The delegates at the opening day at the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia has managed to turn an ugly day into a day of joy and unification with rousing speeches from Senator Bernie Sanders, First Lady Michelle Obama, Senator Elizabeth Warren, Comedian Sarah Silverman and Senator Cory Booker.
Michelle Obama received a thunderous applause for her powerful speech. “Don’t let anyone ever tell you that this country isn’t great, that somehow we need to make it great again,” she said, referring to Mr Trump’s signature slogan “Make America Great Again”. “Because this, right now, is the greatest country on earth,” she added.
“The issues a president faces are not black and white, and cannot be boiled down into 140 characters,” the first lady said. “Because when you have the nuclear codes at your fingertips and the military at your command, you can’t make snap decisions. You can’t have a thin skin or the tendency to lash out.”
She said children look to adults — and especially the president — to shape their values. “Make no mistake about it, this November when we go to the polls, that’s what we’re deciding,” she said. “Who will have the power to shape our children for the next four or eight years of their lives?”
Mrs. Obama also took an oblique shot at supporters of Sen. Bernie Sanders, who often interrupted the first night of the convention with shouts of “Bernie! Bernie!” In contrast, Mrs. Obama said, Clinton supported Barack Obama at the 2008 convention.
“When she didn’t win the nomination eight years ago, she didn’t get angry or disillusioned,” Mrs. Obama said. “She did not pack up and go home, because as a true public servant she knows this is so much bigger than her own desires and disappointments.”
Mrs. Obama also confronted issues of gender and race, saying that Clinton was “picked apart for how she looks or how she talks or even how she laughs.” Clinton, she said, has “the guts and the grace to keep coming back and putting those cracks in that highest and hardest glass ceiling until she finally breaks through.”
Sen. Bernie Sanders
On his part, Mr. Sanders urged Democrats to unite and put Hilary Clinton in the White House. “Hillary Clinton must become the next president of the United States,” he said as the crowd erupted in cheers.
“While Donald Trump is busy insulting one group after another, Hillary Clinton understands that our diversity is one of our greatest strengths,” Mr Sanders continued.
“If you don’t believe this election is important, if you think you can sit it out, take a moment to think about the Supreme Court justices that Donald Trump would nominate and what that would mean to civil liberties, equal rights and the future of our country,” he said.
One of Mr. Sanders supporters, Comedian Sarah Silverman also calls for support for Hilary Clinton while Senator Warren slams Trump’s business record. The biggest applause of the night goes to Senator Cory Booker when he told the crowd: “In America, love always trumps hate”
