Obama: Clinton most qualified ever
America ‘already great,’ he insists on party’s stage
PHILADELPHIA — President Barack Obama implored voters to elect Hillary Clinton to the White House, joining a chorus of Democrats vouching Wednesday night for her readiness to be commander in chief.
“America is already great. America is already strong,” Obama declared to cheering delegates Wednesday night at the Democratic National Convention. “And I promise you, our strength, our greatness, does not depend on Donald Trump.”
Of Clinton’s readiness to be commander in chief, Obama said, “no matter how daunting the odds, no matter how much people try to knock her down, she never, ever quits.”
He added that there’s never been a man or a woman — “not me, not Bill” — more qualified than Hillary Clinton to be president.
At the end of the speech, Hillary Clinton joined Obama onstage at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia.
Just before Obama took the stage, Clinton’s running mate, U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine of Virginia, introduced himself to the nation as a formidable foil to Republican nominee Donald Trump.
Wednesday night’s Democratic lineup was aimed at emphasizing Clinton’s national security credentials, a shift from two nights focused more on reintroducing her to voters as a champion for women’s issues, children and families.
The convention’s third night was also a time for Democrats to celebrate Obama’s eight years in office. Vice President Joe Biden, who decided against running for president this year after the death of his son Beau Biden, called it a “bittersweet moment.”
As the vice president took the stage to the theme song
from the movie Rocky, the crowd rose to its feet for extended applause and chanted “Joe! Joe! Joe!”
Biden, from Scranton, Pa., appealed to the white, working-class 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.
“There’s only one person in this election who will help you, there’s only one person in this race who will be there for you,” he declared. “That’s Hillary Clinton’s life story.”
Of Trump, he said: “He says he cares about the middle class? Give me a break. That’s a bunch of malarkey!”
Biden joined other speakers of the night in saying that Trump would make the country less safe.
“No major party nominee in the history of this nation has ever known less or has ever been less prepared to deal with our national security,” Biden said in a near whisper to a nearly silent hall.
His comments echoed that of Leon Panetta, Obama’s former Pentagon chief, who in his convention address referred to Trump’s assertion that he would like Russia to hack into Clinton’s email server.
“Today, Donald Trump once again took Russia’s side. He asked the Russians to interfere in American politics,” Panetta said. “As someone who was responsible for protecting our nation from cyberattacks, it’s inconceivable to me that any presidential candidate would be this irresponsible.
“Donald Trump cannot become our commander in chief,” Panetta declared.
But as Panetta spoke, the hall was divided. Some “anti-war” delegates from California, Oregon, Washington and other states chanted through his speech: “No More War!”
The party enlisted the help of military figures — including a Republican — to argue that Trump would make the country less safe.
Retired Rear Adm. John Hutson, a registered Republican, said Trump is a “walking, talking recruiting poster for terrorists.”
KAINE TOUTS LISTENING
In accepting the party’s nomination for vice president, Kaine said he was doing so on behalf of his wife, Anne, “and every strong woman in this country,” their three children and everyone in the military.
The former governor of Virginia and former mayor of Richmond said he will run for vice president on behalf of families working to get ahead, for senior citizens hoping for dignified retirements and for every person who wants America to be a beloved community.
Promoting his lengthy government experience, Kaine detailed his rise from a member of the Richmond City Council to the city’s mayor, to Virginia’s lieutenant governor to governor.
Kaine added that if he’s good at his work, it’s because he “started at the local level listening to people, learning about their lives and trying to get results.”
Kaine added that it was hard work steering his state through the recession, but “Hey, tough times don’t last — and tough people do.”
Kaine also tore into Trump, mocking Trump’s pledges to build a wall along the Mexican border; asking why the GOP nominee has not released his tax returns; and criticizing 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.”
Clinton’s pick of Kaine as her running mate drew praise from many quarters, but the former Virginia governor faces a challenge in convincing some progressive groups that he will champion their causes.
