PROVINCETOWN — In a late-afternoon speech at a Biden-Harris Victory Fund event at the Pilgrim Monument on Saturday, July 20, Vice President Kamala Harris sounded practically presidential.
More than 1,000 donors had gathered in a tent at the base of the Pilgrim Monument to hear Harris, 59, and other Democratic Party leaders drum up support for the reelection campaign of the Biden-Harris ticket.
Harris praised the president’s legacy and thanked attendees for helping elect the ticket in 2020. When it came to the upcoming election and a second Biden term, however, her language was a bit more ambiguous.
“We are going to win this election,” Harris said, standing in front of a rainbow “VPTOWN” banner, a riff on Provincetown’s nickname.
“We understand what is needed of each of us in this moment,” she continued. “To keep the movement for progress going, we must continue to stand strong together.”
At almost that same hour, according to the New York Times, Biden was drafting a letter announcing he would withdraw from the presidential race. He called Harris on Sunday morning to inform her and endorsed her to be the party’s new presidential nominee that afternoon.
At the Saturday event, Harris did not address the concerns over Biden’s age that have preoccupied the party since his disastrous June 27 debate with former President Donald Trump or speak at length about Biden’s strengths as president.
The star-studded roster of speakers who preceded the vice president — including Boston Mayor Michelle Wu, U.S. Sen. Ed Markey, Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, and actress Jennifer Coolidge — mostly avoided the controversy about Biden’s age and physical health.
“What was interesting was what they didn’t say,” said Provincetown lawyer Scott Squillace, who attended the event. “They didn’t talk about how he’s not feeble, or how he has the energy to keep going. They didn’t defend the criticism around his age because it’s indefensible.”
Several attendees told the Independent they had hoped Harris would directly address the future of the ticket, and many said they hoped Biden would step down.
“We all see Grandpa’s failing,” said Jenn Dumesco, a seasonal Truro resident. “Time to take away the car keys.”
More than a dozen people told the Independent they were excited by the vice president’s speech and by the idea of Harris leading the ticket.
“You could see today how excited this crowd was for what she represents,” said Keith MacDonald, a part-time Provincetown resident. “That’s the Kamala we need as a leader in this country.”
A Rousing Speech
Harris focused her Saturday speech on threats to LGBTQ rights, including violence against transgender people and “Don’t Say Gay” laws in Florida and Iowa that prohibit discussion of gender identity or sexual orientation in classrooms.
She reminded the crowd that she was among the first politicians to officiate at a same-sex marriage in 2004, and she contrasted her record with that of JD Vance, Trump’s pick for vice president, who opposed a federal law protecting same-sex marriage and previously called gender-affirming care “gruesome.”
“He will undoubtedly be a rubber stamp for Trump’s extremist, anti-LGBTQ agenda,” Harris said.
“Go get ’em, Kamala,” one supporter shouted, prompting cheers.
Several people told the Independent they had attended the event not to support a Biden-Harris ticket but rather in anticipation of Harris becoming the nominee.
“I would not be sad if a ‘Kamala for president’ chant broke out,” said Cheri Ruane, a seasonal Truro resident, ahead of the event. “I would probably join in.”
There was no ‘Kamala for president’ chant — but one person did try to start a “four more years” chant that did not catch on.
Rochelle Richardson of Provincetown was enthusiastic about Harris and said she hoped she would become the nominee, pointing to her record on LGBTQ issues.
“She was amazing — it was just on fire,” Richardson said. “I’d jump off a cliff for her. I want to see her make this happen.”
Dumesco said that Harris’s “tremendous” performance on Saturday was not enough to convince her that she could beat Trump, adding that she wanted to see Harris field difficult questions, including about the wars in Gaza and Ukraine.
“Those are tough topics, not easy answers, and I want to see how she does on that,” Dumesco said.
Although numerous reporters covered her speech, Harris did not take questions from the press at the fundraiser.
A Ticket in Flux
Despite widespread doubts within the Democratic Party after Biden’s June 27 debate performance, the Provincetown event still raised more than $2 million for the Biden Victory Fund. Co-hosted by Bryan Rafanelli, Alix Ritchie, Ken Fulk, and Tristan Schukraft, the event exceeded its fundraising goals even after some donors withdrew over concerns about Biden’s candidacy.
Palette Fund President Terrence Meck told the Independent earlier this month that he had withdrawn his $25,000 pledge for the event after the June 27 debate, vowing not to give to the campaign unless Biden stepped down. “For me, it was not in my heart to continue supporting this candidacy,” Meck said.
Meck donated to a presidential nominee fund the day Biden withdrew, he told the Independent.
In his speech introducing Harris, Rafanelli said, “Despite the obstacles ahead, I believe in our collective strength.
“Let’s stand together knowing that our commitment to democracy and our commitment to Joe and Kamala will lead us to a brighter future,” Rafanelli said.
Ruane said she was inspired to donate again after Biden stood down and Harris announced her campaign. “She really bolstered confidence in me,” Ruane said. “I was really moved.”
Before the Saturday event, Ruane had said that if Biden were to withdraw she would hope to see his replacement picked by an “open convention.” After Harris’s speech, she said she was impressed but still hoped for a convention contest.
Squillace also said an open primary would be the best path forward for the Democrats. “If the exercise is about trying to preserve democracy, then we should let people vote,” he told the Independent on Saturday.
Ruane and Dumesco said that they would gladly work to help elect Harris should she emerge from an open process as the nominee. Ruane said an open convention would be “invigorating.”
“There would be energy around it, it would draw attention, and there might be a momentum shift,” Ruane said. “It’s a risk, in my opinion, worth taking.”
Only two days after the fundraiser, however, Harris had garnered so many endorsements that an “open” convention appeared to be unlikely.
Nearly every potential challenger to Harris, including the governors of Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Kentucky, and Maryland, endorsed her on Monday, as did former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
Editor’s note: In an earlier version of this article, published in print on July 25, the portrait of Kamala Harris by Jo Hay was erroneously identified as a print. It was the original painting.
