Vice President Harris Lays Out a Bold Vision and Pledges Unity in White House Ellipse Speech
Washington, D.C. — With just one week until Election Day, Vice President Kamala Harris took to the White House Ellipse tonight, delivering a powerful speech that contrasted her vision for America with that of her opponent, former president and convicted felon, Donald Trump. In, “A New Way Forward,” Harris detailed her personal journey, highlighted her record of fighting for justice, and presented an agenda she says would bring stability and hope to all Americans.
Harris opened by sharing stories of her mother, Shyamala Gopalan, a cancer researcher who immigrated to the U.S. from India. This influence, she noted, shaped her career and led her to take on powerful interests like big banks, for-profit colleges, and drug cartels. “When families were exploited by banks during the housing crisis, I held them accountable,” she said.
Harris contrasted her vision with Trump’s, saying, “If he wins, Donald Trump will walk into office with an enemies list. If I win, I’ll walk in with a to-do list.” Her focus, she said, is on everyday Americans, and she outlined a series of initiatives designed to improve their lives.
Among her promises were tax cuts for the middle class, a federal ban on price gouging, caps on insulin, and limiting prescription drug costs. She also pledged to promote home ownership by supporting first-time homebuyers with tax credits. She plans to speed up the building of millions of affordable homes by collaborating with the private sector and reducing red tape. The vice president committed to expanding the child tax credit, lowering childcare costs, and allowing Medicare to cover homecare, ensuring seniors can remain in their homes. She contrasted these priorities with Trump’s repeated attempts to cut Social Security and Medicare.
On reproductive freedom, Harris pledged to fight to reinstate Roe v. Wade, stating, “Americans should make their own decisions about their own bodies, free from government interference.” She also vowed to stop Trump’s plan to restrict access to birth control government will never tell women what they can and cannot do with their own bodies.”
Harris decried Trump’s politicization of the immigration issue and his recent blocking of bipartisan reforms so he could use it as a wedge issue. She reminded us that we are a nation of immigrants and pledged to pass the bipartisan immigration reform bill that Trump blocked.
In another pointed contrast, Harris referenced Trump’s past remarks calling military service members “suckers and losers,” and pledged to always honor the service and sacrifice of our military.
Harris’s closing words left a lasting impact on the audience. She offered her vision, grounded in optimism and unity, contrasting with Trump’s “chaos and division.” In her closing argument to the nation, she said:
“America, we know what Donald Trump has in mind. More chaos, more division, and policies that help those at the very top and hurt everyone else. I offer a different path. And I ask for your vote. And here is my pledge to you. I pledge to seek common ground and common sense solutions to make your life better. I am not looking to score political points, I am looking to make progress.
“I pledge to listen to experts, to those who will be impacted by the decisions I make, and to people who disagree with me. Unlike Donald Trump, I don’t believe people who disagree with me are the enemy. He wants to put them in jail. I’ll give them a seat at the table. I pledge to you to approach my work with the joy and optimism that comes from making a difference in people’s lives. And I pledge to be a president for all Americans, to put country above party and self.
“I love our country with all my heart and I believe in its promise because I’ve lived it. I grew up as a child of the Civil Rights Movement. My parents would take me to marches in a stroller where crowds of people of all races, faiths, and walks of life came together to fight for the ideals of freedom and opportunity.
“I’ve lived the promise of America. I saw how hard our mother worked to give her daughters the same chances this country gave her. Growing up, I was blessed to have family by blood and family by love who instilled in me the values of community, compassion, and faith that have always defined our nation at its best. I’ve spent my life fighting for the people who have been hurt and counted out but never stopped believing that in our country, anything is possible. I’ve lived the promise of America, and I see the promise of America in all of you. I see it in the young people voting for the first time, determined to live free from gun violence, to protect our planet, and to shape the world they inherit. I see it in the women who refuse to accept a future without reproductive freedom, and the men who support them. I see it in Republicans who have never voted for a Democrat before, but who put the Constitution over party. I see it in Americans different in many respects but united in our pursuit of freedom, fairness, and faith in a better future.
“Nearly 250 years ago, America was born when we wrested freedom from a petty tyrant. Across the generations, Americans have preserved that freedom, expanded it, and in so doing, proved to the world that a government of, by, and for the people is strong and can endure. Those who came before us—the patriots at Normandy, Selma, Seneca Falls, and Stonewall, on farmlands and in factories—they did not struggle, sacrifice, and lay down their lives only to see us cede our fundamental freedoms. They didn’t do that only to see us submit to the will of another petty tyrant.
“The United States of America is not a vessel for the schemes of wannabe dictators. The United States of America is the greatest idea humanity ever devised—a nation big enough to encompass all our dreams, strong enough to withstand any fracture or fissure between us, and fearless enough to imagine a future of possibilities. So America, let us reach for that future. Let us fight for this beautiful country we love. And in seven days, we have the power—you have the power—to turn the page and start writing the next chapter in the most extraordinary story ever told.
“I thank you all. God bless you, and may God bless the United States of America.”
As Harris exited the stage, her closing words left supporters uplifted and committed, ready to cast their votes and shape the next chapter of America’s story.