I think the housing crisis in this country must have gotten much, much worse. My evidence: the speakers at the Democratic National Convention during the past two days. From union leaders to union members to Congressmen to Senators to Governors, all of them seem to have lost their homes, their jobs, and all their worldly possessions - clearly a statement on what George W. Bush's economic policies have done to America in the last 8 years. In every speech, Democrats are saying that "Americans need change." This is how Democrats view the United States of America:
So be like Randy Marsh - go vote, and cast your quarters into the cup of democracy by electing Barack Obama the next President of the United States.Here's some other random thoughts of last night and some live-blogging of tonight's festivities.
Day 1:
So yesterday, in my opinion, began with a bang. The first speech that got my attention was actually Congressman Jesse Jackson Jr. He continued the message of Obama's keynote in 2004, and even his incredible More Perfect Union speech, by focusing on issues of racial/societal unity. As CNN notes, this is indeed the passing of the torch. Gone are the days of African-American leaders like Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson, who focused on the grievances of the African-American community. Here are new leaders, Jackson Jr. and Obama, who will try to lift America up, Blacks alongside Whites alongside Hispanics. I can't wait to see Jesse Jackson Jr. take Barack Obama's place as the junior senator from Illinois!
Then the hero appeared. Regardless of whether you're still bitter and in Hillary's camp, or mocking and in Obama's camp, if you are a Democrat, you adore Senator Ted Kennedy. He is the final pillar of the Kennedy legacy, following admirably in the footsteps of his brothers. While all seemed destined to be President, only one would be. So his surprise, miraculous appearance at the DNC on Monday night was just the unifying moment that the Democratic Party needed. He spoke eloquently, passionately, and with the strength of a man who doesn't plan on leaving the Senate until he's finally gotten healthcare to every single American home.
And the crowd loved it. One of the loudest, longest rounds of applause I have ever heard. The man truly is a god. When the day comes for him to be written in the history books, I realized yesterday that he's going to go down right next to the other great members of Congress. History teachers will talk about Clay and his great compromises, Webster and Calhoun and their passionate debates on the future of federalism, and they will speak of Ted Kennedy and his ultimately successful, never-ending fight for universal healthcare.
"We are told that Barack Obama believes too much in an America of high principle and bold endeavor, but when John Kennedy called of going to the moon, he didn't say it's too far to get there. We shouldn't even try.
Our people answered his call and rose to the challenge, and today an American flag still marks the surface of the moon.
Yes, we are all Americans. This is what we do. We reach the moon. We scale the heights. I know it. I've seen it. I've lived it. And we can do it again.
There is a new wave of change all around us, and if we set our compass true, we will reach our destination -- not merely victory for our Party, but renewal for our nation.
And this November the torch will be passed again to a new generation of Americans, so with Barack Obama and for you and for me, our country will be committed to his cause. The work begins anew. The hope rises again. And the dream lives on."I shiver.
Then Michelle Obama arrived, and flat-out owned. She wanted to seem down-to-earth and truly American, and succeeded easily - her brother recounted how she memorized whole episodes of The Brady Bunch. She wanted to seem likeable - she's downright adorable and will without a doubt be a formidable, tough First Lady as well. Fantastic speech.
Plus the Obama children are flat-out adorable. And from what I've read, and despite what seemed pretty suspicious to me last night, the exchange between Senator Obama and his daughter via video was entirely unscripted. His daughters were only told that there was "a surprise for them" right before they went on-stage with their mom. Malia immediately guessed, "Is it the Jonas Brothers?" Michelle explained, “In the end, she felt that Daddy was a decent second choice."
Good start to the Convention.
Admittedly, this is really scary, though.Day 2:
Unfortunately, I only came in during the evening, so I missed Kucinich's apparently excellent speech.
8:00: Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-MD) is angry. He's angry about the last 8 years, angry that people would consider extending them for another 4, and he's letting the crowd know it. It's about time that a Democrat at this convention soundedly genuinely pissed about what Bush did to this country, and what McCain plans to continue doing. (Hoyer speaks at the 2004 Convention in the picture - the problem with live-blogging is that I can't get pictures of what's happening that quickly.)
8:30: So Governor Janet Napolitano is now speaking - I like her a lot. She's very folksy, but clearly gets the issues really well. Look at for her in 2016 :).
8:40: Some woman from the SEIU just spoke, and really should have been vetted better for a primetime slot at the convention - she spoke haltingly, as if she had never read the speech before, and never once looked up from her podium. Just gives us all more time to think that Hillary is fast approaching. I'm actually excited about the next 5 big speakers - Sebelius, Warner, Patrick, Schweitzer, and Hillary.
By the way, there is stuff happening in the world out there. I'll be adding that in as I go along.
--> In fact, Bill Richardson just predicted the first woman President - it's not Hillary, it's not Sebelius, it's not Napolitano - it's this woman.
