| DNC Day 3: Democrats hold no punches, call for party unity |
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By: MICHELLE WILLARD, Post Staff Writer
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Posted: Thursday, August 28, 2008 3:37 pm
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Last night’s speakers at the Democratic National Convention in Denver were out for blood.
The evening’s highlights – former President Bill Clinton and Vice Presidential nominee Sen. Joe Biden (D-Del.), as well as the roll call vote to confirm Barack Obama as the party’s presidential nominee – focused on building party unity and painting presumptive Republican Presidential nominee as the successor to failed Bush administration policy.
State Rep. John Hood (D-Murfreesboro) was there to witness it all and found the night very interesting.
“President Clinton did a great job,” Hood said. “He did a better job at a unity speech than Hillary did.”
The Democrats are still trying to heal wounds and bridge the gap between Hillary and Obama supporters after the fractious primary season. Democrats fear the wounds won’t be healed by November and have used the convention as a platform to bring dissenters back into the fold.
But Hood hasn’t heard any ill feelings from the Tennessee delegation and doesn’t think many will defect to the Republican side in November.
“The people who are out here aren’t going to do that. I think they’re just disappointed their candidate didn’t make it,” Hood said.
“A lot of the Hillary delegates have been very diehard about it, and they need to get over it and move on,” Hood added.
To speed the healing process, Hillary was the one who put an end to yesterday’s roll call vote to nominate Obama for the presidency.
“It was a very dramatic way to end it,” Hood said, explaining one state deferred to Illinios, Obama’s home state, who then deferred to New York giving Hillary the chance to call for party unity and end the vote.
“It was a way to try to make it solid and convening,” Hood said. “It made it even more dramatic.”
In another dramatic event, Biden’s son Bo introduced him for his acceptance speech.
“That was one of the most tremendous introductions I’ve ever seen,” Hood said, explaining he didn’t know Biden left Washington every evening to spend the night with his family in Delaware.
Tonight the convention moves to Mile-High Stadium, where 70,000 people will hear Obama’s acceptance speech on the 45th anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I have a Dream” speech.
Michelle Willard can be contacted at 615-869-0816 or mwillard@murfreesboropost.com.
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