The DNC has put the party in Democratic Party. They are having a whole lot of fun.
Stevie Wonder and Bill Clinton both looked really old, but Stevie sang "Higher Ground".
Tonight was the night for Tim Walz' acceptance speech. They had John Legend and Sheila E, in addition to Stevie Wonder - and Oprah Winfrey. Tomorrow night is Kamala's acceptance speech. I'm expecting to see Taylor Swift.
The parents of one of the hostages in Gaza spoke. It was wrenching. Former Capitol Police officer Sgt. Aquilino Gonell also made a short, heartbreaking speech.
The DNC understands the assignment.
They've sprinkled each night with some Republicans disavowing Trump and urging people to vote for Kamala.
In my opinion, the best speeches of the night:
Maryland Governor Wes Moore was very good.
My absolute favorite was Hakeem Jeffries, and I'm not surprised.
Tim Walz mentioned the childish nicknames. He said Democrats don't do that. Then moved on. I wonder why they're having trouble coming up with something that will stick. And why Trump hasn't gone after Walz using something so MAGA Republicans can stop trying to find it.
This is not the Democratic Party I’ve watched since I entered adulthood in the 1980s, blinded by the faux sunrise of Ronald Reagan’s “Morning in America,” so terrified of being called “liberal” or getting a bad headline that they ended up like a dog that’s been beat too much, spending the last four decades covering up. I could feel the shock waves of the vibe shift from the convention floor Tuesday night as I watched the star speaker, former first lady Michelle Obama, who’d famously defined the old ways when she declared that “when they go low, we go high.”
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Obama paid brief lip service to civility before a “crackback block” on Trump’s racism that had caused the GOP cult leader to once claim her husband was not an American.
“Who’s gonna tell him the job he’s currently seeking might be one of those ‘Black jobs’?”
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It turns out that replacing Biden with Harris was more than a shrewd political calculation. It was a signal for America’s political abuse victims to finally break free, to replace senatorial decorum with in-your-face memes, to speak their own truth about how Trump, Project 2025, and right-wing extremism have been battering America without worrying about what uptight fact-checkers and the tsk-tsk crowd at the New York Times and the Washington Post will say, and to make their own kind of music.
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It’s been stunning to watch the Washington Post or the hopelessly tired FactCheck.org nitpick Democratic statements from the United Center podium while pretending Trump is a serious candidate and not a serial liar who tries to escape the political consequences of what he says by pretending he didn’t mean it.
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What strikes me about Chicago is that seeing an escape route from the near-death experience of a frail Biden succumbing to Trump’s wannabe dictatorship has made Democrats not just giddy but more willing to bulldoze anyone who opposes them.
I saw that firsthand at DemPalooza, the DNC’s effort to channel enthusiasm, sign up volunteers, and sell a ton of Kamala swag in a section of downtown’s sprawling McCormick Place that the public can access without credentials.
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It turns out that millions of repressed Americans were dying inside to make their own statement for a kind of freedom that values diversity, a sleeper cell waiting to be activated.
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You know who really hates this? Well, Republicans, of course; they have been caught flat-footed by the Great Vibe Shift of 2024 — as evidenced by Trump’s joyless and nonsensical monologues about bread buyers getting raped or murdered, and turnouts for JD Vance that are counted in the dozens. But even more freaked out seem the nattering nabobs of the mainstream media and the fact-checking industrial complex, who can’t handle liberals talking about how it really feels to be an American today.
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The elite Beltway media is used to dictating the terms of America’s political debate — usually badgering Democrats to move to the center-right — and clearly cannot handle this new power dynamic. That’s not surprising, but here’s what is: Democrats, from Harris and her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, down to the rank and file, no longer care what the New York Times picks nits about.
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The exuberance here isn’t irrational, but Democrats have to remember that Trump’s defense of ancient hierarchies still gets him nearly half the electorate.
It was boring, and the audience wasn't very engaged. That is until Doug Emhoff and the Obamas spoke. The roll call was crazy, and the DJ didn't add anything to it, unless it was confusion. (I may be alone in this assessment.) Anyway, they put the "party" in the Democratic Party.
The house band was helpful. Good funk. That got me through the first two thirds of the night, whose musical entertainment was funk and rap.
Kamala spoke again, but from a packed stadium in Milwaukee where she and Tim Walz were campaigning.
LOLOLOL. He's having a blast.
That is a packed stadium in Wisconsin watching the DNC in Chicago.