--> Oh well. I guess we'll have to hope that the Convention gives Obama a bounce, since Biden clearly didn't.
9:05: Here's Sebelius. And there goes Sebelius. Sorry I missed that one, guys. Oh well, I'll get to her tomorrow.
9:23: Senator Bob Casey (D-PA) takes the stage now to the tune of "It's a Beautiful Day!" He's already starting the "PA's people are tough, hard-working" line, meaning this speech will be a rebuttle to the whole Obama is elitist thing. Obama's going to fight for them, apparently.
A lot of people have been saying that during this convention. Beyond the typical desire to have a president who, you know, "fights," it's definitely a response to some hesitant Clinton loyalists who think Obama has the right idea but doesn't have the guts/political know-how to deliver.
Sorry, back to Casey. "He's one of us." "He's a father, husband, decent man." - Makes Obama more tangible, like a real person. Obama is the sort of politician that is more transcendent, a leader that you don't want to have a beer with, but one that you'd enlist in the army for if he told you to (FDR-like as opposed to Bill Clinton-like). He's got to seem more down-to-earth for a lot of Americans to trust him, since he doesn't have a lengthy record to throw judgment on.
"McCain calls himself a maverick, but he votes with Bush 95% of the time. That's not a maverick, that's a sidekick." - Nicely done, Senator Casey. You just wrote the most effective Obama attack ad for mid-October.
Hahaha, the crowd begins a chant of "4 more months." Well done, Democrats. You clearly are up to your necks in sarcasm. "Not 4 more years, just 4 more months." Great way to tie McCain to Bush while ushering out the Bush era. Casey concludes, and that was very effective, extremely well played, and a speech sure to be utilized by the Obama campaign in the next two months as a script to attack McCain.
Update at 9:45 - CNN Analyst Bill Schneider just recognized these two lines as being fantastic catch-phrases and ones that will be repeated. Just remember that here and now, EDC scooped CNN.
9:33: All right, while the fight for equal pay for women is really important (and a great issue to use to draw undecided women into our camp), I'm not that interested in this activist speaking now. So I'm gonna look over Sebelius's remarks.
Sebelius: WELL DONE, MA'AM!!! She spent her speech praising Obama's plans while contrasting each one with a passionate, smart attack on John McCain's "vision" for America.
James Carville can suck it! For those who don't know, Carville complained about the opening night festivities by arguing that the Democrats didn't attack McCain hard enough. Thanks to the tough-as-nails female leadership of the Democratic Party - Napolitano, Sebelius, and soon Clinton (I don't include Pelosi because she's more of a teddy bear) - voters will see a clear distinction between Barack Obama and John McCain.
9:38: I've decided that Hillary's speech will deserve its own post, so I won't be live-blogging it here. By the way, CNN.com Live is showing some really weird crowd clips of Democratic delegates dancing along to "I'm So Excited and I Just Can't Hide It." Democrats may be smart politically, but they shouldn't dance. Okay, she can. Maybe him.
9:41: WARNER!!!! This might be the least-anticipated keynote address in any recent convention. Everyone's anxious to hear Hillary, but Warner is a great politician and should give us a great speech. "The race for the future." Nice. Looking forward positively instead of so many speakers looking into the last 8 years negatively.
All right, he's introducing his very down-to-earth background. Just listen to this speech after you read this. He's so normal, telling stories, etc. You can see why he was initially expected to be a front-runner for the nomination this year before he chose not to run.
"An energy policy that says, 'Hey, let's go borrow money from China so we can buy oil from countries that don't like us.'" - I've never heard it put so plainly, but so truly. Then he goes to the power of the presidency that Bush never understood: the ability to inspire. "We need leaders who will appeal to us, not as Democrats or as Republicans, but as Americans." When the President gives the American people a mission, we've always risen up to the challenge. George Bush missed a glorious opportunity to make our country better, stronger, and more unified than ever after 9/11, because he told us to go shopping instead of telling us to stand together - I'm so happy that Warner gets that. I now remember why Mark Warner had my vote this year before he dropped out and Obama came in. And I remember why he'll have my vote for President in 8 years.
Do you see why I like him? Do you?
"If an idea works, it doesn't matter if it has a "D" or an "R" next to it. This election isn't about liberal versus conservative, or right versus left, it's about the Present versus the Past." - This is real post-partisanship. He might be the only guy at this convention who actually talks about working with all Americans, including Republicans, to build a better future; and I don't blame everyone else for focusing on how awesome the Democratic Party is, but I'm still very proud that Warner stepped up here.
Quoting Jefferson. Always a nice touch. "This race is all about the future." Great way to frame this race. Obama is the future - forward thinking, new ideas, post-partisan. McCain is the past - doesn't understand the internet or the economy, and is stuck in the old ways of Washington.
Terrific job, Warner. I'm so proud of you.
