In a rare public appearance since her 2024 defeat, former Vice President Kamala Harris delivered a blistering critique of Donald Trump ’s second term during a keynote address at Emerge’s 20th anniversary gala in San Francisco, before abruptly pivoting to a viral video of elephants huddling during an earthquake.
“A lot of folks are wondering what’s going to guide us through this moment,” Harris began solemnly. “Please allow me, friends, to digress for a moment.”
Cue the cackle.
“Who saw that video… of the elephants at the San Diego Zoo during the earthquake?” she asked. “Google it if you’ve not seen it.”
As the crowd chuckled, Harris described how the elephants instinctively gathered to protect the vulnerable when the ground shook beneath them, a moment she framed as metaphor for political solidarity.
“What a powerful metaphor,” she said. “Because we know those who try to incite fear are most effective when they divide and conquer... when they separate the herd.”
The unexpected animal analogy punctuated a searing speech that painted Trump’s presidency as a looming constitutional crisis .
Harris accused Trump of creating “the greatest man-made economic crisis in modern presidential history” and blasted his administration’s actions as a “wholesale abandonment of American ideals.”
“We here know that when the checks and balances ultimately collapse… that is called a constitutional crisis,” she warned. “And it will eventually impact everyone.”
The former VP also decried what she called “unconstitutional demands” on universities, and criticized Trump’s deportation of Kilmar Abrego Garcia to El Salvador despite a court order, declaring, “It is not OK to violate court orders. It is not OK to detain or disappear… anyone without due process.”
Still, Harris’s tone wasn’t entirely apocalyptic. She praised grassroots organizing and lauded fellow Democrats like Cory Booker, AOC, Bernie Sanders, and Maxwell Frost for “speaking with moral clarity.” Some, she noted, even traveled to El Salvador in support of Garcia.
While Harris did not address her own political future. with rumors swirling about a gubernatorial run in California or a third presidential bid in 2028, she offered a battle cry to fellow progressives.
“I am not here tonight to offer all the answers,” she said. “But I am here to say this: things are probably going to get worse before they get better.”
With a pause, she added: “But we are ready for it. We are not going to scatter.”
“A lot of folks are wondering what’s going to guide us through this moment,” Harris began solemnly. “Please allow me, friends, to digress for a moment.”
Cue the cackle.
“Who saw that video… of the elephants at the San Diego Zoo during the earthquake?” she asked. “Google it if you’ve not seen it.”
Kamala Harris urges Democrats to find inspiration in the San Diego Zoo elephants.
— Charlie Spiering (@charliespiering) May 1, 2025
"Think about it. What a powerful metaphor." pic.twitter.com/HCa68Dg71O
As the crowd chuckled, Harris described how the elephants instinctively gathered to protect the vulnerable when the ground shook beneath them, a moment she framed as metaphor for political solidarity.
“What a powerful metaphor,” she said. “Because we know those who try to incite fear are most effective when they divide and conquer... when they separate the herd.”
The unexpected animal analogy punctuated a searing speech that painted Trump’s presidency as a looming constitutional crisis .
Harris accused Trump of creating “the greatest man-made economic crisis in modern presidential history” and blasted his administration’s actions as a “wholesale abandonment of American ideals.”
“We here know that when the checks and balances ultimately collapse… that is called a constitutional crisis,” she warned. “And it will eventually impact everyone.”
The former VP also decried what she called “unconstitutional demands” on universities, and criticized Trump’s deportation of Kilmar Abrego Garcia to El Salvador despite a court order, declaring, “It is not OK to violate court orders. It is not OK to detain or disappear… anyone without due process.”
Still, Harris’s tone wasn’t entirely apocalyptic. She praised grassroots organizing and lauded fellow Democrats like Cory Booker, AOC, Bernie Sanders, and Maxwell Frost for “speaking with moral clarity.” Some, she noted, even traveled to El Salvador in support of Garcia.
While Harris did not address her own political future. with rumors swirling about a gubernatorial run in California or a third presidential bid in 2028, she offered a battle cry to fellow progressives.
“I am not here tonight to offer all the answers,” she said. “But I am here to say this: things are probably going to get worse before they get better.”
With a pause, she added: “But we are ready for it. We are not going to scatter.”
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