She and a parade of speakers before her did it by keeping the emphasis on its significance for future generations.
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“I certainly know that with her as our commander-in-chief, our foreign relations will not be reduced to a business transaction, I also know that our armed forces will not become an instrument of torture”, said Allen. What is more, she looked more angry than determined and seemed in no way transformed into a larger or more impressive figure due to her historic accomplishment at securing her party’s nomination and very possibly the presidency itself. But it’s rare we see her in all white.
Maryland Rep. Elijah Cummings, an African-American and close ally of Clinton, was telling the story of his late father – a share-cropper in SC – on the convention’s first day when Sanders supporters started chanting “No TPP” and holding up signs opposing the trade pact.
Trump’s no-room-for-error path to the 270 electoral votes needed to win the White House likely begins with a trio of industrialized states that loop around the Great Lakes – Michigan, Ohio and Pennsylvania – and are home to numerous working-class white voters who have been drawn to his message of economic grievance and revival.
“No one gets through life alone”.
“She’s been there for us, even if we haven’t always noticed”, he said. Most others stood quietly in protest.
Clinton had other hard acts to follow Thursday night. So instead of reinventing the wheel, Clinton exceeded expectations by being her best: Forceful, cogent and clear.
Rep. Cheryl Brown, a California delegate from San Bernardino who is black, condemned what she called the “aggressive” behavior of some Sanders delegates, saying they jumped on tables and shoved people at the state’s hotel the night that Sanders moved that the convention nominate Clinton by acclamation.
“It’s true”, she said.
House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi, who is among those who blazed the trail for Clinton as the first female House speaker, called the moment “transformational” in an interview ahead of the speech. “We want to replace bad, corporate, or inert Democrats with progressives, and then we work to defeat Republicans”.
And she did, delivering a measured, inspirational message that drew a sharp contrast with her bombastic Republican opponent Donald Trump.
But I believe a majority of Americans still want to support the candidate who wants to bring us together. Monday ended on an upbeat note with several universally cheered pleas for unity, led by Michelle Obama’s rejoinder to Trump’s signature slogan, “Make America Great Again”. And just as with our founders there are no guarantees.
For many Democrats, the “more unites us” argument matters but does not truly motivate.
Retired Marine Corps General John Allen, who led USA forces in Afghanistan and coordinated the global coalition to fight the Islamic State, took to the stage before Clinton spoke accompanied by a delegation of retired military leaders and veterans who also are supporting Clinton.
The previous three days of the convention did a brilliant job setting her up for just that.
The classic Chris Matthews distinction is that Democrats are the Mommy party and Republicans the Daddy party.
Citing the “potential for a strong finish” from speeches by President Barack Obama, Vice President Joe Biden and Clinton, he said, “If that happens, Democrats would head into the general election with history on their side”.
It focused on her commitment to being an effective commander in chief; her plan to defeat the Islamic State terror group; how to fix the nation’s social fabric by bringing people together; and how to get the economy going for middle and lower wage earners.
“Some of you are frustrated – even furious”.
She acknowledged some people still do not know her well.
There was also significant celebrity representation: actors (and spouses) Mary Steenburgen and Ted Danson; basketball legend, author, and activist Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, who introduced himself as Michael Jordan because, he said, Trump doesn’t know the difference; and musicians Sheila E., Carole King (singing “You’ve Got a Friend”), and Katy Perry, who sung Clinton off with “Roar“. “He had zero solutions”. Trump also bashed Clinton as “owned by Wall Street” and claimed her “vision is a borderless world where working people have no power, no jobs, no safety”. That’s why it’s critical for her to pull in as many allies as possible, she said, and Thursday night’s speech was a critical part of that effort.
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“Public sentiment is everything”, said Pelosi. She took the podium confidently.
