Making a political concession speech is a difficult, emotionally fraught task. In Vice President Kamala Harris‘s concession remarks Wednesday afternoon, she ably upheld the civic imperatives of the moment.
Let’s not parse every word to identify phrases from Harris that critics believe are disingenuous. Sometimes the cause of statesmanship requires a sort of civically lofty language that hides policy disagreements and personal grievances. Harris strove for, and almost entirely achieved, a constructive tone, an uplifting message, and an appeal to the best parts of American tradition.
Harris’s record and ideology make her, for some of us, political anathema. In the immediate aftermath of an extremely divisive election, that status shouldn’t matter. What matters is whether Harris used the occasion to reinforce the ideals of freedom, civil rights, and the constitutional system writ large. And, of course, to revalidate, after four years of discreditable violations from her Republican opponent, the necessity of respecting the results of an election and encouraging the peaceful transfer of power.
“America,” she said, “we will never give up the fight for our democracy, for the rule of law, for equal justice, and for the sacred idea that every one of us, no matter who we are or where we start out, has certain fundamental rights and freedoms that must be respected and upheld. And we will continue to wage this fight in the voting booth, in the courts, and in the public square.”
Moreover, “We will also wage it in quieter ways, in how we live our lives, by treating one another with kindness and respect, by looking in the face of a stranger and seeing a neighbor, by always using our strength to lift people up, to fight for the dignity that all people deserve.”
And, while it sounds like boilerplate, what Harris said specifically to young people is something that needs saying because young people need to hear it:
“The important thing is don’t ever give up, don’t ever give up, don’t ever stop trying to make the world a better place. You have power. You have power and don’t you ever listen when anyone tells you something is impossible because it has never been done before. You have the capacity to do extraordinary good in the world.”
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And, to repeat, Harris graciously offered President-elect Donald Trump that “we will help him and his team with their transition.” This should not even need saying, but after the four years this nation has endured, it did need saying, loud and clear. So she did say it, and she surely will act in accord with those words. Kudos to her for it.
Here’s hoping both sides, winners and losers, adhere to that standard between now and Trump’s inauguration next Jan. 20 — and well beyond.
This article was originally published at www.washingtonexaminer.com
