California Senator Kamal Harris has officially accepted the Democratic vice presidential nomination Wednesday on the third night of the virtual Democratic National Convention. Sen. Harris acceptance of the Democratic Party's nomination for the vice presidency makes her the first Black woman and the first Indian-American woman on a national ticket for a major party. Sen. Harris said in her acceptance speech that her nomination was "a testament to the dedication of the generations before me." "We're at an inflection point. The constant chaos leaves us adrift. The incompetence makes us feel afraid. The callousness makes us feel alone. It's a lot," she stressed. She added, "We must elect a president who will bring something different, something better and do the important work. A president who will bring us together — Black, White, Latino, Asian, Indigenous — to achieve the future we collectively want." Sen. Harris, without citing specifics of the summer reckoning about racial justice in America, appealed to end injustices in criminal justice and health care systems and law enforcement. "There is no vaccine for racism," she said. "We have got to do the work." Sen. Harris did less of the traditional running mate duties of attacking the opposing presidential nominee. Instead she lamented the state of President Trump's America and promised that a Biden-Harris administration would make things better. Sen. Harris now stands as the bridge between the Democratic Party's moderate generation of leaders and younger liberals on the rise, balancing the obligations of promoting Biden while offering herself to someday lead the party into a post-Biden era. According to a recent Washington Post-ABC News poll, Harris has the highest positive rating among Americans with 52 percent ‘favorable' and 38 percent ‘unfavorable,' followed by Biden with 50 percent ‘favorable' and 46 percent ‘unfavorable'. The third night of the party's national convention also featured a striking repudiation of President Donald Trump by former President Barack Obama, a break with the presidential custom of not criticizing a successor by name, according to a New York post report. Obama praised Biden's character, contrasting it with Trump's, and directed a portion of his remarks to voters undecided about whom they will vote for, or whether they will vote at all. "Donald Trump hasn't grown into the job, because he can't," Obama said, growing emotional at points as he talked about the challenges facing the country and democracy. "The consequences of that failure are severe. 170,000 Americans dead. Millions of jobs gone." "This administration has shown it will tear our democracy down, if that's what it takes for them to win. So we have to get busy building it up — by pouring all our efforts into these 76 days and by voting like never before: for Joe and Kamala and candidates up and down the ticket, so that we leave no doubt about what this country that we love stands for," Obama said. Speeches by Obama, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Sen. Elizabeth Warren and Speaker Nancy Pelosi were intended to underscore the history-making moment of Ms. Harris's nomination, highlighting her uniquely American biography. Far more than the two previous nights, which centered on testimonials to Biden's character and empathy, the program focused on policy, addressing issues like gun violence, climate change, affordable child care and immigration. In videos, activists promoted Biden's plans to tackle a warming planet, and survivors of sexual assault and domestic violence reminded viewers of his role in crafting the Violence Against Women Act. The American child of a deported undocumented mother begged the president to reunite families torn apart by his immigration policy. On Thursday night, the final day of the DNC, Biden will deliver his speech accepting his party's nomination for president in the Nov. 3 elections. — Agencies
