Hillary Clinton Returns To DNC To Rally Democrats Behind Harris

On Monday, returning to the Democratic National Convention eight years after accepting her party’s 2016 presidential nomination against former President Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton addressed the crowd, celebrating Vice President Kamala Harris’s bid to achieve what Clinton could not –  becoming the first female U.S. president.

Clinton’s speech served as a poignant reminder of how close she came to breaking through “the highest and hardest ceiling” in politics, as she described in her 2016 concession speech.

“Tonight, so close to breaking through once and for all, I want to tell you what I see through all those cracks, and why it matters for each and every one of us,” she said on Monday night. “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.”

In many ways, Clinton’s appearance was a long-awaited chance for Democrats to honor her as a key figure in the party since 1992, when the New York convention nominated her husband, Bill Clinton, for president.

In 2020, Clinton addressed the convention remotely due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which forced the event to be held online.

However, as she stepped on stage this year, Clinton was greeted by over 90 seconds of applause, during which some delegates cried at her triumphant return before she could quiet the crowd and begin speaking.

The former First Lady and senator began her address by highlighting that her mother, Dorothy Rodham, was born in Chicago just before women gained the right to vote.

Clinton spoke about how Shirley Chisholm’s 1972 presidential run inspired her to “dream bigger.”

She shared how she took her daughter, Chelsea Clinton, to see Geraldine Ferraro honored as the first woman nominated for vice president, and reflected on her own historic moment in Philadelphia in 2016.

“It was honor of my life to accept our party’s nomination for president,” Clinton said. “Nearly 66 million Americans voted for a future where there are no ceilings on our dreams. Well my friends, the future is here.”

“And now, we are writing a new chapter in America’s story,” she added. “Kamala has the character, experience and vision to lead us forward.”

Clinton also took several jabs at her former revival, Trump.

“Donald Trump fell asleep at his own trial. When he woke up, he’d made his own kind of history – the first person to run for president with 34 felony convictions,” she said.

In response, the delegates rose to their feet and chanted, “Lock him up,” repurposing a line Trump had used against Clinton during their campaign.

As she concluded her address, Clinton, speaking from experience, urged her audience not to be complacent despite polls showing Harris in the lead.

“We have him on the run now,” she said. “But no matter what the polls say, we can’t give up.”

“I want my grandchildren and their grandchildren to know I was here, that we were here, and that we were with Kamala every step of the way,” said Clinton. “This is our time America. This is when we stand up. This is when we break through.”