CHICAGO — At Democrats’ national convention this week, President Joe Biden was hailed as nothing short of a hero for democracy.
The party faithful also made it clear it was ready to turn the page.
Speaker after speaker extolled Biden’s decision to end his reelection bid as a selfless act — an act that happened only after a groundswell of internal pressure helped force his hand after a ruinous June debate.
But while that praise was unavoidable on the stage or in the hallways of the United Center, it was Vice President Kamala Harris’ party this week, underscoring the base’s jubilation at having a new standard-bearer.
The tightrope won’t end with the convention — Harris will have to run as her own candidate heading a campaign that’s being built while in the air after the unprecedented circumstances that birthed it, all while serving as the president’s No. 2.
“I think she has to run like she’s leading our party at this point. She’s got to articulate her vision on the Middle East, articulate her vision on the economy. President Biden has passed the torch,” Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif, said when asked how she should strike that balance. “I don’t think she should be afraid to set a new direction … She should feel comfortable breaking on policies where she disagrees.”
Not every Democrat was as blunt, but several party figures gathered in Chicago urged Harris to view Biden’s record as a steppingstone rather than something to be merely continud, which Harris has already been a theme as she begins laying out policy stances.
Her housing policy, which would offer some first-time homebuyers $25,000 in down payment assistance, is a clear step beyond Biden’s position. Her proposal to give a $6,000 tax credit to parents of newborns is another expansion. And while echoing Biden’s insistence that Israel have the tools needed to defend itself and opposing an arms embargo, Harris has voiced notably greater concern for the humanitarian toll of the war in Gaza.
“I think the Biden-Harris administration has created a solid foundation, and really now it’s scaffolding. She’s building upon everything that they did,” said Minnesota Lt. Gov, Peggy Flanagan, D, whose boss, Gov. Tim Walz, D, is Harris’ running mate. “I think what you see is recognizing where she has come from and the good work that she’s done, but also carving a path, which is continuing to do this good work.”
“I wouldn’t call it distance, but she must become her own true individual, because people are voting for her and her policies,” former Rep. Brenda Lawrence, D-Mich., added. “The issue with housing is not different from Biden’s, but it’s at another level. It’s her policy, and she’s got to do more of that.”
There was also a tonal shift.
Instead of the convention being the latest salvo in a fight for democracy, it was a gathering focused on “joy.” And while speakers referenced Trump’s 34 felony convictions and other legal troubles, many speakers focused instead on casting the former president as a selfish leader who wouldn’t take to heart Americans’ most serious concerns.
“The next time you hear him, don’t count the lies. Count the ‘I’s,'” former President Bill Clinton said Tuesday night.
That’s not to say the party is over Biden as a figure in the party.
Chants of “thank you, Joe” and “we love Joe” rattled the arena throughout the week in recognition of his decision to drop out of the race, and Democrats insisted Biden will be remembered as a historic figure.
“I think history will say that Joe Biden saved America twice. The first time was removing the malignancy that was the Trump presidency and healing the nation after Jan. 6. And then I think he is attempting to save America again by putting his ego aside, stepping back and doing what’s best for the country by allowing Vice President Harris to take on Donald Trump,” said veteran Democratic strategist Peter Giangreco.
Harris herself made sure to shout Biden out at the top of her speech, specifically noting his future legacy.
“To our president, Joe Biden. When I think about the path that we have traveled together, Joe, I am filled with gratitude. Your record is extraordinary, as history will show, and your character is inspiring” she said.
There is also limited flexibility Harris has to get too far out ahead on Biden, particularly on foreign policy.
Harris has largely continued Biden’s policy supporting Ukraine as it works to fend off Russia’s bloody invasion, and while she has sounded a more sympathetic tone to Palestinians in Gaza, she is limited in how far out ahead of the president she can get as active ceasefire negotiations continue.
“I’m realistic, as vice president, she can’t cut off the weapons supplied today, but what commitments can she make on this issue before November?” Wa’el Alzayat, the CEO of Muslim advocacy organization Emgage, said of U.S. support for Israel during the war in Gaza.
Still, the convention this week marked a transition away from Biden, bittersweet as it may be for the president and his party.
Instead of speaking on Thursday to accept renomination, as was envisioned just a few short months ago, Biden instead spoke on Monday, the first night of the convention, before jetting off to California and missing the rest of the confab. He came out on stage teary eyed, offering a different coda to his political career than he’d long anticipated after decades of vying for the White House, before finally clinching his first and only term in 2020.
He called Harris Thursday before she delivered her own remarks, but in Chicago, he was nowhere to be found as Democrats looked to a future that appears to have a shrinking place for him.
“The handoff of the baton has been just masterful, very smooth. And she’s already come out with some of her own policy agenda items,” said Rep. Dina Titus, D-Nev. “She’s going to carry on some of the things he started…but then she is her own person, so she’s going to have her own ideas that build off of that. Don’t copy it, don’t just continue it, but build on it.”
When asked if Harris is now the leader of the party, Titus responded, “oh, no question.”
