Thirteen-year-old Brayden Harrington made an emotional speech at the Democratic National Convention last August about how former Vice President Joe Biden helped him with his stutter:
“He told me about a book of poems by Yeats he would read out loud to practice,” Brayden said. “He showed me how he marks his addresses to make them easier to say out loud. So, I did the same thing today.”
Harrington said the former vice president, who also stuttered as a child, gave him the confidence not to shy away from his stutter.
Teen speaks at DNC about bond with Biden
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Following Saturday’s election victory for Biden, Harrington and his parents were asked by “CBS This Morning” correspondent Mireya Villarreal about what Mr. Biden’s win means to them.
“I see him as a role model,” Brayden said. “He stutters, and he made it, like, this far in life, as a president-elect, and that’s really, I would say, brave of him to put himself out there, for the whole country, and to be a leader. And that’s just really great of him, to just push himself.”
Villarreal asked, “How does it make you feel knowing that Brayden’s voice was heard and respected at a very pivotal moment in our country?”
“It’s very emotional for me, too, I think for all of us,” Jessica Harrington replied. “We’re very proud of him. I think what we’ve been given has been a gift and a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. We actually got to see firsthand what our soon-to-be president of the United States is like as a normal human being. He had a huge impact on our family.”
Owen Harrington added, “Brayden has more confidence and there’s less stress with what’s going on.”
Villarreal asked Brayden, “Do you have aspirations one day to follow in his footsteps?”
“I don’t know. I have days where I’m like, ‘Oh, I want to be president!’ And I have days where I’m, like, … [no].”