As I write this, with more than a full rotation of the Earth still to come before Joe Biden’s primetime address on Monday night at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, no one knows precisely what the president will say when he takes the podium at the United Center—and that includes Biden and his longtime political guru, Mike Donilon, who were still in the process of revising the speech on Sunday afternoon. But we can anticipate a few things when Biden delivers what could be the most-watched and most politically important valedictory moment remaining in his presidency: He will tout his considerable record of accomplishments in his 3.5 years in office. He will limn the historic stakes of the election and hammer home the existential urgency of defeating Donald Trump. And he will celebrate his partnership with Kamala Harris and testify to the aspects of her character, values, and experience that qualify her for the big chair in the Oval Office.

Oh, and one more thing: Whatever the quality of Biden’s speech, he will receive a series of thunderous ovations from the 5,000 convention delegates and thousands more members of the party faithful gathered in the hall. This assemblage, like rank-and-file Democrats more broadly, generally sees Biden as a hero: for having beaten Trump in 2020; for having ably guided the country out of the pandemic era and passed large-scale legislation on a bipartisan basis when the prevailing wisdom held that even trying was pure folly; for having led his party to an unexpectedly strong showing in the 2022 midterms, again in the face of persistent doubts; and, most stunningly, for having put aside his own ambitions, interests, and gut instincts to pass the torch to Harris, thereby restoring party unity, unleashing a wave of grassroots enthusiasm for a younger and more vibrant candidate, and giving the party a better chance—perhaps its only chance—of defeating Trump again this fall.