Democratic Convention – Day 3

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If you watched Fox Opinion – known and referred to by most as Fox News – last night, you’d be under the impression the Republican Convention was a huge success in comparison to the Democratic Convention; you’d also be under the impression there was nothing substantial going on last night at the Democratic Convention. You would most likely feel that Donald Trump said nothing wrong when he invited Russia to hack into the United States digital system.

Away from Fox World however, last night was a very big night; I was starstruck. A number of high profile celebrities – Barack Obama, current US President; Joe Biden, current US Vice President; Tim Kaine, Hillary’s choice of running mate; Michael Bloomberg, former New York mayor and renowned billionaire; Leon Panetta, former CIA Director – were on the speaker list at the Convention. Beyond the stardom which represented the highlight of the night were many calls to the national electorate to avoid making the terrible mistake of taking the country down a path everyone (Republican, Democrat, Independent, Undecided) would regret to have taken.

And on the heel of Trump’s ominous invitation to Russia to hack into US system, it was a perfect rallying theme for the Democrats who were given yet another reason to be “fired up” against the possibility of a Trump presidency. Not because that was needed considering the star power line-up to get the job done.

Leon Panetta – amidst boos and chants of “no more war” by protesters in the audience – gave a grim assessment of what statements such as Trump’s latest foreign policy show-off mean for the United States vis-à-vis its allies. You don’t need to be CIA director, you don’t need to have worked for the CIA, you don’t even need a college education to grasp the danger of any foreign entity meddling in US affairs and yet the individual who vies for the office of the presidency of the United States has publicly invited Russia – the country US has diplomatic relations but doesn’t consider an ally, the country US has been at war with for decades – to peek into our way of life in America. What a patriot!

Joe Biden was very sharp in his delivery of support for Hillary Clinton; he did as best of a job to outline not only her credentials but also her resolve and her willingness to go the distance for the sake of the country. Although Joe took a jab at her opponent Donald Trump, his main focus was to showcase Hillary as the best option to lead the country. In his reflection, Joe Biden thought outloud the most damning statement about Trump “no major party nominee in the history of this nation has ever known less or has ever been less prepared,” a stark contrast with Hillary which has been touted as the most qualified individual for the presidency in a very long time.

Michael Bloomberg did last night on Day 3 of the Convention what no Democrat surrogate (including the most effective speaker Barack Obama) could achieve, he was able to speak without restraint for or against Hillary. In fact, when he began his speech, he made it clear he wasn’t there to support the Democrat Party platform; he reminisced to have been a Democrat, a Republican and now he is an Independent but he was there to endorse and gave his support to Hillary Clinton as the most sensible option in this election. Mr. Bloomberg implied with the statement “Let’s elect a sane, competent person,” that Donald Trump is very unsettling and has no idea what he’s doing, a sentiment other speakers have echoed several times during the Convention.

Tim Kaine turns out not to be a big disappointment; he gave an acceptance speech which was meant to kill two birds with a stone a) to introduce himself to the nation; Tim is not “trending”, probably will not even after the Convention. One of the worst massacres in US history, the Virginia Tech shooting, did not engrave his name in our brain, Tim was Governor of Virginia when the tragedy happened in October 2013 b) to give a glimpse of how he intends to help Hillary fulfill her promises to the constituents. His political focus has been somewhat similar to hers; he too dedicated his life to helping children, providing education and helping level the field for all. His attempt at stand-up comedy was somewhat funny – Tim tried to sound like Donald Trump – although I would advise Tim not to compete with Obama; he’d lose. But Tim did get a point – which I mentioned many times in previous publications – that Donald’ solution for any problem is; well, I’ll let Tim tell you in the short video below.

Barack Obama – needs no introduction or does he? – is the best there is in speech delivery; I’ve always wondered why he’s never referred to as chief commander in speech. Obama is in a very good position to make the best case for Hillary Clinton; in addition to having challenged her in the 2008 elections, Mrs. Clinton worked with Obama during his first term presidency as Secretary of State. While it is little or not known, Hillary operated almost as a free agent (allowed by her boss of course) on the International scene during her tenure; her fingerprint can easily be lifted on Libya leader Muammar Gaddafi’s removal. So, her boss knows very well how she operates, how she would deal with Heads of State across the globe. Again, last night, Mr. Obama repeated what he has been saying every chance he has to talk about Hillary, that she is the most qualified individual who has bid for the presidency in half-century. Like all other speakers, Mr. Obama took the opportunity to contrast Hillary’s credentials with her opponent’s; as Obama put it, one is real the other is made up.

The night ended in a good note, leaving the path cleared for Mrs. Clinton to a) wow her supporters b) appeal to Bernie’s c) make a case to the nation

Stay tuned for the synopsis of the last day of the Democratic Convention!

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