Out gay Congress members, Biden, AOC, Hillary Clinton speak at Democratic convention

Out gay Congress members Rep. Robert Garcia (D-NY) and Sen. Laphonza Butler (D-CA) spoke during the first night of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) alongside other high-profile LGBTQ+ allies like Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and President Joe Biden.

Each speaker struck a contrast between former President Donald Trump and Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris. Harris also made a surprise appearance at the event, and so did the Rev. Jesse Jackson, the second-ever Black Democratic presidential candidate. Meanwhile, a few thousand protestors outside the DNC called for the U.S. to stop supplying weapons to Isreal in its continued “genocide” against Palestinians.

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President Joe Biden

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President Biden was introduced by his daughter Ashley Biden, and his speech came after an earlier one by First Lady Jill Biden. Both women mentioned President Biden’s decision to withdraw from the race. Jill Biden said that, among her husband’s other positive qualities, his decision to drop out and endorse Harris made her “fall in love with him all over again.”

“Our best days are not behind us — they’re before us,” Biden said. “I stand before you now on this August night to report that democracy has prevailed, democracy has delivered, and now democracy must be preserved…. We’re facing inflection point, one of those rare moments in history when the decisions we make now will determine the fate of our nation and the world for decades to come.”

He then recounted how he decided to run for president after witnessing the August 2017 Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia. He called the pro-confederate protestors “neo-Nazis” and “white supremacists,” saying that they were “so emboldened by a president then in the White House that they saw as an ally, they didn’t even bother to wear their hoods.”

“As your president, I’ve been determined to keep America moving forward, not going back, to stand against hate and violence in all its forms, to be a nation where we not only live with but thrive on diversity, demonizing no one, leaving no one behind, and become a nation we profess to be,” he continued. “I also ran to rebuild the backbone of America, the middle class. I made a commitment to you that I be a president for all Americans, whether you voted for me or not.”

Biden then recounted his administration’s progress on recovering the economy from the COVID pandemic, as well as its continued efforts to lower healthcare costs, combat climate change, invest in renewable energy, support public education, and improve infrastructure, stating, “Donald Trump promised infrastructure week every week for four years, and he never built a damn thing.”

After deriding Trump for repeatedly referring to the U.S. as a “failing nation,” Biden said, “Trump continues to lie about crime in America, like everything else. Guess what? On his watch, the murder rate went up 30% the biggest increase in history. Meanwhile, we made the largest investment, Kamala and I, in public safety ever. Now, the murder rate is falling faster than any time in history. Violent crime has dropped to the lowest level of more than 50 years, and crime will keep coming down when we put a prosecutor in the Oval Office instead of a convicted felon.”

He also accused Trump of helping to defeat a bipartisan bill to fund security at the U.S.-Mexico border, “once again, putting himself first and America last.”

“Unlike Trump, we will not demonize immigrants, saying they’re the poison of blood of America,” he said. “Kamala, I are committed to strengthening legal immigration, including protecting Dreamers and more. And here’s what else I believe in, protecting your freedom: your freedom to vote. Your freedom to love who you love, and your freedom to choose [your reproductive rights, including abortion],” Biden said.

“Donald Trump is going to find out the power of women in 2024,” Biden said. “Where Trump and the MAGA Republican right-wingers seek to erase history, we Democrats continue to write history, make more history. I’m proud.”

Biden then described his administration’s efforts to aid military veterans, mentioning Trump’s alleged comments that deceased vets were “suckers” and “losers.” He also accused Trump of “bowing down to dictators,” a reference to Trump’s glowing praise of various “strongman” dictators in countries like Russia and North Korea.

Biden then mentioned his administration’s efforts for a ceasefire and peace treaty between Israel and Palestine. “Those protesters out in the street, they have a point,” Biden said. “A lot of innocent people are being killed on both sides.” He didn’t address the protestors’ calls for a U.S. arms embargo against Israel.

“It’s been the honor of my lifetime to serve as your President. I love the job, but I love my country more,” Biden said. “And all this talk about how I’m angry at all those people said I should step down. That’s not true. I love my country more, and we need to preserve our democracy in 2024, we need you to vote. We need you to keep the Senate. We need you to win back the House of Representatives. And above all, we need you to beat Donald Trump.”

He mentioned Trump’s likely refusal to accept the election results, Trump’s promise of a “bloodbath” if he loses, and his pledge to be “a dictator” on day one of his re-election.

He then praised Harris, saying, “Selecting Kamala was the very first decision I made before I became when I became our nominee, and it was the best decision I made my whole career…. She’s tough, she’s experienced, and she has enormous integrity. Her story represents the best American story, and like many of our best presidents, she was also vice president.”

“That’s a joke,” he added, obviously referring to his past vice presidency under then-President Barack Obama. “But she’ll be a president our children can look up to. She’ll be a president respected by world leaders because she already is. She’ll be a president we can all be proud of, and she will be a historic president who puts her stamp on America’s future.”

Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton

Clinton began her speech by praising Biden, saying, “He brought dignity, decency and confidence back to the White House, and he showed what it means to be a true patriot. Thank you. Joe Biden, for your lifetime of service and leadership.”

“Something is happening in America. You can feel it something we’ve worked for and dreamed of for a long time,” Clinton said. “And now, we are writing a new chapter in America’s story.”

Clinton mentioned that her own mother was born in Chicago at a time when women didn’t have the right to vote, a right that was won 104 years ago as of yesterday. She then mentioned Rep. Shirley Chisholm, who, in 1968, became the first Black woman elected to Congress and, in 1972, the first Black woman to run for the Democratic Party’s presidential nomination.

“She ran for president, and her determination let me and millions of others dream bigger,” Clinton said, “not just because of who she was, but because of who she fought for: working parents, poor children, the last, the least and the lost.”

Clinton noted that she herself accepted the Democratic Party’s presidential nomination in 2016, adding, “Nearly 66 million Americans voted for a future where there are no ceilings on our dreams, and afterwards, we refused to give up on America. Millions marched. Many ran for office. We kept our eyes on the future. Well, my friends, the future is here.”

“I wish my mother and Kamala’s mother could see us,” Clinton said. “They would say, keep going…. Women fighting for reproductive health care, are saying, ‘Keep going.’ Families building better lives, parents stretching to afford child care, young people struggling to pay their rent, they’re all asking us to keep going.”

“The story of my life and the history of our country is that progress is possible, but not guaranteed,” Clinton continued. “We have to fight for it and never ever give up. There is always a choice. Do we push forward or pull back?

Clinton then said that she knows Harris’ “heart and her integrity,” stating, “We both got our start as young lawyers helping children who were abused and neglected. That kind of work changes a person. Those kids stay with you. Kamala carries with her the hopes of every child she protected, every family she helped, every community she served. So as president, she will always have our backs, and she will be a fighter for us. She will fight to lower costs for hard working families, open the doors wide for good, paying jobs, and yes, she will restore abortion rights nationwide.”

“As a prosecutor, Kamala locked up murderers and drug traffickers,” Clinton said. “She will never rest in defense of our freedom and safety. Donald Trump fell asleep at his own trial, and when he woke up, he made his own kind of history: the first person to run for president with 34 felony convictions.”

“As commander-in chief, Kamala won’t disrespect our military and our Veterans. She reveres our Medal of Honor recipients,” Clinton said, referencing a recent comment by Trump comparing the military award as equal to the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor. “She won’t be sending love letters to dictators. She will defend democracy and our Constitution, and will protect America from enemies, foreign and domestic.”

“Kamala cares cares about kids and families, cares about America. Donald only cares about himself,” Clinton added. “In her first day in court, Kamala said five words that still guide her: ‘Kamala Harris for the people.’ That is something that Donald Trump will never understand. So it is no surprise is it that he is lying about Kamala’s record. He’s mocking her name and her laugh sounds familiar, but we have him on the run now.”

“My friends, when a barrier falls for one of us, it falls, it falls and clears the way for all of us,” Clinton said. “For next 78 days, we need to work harder than we ever have. We need to beat back the dangers that Trump and his allies pose to the rule of law and our way of life. Don’t get distracted or complacent. Talk to your friends and neighbors. Volunteer, be proud champions for the truth and for the country that we all love.”

“I want my grandchildren and their grandchildren to know I was here at this moment, that we were here and that we were with Kamala Harris every step of the way,” Clinton said near the end of her speech.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY)

Ocasio-Cortez helped sell the working class bonafides of the Harris-Walz ticket by sharing her and her family’s story of economic hardship, and contrasting it with Trump’s “Wall Street” credentials. Her speech is notable, especially considering that, Shawn Fain, president of the United Auto Workers union, spoke earlier in the evening.

“Six years ago, I was taking omlette orders as a waitress in New York City,” Ocasio-Cortez said. “I didn’t have health insurance. My family was fighting off foreclosure, and we were struggling with bills after my dad passed away unexpectedly from cancer. Like millions of Americans, we were just looking for an honest shake, and we were tired of a cynical politics that seemed blind to the realities of working people.”

She then said that, “through the miracles of democracy and community that the good people of the Bronx and queens chose someone like me to elect them in Congress,” and praised Harris as a potential “president who is for the middle class, because she is from the middle class.”

“She understands the urgency of rent checks and groceries and prescriptions. She is as committed to our reproductive and civil rights as she is to taking on corporate greed, and she is working tirelessly to secure a ceasefire in Gaza and bringing hostages home,” Ocasio-Cortez said.

“We have to help her win,” she continued, “because we know that Donald Trump would sell this country for $1 if it meant lining his own pockets and greasing the palms of his Wall Street friends, and I for 1am, tired about of hearing about how a two-bit union buster thinks of himself as more of a patriot than the woman who fights every single day to rip working people out from under the boots of greed trembling on our way of life. The truth is Don, You cannot love this country if you only fight for the wealthy and big business.”

