DNC Opening Night Part II: Michelle Obama Knocks it out of the Park

[Democratic National Convention] Michelle Obama owned the Pepsi Convention center last night. She brought personality, power and message with only one crack in the speech to speak of, when it came to tipping the hat to ol' Hillary.

Michelle Obama opened the speech by making it personal, drawing the audience in with the example of her father. A blue collar man who worked hard all his life in a Chicago water filtration plant to put his brother through college. An everyday example of courage who struggled in the last years of his life with multiple sclerosis. “He was our champion. If he was in pain he never let on. Even while struggling to button his own shirt. He would just wake up a littler earlier and work a little harder," Michelle said. "Even struggling with two canes just to cross the room to kiss our mother."

Michelle emphasized that her tradition and Barack’s were working class. It was an important point and worth mentioning that while both she and Barack had educations and opportunities to work in high paying law firms they rededicated themselves to working in low income neighborhoods. for Michelle it meant giving back to her community. For Barack it meant community activism in Chicago neighborhoods devastated by the loss of Steel manufacturing plants.

Their backgrounds may be different to some but their goals and their dreams were common. "All of us driven by the belief that the world as it is just won't do."

This message they hoped to relate to all Americans.

“My piece of the American dream, is made from the same conviction that drives men and women all across this country,” Michelle said. From parents struggling with two jobs to “the military families who say grace each night with an empty seat at the table,” Michelle made the case that her and her husband were part of a larger American family. “Barrack doesn’t care where you’re from, he knows the thread that connects all of us.”

The speech was killer. With only one really tense moment. Some might say it was where she said “that’s why I love this country.” I don’t. You could tell she meant it. The only awkward moment was when speaking of heroes Michelle said, “like Hillary Clinton.”

The moment received immediate, roaring applause. But there was something wrong. Almost imperceptible. It wasn’t insincerity, it was a moment of just tense almost over-focused poise. Michelle knew what was at stake and knew it had to be natural the way she delivered this simple praise. Unfortunately the white knuckle grip she had on trying to confidently and assuredly deliver this praise, effectively choked out any natural delivery.

This moment however was but one crack in a speech that I think should connect with many blue-collar and disenchanted democrats. That is, if they were listening. (Eric S. Peterson)

DNC Opening Night Part I: The Undercard Speakers

[Democratic National Convention] Part of the advantage to not being at the Democratic National Convention here in Denver, is that if you're at home watching, you pretty much just get to see the heavy hitters. Ted Kennedy and Michelle Obama had the Pepsi Convention Center on their feet and chanting. And another speech by 30 year Iowa Republican House member Jim Leach raised the flag for bipartisan support of Obama past being just a cliche in the speeches of others.

Oh and there were others, in reality the three stellar speeches mentioned above were good but in whole barely made up for like the bajillion crappy speeches that opened the convention since it started at 3 in the afternoon.

Most were well meaning, people who used to work with Obama or were followers cured of their political apathy by the influence of Obama. But most speeches were formulaic regurgitations of the same platitude. Slight (and I mean slight) variations on the same message. No politics as usual, change we can believe in, change we need, change we deserve, not four more years of the same.

(New prediction: Guest appearance of David Bowie in all denim singing "Changes")

Then Ted Kennedy spoke. Man I feel like an asshole for my earlier fun poking at the guy. The ailing Kennedy after a touching (and I mean touching, sorry its hard turning off my sarcasm sometimes) video roused the convention with a call for pushing for universal health care. Kennedy's style, even in his fragile state still hearkens the mind to the oratory one imagines you would hear from a classic Roman senator throwing heart and soul into defense of the Republic.

"This is not about just victory, but about renewal of our nation," Kennedy said.

Leach soon after echoed a similar thought. While being a proud conservative, Leach had no qualms in his ringing endorsement of Obama. Calling his campaign a "clarient call for renewal" in the country.

Leach pointed out that the previous administration had not only done under the country but had demolished classic conservative standards. "The party of military responsibility has taken us to war with a country that never attacked us. And the party historically anchored in fiscal restraint has nearly doubled the national debt, squandering our precious resources in an undisciplined and unprecedented effort to finance a war with tax cuts."

