Calm down. AOC's Bernie endorsement was purely symbolic.

[View in browser]( [Mother Jones Daily Newsletter]( August 19, 2020 Back in 2017, I [profiled]( newly elected California Sen. Kamala Harris for Mother Jones, published in our January+February 2018 issue. The setting was far from glamorous: We met at the largest women’s prison in the country, tucked deep in California’s scorching hot Central Valley. But it made sense to try to see how Harris was gonna bring her two decades of law enforcement experience—as a prosecutor, then district attorney, then attorney general—into a job that would challenge her to think beyond law and order. She prided herself on being a detail-oriented pragmatist who knew how to fix real-world problems. For the first time in her professional life, Harris was stepping into a job that wasn’t enforcing laws, but instead making them. In the three years since, we’ve all witnessed Harris’ rise from a relatively unknown California politician to one of the sharpest thorns in the heel of the Trump administration. Tonight marks the biggest moment of her political career as she takes center stage at the Democratic National Convention as Joe Biden’s vice presidential pick. She’s checked off plenty of boxes as a first, but in [this episode of the Mother Jones Podcast](, I explain why her pragmatism, once her biggest political asset, has now become a liability. —Jamilah King [The MIT Press - The Contamination of the Earth]( [Top Story] [Top Story]( [Calm Down. AOC’s Bernie Endorsement Was Purely Symbolic and She Fully Supports Biden.]( But the misunderstanding, fueled by the media's lack of context, is already getting weaponized. BY INAE OH [Trending] [“The post office has always been political”]( BY TIM MURPHY [Jill Biden's speech at the Democratic conventional gets personal]( BY SAMANTHA MICHAELS [Political conventions are now literally party advertisements]( BY KEVIN DRUM [The Supreme Court will hear Obamacare case exactly one week after the election]( BY ABIGAIL WEINBERG [The MIT Press - The Contamination of the Earth]( [The Mother Jones Podcast] [Special Feature]( [New Podcast Episode: The Biggest Night of Kamala Harris' Life—and How She Got There]( The senator from California has always been a barrier-breaker. Now, history is in her sights. BY JAMES WEST [Fiercely Independent] Support from readers allows Mother Jones to do journalism that doesn't just follow the pack. [Donate]( [Recharge] SOME GOOD NEWS, FOR ONCE ["Not Going Quietly," a New Documentary on the Battle for Health Care, Gets a Boost at the DNC]( One of the most powerful speeches at the Democratic National Convention last night was [given]( by health care activist Ady Barkan, who in 2016 was diagnosed with the terminal disease ALS. His spotlight continues to grow—far beyond a single convention: He’s also in the upcoming documentary [Not Going Quietly](, and an excerpt was shown last night. In almost every speech and interview, he strikes notes of practicality and hope, all too aware of the challenges of revolutionizing a system of power but convinced that the movement for health care is gaining speed. “I look at the freedom fighters past and present,” he [told]( the New York Times before his speech. “People have endured such tremendous suffering, overcome such enormous structural obstacles.” Overcoming is a recurring theme of the convention, [invoked]( on day one by Michelle Obama, who shouted out “all those folks who sacrificed and overcame so much.” “Hope is not a state of mind. It is a state of action,” Barkan told the Times. “It is in the praxis of resistance, solidarity, and love that we can find a path to” a world of accessible health care. For glimpses of Not Going Quietly, follow the film [here]( and Barkan [here](. And if you have ALS or know someone who does and wants to share stories with Recharge, drop a line to recharge@motherjones.com. —Daniel King Did you enjoy this newsletter? Help us out by [forwarding]( it to a friend or sharing it on [Facebook]( and [Twitter](. [Mother Jones]( [Donate]( [Subscribe]( This message was sent to {EMAIL}. To change the messages you receive from us, you can [edit your email preferences]( or [unsubscribe from all mailings.]( For advertising opportunities see our online [media kit.]( Were you forwarded this email? [Sign up for Mother Jones' newsletters today.]( [www.MotherJones.com]( PO Box 8539, Big Sandy, TX 75755