Posted on 09/05/2012 3:50:57 AM PDT by Kaslin
CHARLOTTE, NC - Day one of the Democratic National Convention was a tale of two events. Throughout the early evening session -- prior to the major primetime hour -- the proceedings featured angry attacks on Mitt Romney and Republicans, an unshakeable fixation on trivial, minor issues (other than jobs and the economy), and a disquieting, heavy emphasis on abortion and divisive social issues. Especially unpleasant were the patriotism-questioning shout-fest from former Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland ("If Mitt Romney were Santa, he'd fire the Reindeer and outsource the elves!") and the pro-abortion screed from the president of NARAL, a hardcore pro-abortion organization. Rare highlights included a strong speech from wounded warrior Tammy Duckworth, who is running for Congress in Illinois, and an energetic performance from Newark Mayor Cory Booker. In primetime, Democrats shelved most -- though not all -- of the bitter edginess and Left-wing social issues bravado. For what it's worth, here are my quick-take grades for the main speakers:
Gov. Martin O'Malley of Maryland: D. For a guy who's rumored to be in the 2016 mix, O'Malley was terrible. His delivery would have won gold in the "trying too hard" speech Olympics, his criticisms of Mitt Romney were as unoriginal and shrill as they were misleading, and he didn't offer a single memorable line. Stick to budgets in Maryland, governor.
San Antonio Mayor Julian Castro: B-. Castro has been billed as both the 'Hispanic Barack Obama' and the Democrats' answer to Sen. Marco Rubio. Based on tonight's keynote address, he is neither. His speech was fine and included some moving tributes to his family, his smile was broad and inviting, and his little daughter was adorable. But he was first elected mayor in 2009, and offered little insight into what he's actually accomplished. As he launched into his requisite attacks on Mitt Romney, I could imagine average viewers asking, "wait, who is this guy?" In short, Castro seems pleasant and fairly promising, but his resume is very thin -- and unlike Obama in 2004, his speech wasn't nearly captivating enough to compensate for that.
Michelle Obama: A. The First Lady turned in a masterful showing, delivering a subtlely yet distinctly political speech without seeming to do so. She looked confident and in command throughout -- she's gotten used to this. Her message: I love my husband. He's the same man I fell in love with. He understands real struggle and the help we give each other (subtexts: dig at Romney, rebuttal to you didn't build that), and he really cares about the pain too many Americans are experiencing. This was the first time all night that anyone on stage even came close to conveying the nation's bleak economic picture. She didn't try to claim that her husband had all the answers or that he's fixed everything -- she simply said that he feels the challenges acutely and is determined to make things better. It remains to be seen whether her uber-personal reintroduction of "Barack" will sway too many viewers, but I think she did everything she could on her husband's behalf. The issue the Obama campaign may encounter is that the president's personal likeability and personal qualities *aren't* his problem. His problem is the 23 million Americans who are out of work, under-employed, or have given up looking. It's the $16 Trillion national debt. It's the slowing growth. It's the soaring poverty, and dropping household incomes. Will "he's a great guy, who gets it and really cares" be enough?
Other notes: It was remarkable to hear one speaker after another inveigh against "the failed policies of the past" (as if Obama's policies have been the antidote), before ceding the convention floor to a message from...Jimmy Carter. It was equally remarkable to watch a convention overtly geared toward hyping "women's issues" loudly cheer a tribute to...Ted Kennedy. It was also interesting to hear from three Democrat Governors (O'Malley, Quinn, and Patrick) who have unapologetically raised taxes and whose states are fiscal basketcases -- and another (Perdue) whose approval rating is so far under-water in North Carolina that she chose not to run for another term. Patrick went after Mitt Romney's record in Massachusetts, misleading on the debt, lying on job growth, and eliding Romney's final unemployment rate (4.7 percent, versus Patrick's 6.1 percent today). It was frustrating, but not the least bit surprising, to hear nearly every speaker misstate facts or straight-up lie about Romney's alleged "outsourcing," his (bipartisan, shhh) Medicare plan and his "middle class tax hikes." Will our intrepid MSM fact-checkers hold them accountable? Finally, it's fascinating how deeply invested Democrats are in the "equal pay" smoke-and-mirrors act they recycled constantly throughout the evening. I'm reminded of something candidate Obama said in 2008:
Flashback: Obama: "You Make a Big Election About Small Things"
This is a big election. Tonight -- and indeed the entire Obama re-election campaign -- was about small things.
