It’s disappointing when a movie you’re excited to see doesn’t live up to the hype.
That’s exactly what happened on the final night of the 2024 Democratic National Convention.
After three nights of build-up, featuring world-class celebrity speakers like the Obamas, the Clintons, and even the VP nominee Tim Walz (who knew?) who all “rocked the house,” so to speak, the stage was set for Harris to deliver a speech that would catapult her campaign into the final stretch with fierce momentum. Everyone was waiting for the show-stopping finale.
What she delivered was a speech that was…good. But when the stakes are this high, the simple fact is that “good” simply isn’t good enough. Not even close.
The Importance of Setting the RIGHT Objectives
Harris entered the night with clear objectives outlined by her campaign (according to NBC.com):
- to share her background as someone who rose from a middle-class family to protect others as a prosecutor,
- to contrast her “optimistic” vision with Trump’s “dark” agenda, and
- to evoke a sense of patriotism.
Okay, but these objectives are very cerebral and do little to stir the kind of passion needed to send her supporters running to the polls.
Notably absent from these objectives was any emotionally-driven, action-oriented mention of “galvanizing the crowd” or “creating an unforgettable send-off”. Perhaps this explains why her speech…didn’t do that.
Instead of the fire and fervor that Tim Walz had shown, Harris’s speech felt more like a checklist—a pilot’s pre-flight inspection rather than the soaring takeoff that everyone was hoping for. She hit all the objective points, ensuring the plane took off and landed safely, but there was no thrill, no heart-pounding excitement.
In 45 minutes of speaking, there was only one moment that gave a glimmer of hope that things might ramp up. When she mentioned that another Trump administration would mean going backward, she declared, “But we are not going back!” The crowd picked up the chant for a moment, but just as quickly as it had started, the moment passed. It was a spark that could have ignited the room, but it was allowed to fizzle out.
Run the Winning Plays
What was perhaps most perplexing was Harris’s failure to leverage the campaign slogan, “We Fight: We Win!” Walz had demonstrated its power to incredible effect the night before, leading the crowd in a call-and-response that had everyone on their feet. It was the kind of moment that conventions are made for, the kind that leaves a lasting impression. Yet, Harris didn’t even mention it. Not once. It was as if she had forgotten the very slogan that was supposed to define her campaign.
Walz had also created a veritable playbook of how to win, which I outlined in detail yesterday, including how to involve the audience in a story, use refrains, and incorporate imagery, metaphor and purpose.
This wasn’t just a missed opportunity; it potentially was a game-changing 4th quarter fumble at the one-yard line.
Don't Let History Repeat Itself
Ironically, it brought to mind Donald Trump’s 2020 campaign, where he too abandoned the very tactics that I believe had won him the presidency in 2016. As I wrote about here way back then, instead of sticking to his winning playbook, particularly the “Tweetable and Repeatable” sound bites, he veered off course and lost his focus, and, I believe, made just enough of a difference to have tipped the scales in the election.
Similarly, Harris had a winning playbook handed to her on a silver platter, and she ignored it.
In the end, her speech was the kind of speech where your spouse gives you a reassuring hug afterward and says, “You did great, honey!” But what was needed was the kind of performance that leaves everyone jumping around you and shouting, “OMG, that was amazing!!”
That didn’t happen last night.
Was It Close Enough?
There was nothing wrong with her performance, per se. It had potential, and was close… But as the saying goes, “close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades” (and halitosis, as some of us like to add!) So the big question is: Was it close enough?
The debate on September 10th and possibly again in October will be her last chance to make a powerful impression. But comparatively, the DNC was junior varsity, and the debates will be the Superbowl. This time, there will be no adoring crowd to back her up, and she will go head-to-head with a street brawler of an opponent. She will need to show a level of star power that was conspicuously absent tonight.
Will History Repeat Itself?
The lesson in it for us all is: If you’re handed a winning playbook, for heaven’s sake, use it!
Will she study the playbook, run the drills, and rise to the occasion? We’ll find out on September 10th.