“To love this country is to fight for its people, all people, working people, everyday Americans, like bartenders and factory workers and fast food cashiers who punch a clock and are on their feet all day in some of the toughest jobs out there,” she said, adding, “Ever since I got elected, Republicans have attacked me by saying that I should go back to bartending. But let me tell you, I’m happy to any day of the week because there is nothing wrong with working for a living.”

She then reminded that “Just because the choice is clear to us does not mean that the path will be easy over the next 78 days.” She said Democrats will have to “pour every ounce, every minute, every moment, into making history” by electing Harris, but also said, “We must also elect strong Democratic majorities in the House and in the Senate so that we can deliver on an ambitious agenda for the people.”

Sen. Laphonza Butler (D-CA)

Laphonza noted that before she joined the Senate, she was a leader in the labor movement, adding, “So I know a champion for the people when I see one.” She then said that she met Harris when Harris was serving as the district attorney for San Francisco and Butler was president of a local chapter of SEIU United Long Term Care Workers, a union for in-home caregivers and nurses.

“We hit it off right away,” Butler said. “What really impressed me was how well she got to know my family, my wife, Neneki, but especially our daughter, Nyla. And as soon as Nyla heard that Ms. Kamala was running for president, she asked if she could be vice president. So no disrespect to Governor Walz, but Nyla put her name first,” she joked.

She then noted that both she and Harris graduated from historically Black colleges — Butler from Jackson State University and Harris from Howard University — and both were “raised by mothers who worked fiercely to provide for us,” Butler said.

“And we both believe that every single one of us has the power to change the world when we choose to do it together,” Butler continued. “You see, Kamala Harris has always understood the assignment, no matter if she were the underdog, no matter the bullying or the name-calling, she never doubted that our best was still ahead. She knew a better future, a better future was possible if we stood side by side with our neighbors and we fought for it, no matter what language they spoke, no matter what country they came from, no matter the size of their bank account.”

“And that’s what she did as a prosecutor, together with law enforcement, she prioritized holding criminals accountable and protecting public safety,” Butler said. “As state attorney general, together with students, she put a scam college out of business after the mortgage crisis. Together with families who lost their homes, she took on the biggest banks in the world and won a settlement five times what was initially offered. Every time she walked into a courtroom, she would simply say ‘Kamala Harris for the people.’ For her, it wasn’t just a professional oath, it was a battle cry.”

Referencing Trump and Republicans, Butler said, “To her opponents, this way of seeing the world, the idea of fighting for someone other than yourself, is unthinkable. But let me tell you, Democrats, what’s really unthinkable: Conning young people who simply want a good a good education is unthinkable. Stiffing hard working laborers like Donald Trump did in Atlantic City is unthinkable. Bragging about having ripped away a woman’s freedom to choose what she does with her own body is unthinkable. And Democrats, Americans, we deserve better.”

“We deserve we deserve a president who is tough, not just tough talking, one who shatters the boundaries of what’s possible, not the boundaries of what’s legal, and one who wipes the floor with cheats and fraudsters because, well Democrats, she knows the type.”

Her line about “knowing the type” echoed a now-famous line that Harris uttered when she announced her candidacy for president in June 2024. “Before I became vice president and before I was elected as U.S. senator, I was the attorney general of California,” Harris said at the time. “Before that, I was a prosecutor who took on predators, fraudsters, and cheaters. So I know Donald Trump’s type.”

Rep. Robert Garcia (D-CA)

Garcia blasted Trump and other Republicans while recounting the horrors of the COVID-19 pandemic. The respiratory illness killed both of Garcia’s parents while during his second term as the first out LGBTQ+ mayor of Long Beach, California.

“My mom was a health care worker. Like many of you, I watched in terror and horror as the COVID pandemic consumed our lives,” Garcia said. “As mayor, I fought for hospital beds, for more tests and to make masks more accessible, what we needed at that moment was national leadership. But instead, we got Donald Trump.”

“While schools closed and dead bodies filled morgues. Donald Trump downplayed the virus,” Garcia said. “He told us to inject bleach into our bodies. He peddled conspiracy theories across the country. We lost hundreds of 1000s of Americans, and our economy collapsed.”

“Now that summer of 2020, my mom and my stepfather both died of the COVID pandemic, and I miss them every single day,” Garcia continued. “So when Donald Trump and his MAGA extremists like [Rep.] Marjorie Taylor Greene [R-GA)] downplayed the horror of the pandemic, it should make us all furious.”

“Now, I will never forget when Kamala Harris called me after my parents died,” Garcia said. “She told me about her own story, about losing her own mother, and that she was praying for me at that very moment.”

Garcia then praised Biden and Harris for helping get people vaccinated, reopening schools and passing the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan, a historic economic stimulus package that helped small businesses and created jobs early into Biden’s presidency.

He concluded by saying, “My mom taught me to love this country. She taught me that real American patriotism is not about screaming and yelling America first. Real American patriotism is loving your country so much that you want to help the people in your country. That is American patriotism. And we all know that Kamala Harris understands and knows this as well. Kamala Harris is ready to lead this country.”

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