On Monday night, Bernie Sanders sought to bridge the deep Democratic divides by robustly embracing his former rival, Hillary Clinton as a champion for the same economic causes that enlivened his supporters, signaling it was time for them, too, to rally behind her in the campaign against Republican Donald Trump.
Sanders joined an all-star lineup of speakers, including first lady Michelle Obama who made a passionate case for the Democratic nominee. Mrs. Obama’s address all but wiped away earlier turmoil in the convention hall that had exposed lingering tensions between Clinton and Sanders supporters.
Mrs. Obama, who has spent nearly eight years in the White House avoiding political fights, took numerous swipes at Trump without mentioning him by name.
“This election and every election is about who will have the power to shape our children for the next four or eight years of their lives,” she said. “There is only one person I trust with that responsibility, only one person I believe is truly qualified to be president of the United States, and that is Hillary Clinton.”
Even though Sanders had endorsed Clinton previously, his remarks Monday marked his most vigorous and detailed praise of her qualifications for the presidency. His timing was very crucial for Clinton’s campaign, on the heels of leaked emails suggesting the party had favored the former secretary of state through the primaries despite a vow of neutrality.
As a result Sanders was awarded the resignation of party chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz, a nemesis in the primaries, but that wasn’t enough to quell the anger of supporters. As the convention opened, Sanders supporters still erupted in chants of “Bernie” and booed Clinton the first several times her name was mentioned. Outside the convention hall, several hundred marched down Philadelphia’s sweltering streets with signs carrying messages such as “Never Hillary.”
By the time Sanders took the stage for the night’s closing address, much of the anger had been overshadowed by party unification speeches. Sanders spoke just after Massachusetts. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, a favorite of liberals who has emerged as one of the Democrats’ toughest critics of Trump.
However it was Mrs. Obama who gave one of the night’s standout speeches. While she has often avoided overt politics during her nearly eight years in the White House, her frustration with Trump’s rise was evident. Mrs. Obama warned that the White House couldn’t be in the hands of someone with “a thin skin or a tendency to lash out” or someone who tells voters the country can be great again.
“This right now, is the greatest country on earth,” she said.
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