Liberals, particularly those who supported U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, have grumbled about Kaine being on the ticket, particularly because of his support for “fast track” approval of the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade pact. As Kaine spoke, several delegates held up signs opposing the trade deal.
“I think progressives are looking for him not only to talk about progressive issues, but to talk about them with authenticity and sincerity,” said Stephanie Taylor, co-founder of the Progressive Change Campaign Committee. “He has a real chance to introduce himself to the Democratic Party and electorate at large.”
U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut, who sits alongside Kaine on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, described the Virginian on Wednesday as “a next-level intellect.”
“There’s nobody better on that committee to distill these complicated issues into easy, digestible ways,” Murphy said in a Washington Post Live interview in Philadelphia. “I think he’s going to bring a readiness and humanity to this role. And all the press he gets about being a nice guy — it’s all true.”
In remarks earlier in the day, Kaine focused on Trump’s rhetoric and frequently contentious remarks about women, members of minority groups and temporarily banning Muslims from entering the United States.
“Is it too much to ask to have the first woman president rather than someone who offends women every time he opens his mouth?” he said Wednesday morning.
GUN VIOLENCE
The Democratic convention took a somber tone Wednesday night as speakers highlighted a series of recent mass killings and called for gun control.
“We have had enough,” declared Murphy, who has been a major backer of gun control legislation since the 2012 mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn. “There is no reason to feel helpless about the horrifying trajectory of cascading massacres.
“Smart gun policy, like background checks, can change this,” he said.
Murphy pledged that Clinton will fight for gun control, despite the political risks, while Trump will “do the bidding of the gun lobby.”
The convention also heard from the mother of a young man who was one of 49 people killed at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Fla., last month. Christine Leinonen said her son Christopher was a “huge” fan of Clinton.
Delegates rose in a standing ovation for Leinonen, who asked why “common-sense” gun policies weren’t in place when her son died. “I never want you to ask that question about your child,” she said.
She was followed by Erica Smegielski, whose mother was killed in the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre, and then by two women who survived the racially motivated attack on a Charleston, S.C., church in 2015.
“I’ve mourned far too many officers killed by guns,” said former Philadelphia Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey. “And as a nation, we’ve mourned far too many people who have fallen victim to gun violence.”
Capping the section of the program on gun violence, a group of Broadway singers performed “What the World Needs Now Is Love,” as the audience sang and swayed in unison.
A parade of Democratic lawmakers who took the convention stage Wednesday night highlighted the diversity of the party and criticized the Republican Party’s nominee.
“Donald J. Trump, your words have been hostile, bigoted and insulting,” said Rep. G.K. Butterfield, D-N.C., chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus. “You have used every opportunity to talk about your wealth, to denigrate people who don’t hold your views, even within your own party.
“You are not qualified to serve as president,” he said.
Former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley, a Democratic primary rival of Clinton, called Trump a “bully” and a “coward.”
“Unlike that immigrant-bashing, carnival barker Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton understands the enduring symbol of the United States of America is not the barbed-wire fence, it is the Statue of Liberty!” O’Malley said.
In a move aimed at broadening Clinton’s appeal, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg — an independent who considered launching a third-party bid for president — endorsed the Democratic nominee. A billionaire businessman himself, Bloomberg took aim at Trump’s bankruptcies, reliance on foreign factories and other economic experience.
“The richest thing about Donald Trump is his hypocrisy,” Bloomberg said.
Former President Bill Clinton, in the role of devoted political spouse, joined the packed crowd in cheering the attacks on Trump.
The core of Hillary Clinton’s strategy is putting back together Obama’s winning White House coalition. In both of his campaigns, Obama carried more than 90 percent of black voters, the overwhelming majority of Hispanics, and more than half of young people and women.
That coalition was vividly on display in the first two nights of the convention in Philadelphia. Female lawmakers were prominently featured, along with young activists and immigrants.