‘I’ll be an ally of the light’ – Biden sets out stall in Democrat speech
● Acceptance address presents sharp contrast with Trump
Joe Biden accepted the Democratic presidential nomination with a vow to be a unifying “ally of the light” who would move an America in crisis past the chaos of President Donald Trump’s tenure.
In his strongest remarks of the campaign, Mr Biden spoke both of returning the United States to its traditional leadership role in the world and of the personal challenges that shaped his life.
Nearly every sentence of his 22-minute speech was designed to present a sharp, yet hopeful, contrast with the Republican incumbent.
“Here and now I give you my word – if you entrust me with the presidency, I will draw on the best of us, not the worst,” he said on Thursday night. “I’ll be an ally of the light, not the darkness. Make no mistake, united we can and will overcome this season of darkness in America.”
Afterward, fireworks lit the sky outside the arena, where supporters waited in a car park, sounding their horns and flashing headlights in a moment that finally lent a jovial feel to the event.
The keynote address was the speech of a lifetime for Mr Biden, who at 77 would be the oldest president ever elected if he defeats Mr Trump in November.
Mr Trump, who is 74, publicly doubts Mr Biden’s mental capacity and calls him “Slow Joe”, but with the nation watching Mr Biden was firm and clear. Still, the convention leaned on a younger generation earlier to help energise his sprawling coalition.
Tammy Duckworth, an Illinois senator who lost her legs in Iraq and is raising two young children, said Mr Biden had “common decency”.
Cory Booker, only the ninth African American senator in US history, said Mr Biden believed in the dignity of all working Americans.
And Pete Buttigieg, the 38-year-old former South Bend, Indiana, mayor and a gay military veteran, noted Mr Biden came out in favour of same-sex marriage as vicepresident even before President Barack Obama.
“Joe Biden is right, this is a contest for the soul of the nation,” Mr Buttigieg said. “And to me that contest is not between good Americans and evil Americans. It’s the struggle to call out what is good for every American.”
Above all, Mr Biden focused on uniting the nation as Amerthe icans grapple with the long and fearful health crisis, the related economic devastation, a national awakening on racial justice – and Mr Trump, who stirs heated emotions from all sides.
For Mr Biden, the final night of the Democratic national convention was bittersweet. He accepted a nomination that had eluded him for more than three decades because of personal tragedy, political stumbles and rivals who proved more dynamic.
But coronavirus denied him
typical celebration, complete with the customary balloon drop that both parties often use to fete their new nominees. Instead, Mr Biden spoke to a largely empty arena near his Delaware home.
Mr Biden’s positive focus marked a break from the dire warnings offered by Mr Obama and others the night before. The 44th US president warned American democracy itself could falter if Mr Trump is re-elected. Mr Biden’s running mate Kamala Harris, the 55-year-old California senator and daughter of Jamaican and Indian immigrants, warned that Americans’ lives and livelihoods were at risk.
The Democrats have sought this week to put forward a cohesive vision of values and policy priorities, highlighting efforts to combat climate change, tighten gun laws and embrace a humane immigration policy. They have drawn a sharp contrast with Mr Trump’s policies and personality, portraying him as cruel, self-centred and woefully unprepared to manage nearly any of the nation’s mounting crises and policy challenges.