Yang asks voters to 'turn the page for our country' in Democratic convention speech

• Former Democratic presidential candidate Andrew Yang kicked off the final night of the Democratic national convention with a warning that the longterm problems he focused his campaign on have barreled toward the present.
• "You might know me as the guy who ran for President talking about MATH and the future," Yang said. "Unfortunately for all of us, that future is now. The pandemic has accelerated everything."
• "We are in a deep, dark hole, and we need leaders who will help dig us out."
• Yang's longshot campaign was one of the 2020 primary's biggest surprises, taking him from a virtual unknown to a lead speaker on the convention's biggest night.

Andrew Yang, the tech entrepreneur who surprisingly emerged from the crowded 2020 field by introducing universal basic income to the party conversation, kicked off the Democratic National Convention's final night as its lead speaker.

Yang warned that the distant and often dystopic issues he focused his campaign on have quickly caught up to the present.

"You might know me as the guy who ran for President talking about MATH and the future," Yang said. "Unfortunately for all of us, that future is now. The pandemic has accelerated everything."

"If you're like me and my wife, Evelyn, you don't know if your child's school is reopening this fall. 72% of Americans believe that this is the worst time we have ever experienced. And 42% of the jobs that are now lost—millions of jobs—will never return."

"We are in a deep, dark hole, and we need leaders who will help dig us out."

—Good Morning America (@GMA) August 21, 2020

Yang said Biden and vice presidential nominee Kamala Harris impressed him on the campaign trail, and earned his support.

"I have gotten to know both Joe and Kamala on the trail over the past year — the way you really get to know a person when the cameras are off, the crowds are gone, and it's just you and them. They understand the problems we face."

"Our future is now, and it is daunting. But I ask you tonight to join me to help Joe and Kamala fight for the promise of America, turn the page for our country, and lead us forward to a future we will actually be proud to leave to our children."

He finished his speech by introducing the evening's host, Julia Louis-Dreyfus. The "Veep" star engaged in some banter with Yang, where they both kept incorrectly pronouncing Vice President Mike Pence's "not very American-sounding" last name, mocking birtherism and the personalities who have mispronounced Kamala Harris' name, including Pence.

—Reuters (@Reuters) August 21, 2020