The 68-year-old former first lady, senator and secretary of state took a monumental step on her quest to become America’s first female commander-in-chief, by besting party challenger Bernie Sanders.
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Capping almost a quarter century in public life, Clinton will become the party’s standard-bearer against Republican nominee Donald Trump in the November 8 election when she accepts the nomination on Thursday.
Clinton acknowledged the historical significance of the occasion. “That is just who she is”, Bill Clinton said of his candidate wife, keeping his audience of thousands of delegates rapt throughout his 45-minute speech, which marks the convention’s halfway point.
“The third time was the charm”, he said, adding that he married his best friend.
Mr Clinton’s speech was the main event on day two of the Democrat National Convention in Philadelphia.
Although the roll call outcome was a foregone conclusion, the state-by-state vote saw rowdy displays on the convention floor. Several wept and embraced.
Hillary Clinton has secured the Democratic Party’s United States presidential nomination, coming back from a stinging 2008 defeat in her first White House run and surviving a bitter primary fight to become the first woman in U.S. history to head the ticket of a major party.
Delegates thrust placards in the air, forming a mosaic of “H’s” across the arena.
He called on Americans who “believe in making change from the bottom up” to vote for his wife, “if you believe the measure of change is how many people’s lives are better”.
“What an incredible honor that you have given me”, she said in the video. This is really your victory, this is really your night.
But no one doubts that Bill Clinton still wants to be at the center of the action. A lot. But, he also managed to tell one of the most well-known stories – his life with Hillary – in an engaging, amusing and, yes, sweet way.
“In the spring of 1971 I met a girl”, he began, telling the story of his first encounter with Hillary Rodham.
“Hillary is uniquely qualified to seize the opportunities and reduce the risks we face, and she is still the best darn change-maker I have ever known”, he said, hitting back at Republican arguments she is a Washington insider tied to the status quo. She will become the official Democratic Party nominee when she gives her acceptance speech at the convention Thursday. Frustration boiled over on the opening day Monday as his delegates booed speakers who mentioned Clinton.
What followed was an escorted tour through Clinton’s career as a lawyer, children’s advocate, first lady of Arkansas and America, senator from NY and secretary of State.
“Because earlier today, you nominated the real one!”.
“Life in the real world is complicated, and real change is hard”, Clinton said.
Clinton’s most memorable moment came when he turned to the choice facing voters in the 2016 election, saying that the difference between the Republican and Democratic campaign narratives is that “One is real, the other is made up”.
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But, said Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta, “This is different”.
