Democrats gather to enshrine their stunning turn from Biden to Harris

CNN —

Democrats this week will enshrine one of the most audacious power plays in modern political history as they gather for a convention that was hastily reconfigured to try to vault Kamala Harris to a historic presidency.

It begins with adulation for President Joe Biden, who will speak Monday night to a crowd grateful that he belatedly agreed to pass the torch. But the moment will be bittersweet for the 81-year-old president, who, despite a productive tenure, was pressured by his own party leaders to end his reelection bid when a 50-year career succumbed to the ravages of age.

Biden told Americans last month when he announced his departure from the race that “History is in your hands. The power’s in your hands. The idea of America lies in your hands.” The response from his party was a swift coalescing behind Harris, 59, as hopes of some activists for a multi-candidate race among Democratic rising stars were dashed.

With Harris and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz leading their new ticket, Democrats now hope to thwart a White House comeback by Donald Trump amid panic over the prospect of a second term he plans to devote to “retribution.”

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Republicans left their convention in Milwaukee a month ago, convinced they were heading for a landslide victory under a candidate who emerged bloodied but defiant from an assassination attempt. At that point, the Democratic National Convention was shaping up as a grim valediction for an aging president who was losing to Trump in key states. But Harris has sent a jolt of electricity and joy through her party, mending some of the potentially catastrophic splits in Biden’s