Bill Clinton, president from 1993-2001, draws the admiration of many in the party, but carries some liabilities. But unlike the GOP convention in Cleveland, Democratic speakers made a concerted effort to mix the criticism with upbeat remarks about the nation and their party.
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The nominating formalities on Tuesday night will mark a moment of vindication for Clinton who emerged from the wreckage of her unsuccessful 2008 bid – in which she started out as highly favored – to serve as secretary of state in Obama’s “Team of Rivals” cabinet.
To wild cheers, Sanders said his candidacy proved that “the American people want a bold, progressive agenda that takes on the billionaire class”. His decision to walk out was the culmination of a multitude of mounting frustrations with the “rigged” nominating system. Tim Kaine, Clinton’s new running mate.
After boos erupted on the floor of the Democratic convention floor Monday at mentions of presumptive nominee Hillary Clinton’s name, Trump celebrated in front of a crowd in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.
Clinton will be officially selected as the Democratic Party’s nominee for USA president in a roll call vote Tuesday evening.
At his best, Bill Clinton has been known as one of the most powerful political orators in the country: He made an emotional case in 2012 for the re-election of President Barack Obama.
She leads a party still grappling with divisions. Rhetorically, at least, die-hard Bernie Sanders’ supporters also are breaking some glass, loudly protesting his treatment by the party and still cold to Clinton even as Sanders appeals for Democrats to unify and defeat Republican Donald Trump, “a bully and a demagogue”. At the same time, protesters who had spent the day marching in the hot sun began facing off with police.
Foreign affairs has not been a major topic of discussion here, though it has been subtext in the party’s broader criticism of Trump, who throughout his campaign has proposed a dramatic departure from decades of bipartisan foreign policy norms.
But the problem with McAuliffe’s comments isn’t just that they reinforce a widely held suspicion about Clinton’s position on the TPP, it’s that they reinforce a widely held perception of the candidate herself: that she’s dishonest when it’s politically expedient, and that she shares her real plans with elites like McAuliffe and not the public.
The stories were being told by a long list of lawmakers, celebrities and advocates. Each took the stage to vouch for Clinton’s commitment to working on health care, children’s issues and gun control.
“In the spring of 1971, I met a girl”, he said.
The significant time devoted to the character testimonials underscored the campaign’s concerns about how voters view Clinton.
“He’s still a hero to many people in this state”, said Rick Kennedy, editor of Arkansas” Hope Star. His controversial meeting with Attorney General Loretta Lynch on a Phoenix tarmac while the Federal Bureau of Investigation was still investigating his wife’s email practices drove his popularity rating down 10 percentage points. Republicans cast the meeting as a sign that the Clintons play by different rules, while Democrats bemoaned that at the very least, it left that impression.
Democratic convention leaders say speakers will address terrorism throughout the week.
Though largely ceremonial, the nomination underlines an historic step, coming 96 years after the Constitution was amended to guarantee women the right to vote.
“On behalf of all the women, I proudly place Hillary’s Clinton’s name in nomination to be the next president”, Mikulski said to great applause.
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First lady Michelle Obama delivered the same message Monday night in a heartfelt endorsement of the candidate who engaged her husband in a fierce struggle for the nomination in 2008.