Leach was the real deal and made from a conservative standpoint a strong case for Obama, a "transcendant" leader to heal the partisan divide. Noting that historically liberals and conservatives all recognize that "in troubled times, country comes before party."

For the full text of his speech check it out here.

The main act of course was Michelle Obama's speech (see next blog) but for major points Kennedy and Leach made a strong bi-partisan case for Obama to deliver on change without making it a cliche. Their one-two combination should be one the party should work to deliver again and again for a November knockout.

One thing they should definitely not rely on is, the oratory of House Speaker nancy Pelosi. She came in trying to get the crowd into doing a big chanting thing about "McCain is wrong!" Which seemed tacky and ineffectual. Not to mention the fact that the all white (one piece?) suit she wore made her look like she should be the captain of Star Trek Voyager. Oh well, I suppose she could be considered the future of the party. (Eric S. Peterson)

Democratic National Convention: Showdown at the Denver Pepsi Center

[Democratic National Convention] I was trying to figure out what would be the theme of my first ever national convention while riding out in the taxi to downtown Denver. Party unity was apparently the rallying cry for convention organizers, and if it was a meant to be a battle cry for November that’s because party captains knew, that at the moment, it was a cry of pain. McCain had quickly mobilized to capitalize on Hillary supporters who felt jilted by Obama passing her up for veep. A recent gallup poll released yesterday found that almost 30 percent of former Hillary supporters were now supporting McCain, or at least, not Obama. Oh yes, the GOP and the McCain camp had their thumb in the cut and the democrats were indeed crying ‘Unity!” They were shrieking it for godsakes.

But if the GOP has capitalized on the division nationally, here in Denver the showdown is not between democrats calling on republicans everywhere. It is between coastal liberals and the western purple state cowboys. And in the case of my cab driver Anne, cowgirls.

“I had a friend who’s been a democrat for thirty years,” says Anne as we cruise out towards downtown Denver. “He was a Spanish fella, and a big Hillary supporter. Since she lost he’s voting McCain and he’s actively campaigning for McCain.”

The first thing I noticed about Anne was the bizarre assortment of bobble head frog figurines cluttering the dash of her cab. The second thing I noticed about Anne was a good rocky mountain liberal attitude, blue-collar and straight talking. When I told her about the Hillary defectors she figured it was probably closer to fifty percent.

Either way the western democratic showdown was on. The town was readying for a party of unity. To try and get a little healing done and press a united front into November. The party has a candidate with a revolution of “change” hoping to ride him into an historic election victory. But first the party has to show that they understand the soul of blue collar folks.

I couldn’t help but notice tucked in the back of the cab a flyer that read “Obama talks Shop,’ depicting Barack getting his hair cut in a black barber shop. I wondered how many black barber shops there were in Colorado. Certainly some, hell there’s at least a couple in Salt Lake, but still it’s clear that now is the time for the democratic party to start fine tuning the message--its not necessarily a racial thing, but thinking more Western is something the party should be mindful of, especially if they want to keep more of those blue collar Hill-raisers from jumping ship.

So predictions… Things are gonna get folksy real fast. Western and southern democrats are going to get the podium, a lot. The conference opened with a video montage of various Western democrats giving their support in various western backdrops: Colorado Governor Bill Ritter in fly-fishing gear in front of a river, Nevada’s Sen. Majority leader Harry Reid in a ten gallon hat. The message was good, like Colorado congressman Ken Salazar: “We’re mainstream westerners that just want to get the job done.” But the props were a little much.

Still the message can resound especially on class lines. And the class card should be played, and played smartly.

Cue Party treasurer Andrew Tobias at the opening night: “In the last eight years the only kinds of people who have done better off are those with private jets, who can’t even remember how many houses they own.”

Score!

My other prediction for democrats going country-- actually my hope is, that god willing, I might spy Ted Kennedy in all denim. Call me a dreamer…

But if I don’t see that I can at least count on Obama cheer leaders like the girls pictured above. Who drove up from Santa Cruz, California bringing their so-cal sex appeal in a station wagon covered in Obama stickers. Five to ten says your not gonna find legs like that at the Republican National Convention. (Eric S. Peterson)