Greetings and welcome to the Monday, August the 19th, 2024 edition of the Daily Article podcast. I'm Chris Elkins,

narrating today's article written by Denison Forum co-founder and CEO, Dr. Jim Denison. Note, as a nonpartisan

ministry, Denison Forum does not endorse political parties or candidates.

I would offer the same observations if today's news related more to Republicans than to Democrats.

The Democratic National Convention begins today in Chicago.

Amid concerns that pro-Palestinian protesters will disrupt proceedings,

many will be watching to see how Democrats

frame Kamala Harris as their presidential nominee in an election season unlike any other.

She became their nominee two weeks ago through an unprecedented process. Her remarkable rise in

popularity is bringing swing states into contention that were thought to be safe for Mr. Trump.

She is also energizing her party. Kamala Harris's 83% support among Democrats is 22 points higher

than Joe Biden's on the eve of his withdrawal from the race. What explains her greater popularity

with Democrats? It's not due primarily to policy,

since both she and President Biden hold positions that largely align with her party, and she has

held no press conferences and given no formal interviews thus far. The explanation of her popularity

is simple. Many Democrats, fearing that Mr. Biden is too old to campaign or lead

effectively, think she has a better chance of defeating Mr. Trump. Mrs. Harris is obviously younger

than Mr. Biden, and she would be the first female to become president. While she is only beginning

to lay out her policy proposals and says she'll do a full interview

by the end of August, her rising popularity to this point is based more on who she is than on what

she might do. Mr. Trump's popularity with his supporters is similarly based in large part on his

personal story and courage in face of political opponents and an attempted assassination. As one analysis noted,

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