10:00: Governor Ted Strickland (D-OH) - haha, they're just rolling out the Greatest Hits of Hillary Supporters - Strickland, Rendell, Paterson... Ah, a nice tribute to Stephanie Tubbs Jones (as Kucinich did earlier). She was truly a lioness of the Democratic cause, and she will clearly be missed.
Strickland is doing a nice job of this, attacking McCain and Bush at the same time.
For some reason, when he yelled "bring our troops home," Strickland's voice shook and warbled like a really old-style political speaker. He finishes on a high note, though.
--> By the way, in Mark Halperin's terrific coverage of the DNC at The Page, he's compiling a list of the best zingers used by Democratic speakers tonight against McCain. Some I missed, but there have been some great ones:
–KANSAS GOV. SEBELIUS: “I’m sure you remember a girl from Kansas who said there’s no place like home. Well, in John McCain’s version, there’s no place like home. Or a home. Or a home. Or a home. Or a home.” Read full remarks.
–SEN. CASEY: “John McCain calls himself a maverick, but he votes with George Bush more than 90% of the time. That’s not a maverick, that’s a sidekick.”
–NEW YORK GOV. PATERSON: “If [McCain is] the answer, then the question must be ridiculous.”
–GOV. ED RENDELL: “The only thing green in John McCain’s energy plan is the billions of dollars he’s promising in tax cuts for oil companies.”
10:12: The crowd is really rolling now. And they're continuing to roll out the big guns at the podium. Here's Deval Patrick, who's best buds with Obama. Also a great speaker.
Remember earlier in this long-as-heck when I mentioned the passing of the torch to a new era of African-American politicians? Meet torch bearer #3.
"When I was growing up on the South Side of Chicago..." - I'm sensing a pattern here. Michelle, Deval, and Barack must have been best buds.
Now he's trumpeting the underlying principles of liberalism - caring about your neighbors, not just yourself. Quoting Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA), "Government is just the name we give to the things that we choose to do together."
10:20: Here comes another rising star - Brian Schweitzer, governor of Montana. Another guy who's down to earth, wants to be post-partisan, and probably has a Presidential race or two in his future. Populist background, "nothing but the clothes on their backs
," etc. And reminds us that average, blue-collar Americans used to idolize a young, idealist Democratic Senator turned President who broke a barrier (in his case Catholicism) that prevented many Americans from reaching the White House. Like I said earlier, gotta love the Kennedy's.
Hmm, Schweitzer is not very great at leading this crowd in chanting, a little too careful and conductor-like. They missed a cue there - way too eager to say Barack Obama before the Governor was finished. I was half expecting him to yell "LET ME FINISH!" for a second there.
10:26: PrezBill just took his seat. Hillary is almost here. Drum rolls...
Oh wait, this guy is still speaking. Sorry, Brian. His focus is clearly on hitting McCain/praising Obama on renewable energy. Well done, Governor.
"If you drilled in all of John McCain's backyards, even the ones he doesn't know he has..." - add Brian Schweitzer to Mark Halperin's list. Strickland too. I didn't know politicians had such solid senses of humor.
"Stand up!" - Schweitzer yells over and over again. This arena is getting more and more pumped up. I can't wait to see what happens when Hillary and her 80% approval ratings shows up.
10:36: The Hillary tribute video starts. Thanks to the Kinks' for "All Day and All of the Night." Great, subtle joke on Bill, as he appears in the video being interviewed as "Hillary's husband."
And some people thought that Conventions go overboa
rd with hero worship of the candidate? Obviously this is justified considering the circumstances, but Hillary is basically Kennedy, Lincoln, and Jesus all rolled into a dress in this video.
Epic music. She's quite the popular warrior. "Reached for the stars" - as in, she jumped and didn't quite make it. But at least she took the leap.
And here she is. The crowd starts to scream, the crowd rises, the signs appear. And here's Clinton...Chelsea, that is. Everyone wants the other blonde, but then again, this one's hotter. Ooh, short intro. "My hero and my mother."
Now the crowd loses it. Bill really should be down there with her, but he looks quite proud up there in the luxury box.
By the way, I think every delegate was given a collection of 50 signs for this convention - Hillary, Kennedy, Obama, Michelle, Biden will be tomorrow, as will PrezBill. Very well rehearsed, and goes a long way towards (at least visual) unity.
So the big question, as we're about to get under way (assuming the cr
owd stops cheering), is if she's going to focus on unity, or focus on building Barack up while tearing McCain down, and allow unity to simply be implied by her passion? I'm guessing the latter.
10:42: They're still cheering. I'm starting to be sincerely worried about
open revolution.
10:45: She's finally got them under control (sort of). "Proud Democrat" gets a nice roar.
Bigger roar for "proud supporter of Barack Obama." Much bigger. :)
With that being said, I'll leave analysis of her speech until tomorrow. Good night all, and I hope you made it this far.
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