President Barack Obama implored Americans to elect Hillary Clinton to the White House just as he was elected, casting her as a candidate who believes in the optimism that drives the nation’s democracy and warning against the “deeply pessimistic vision” of Republican Donald Trump.
“America is already great. America is already strong,” he declared to cheering delegates Wednesday night at the Democratic convention. “And I promise you, our strength, our greatness, does not depend on Donald Trump.”
As Obama was speaking, there were arrests of some protesting Sanders supporters outside the convention venue. Obama urged Americans to summon the hopefulness of that White House campaign, before recession deepened and new terror threats shook voters’ sense of security. He robustly vouched for Clinton’s readiness to finish the job he started, saying “no matter how daunting the odds, no matter how much people try to knock her down, she never, ever quits.”
The convention’s third night was also a time for Democrats to celebrate Obama’s legacy. Vice President Joe Biden, who decided against running for president this year after the death of his son, called it a “bittersweet moment.”
Biden appealed directly to the working class white voters who have been drawn to Trump’s populism, warning them against falling for false promises and exploitation of Americans’ anxieties. “This guy doesn’t have a clue about the middle class,” he declared.
Clinton’s running mate, Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine, also tore into Trump asking why he has not released his tax returns and slamming his business record, including the now-defunct Trump University.
“Folks, you cannot believe one word that comes out of Donald Trump’s mouth,” Kaine said. “Our nation is too great to put it in the hands of a slick-talking, empty-promising, self-promoting, one-man wrecking crew.”
Former New York City Mayor and billionaire media mogul Michael Bloomberg — an independent — endorsed Clinton’s nomination. Bloomberg took aim at Trump’s bankruptcies, reliance on foreign factories and other economic experience: “The richest thing about Donald Trump is his hypocrisy.”
President Obama was emotional as he thanked Americans for sustaining him through difficult stretches and he concluded by saying, “tonight, I ask you to do for Hillary Clinton what you did for me,” he said. “I ask you to carry her the same way you carried me.”