The Second Gentleman turns out to be quite charming, and I can see him and Tim Walz hitting it off immediately. These two couples should be a great matchup.
My best picks from the night:
"The affirmative action of generational wealth." "The grace of failing forward." Who could she be talking about?
Remember when she said, "When they go low, we go high"?
I am in complete agreement. She was much better than he.
As Barack Obama said at the start of his own speech, which was supposed to have been the main event of the night, “I don't know about you, but I'm feeling fired up. I am feeling ready to go — even if I am the only person stupid enough to speak after Michelle Obama.”
Barack did hit Trump a time or two. I especially appreciated him calling out the incessant whining.
Bernie Sanders spoke. His speeches aren't a lot of fun, but I'll always love Bernie. Chuck Schumer spoke and was kinda bizarre. Time to retire, Chuck.
And the crowd loved it.
Day 3: "A Fight for Our Freedoms" will feature a good lineup: Tim Walz (acceptance speech), Bill Clinton, Nancy Pelosi, and Pete Buttigieg.
...but hey, do what you want...you will anyway.
UPDATE 08/21/2024: I love Emhoff's kids. Check out this video...
Trying to find the one he made for his convention introduction to Doug's speech. Will post when I do.
I wonder how he's gonna spin this as fake.
UPDATE 09:44 am:
Tim Walz was right. He's sad.
And proving Obama's point: he whines constantly.
Because he never focuses on them.
Trump then argued that crime and the economy should have been a bigger focus for the Democrats speaking at the convention, saying Democrats did not discuss killings in Chicago but “I was mentioned, I think, almost 200 times.”
It was the day of the women, and introduction of Kamala to the country. Well done. Emphases on reproductive health care, the economy (and unions), and Trump's failure/lack of character. They hit him hard on Covid. There were good speakers who kept things short (around three minutes, except for Joe Biden at the end, who went on quite a while, shouting and touting his record, reminding me why I'm glad he stepped aside, and not so much Hillary Clinton, whom the crowd loved, and who loved the crowd loving her). Joe's standing ovation(s) is what you might have expected - long and loud.
It should be noted that the audience cheering stretched many of the good speeches longer than their allotted time.
My favorite speeches:
She's got a long, bright political future ahead of her.
Warnock: "We must choose between the promise of January 5 and the peril of January 6."
LOL.
Jamie Raskin spoke, and I guess I was expecting too much, because I'm so impressed with him. He had some good lines, but his delivery was very strange. Maybe he was nervous? Has he never spoken to a packed stadium before?
Not everyone thought that.
Yeah, that made me chortle.
Anyway, nearly every speaker was shouting. The venue is Chicago's United Center where the Chicago Bulls play. They have a good sound system. Didn't seem necessary to shout so much.
I didn't care for Joe's daughter, Ashley, who introduced him with a speech about "my dad, the best dad in the world." It seemed like they were introducing her as a future politico. I wasn't into it. I'm pretty sick of dynasties. I also didn't care for Jill Biden's speech that came right before Ashley, but I understand the DNC needed to give the Biden family props. They stopped short of giving Hunter the stage.
There were some nice videos throughout, which may be - or become - campaign ads.
Not sure why they decided to have two country music performers. I could have done without Jason Isbell's choice of songs: "Something more than free"
And I don't think on why I'm here where it hurts I'm just lucky to have the work Sunday morning I'm too tired to go to church But I thank God for the work
When I get my reward my work will all be done And I will sit back in my chair beside the Father and the Son No more holes to fill and no more rocks to break And no more loading boxes on the trucks for someone else's sake
What??? How in hell did that fit the night? Or anything democratic?
Whatever. At least Mickey Guyton sang "we're all All Americans."
WTF? Apparently, there was too much adulation for the speakers, and time ran short.
Kamala made a surprise appearance. But she and Doug were sitting in the audience alongside Tim and Gwen Walz. One of the early speakers suggested that Tim was busy campaigning. Uh - no.
All in all, it was a good night for the Democrats. Looking forward to Day 2: "A Bold Vision for America's Future." Speakers include Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff, Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, and Barack Obama. Hope the choice of performers is better.
...but hey, do what you want...you will anyway.
UPDATE 09:07 am:
The Israel-Gaza war was remarked upon by both Rev. Warnock and Joe Biden. Perhaps others, but those are the two that stuck in my head.
Pretty sure no national convention ever ended on time.
UPDATE 10:59 am:
Table turned.
Trump really stepped in it with that "black jobs" comment.
