Michelle: Vote for Biden with 'same level of passion and hope' as 2008 and 2012 for Obama

Former first lady Michelle Obama on Monday night called on Democrats at the party's convention to "vote for Joe Biden in numbers that cannot be ignored."

"Folks who know they cannot win fair and square at the ballot box are doing everything they can to stop us from voting. They’re closing down polling places in minority neighborhoods. They’re purging voter rolls. They’re sending people out to intimidate voters, and they’re lying about the security of our ballots," Obama said in her keynote speech at the close of the first day of the 2020 Democratic National Convention.



"These tactics are not new, but this is not the time to withhold our votes in protest or play games with candidates who have no chance of winning. We have got to vote like we did in 2008 and 2012. We’ve got to show up with the same level of passion and hope for Joe Biden," she said.

Obama argued that Trump is "the wrong president for our country."

"He has had more than enough time to prove that he can do the job, but he is clearly in over his head. He cannot meet this moment. He simply cannot be who we need him to be for us. It is what it is," she said.



"I understand that my message won’t be heard by some people. We live in a nation that is deeply divided, and I am a Black woman speaking at the Democratic Convention. But enough of you know me by now. You know that I tell you exactly what I’m feeling. You know I hate politics but you also know that I care about this nation," she added.

Obama said Biden knows what it takes to rescue an economy.

"If you think things cannot possibly get worse, trust me, they can and they will if we don’t make a change in this election," she said. "If we have any hope of ending this chaos we have got to vote for Joe Biden like our lives depend on it."

Obama encouraged Democrats to vote early, amid concerns that coronavirus will keep voters away from polls on Election Day and force them to vote by mail in unprecedented numbers, which could delay final tallies.

"We’ve got to vote early, in person if we can. We’ve got to request our mail-in ballots right now, tonight, and send them back immediately and follow-up to make sure they’re received and then, make sure our friends and families do the same," she said.



Obama also said voters have to be "willing to stand in line all night if we have to" on Election Day.



"Even when it all feels so overwhelming, working parents are somehow piecing it all together without child care. Teachers are getting creative so that our kids can still learn and grow. Our young people are desperately fighting to pursue their dreams," she said.



"And when the horrors of systemic racism shook our country and our consciences, millions of Americans of every age, every background rose up to march for each other, crying out for justice and progress. This is who we still are: compassionate, resilient, decent people whose fortunes are bound up with one another. And it is well past time for our leaders to once again reflect our truth," she added.



Obama said Democrats should vote for Biden over Trump to "keep the possibility of progress alive in our time,"  echoing husband and former President Barack Obama's winning campaign slogan of "Keep hope alive." 

"If we want to be able to look our children in the eye after this election, we have got to reassert our place in American history. And we have got to do everything we can to elect my friend, Joe Biden, as the next president of the United States," she said.