CHICAGO — The third night of the Democratic National Convention featured a second former president, Bill Clinton, making the case for Vice President Kamala Harris‘s campaign to the American people.
Gov. Tim Walz (D-MN), Harris’s running mate, gave the keynote speech Wednesday night as celebrity singers John Legend and Sheila E. staged a musical tribute to Walz’s Minnesota roots.
Stevie Wonder asked the crowd to “reach for a higher ground” in supporting Harris’s campaign before performing a medley of his songs. Kenan Thompson of SNL fame appeared onstage Wednesday evening with a print-sized copy of Project 2025, a conservative proposal for a potential second Trump presidency.
Abortion rights activists featured prominently during the night with Mini Timmaraju, president and CEO of Reproductive Freedom for All; Alexis McGill Johnson, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood; Cecile Richards, former president of Planned Parenthood; and Jessica Mackler, president of EMILYs List, all addressing the convention.
Oprah Winfrey made a surprise appearance at the convention where she took a jab at Sen. J.D. Vance’s (R-OH) childless cat lady comments while pushing independents to back Harris. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), who is aiming to become the first black House Speaker if Democrats gain control of the lower chamber, called former President Donald Trump “an old boyfriend who you broke up with, but he just won’t go away.”
Here are the top five moments from the third night of the convention.
Tim Walz’s biggest career speech brings tears from son
Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) along with Walz’s former students, including Ben Ingman and the former high school football players he coached, introduced the Minnesota governor before he spoke onstage.
The moment was a memorable Americana entrance for a man whom Harris branded as “Coach Walz” at their first campaign rally as running mates. In another emotional moment, Walz’s son, Gus Walz, was seen sobbing while mouthing: “That’s my dad!”
Walz began his speech by thanking Harris and President Joe Biden for their nearly four years of leadership. “Thanks for putting your trust in me, and for inviting me to be part of this incredible campaign,” he said of Harris. “It’s the honor of my life to accept your nomination for vice president of the United States.”
The Minnesota governor leaned on his background as a school teacher before entering politics in a speech that will likely introduce him to wide swaths of the American public. “So there I was, a 40-something high school teacher with little kids, zero political experience, and no money, running in a deep red district. But you know what? Never underestimate a public school teacher,” he said.
Walz touted several progressive policies to the delight of Democrats including providing free breakfast and lunch for school children, fighting for affordable housing, protecting abortion rights, and mediating medical debt for families.
“So while other states were banning books from their schools, we were banishing hunger from ours,” Walz said as attendees cheered in excitement.
In a reprise of his attacks against the GOP, Walz called attempts to implement Project 2025, a conservative game plan for a second Trump presidency, “weird.”
As he ended his speech, Walz pushed for Democrats to donate, vote, and knock on doors because “when we fight?” Walz asked the crowd. “We win!” they yelled back.
An aging Bill Clinton slams the Trump campaign
Clinton, who recently celebrated his 78th birthday, claimed he was the oldest person in his family but “I’m still younger than Donald Trump” he quipped. Clinton is just two months younger than Trump, whose birthday is in June. The former president also mentioned that he was unsure how many more conventions he would attend after this week, in a humble reflection of his mortality.
He continued to slip in more criticisms against Trump, who Clinton claimed is “about me, myself, and I.”
“The next time you hear him, don’t count the lies. Count the I’s,” said Clinton, who marks his 12th address to the DNC Thursday evening.
Harris is Trump’s complete contrast, according to Clinton. “Kamala Harris is the only candidate in this race who has the vision and the experience, the temperament and the will and yes, the sheer joy to get something done,” he said.
“If you vote for this team, if you can get them elected and let them bring in this breath of fresh air, you’ll be proud of it for the rest of your life,” Clinton later declared. “Your children will be proud, your grandchildren will be proud of it.”
The former president also commented on the joyful convention taking place in Chicago. “After the last two days, aren’t you proud to be a Democrat?” Clinton asked earlier on before claiming he loved seeing Barack and Michelle Obama speak the previous day, as well as Hillary Clinton’s address to the convention.
“One of the reasons that president-to-be Kamala Harris is doing so well, is that we’re happy,” Clinton would later claim. “But you should never underestimate your adversary, these people are very good at distracting.”
Nancy Pelosi’s cements status as party godmother
The former House Speaker received a standing ovation and chants of “Nancy! Nancy!” when she first walked onstage. Before Pelosi took to the stage, Mindy Kaling, the celebrity host of Wednesday’s convention, called her the “mother of dragons” in an introduction speech.
Pelosi slammed Trump over the actions of his supporters who stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan.6, 2021 in her address to the convention. “Jan. 6 was a perilous moment for our democracy,” she said. “Never before had a president of the United States so brazenly assaulted the bedrock of our democracy, so gleefully embraced political violence, so willfully betrayed his oath of office.”
“Let us not forget who assaulted democracy on January 6th, he did. But let us not forget who saved democracy that day we did,” Pelosi said. “Thank God we have a Democratic House of Representatives.”
Many Democrats have long believed that Pelosi was part of the push that finally convinced President Joe Biden to suspend his campaign, paving the way for Harris’s nomination. Biden and the former House Speaker reportedly have an icy relationship.
But at the convention, Democrats were ecstatic over Pelosi, who arguably has pulled the strings that led to an energized Democratic Party.
Former potential VP candidates for Harris take the stage
Gov. Josh Shapiro (D-PA) and Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg both took to the stage Thursday night. The two leaders were once on the shortlist to join Harris as her vice presidential pick but that role went to Walz.
Buttigieg spent part of his speech attacking Vance as an insufficient bridge to midwestern voters who has insulted many with his “childless cat ladies” comments.
“J.D. Vance is one of those guys who thinks if you don’t live the life he has in mind for you, then you don’t count,” Buttigieg said. “A guy who thinks that if you don’t have kids, you have no physical commitment to the future of this country.”
The Pennsylvania governor slammed the Trump-Vance ticket as against the freedoms of the American people. “Today, we find ourselves writing the next chapter,” Shapiro said. “Will we be a nation defined by chaos and extremism? Or will we choose a path of decency, honor, and continued progress?”
Another future leader of the party, Gov. Wes Moore (D-MD) addressed the crowd Wednesday where he called out Trump’s lack of military service. “I joined the army when I was 17. In fact, I was too young to sign the paperwork,” he said. “I had to ask my mom to sign it for me because I do not have bone spurs.”
Parents of hostage victim appeal for son’s return
Jon Polin and Rachel Goldberg, the parents of American-Israeli hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin, gave an emotional speech appealing for the return of the eight American hostages kidnapped by Hamas during the Oct. 7 surprise attack against Israel.
Goldberg doubled over in tears when the crowd chanted “bring them home!” as the parents first appeared on stage. It’s been 320 days since Goldber-Polin was kidnapped and “since then, we live on another planet,” said Goldberg. “Anyone who is a parent or has had a parent can try to imagine the anguish and misery that John and I and all the hostage families are enduring.”
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“This is a political convention, but bringing our only son and all of the cherished hostages home is not a political issue,” added Polin.
Convention attendees were seen crying as the parents addressed the crowd. “Hersh, if you can hear us, we love you. Stay strong, survive,” Goldberg declared. “This is a humanitarian issue.”