DNC 2020 Highlights: Harris Is First Black-Asian VP Candidate; Obama Calls Biden 'Brother'; Billie Eilish Performs

A pair of history-making politicians headlined Day 3 of the virtual Democratic National Convention on Wednesday, touting presidential nominee Joe Biden while delivering a 1-2 punch to Republican incumbent Donald Trump.

Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., became the first woman of South Asian and African heritage to accept the nomination to a major political party ticket. In her keynote acceptance speech, she paid tribute to her late mother for her nomination to the second highest office in the country.

“My mother taught me that service to others gives life purpose and meaning. And oh, how I wish she were here tonight, but I know she’s looking down on me from above,” said Harris, whose mother immigrated to the U.S. from India and her father from Jamaica in the 1960s,” … she probably could have never imagined that I would be standing before you now speaking these words: I accept your nomination for Vice President of the United States of America.”

Harris talked at length about the vision she shares with Biden of "our nation as a beloved community -- where all are welcome, no matter what we look like, where we come from, or who we love,” she said, "where we rise and fall as one, where we face our challenges, and celebrate our triumphs -- together." She also emphasized the importance of voting in the November election to unseat Trump from office.

“Years from now, this moment will have passed, and our children and our grandchildren will look in our eyes and they're going to ask us, ‘Where were you when the stakes were so high?’ " Harris asked. " … We will tell them not just how we felt, we will tell them what we did.”

Harris’ words evoked memories of co-speaker and former President Barack Obama, the first African American to win the White House, when he brought his messages of hope and change to the presidential campaigns of 2008 and 2012. He heaped praise upon his friend and former VP, even referring to Biden as his “brother” after selecting him as his running mate in 2008.

"I didn’t know I’d end up finding a brother. Joe and I came from different places and different generations,” Obama said. “But what I quickly came to admire about Joe Biden is his resilience, born of too much struggle; his empathy, born of too much grief."

Obama also paid tribute to Harris for the night of her historic achievement: "In my friend Kamala Harris, he has chosen an ideal partner who is more than prepared for the job; someone who knows what it’s like to overcome barriers and who’s made a career fighting to help others live out their own American dream."

Obama’s speech also included some sharply aimed criticism at his predecessor for his handling of the COVID-19 pandemic and his lack of leadership. The series of slams prompted Trump to go on a Twitter tirade in response to the harsh words delivered by Obama while standing in front of a jumbo-sized display of the U.S. Constitution.

Obama condemned Trump as incapable of handling the responsibilities of the presidency and for remaining uninterested in “taking the job seriously.” Obama admitted that while he never expected Trump to “embrace my vision or continue my policies,” he also never believed he would treat the presidency as “anything but one more reality show that he can use to get the attention he craves."

"Donald Trump hasn't grown into the job because he can't, and the consequences of that failure are severe," Obama said. "(Over) 170,000 Americans dead. Millions of jobs gone while those at the top take in more than ever. Our worst impulses unleashed, our proud reputation around the world badly diminished and our democratic institutions threatened like never before."

Harris also addressed the COVID-19 crisis that polls show is the biggest concern among voters: "Joe will bring us together to end this pandemic and make sure that we are prepared for the next one," she said. "Joe will bring us together to squarely face and dismantle racial injustice, furthering the work of generations."

Harris was one of many women to take the spotlight in the DNC’s virtual presentation, including 2016 Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton. In a speech from her home in New York, Clinton praised Biden as someone who “knows how to heal, unify, and lead.” She urged Americans to vote for those things important to them such as new jobs, clean energy, paid family leave and Dreamers.

“Vote for the America we saw in the roll call last night: diverse, compassionate, full of energy and hope,” she said. “Vote like our lives and livelihoods are on the line, because they are.”

In a word of caution to supporters of Biden, who is ahead of Trump in numerous polls, she said, “Remember, Joe and Kamala can win 3 million more votes and still lose -- take it from me. We need numbers so overwhelming Trump can’t sneak or steal his way to victory.”

Since her stunning 2016 defeat, “people have told me, ‘I didn’t realize how dangerous he was,’ ‘I wish I could do it all over’ or, worse, ‘I should have voted. Look, this can’t be another woulda, coulda, shoulda election.”

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who reminded Americans that Trump’s rhetoric and personal behavior are inextricably linked to the Republican political agenda. Trump and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., who is up for reelection, are the leading impediments against popular legislation like lowering prescription drug prices and preventing gun violence, she said.

“We have sent the Senate bills to protect our dreamers, LGBTQ equality, to prevent gun violence, and to preserve our planet for future generations, and even more,” she said. “All of this is possible for America. Who is standing in the way? Mitch McConnell and Donald Trump.”

Other high-profile women appearing included Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota and Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, who lost to Biden in the Democratic Primary. American singer/songwriter Billie Eilish performed and also urged Americans to "vote like our lives and the world depend on it, because they do."

The final day of the DNC 2020 program will conclude with an address from Biden.