Hillary Clinton casts Harris in the lineage of female political firsts

By CNN Newsource

Published August 19, 2024 10:04 PM

By Veronica Stracqualursi, Betsy Klein and Arit John, CNN

(CNN) — Hillary Clinton highlighted Monday the history that Kamala Harris could make if she becomes the first woman elected president, referencing the proverbial glass ceiling the former secretary of state tried to but failed to break during her 2016 campaign for the White House.

“Together, we put a lot of cracks in the highest, hardest glass ceiling,” Clinton told the crowd at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago about her historic run eight years ago. “On the other side of that glass ceiling is Kamala Harris, raising her hand, and taking the oath of office as our 47th president of the United States.”

Clinton – the first woman to capture a major-party nomination for president – said Democrats were “writing a new chapter in America’s story” as she launched into a history of women seeking higher office, mentioning two former New York congresswomen – Shirley Chisholm, the first woman to run for the Democratic presidential nomination, and Geraldine Ferraro, the first woman nominated for vice president.

Harris, who was officially nominated earlier this month, is the first Black woman and first Asian American to lead the ticket of a major political party.

Throughout her remarks Monday, Clinton drew comparisons between her own journey to the nomination and Harris’. She also discussed the wave of political activity among women prompted by her 2016 defeat to Donald Trump. Clinton won the popular vote against Trump, but lost the Electoral College.

“Nearly 66 million Americans voted for a future where there are no ceilings on our dreams and afterwards, we refused to give up on America,” Clinton said. “Millions marched, many ran for office. We kept our eyes on the future. Well, my friends, the future is here.”

The former first lady – whose husband, Bill Clinton, is expected to speak at the convention Wednesday – said that Harris “will fight to lower costs for hardworking families, open the doors wide for good paying jobs, and yes, she will restore abortion rights nationwide.”

Clinton also offered up arguments against Trump, including taking jabs at his legal issues. The former secretary said that Trump “fell asleep at his own trial, and when he woke up, he made his own kind of history – the first person to run for president with 34 felony convictions.”

At one point, the crowd started shouting, “Lock him up,” in a notable – and ironic – moment. Trump’s campaign rallies in 2016 were frequently interrupted by his supporters’ chants of “Lock her up” in reference to Clinton, whom the FBI investigated over her use of a private email server while serving as secretary of state under President Barack Obama. No charges were filed against her.

As the audience chanted Monday night, Clinton nodded and continued speaking.

In veiled attacks against Trump, Clinton argued that Harris “reveres our Medal of Honor recipients” and “won’t be sending love letters to dictators.”

Trump on Thursday, when talking about giving GOP megadonor Miriam Adelson the Medal of Freedom, the nation’s top civilian honor, said that it was “actually, much better” than the Medal of Honor “because everyone (who) gets the congressional Medal of Honor, that’s soldiers. They’re either in very bad shape because they’ve been hit so many times by bullets, or they’re dead.”

Clinton, who faced attacks from Trump about her laugh in the 2016 campaign, pushed back against Trump for similarly mocking Harris’ laugh, and her name.

“We have to fight for Kamala as she will fight for us. Because you know what? It still takes a village to raise a family, heal a country and win a campaign,” she said.

CNN’s Jake Tapper contributed to this report.