The speaking lineup for next week’s Democratic National Convention is beginning to take shape with President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama both landing primetime spots. President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will also be speaking on behalf of Joe Biden as well.
The convention takes place August 17 through 20. Though centered in Milwaukee, most of the speeches and events will all take place virtually.
Monday, August 17, 2020
Monday’s theme, “We the People,” will focus on “Americans rising up to take our country back” by singling out what the campaign calls the nation’s three crises – the pandemic, the struggling economy, and racial injustice.
Key speakers: Michelle Obama, Bernie Sanders, John Kasich
Other speakers Monday: U.S. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, D-New Mexico; New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo; Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer; U.S. Rep. Jim Clyburn, D-S.C.; U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss.; U.S. Rep. Gwen Moore, D-Wisconsin; U.S. Sen. Doug Jones, D-Alabama; and Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minnesota.
Tuesday, August 18, 2020
Tuesday’s “Leadership Matters” theme will feature small business owners, front-line health care workers, racial justice leaders, veterans, activists and others who the Biden campaign says are “looking for leadership” out of the White House.
Key speakers: Jill Biden, Bill Clinton, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Sally Yates
Other speakers Tuesday: former acting U.S. Attorney General Sally Yates; Sen. Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D, New York; former Secretary of State John Kerry; and U.S Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester, D-Delaware.
Wednesday, August 19, 2020
The aim of Wednesday’s “A More Perfect Union” theme will be to tout Biden’s “Build Back Better” plans for the economy and recovering from the pandemic.
Key speakers: Barack Obama, Nancy Pelosi, Hillary Clinton, Elizabeth Warren, Kamala Harris (Vice Presidential nominee)
Other speakers Wednesday: Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers; New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham; and former U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords.
Thursday, August 20, 2020
Thursday’s theme is “America’s Promise.” Speakers will cast Biden as a man of character, decency, compassion, and resilience – “a fighter” who gets back up. The night will lean into Biden’s biography and his long record in Washington.
Key speakers: Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, Tammy Duckworth, Keisha Lance Bottoms
Other speakers Thursday: Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J.; California Gov. Gavin Newsom; former South Bend, Indiana, mayor and presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg; U.S. Sen. Chris Coons, D-Conn.; and the Biden family. The DNC did not say which family members will speak.
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