WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 20th August, 2020) Presumptive Democratic vice presidential nominee Senator Kamala Harris and former president Barack Obama will top a list of speakers at the party's national convention tonight, a program that is expected to focus on the economy, immigration, and gender equality, among other issues.
On Tuesday, Biden was officially nominated to be the Democratic Party's presidential nominee after a roll call vote of delegates at a largely virtual convention which is nominally being hosted in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Biden will deliver his acceptance speech from Delaware on Thursday, wrapping up the four-day convention.
Harris, a former California attorney general who dropped out of the Primary race early on, would become the first female vice president in US history if the Biden ticket prevails over President Donald Trump in November's election.
Earlier on Wednesday, the Democratic National Convention Committee (DNCC) in a statement said tonight's program would focus on the theme "A More Perfect Union," and will highlight some of Biden's plans for building the economy and fighting climate change along with immigration reform, gun safety, and gender equality issues.
Other speakers on tonight's schedule include former secretary of state and 2016 democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Senator and former presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren will also speak.
The program will begin at 9:00 p.m. EST and is expected to last around two hours.
In excerpts of his DNC speech released ahead of the program, Obama slammed Trump for failing to "grow up" on the job since taking office.
"He's shown no interest in putting in the work; no interest in finding common ground; no interest in using the awesome power of his office to help anyone but himself and his friends; no interest in treating the presidency as anything but one more reality show that he can use to get the attention he craves," Obama said in the excerpts posted by ABC news.
The former president also accused Trump of diminishing America's "proud reputation around the world," and our democratic institutions threatened like never before.
Clinton in her excerpts warned voters against complacency in light of what happened in 2016.
"For four years, people have said to me, 'I didn't realize how dangerous he was. I wish I could go back and do it over.' Or worst, 'I should have voted.' Well, this can't be another woulda coulda shoulda election. If you vote by mail, request your ballot now, and send it back as soon as you can. If you vote in person, do it early. Bring a friend and wear a mask. Become a poll worker. Most of all, no matter what, vote. Vote like our lives and livelihoods are on the line, because they are," Clinton said in comments published by WBBM.
Pelosi, meanwhile, seeks to empower or persuade female voters to support Biden.
"As Speaker, I've seen firsthand Donald Trump's disrespect for facts, for working families, and for women in particular - disrespect written into his policies toward our health and our rights, not just his conduct.� But we know what he doesn't: that when women succeed, America succeeds," Pelosi said.
Trump at a White House briefing later in the day when asked about Obama's comments said the former president did an "ineffective, terrible." Trump said he would not have gotten elected if not for Obama's performance.
A major theme during the program will be ending gun violence. Activist and Parkland shooting survivor Emma Gonzalez will be featured along with former congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, who was the victim of gun violence.
New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham will address climate change and an undocumented immigrant and his family will make ans appearance to discuss immigration issues.
Last night's lineup of speakers, which included two former secretaries of state - John Kerry and Colin Powell - and former presidents Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter, hammered Trump over global leadership and national security. On Monday, the Democrats focused on exposing Trump's handling of the pandemic and anti-racism protests, both of which polls show he has low approval ratings on.
Biden formally secured 3,558 delegates after Tuesday's roll call vote. Candidates needed 1,991 delegates to win the Democratic Party's primary, a threshold Biden reached in June after Senator Bernie Sanders dropped out of the race.
The Republican National Convention is scheduled to take place August 21-24 at Charlotte, North Carolina. Trump said he will deliver his acceptance speech from the White House lawn.
Biden is ahead in the race nationally in the most recent ten polls posted on realclearpolitics.com by an average of about 7%. Biden is also leading in the largest battleground states including Florida, Pennsylvania, Ohio and Michigan.
