Lingering bitterness from the heated primary campaign between Mrs Clinton and Mr Sanders erupted after more than 19,000 Democratic National Committee emails, leaked on Friday, confirmed Mr Sanders’ frequent charge that the party played favourites in the race.
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The first day of the Democratic convention included an FBI investigation, the party chair quitting, the presidential nominee repeatedly booed, apologies, and warnings of a Russian plot to defeat Hillary Clinton.
The challenger to Hillary Clinton is speaking later Monday at the Philadelphia convention.
In a show-stealing speech on Monday night, Michelle Obama linked that landmark to her own husband’s role as the first black USA president.
The email scandal is fuelling resentment that Sanders voters already had toward the DNC and it’s threatening to hinder Clinton’s campaign slogan and a theme of the convention, “Stronger Together”.
“We had a couple people who probably destroyed their career, but who knows”, Trump said.
Supporters see Clinton’s Washington credentials – she has also been a first lady and a US senator – as showing she has the experience needed for the White House.
The Vermont senator, who was booed by his own supporters earlier Monday when he spoke about the need to elect Clinton, intervened amid fury over leaked emails showing party leaders hostile to his primary campaign.
In terms of convention operations, the DNC Rules Committee tapped Ohio Rep. Marcia Fudge to fill in as permanent chair of the convention to gavel in and out each session, according to a DNC source. It remains to be seen whether that noise will spill into the main convention hall. Sanders did his part, imploring his supporters to consider a country under Trump’s leadership. Sanders is scheduled to take the stage tonight along with Sen. “It’s causing the distraction no one wanted”, one ally said.
Even while Sanders sought to redirect the outrage over the leaked emails and urged his supporters to focus on Trump, he acknowledged that Kaine is not the vice presidential pick he had hoped for. While she has often avoided overt politics during her almost eight years in the White House, her frustration with Trump’s rise was evident.
“It’s not over until the votes are counted”, Netherton said.
The emails showed DNC officials pondering various ways to undercut Mr Sanders.
During opening remarks, state Democratic Party Chairman Marcel L. Groen asked Sanders supporters to stand.
Sanders said he was “disappointed”, but not surprised of the news.
Her announcement that she was leaving had pro-Sanders supporters cheering during a demonstration in Philadelphia and Donald Trump and other Republicans crowing about the disarray among the Democrats.
Although planned for months, the marches came as fissures widened in the party despite weeks of effort to make a show of unity.
Trump tweeted “hard to believe that Bernie Sanders has done such a complete fold”, and made another appeal to his supporters.
“And because of Hillary Clinton, my daughters and all our sons and daughters now take for granted that a woman can be president of the United States”.
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Trump was a frequent target throughout the night, though the jabs were often more mocking than mean. Frank noted that if she did not speak, it would be “unusual”.
