Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign is not even two weeks old, but she has wasted little time reintroducing herself to America. She has traveled the country, along the way drawing massive crowds, but her speech on Tuesday night in my hometown of Atlanta hit different. As one of the Vice President’s former speechwriters, here’s what I heard – and saw – that caught my attention.
First, she set the record straight on her record. Republicans have been peddling the lie that she is not ready to hold the nation’s highest office. So she ticked through a list of accomplishments that expose that lie for what it is. But she didn’t stop there. The Vice President reminded us of how Trump’s abysmal record stacks up to hers. The Vice President prosecuted fraudsters. Donald Trump is one. The Vice President prosecuted drug cartels and helped reach an agreement on a bipartisan border security bill. Donald Trump tanked it. In leaning into her record, she not only reminded us of her impressive resume, but she also drew a stark contrast between herself and Trump.
Next, the Vice President laid out her vision for the next four years. Focusing on the economy, she shared her vision – and her plan – for expanding opportunity so that all people can buy a home, build wealth, and access affordable health care and child care. And she urged the crowd to reject Trump’s dystopian Project 2025 agenda, repeating her new favorite refrain: “We’re not going back.” Before concluding with a powerful call to action, the Vice President evoked patriotism to frame our ongoing fights for freedom – the freedom to vote, the freedom to be safe from gun violence, reproductive freedom, and more. “It is the highest form of patriotism,” she said, “to fight for the ideals of our country.”
But it wasn’t just what the Vice President said that made her speech so effective. It was how she said it. To call out Trump’s hypocrisy on the border, she quoted the great poet Quavious Keyate Marshall – a.k.a. Quavo, who spoke before the Vice President – and said the former president “does not walk it like he talks it.” The most iconic line came towards the end of the speech, when she challenged Trump to commit to debating her. “If you’ve got something to say, say it to my face!” For the folks – especially the Black folks – who have been waiting to hear the Vice President loosen up a bit, these lines met the moment. They have already gone viral on social media. And in the room, the crowd absolutely lost it.
Speaking of the crowd, the Vice President’s Atlanta rally drew the largest crowd of any event during her campaign so far. Attendance exceeded capacity. Our community showed up and showed out, standing in line for hours just for the chance to catch a glimpse of our Vice President. But perhaps even more notable was the fact that white folks turned out too. So did Asian folks. Hispanic folks. LGBTQ folks. Meg the Stallion! All proving that the Vice President is well on her way to assembling – and energizing – her own winning coalition.
Mobilizing that coalition will be the key to victory in November. By continuing to contrast her record and vision with Trump’s, focus on the freedom at stake in this election, and embrace opportunities to be a lil’ savage, the Vice President will walk it and talk it all the way to the Oval Office.
Gevin Reynolds is a former speechwriter to Vice President Kamala Harris. Follow him on X at @GevinReynolds.