Democratic National Convention 2020: Day 2

She only had a little more than a minute, but she fit a whole lot in it.

New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez wasn’t given much time to address the country, as she seconded Sen. Bernie Sanders’ nomination, but in those 95 seconds she offered a poetic accounting of the progressive movement’s aspirations – and offered her “fidelity and gratitude” to those in the fight alongside her.

This “mass people’s movement,” she said, is dedicated to addressing the “the wounds of racial injustice, colonization, misogyny, and homophobia,” and building “reimagined systems of immigration and foreign policy that turn away from the violence and xenophobia of our past.”

It is a movement, Ocasio-Cortez said, “that realizes the unsustainable brutality of an economy that rewards explosive inequalities of wealth for the few at the expense of long-term stability for the many, and who organized a historic, grassroots campaign to reclaim our democracy.”

That campaign, now over, is Sanders’. But the crises he described during his campaign and Ocasio-Cortez spoke about on Tuesday night, are very much alive.

President John F. Kennedy’s grandson Jack Schlossberg echoed his grandfather’s famous words — “ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country” — when speaking about Joe Biden during the Democratic National Convention. 

Schlossberg said this election is a defining one for his generation. 

“Times have changed. But the themes of my grandfather's speech — courage, unity and patriotism — are as important today as they were in 1960. And once again, we need a leader who believes America's best days are yet to come,” he said.  

Kennedy’s daughter and Schlossberg’s mother, Caroline Kennedy, said she was able to see Biden “in action” when she was US ambassador to Japan. 

“He stepped off Air Force Two wearing his aviator glasses and a big smile, radiating American optimism and generosity. I saw a leader who was tough but fair,” she said.

With the backdrop of the Statue of Liberty in New York, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer emphatically said that the Democrats must retake the Senate in November. 

The New York senator went on to lay out the policy goals that would be accomplished under a Biden presidency and a Democratic majority in Congress. 

"We will make health care affordable for all. We'll undue the vicious inequality of income and wealth that has plagued America for far too long and we'll take strong decisive action to combat climate change and save the planet," Schumer said. "We will protect voting rights, fight systemic racism in the criminal justice system and in our economy, and restore a Supreme Court that looks out for people not corporations. We'll rebuild our infrastructure and make sure every home from inner city to rural America has broadband. We will save the post office and once and for all defeat Covid-19, this evil disease. And beckoned by the lady behind us, we will reform our immigration system so that immigrants yearning to breathe free will at last become American citizens."

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Former Democratic Presidents Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton used their speeches to tout Joe Biden's legacy on health care and economic proposals.

Carter called Biden "the right person for this moment in our nation’s history. He understands that honesty and dignity are essential traits that determine not only our vision but our actions. More than ever, that’s what we need."

Meanwhile, Clinton said Biden is "committed to building America back again."

The only surviving child of former President John F. Kennedy, Caroline Kennedy, and her son John Schlossberg also delivered remarks tonight.

"Sixty years ago in a crowded stadium in LA, my father accepted the Democratic nomination for president. He challenged Americans to look to the future and join him on a journey towards a new frontier," Kennedy said.

"It was a call to the young at heart, regardless of age or party. Times have changed, but the themes of my grandfather’s speech: courage, unity, and patriotism, are as important today as they were in 1960. And once again, we need a leader who believes America’s best days are yet to come. We need Joe Biden," Schlossberg said.

Former President Barack Obama is set to speak during the convention's programming tomorrow night.

Bill Clinton, one of the four men still living who understands what it takes to be President, lambasted the current occupant of the White House in his convention speech on Tuesday, questioning Donald Trump's handling of the coronavirus pandemic and casting his White House as a chaotic “storm.”

Clinton describes running for president as the “world’s most important job interview” and puts the onus on voters to “decide whether to renew (Trump’s) contract or hire someone else.”

Clinton added: “Just one thing never changes -- his determination to deny responsibility and shift the blame. The buck never stops there.”

Then Clinton, whose speech was under five minutes, a notable departure for a man who has delivered speeches longer than 40 minutes at multiple Democratic conventions, pivoted to Biden and his work on the economy.

Clinton, after lauding Biden’s work to reverse the impacts of the Great Recession in 2009, then tried to encapsulate the decisions in this election: “It’s Trump’s “Us vs. Them” America against Joe Biden’s America, where we all live and work together. It’s a clear choice. And the future of our country is riding on it.”

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Former President Jimmy Carter touted Joe Biden as one of his earliest and most important allies after he was elected to the presidency in 1976 in a speech Tuesday night.

Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter called Biden a friend and praised his character in speeches in which the Carters appeared by voice, rather than on camera.

"For decades, he has been my loyal and dedicated friend," the former president said. "Joe has the experience, character, and decency to bring us together and restore America’s greatness. We deserve a person with integrity and judgment, someone who is honest and fair, someone who is committed to what is best for the American people."

Rosalynn Carter pointed to Biden's efforts to extend support to caregivers, which is a focal point of Biden's economic platform.

"Joe knows well, too well, the sorrows and struggles of being a family caregiver, from Joe’s time as a young widower thrust into single parenthood with a demanding job to he and Jill caring for their own parents and their son Beau at the end of their lives. He knows caregiving is hard even on the good days," she said.

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Former acting Attorney General Sally Yates, who was dismissed from Donald Trump’s administration after she announced she would not defend his travel ban from predominantly Muslin countries, said her former boss has “used his position to benefit himself " in a speech before the Democratic National Convention.

Yates, in a speech she said she never expected she would give, cast Trump as a corrupt leader, someone who has “trampled the rule of law” and refused to stand up to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

“Our country doesn’t belong to him. It belongs to all of us,” Yates said, adding that Biden “embraces that” and has “spent his entire life putting our country first.”

Georgia Democrat Stacey Abrams was among 16 other rising stars of the Democratic Party that delivered the joint keynote address during tonight's Democratic National Convention programming, a slot typically reserved for just one speaker.

"This nation belongs to all of us. And in every election, we choose how we will create a more perfect union, not by taking sides but by taking stock of where we are and what we need," Abrams said in her portion of the address.

Abrams used her platform to urge Americans to make their vote count.

"We know Joe Biden. America, we need Joe Biden. To make your voice heard text Vote to 30330. In a democracy, we do not elect saviors. We cast our ballots for those who see our struggles and pledge to serve...," the Georgia Democrat said.

"We stand with Joe Biden because this isn't just about defeating Donald Trump. We are in this to win for America. So let's get it done," Abrams said in closing.

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The Democratic Party looked to highlight some of its "rising stars from all across the country" during its keynote address that kicked off the second night of the Democratic National Convention.

This year’s address featured not one, but 17 of the Democratic Party’s rising politicians.

Participants included: Georgia Democrat Stacey Abrams, State Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta from Pennsylvania, State Rep. Victoria Neave from Texas, Mayor Randall Woodfin from Alabama, and more.

According to organizers in a news release, the joint address meant to "offer a diversity of different ideas and perspectives on how to move America forward, but they will all speak to the future we’re building together — a future with Joe Biden at the helm."

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