Biden gives full endorsement to Harris

Dems roundly attack Trump to start convention

Also in today’s edition of ‘Regular Order’ for August 20, 2024:

• Harris arrives to thunderous cheers at the DNC.

• Dems focus on Trump’s legal troubles.

• Santos pleads guilty, likely to face jail time.

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From Chicago, Illinois -

DNC. Democrats kicked off their 2024 national convention with a broad attack against Republicans and Donald Trump, as President Joe Biden led a chorus of voices making the case for Vice President Kamala Harris in November. "She'll be a President our children can look up to," Biden said. "She'll be a President we can all be proud of."

• KAMALA. Taking center stage on the first night in Chicago, Biden gave his strong public support to Harris. "Selecting Kamala was the very first decision I made when I became our nominee, and it was the best decision I've made in my whole career," Biden said, as the crowd repeatedly chanted, "We love Joe!"

• BIDEN. In a speech which was part farewell, part endorsement, and part attack - Biden rattled off his successes to delegates and the nation. "America, I gave my best to you," Biden said, as he took clear aim at Trump. "Crime will keep coming down when we put a prosecutor in the Oval Office - instead of a convicted felon."

• ABORTION. Biden also echoed attacks on Trump over abortion on the first night of the convention, accusing Trump of favoring a national ban on abortion. "MAGA Republicans found out the power of women in 2022 and Donald Trump is going to find out the power of women in 2024," Biden warned.

MOMENT. It had to be a gut wrenching moment personally for Biden, who up until a month ago was ready to run for a second term. "I promise I'll be the best volunteer the Harris and Walz campaign has ever seen," Biden said, as he specifically denied that he was angry at those who wanted him to drop out of the 2024 race.

• CAREER. For Biden, this speech also traced his political career which stretched from the U.S. Capitol to the Oval Office. "I was too young to be in the Senate," Biden said, noting that he was elected in 1972 before he had turned 30 years old, "and too old to stay as President."

• PASS THE TORCH. Democrats of all stripes saluted Biden's historic move to give up his bid for the White House, and to endorse Harris to replace him. "He brought dignity, decency and competence back to the White House," said Hillary Clinton. "He showed what it means to be a true patriot."

• KAMALA. Before Biden arrived in the convention hall for his speech, delegates roared their approval as Harris made a surprise appearance on the DNC stage. "This is going to be a great week," the Vice President said with a big smile, as she pointedly praised Biden's time in public office.

• HARRIS. "Joe, thank you for your historic leadership, your lifetime of service to our nation and for all you will continue to do," said Harris, as she framed the Democratic convention as one which can unify the nation. "Let us always remember - when we fight, we win," Harris said to cheers.

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TRUMP. In a sense, Democrats were in a fighting mood last night. From Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) to former Secretary of State Hilary Clinton, Democrats ridiculed Trump in speech after speech. AOC called him a 'two bit union buster.' "It is no surprise that he is lying about Kamala's record," said Clinton, as Democrats skewered Trump over his criminal convictions.

• JANUARY 6. Democrats brought up the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, and even played part of Trump's infamous phone call with Georgia's Secretary of State - where Trump asked Georgia elections officials to 'find' him 11,780 votes - so Trump could be declared the winner over Joe Biden.

• VEEP. Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD) took it a step further, reminding Sen. J.D. Vance (R-OH) why former Vice President Mike Pence isn't running in 2024. "JD Vance - do you understand why there was a sudden job opening for running mate on the GOP ticket?" Raskin asked. "They tried to kill your predecessor."

• COMPARE AND CONTRAST. "Kamala Harris became a career prosecutor,” said Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-TX). “Donald Trump became a career criminal.” At one point, Democrats flashed this up on the video board: "KAMALA HARRIS has a resume. DONALD TRUMP has a rap sheet."

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DEEP BENCH. While Biden may get the headlines, I think Democrats showed off a series of very effective communicators - what might be labeled a ‘deep bench’ for the future. Rep. Ocasio-Cortez may have given the strongest speech of her political career. Also getting kudos last night were Gov. Andy Beshear of Kentucky and Sen. Raphael Warnock of Georgia.

• BREAKOUT. If you want to look for a rising star, it might have been a state Senator from Michigan, Mallory McMorrow. She went on stage last night with the job of attacking the GOP's 'Project 2025' - and seemed to hit it out of the park.

• TONIGHT. The highlights for the second day of the Democratic convention include a speech from former President Barack Obama, his wife Michelle, and the roll call of the states for Harris and Walz. (We’ll see if Democrats get any better at time management and planning.)

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BEHIND THE SCENES. Much of what happens at a convention doesn’t happen on the convention floor. For example, one of my favorite rituals is to visit the daily state delegation meetings. Yesterday was a special treat. Why? Well, I have covered 18 national party conventions since 1988 - and I have never done what I did here in Chicago on Monday morning.

• MEETINGS. Instead of rushing from hotel to hotel hoping to catch delegates - I suddenly found myself in the equivalent of a journalistic convention breakfast buffet, with a series of state delegations meeting in the same hotel complex.

• PEACH. I started at the Georgia delegation breakfast, where you could feel the excitement and energy about Kamala Harris. But party veterans weren't celebrating. "Vibes don't win elections," cautioned Rep. Nikema Williams (D-GA). "We got to take that energy and turn it into action."

