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US-POLITICS-VOTE
Obamas to anchor key slots at Biden’s Democratic convention
WASHINGTON, Aug 11, 2020 (BSS/AFP) – Former US president Barack
Obama and his wife Michelle will deliver keynote speeches during next
week’s Democratic National Convention when Joe Biden will be confirmed
as the party’s White House challenger in the November election.
The Democratic Party announced Tuesday that Obama will give a
primetime address next Wednesday, the convention’s penultimate
evening, while former first lady Michelle Obama will address the
convention on Monday, opening night.
Biden, 77, served for eight years as Obama’s vice president and will
formally accept the Democratic nomination on the four-day convention’s
final day, August 20.
Obama, who remains one of America’s most popular politicians, has
campaigned virtually with Biden in recent months and has helped him
raise millions of dollars in campaign cash.
The convention had been set for Milwaukee, in the battleground state
of Wisconsin. But the coronavirus pandemic has upended the plans of
both parties, forcing them to convert the normally raucous in-person
events into online affairs.
The sudden shakeup has caused logistical challenges for both
campaigns, but especially for Democrats who were hoping to use a
boisterous, crowded live event as a launchpad for Biden’s final sprint
to the election on November 3.
Democrats have revealed what they hope will be an inspiring lineup
of speakers, including standard-bearers of the progressive left like
first-term congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
Senator Bernie Sanders, a two-time presidential hopeful whose
liberal policies like universal health care and free college have
pushed Biden leftward, has been given a Monday speaking slot, along
with New York Governor Andrew Cuomo.
The speaker’s list includes many everyday Americans like emergency
responders, teachers and factory workers.
But it is also a who’s who of the party’s elite, including several
senators who challenged Biden for the nomination: Elizabeth Warren,
Amy Klobuchar, Cory Booker and Kamala Harris.
Harris is widely considered a top potential running vice
presidential pick for Biden, who is expected to announce his choice
this week.
Also scheduled to address the Democrats is Ohio’s former governor
John Kasich, a Republican who has remained a steadfast opponent to
Trump and will endorse Biden.
President Donald Trump had been adamant about delivering his own
nomination acceptance speech at a crowded event in Jacksonville,
Florida but he too has acknowledged he will have to deliver his
remarks remotely.
BSS/AFP/MRU/2025hrs