That NARAL bull dyke looks like she could have been a guard at Treblinka. Scary.
It was a night of fiction for sure. I thought Michelle was ok but boy was she exaggerated and said so many lies. Most are saying she was brilliant. I thought she was a brilliant liar. Castro I thought was very good and much better than Michelle. I wish he was a Republican. He is a very good speaker. Those are the only two I saw. I couldn’t bring myself to watch Governor O’Malley as he is my governor and has run the state into the budget hole.
I didn’t watch any of it so I’m grateful you posted this excellent review. Thank you. It appears that Michelle borrowed from Ann Romney and Clinton...feel your pain.
She’s a liberal, and what liberal doesn’t lie?
I listed to Michelle for about twenty seconds. Made me sick. Switched to a baseball game. I cannot wait til November 6. I hate these people. Probably wouldn’t even like their dog.
It appears to me that Hope & Change Has morphed into Hate & Divide.
I hate these people. Probably wouldn’t even like their dog.
Nothing like a good chuckle in the morning getting ready for work. I needed that. Thanks!!!
The democratic party thinks that women vote on abortion issues alone. The sad thing to see is so many liberal women agreeing with that. I don’t know a conservative woman who doesn’t know how to balance the family budget. We know which grocery store offers double coupons and we know which store brand is good. I’ve never understood liberal women demeaning themselves in such a way by screaming that they vote on abortion issues only. But then, conservative women care about their families.
Glad to help and have a wonderful day. Just keep thinking about November 6th!
Not in the Transcript, but was in one of the preparatory videos (of the First lady) Sorry for any confusion...
Wonder how soon Mrs. Obama will change those gray highlights back?
San Antonio has a City-Manager style of government, Mayor Julian Castro is basically a PR guy for the city. His current ballot plan is to raise city sales taxes to the maximum level allowed by law to layer in new spending programs. He was able to divert a couple hundred million dollars from the Via Transit Authority slated for road repair to a proposed half mile electric train that nobody wants. So now the county commisioners are changing the method of selecting Via Transit board members from being appointed to being elected. If he was the mayor of a state with a democratic governor with a ballooning deficit he wouldn’t be noticed, but by him being able to ride on Rick Perry’s coat-tails and the Eagle-Ford Shale boom, he has the illusion of a mayor who a led a prosperous city.
How appropriate that the Demonic Party’s “Rubio” has a last name of Castro.
I heard a little of Castro’s speech and a little of Mrs. Empty Chair’s speech.
What I took away from both was that Democrats see Americans as a bunch of helpless sops who can’t achieve anything without government help and that anything good that happens in this country is the result of government largesse.
Contrast that with the GOP message of individual responsibility and initiative unleashed from government control.
Too bad so many people view themselves as so inadequate that they’ll buy into the central planning message.
You couldn’t pay me enough to sit through this celebration of the ungodly. Is America aware that 100 Democrat delegates this year are Muslim? We can expect many more in 2016. This is the way we will lose America.
I thought the Dem gal was going to choke. That was a brilliant statement. The Dems are talking to their base, who thinks sex has ZERO consequences and wants us ALL to pay for their promiscuity, their condoms and then to kill an innocent baby. I refuse. Ask a lib woman if they have children, any grandchildren and ask them if those little sweet innocent babies aren't the most precious things they've ever laid their eyes on and how can any woman think of aborting such a beautiful child.
IMHO it all goes back to rewarding school kids for showing up. We’re ALL winners. blah blah... NO we aren’t. Kids must be taught that to win you need to work at it. To succeed you need to do better work, etc.
We’re all winners is the dem mantra. Sick way to ruin a great nation to say the least. Let’s all be takers and not providers.
ohhhh I like that, talk to us from the waist UP. Brilliant!!!!
Hey, I encourage the left to continue to talk ONLY about abortion and birth control pills when speaking to women. Conservative women are more concerned with financial matters, national security issues. It really shows the difference between left and right.
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