• REVEREND. The featured speaker was Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-GA), who did not disappoint his audience. “Donald Trump specializes in division,” Warnock told cheering delegates. “That’s because he has no vision.”

BE HAPPY. Next door at the Virginia delegation breakfast there was talk about the optimism of Harris and running mate Tim Walz - which you hear from every corner of the party. "There's nothing wrong with being happy," one speaker said to applause.

• VOLUNTEERS. Over in the Tennessee meeting, delegates heard from various Democratic mayors like Tim Kelly of Chattanooga - who rattled off their local successes, saying Democrats can ‘get stuff done’ - even in a deep red state.

• GOLDEN. Some delegation meetings had much more firepower than others. Ex-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi brought down the house as she addressed California delegates, celebrating the ascent of Kamala Harris, and paying tribute to President Biden for stepping aside in 2024.

• PELOSI. "Let us thank Joe Biden for his selflessness," said Pelosi, who may have done more than anyone else to force the Biden-to-Harris switch. “People say to me, what advice would you give Kamala Harris? I said, ‘none.’ I want her to be herself,” Pelosi added.

RECAP. Again, unless you have covered a convention, you won’t understand how unbelievable my Monday morning was. Only in a city like Chicago or New York could you have a setup like that.

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SECURITY. People often ask me what the difference is between the two parties at their conventions. That's an easy one to answer. Republicans are routinely more organized. With Democrats, not so much. And we saw that on Monday inside with the delay in getting to Joe Biden’s speech - and outside with the security checks for those attending the convention.

• LINES. Getting into the security zone on Monday was sort of like going to the airport, when the TSA only has one line open. It took me 45 minutes to get through security at lunch time - and it only got worse after that. The line was huge, stretching for blocks at two different entrances last night. We'll see if anything changes today.

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GAZA PROTESTS. The demonstrations on Monday near the United Center weren't exactly bringing back memories of 1968. Maybe a few thousand people gathered in Union Park to protest Israel - but the hundreds and hundreds of unclaimed signs showed the crowd was much smaller than had been anticipated.

• CORNUCOPIA. While the gathering was aimed at Israel’s occupation of Gaza, it almost took on the flavor of an unfocused college protest, filled with all sorts of issues. "STOP POLICE CRIME," read one sign. "Immigrant rights and legalization for all!" said another.

• MESSAGE. As I stood on the street corner, one young woman started yelling - seemingly at me. "Trash the two party system! Overthrow capitalism!" she said in my direction - you know, for the dad in the sports coat and tie.

• OLD SCHOOL. Across the street, I found the shade and started scribbling some notes. "Is that a reporter - with a notebook?" an older guy joshed, ribbing me about my old school ways. We had a good chuckle. And with no ‘wooden shampoos’ being handed out by police, we went on our way.

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SANTOS. While Democrats kicked off their convention, ex-Rep. George Santos (R-NY) appeared in a New York courthouse and pleaded guilty to wire fraud and identity theft - just some of the allegations which led to his historic expulsion from the U.S. House last year.

• TEARS OF A CLOWN. When Santos was under investigation, he was all bluster with critics and reporters. But after pleading guilty, he was near tears outside the courthouse. "I'm taking responsibility because I have to," Santos said, apologizing to the voters in his district. "I failed you."

• BARUCH VOLLEYBALL. Santos seems likely to face some jail time even with this plea bargain. He has also agreed to pay over $370,000 in restitution for his actions.

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HOUSE GOP. As the Democratic convention got underway, House Republicans just happened to issue a report on President Biden, claiming the GOP found 'impeachable conduct.' But as you may have noticed - Republicans have not produced any articles of impeachment or held a vote on Biden (because the evidence is very weak).

• MOCKERY. Democrats wasted no time ridiculing the GOP report and the timing. "I’m glad you finally finished your book report," said Rep. Jared Moskowitz (D-FL). "If the evidence is the “strongest” ever," Moskowitz tweeted, "when is the impeachment vote?"

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PRIMARIES. Voters in three states go to the polls today to cast ballots in primaries for Congress - in Florida, Alaska, and Wyoming. No incumbents are likely in any danger, though some Republicans still hope that lightning might strike Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL), but that seems unlikely.

• ALASKA. Only a handful of Democrats in Congress stayed away from the Democratic convention in Chicago on purpose - one of them is Rep. Mary Peltola (D-AK), who faces 11 challengers in an open primary in Alaska. This is a 'Top Four' primary - meaning the highest four finishers move on to November.

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RAP SHEET. An ex-Army soldier from Louisiana has pleaded guilty to charges that he beat police officers with a baton on Jan. 6. Edward Richmond - who was once convicted of fatally shooting a handcuffed civilian in Iraq - attempted repeatedly to break police lines in the Lower West Terrace Tunnel.

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MUSE OF HISTORY.  August 20, 2020.  Four years ago today, Joe Biden gave his acceptance speech for the Democratic nomination in a most unusual location - at what felt like a drive-in theater - because of the Coronavirus outbreak.  Supporters honked the horns of their cars and flashed their headlights in approval as Biden spoke.  "The current President has cloaked America in darkness for much too long," Biden said.  "Too much anger. Too much fear. Too much division."

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LEGISLATIVE PROGRAM:

The House is back for votes on September 9.

The Senate returns on September 9.

Follow me on Twitter @jamiedupree.

Email me at jamiedupree@substack.com

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