Commentary: The honeymoon is over; Harris must start making the case for her presidency

In her speech accepting the Democratic nomination for president on Thursday, Vice President Kamala Harris delivered a scathing indictment of her opponent that could be an argument in favor of her candidacy. Donald J. Trump, she rightly noted, is in many ways “an unserious man,” but the consequences of his return to the White House are “extremely serious.”

She urged her audience to “consider the power he will have, especially after the U.S. Supreme Court just ruled that he will be immune from criminal prosecution. Imagine Donald Trump without guardrails and how he would use the immense powers of the President of the United States. Not to improve your life, not to strengthen our national security, but to serve the only client he has ever had: himself.”

Introducing herself to voters who may not have known her personal story, she spoke of “a new way forward. Not as members of a party or faction, but as Americans.” Harris did not emphasize that her election would elevate a woman of black and Native American descent to the highest office in the land – a milestone for a country that has a long history of excluding women and ethnic minorities from political power.

But now that the Democratic National Convention is over, the hard work begins for Harris. She must do more than repeat over and over that Trump is unfit. She must convince the American people that she would do more to improve their lives and livelihoods. She must lay out her vision for the country and convince voters that she is ready to be a “president for all Americans.”

She showed that she is up to the task with her confident performance. It refuted Trump’s childish claim that Harris is “a person with a low IQ” and conveyed the seriousness that Americans expect from their president.

Harris was particularly forceful in her pledge that as commander in chief she would ensure that “America always has the strongest, most lethal military force in the world.” In a well-deserved jab at Trump, she added: “I will fulfill our sacred duty to care for our soldiers and their families, and I will always honor their sacrifice and never demean it.”

Regarding the war in Gaza, Harris said, “I will always stand up for Israel’s right to self-defense and always ensure that Israel has the ability to defend itself,” and she noted that she and President Biden are working “around the clock” to achieve a ceasefire and the release of the hostages.

But she also said that “the events in Gaza over the past ten months have been devastating.” Significantly, she added that she and Biden sought an outcome that would allow the Palestinian people to “realize their right to dignity, security, freedom and self-determination.”

Harris also promised to revive a bipartisan border security bill sabotaged by Trump and to sign legislation restoring reproductive freedom and reversing the effects of the Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade. Trump, of course, has boasted that his three judicial appointments “allowed him to overturn Roe v. Wade.” Finally, Harris promised that “building that middle class will be a critical goal of my presidency.”

Harris will be pressed to provide more details about her policies and will have to hold press conferences and interviews to lay out her agenda. A televised debate with Trump on September 10 will also give her the opportunity to use her persuasive skills as a prosecutor and compare her vision for the country with that of the former president.

But the challenge Harris faced in her acceptance speech was to present herself to a national audience as a competent and committed leader who could be trusted to serve as president. By that standard, the speech was a resounding success.