The crowd during night No. 2 of the 2024 Democratic National Convention was undoubtedly “fired up” once former President Barack Obama took the stage. After being introduced by his wife, former First Lady Michelle Obama, the 63-year-old closed the Tuesday, August 20, DNC event with a powerful speech, in which he praised President Joe Biden and Democratic candidate Kamala Harris.
“It’s been 16 years since I had the honor of accepting this party’s nomination for president,” Barack began, before joking, “And I know that’s hard to believe because I have not aged a bit. But it’s true.”
While reflecting on his past presidency, Barack recalled his “first big decision” that “turned out to be one of [his] best,” which was “asking Joe Biden to serve by [his] side as vice president.” While pointing out that he and the 81-year-old “come from different backgrounds,” Barack noted that they “became brothers” during his eight-year presidency.
“And as we worked together for eight — sometimes pretty tough — years, what I came to admire most about Joe wasn’t just his smarts, his experience; it was his empathy and his decency and his hard earned resilience, his unshakeable belief that everyone in this country deserves a fair shot,” Barack explained. “And over the last four years, those are the values America has needed most.”
Throughout Barack’s time in the White House, he and Joe became fan favorites because of their friendship and different rhetoric. Now that Joe has stepped down from running for re-election, Barack noted that history “will remember Joe Biden as an outstanding president who defended democracy at a moment of great danger.”
“And I am proud to call him my president, but I am even prouder to call him my friend,” the former Illinois senator said, before pointing to America’s “new chapter” during his speech. “America’s ready for a better story. We are ready for a President Kamala Harris. And Kamala Harris is ready for the job. This is a person who has spent her life fighting on behalf of people who need a voice and a champion.”
In his closing remarks, Barack motivated the crowd to “get to work” in helping Kamala, 59, and her running mate, Tim Walz, win the 2024 election.
“And I believe that’s why, if we each do our part over the next 77 days — if we knock on doors, if we make phone calls, if we talk to our friends, if we listen to our neighbors, if we work like we’ve never worked before, if we hold firm to our convictions — we will elect Kamala Harris as the next President of the United States and Tim Walz as the next Vice President of the United States,” he concluded.