History was made on Day 2 of the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia as Democrats made Hillary Clinton the first woman to be nominated for president by a major political party.
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Clinton’s campaign hoped the night of achievement, personal stories and praise could chip away at the deep distrust many voters, including some Democrats, have of the former secretary of state, senator and first lady. He urged Sanders supporters to stay engaged and come together to support Clinton in November.
“History”, said a post on her Twitter account.
Although the outcome was a foregone conclusion, the state-by-state vote saw rowdy displays on the convention floor.
The effort to unite the warring factions of the party was left to Sanders, the night’s final speaker, and he did not disappoint.
The DNC issued a formal apology to Sanders on Monday for leaked emails that suggested the party’s leadership conspired against him during the primaries in favor of presumptive nominee Clinton. Frustration boiled over as his delegates jeered speakers who mentioned Clinton.
Clinton is the first woman to become a presidential nominee for either the Republican or Democratic parties.
“We’ve got to show a little class and let them be frustrated for a while”.
Some Sanders supporters objected, but the roar of the crowd quickly drowned them out.
Following Sanders’ call to nominate Clinton during the roll call, his supporters flooded the streets surrounding the Wells Fargo Arena and stormed the media tent, causing it to go on lockdown at one point. “The idea that I’m going to be here when the first woman president is nominated is overwhelming”, she said. In North Carolina, he told a convention of the Veterans of Foreign Wars that, “our politicians have totally failed you”.
Trump cheered the disruptions from the campaign trail.
Robby Mook, Clinton’s campaign manager, told USA TODAY the goal of Tuesday’s session was to focus on her record.
But Clinton and the others – including mothers who have lost children to gun violence or in clashes with police – will also have the unstated mission of mending fences with Sanders’ army of vocal young activists.
One speaker who drew no protests was first lady Michelle Obama, who provided a passionate appeal on behalf of a the former first lady “who has the guts and the grace to keep coming back and putting those cuts and those cracks in that highest glass ceiling”.
“In this election, I’m with her”, Obama said. It was a striking parallel to the role Clinton played eight years ago when she stepped to the microphone on the convention floor in Denver in support of her former rival, Barack Obama.
Later Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard placed Sanders name in nomination at the convention to wild applause, calling his campaign a “movement of love”.
The former president traced his relationship with his wife back decades, recalling in great detail the first time he spotted her on a law school campus and the impact she had on pushing him into politics.
“None of them want her, the people who voted for Bernie”, Niswander said.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation said it was investigating the “cyber intrusion”, which the Clinton campaign blamed on Russian hackers it said are bent on helping Trump.
But his 10th consecutive convention address may require one of the toughest balancing acts of his career: separating his wife’s legacy from his own.
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The 69-year-old Democratic icon and two-term president remains a powerful force on the national stage, although he is more gaunt and his energy is no longer boundless as it appeared four years ago.
