democracy at a moment of great danger,” he said. “I am proud to call him my president, but even prouder to call him my friend.”
Biden is reportedly still reeling from the lack of support he received from the likes of the Obamas and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi amid pressure on him to step down as the 2024 Democratic nominee. Biden left the convention for California Monday night after his swansong speech.
Of Trump, Obama criticized his successor’s “constant stream of gripes and grievances that’s actually gotten worse now that he’s afraid of losing to Kamala,” warning “the sequel’s usually worse.”
“Make no mistake: it will be a fight,” he said. “For all the rallies and all the memes, this will still be a tight race in a closely divided country — a country where too many Americans are still struggling, and don’t believe government can help.”
As he did during his breakthrough convention address in Boston, Obama appealed for bipartisanship, saying the country wants “something better” and to “be better.”
“Here’s the good news: all across America, in big cities and small towns, away from all the noise, the ties that bind us together are still there,” he said. “We still coach Little League and look out for our elderly neighbors. We still feed the hungry, in churches, and mosques, and synagogues, and share the same pride when our Olympic athletes compete for the gold. Because the vast majority of us don’t want to live in a country that’s bitter and divided.”
But Obama, who met Harris during his 2004 campaign to represent Illinois in the U.S. Senate and again during his 2008 bid for the presidency, had to be careful not to cast a shadow on Harris, another former senator, as she introduces herself to the country less than 100 days before the election, though former first lady Michelle Obama arguably upstaged him Tuesday night.
“We are ready for a President Kamala Harris and Kamala Harris is ready for the job,” he said, with chants of “Yes she can!”
Obamas carry star power
On the sidelines of the New York delegation’s breakfast downtown near the river, New York City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams predicted she would probably greet Barack and Michelle Obama by “screaming” her head off.
“The Obamas will always be the stars,” Adams, the first black woman to be her city’s speaker, told the Washington Examiner. “They will always be in the cosmos of the exquisitely amazing individuals that they are and the couple that they are, the couple that they present to the world.”
“I will not make any apologies for my behavior,” she quipped.
During the Michigan delegation’s breakfast near Grant Park, where Obama celebrated his 2008 victory, Gov. Wes Moore (D-MD), who, like Harris, has been compared to the former president, told the Washington Examiner he was “so excited… to see both Obamas tonight” before being whisked away by his security detail.
After his own remarks to the Michiganders, Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA), Obama’s Commerce Department deputy assistant secretary, avoided a question from the Washington Examiner regarding any danger of the former president overshadowing Harris.
“He’s the greatest modern figure in American political life,” Khanna said. “I’m really excited about his speech.”
But Michigan 12th Congressional District Democratic Party Chair Kevin Tolbert conceded Obama has “vibrant energy and that ability to be cerebral, yet lead and that passion,” although the former president has been scrutinized for his tendency to be professorial.
“I think you’re watching the beginning of something awesome and great,” Tolbert told the Washington Examiner. “Kamala Harris is bright in her own way, and I think Barack Obama is going to come and show this incredible amount of unity we have as Democrats. They talk about us not having unity, and like, there’s some division, but there’s no division. We’re a great team.”
Michigan delegate Nicole Wells Stallworth, 47, agreed, contending there “is room for everyone” in the Democratic Party.
“That’s the beauty of it,” the Farmington Hills sexual and reproductive healthcare advocate told the Washington Examiner. “Obama has been a very dynamic leader, and he’s very charismatic, and he has a great wealth and depth of references where he can relate to just about anyone or anything. I think Kamala Harris has a similar relatability.”
Harris tries to reconstruct Obama’s coalition of women, young people, and minority voters in the Sun Belt states of Arizona, Georgia, Nevada, and North Carolina. While Harris has not encountered any difficulties fundraising, Obama has raised more than $65 million this election cycle alone.
“For sure, President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama took us to places and spaces that America never thought that America would see, at least not in my lifetime,” Adrienne Adams said.
Former Obama White House spokesman Eric Schultz previewed that the former president’s address, would underscore why Harris and Walz “are precisely the leaders the country needs right now” and remind people “the values at stake in this election and at the heart of our politics,” despite speculation he delayed his endorsement of her because was concerned about her prospects.
“Since 2020, President Obama has been in regular touch with Vice President Harris to provide counsel and be a sounding board whenever asked,” an Obama source told the Washington Examiner. “Over the last few months, they’ve been in close contact and he has offered to support her campaign in any way that he can – including policy or strategic advice, fundraising, and of course campaign travel to help get-out-the-vote.”
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Obama is expected to help Harris with fundraising, advertising, and outreach, incorporating cross-country travel, in the fall.
