This is definitely history in the making. If a former commander in chief (Bill Clinton) would recommend him, isn't that a good thing or is this just to get Democrats into the White House?
By Kevin Vaughan
Originally published 11:25 a.m., August 27, 2008
Updated 11:51 p.m., August 27, 2008
And on the third day, they united — behind Barack Obama, against John McCain, for a new way of doing business in the world.
At 4:48 p.m. Wednesday, in a raucous Pepsi Center, the delegates at the Democratic National Convention made history when they officially nominated Obama as the party's presidential candidate — the first African-American to ever move so close to the nation's highest office.
Along the way, vanquished challenger Hillary Clinton and former President Bill Clinton played leading roles in the party's effort to leave Denver a picture of tranquility in the place of the turbulence that marked the bruising primary season and even the last-minute negotiations over the machinations of the nomination.
Joe Biden, the six-term senator from Delaware who accepted the party's nomination as vice president, stepped before the television cameras in prime time and called for a change of course in foreign policy, something he said is necessary to restore the country's standing in the world.
In a verbal gaff that drove home an assertion made at the convention over and over, he accidentally said "George Bush" when he meant "John McCain."
"Freudian slip," Biden said. "Freudian slip."
Biden, who ran for president, heaped praise on Obama, a man he called too inexperienced for the job on the campaign trail.
"You can learn an awful lot about a man campaigning with him, debating him, and seeing how he reacts under pressure," Biden said. "You learn about the strength of his mind. But even more importantly, you learn about the quality of his heart."
And Obama himself made a surprise visit to the Pepsi Center in a show of unity with Biden.
All of it set the tone for today's historic move of the convention across the South Platte River to Invesco Field at Mile High, where Obama is expected to stand before a crowd of more than 75,000 and formally accept the party's nomination.
But before that could happen, drama — some of it apparently orchestrated behind closed doors — played out on the floor of the Pepsi Center and on Denver's streets during the convention's third day.
Outside the hall, the protest scene picked up. Several hundred self-proclaimed anarchists marched down the 16th Street Mall during the lunch hour. And about 2,000 people who streamed out of the Denver Coliseum after a concert by Rage Against the Machine marched to the Pepsi Center in a protest against the war.
Obama himself finally touched down in Denver, landing a few minutes before 3 p.m. And the Republicans, who gather next week in St. Paul, Minn., to nominate McCain, worked again to get in a word or two during the Democratic Party's gathering.
"Sen. McCain would keep us on offense with terrorism ... and Senator Obama would put us back on defense," former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani said during an appearance at a Denver warehouse.
But the biggest doings were in the convention hall — and the questions of exactly how the roll-call vote of delegates would be handled. The roll call vote had been the subject of negotiations between representatives of Clinton and Obama, the two combatants in the longest, most-difficult primary season in recent memory.
And the question of its mechanics took on a life of its own in the wake of lingering hard feelings between Obama and both Clintons.
Shortly after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi banged the gavel and opened the convention at 3 p.m., the state-by-state tally began.
The first surprise came when delegates from Arkansas — where Bill Clinton served as governor — cast all 47 of their votes for Obama. Then delegates from California, which Hillary Clinton won, passed. So did Obama's home state, Illinois.
With the vote standing 1,568 1/2 for Obama, 341 1/2 for Clinton, New Mexico's delegates yielded to those from Illinois. And Illinois delegates yielded to New York, the state Clinton represents in the U.S. Senate.
Just then, on the big screens, images of Clinton making her way to the New York delegation's microphone, and the crowd in the arena erupted.
"On behalf of the great state of New York," she said moments later, "with appreciation for the spirit and dedication of all who are gathered here, with eyes firmly fixed on the future, in the spirit of unity, with the goal of victory, with faith in our party and our country, let's declare together in one voice, right here right now, that Barack Obama is our candidate," Clinton said.
The Pepsi Center erupted.
"I move that the convention suspend the procedural rules and suspend the future conduct of the roll call vote," Clinton said. "All votes cast by the delegates will be counted and I move Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois be selected by this convention by acclimation as the nominee of the Democratic Party as the president of the United States."
The motion was met with a rousing ovation. It was quickly seconded and approved by the thousands of people in attendance.
Pelosi did not wait for any "no" votes before slamming down the gavel.
As prime time arrived, so did Bill Clinton, and for a few minutes it was hard to tell whether he or Obama was the bigger rock star. Fleetwood Mac's "Don't Stop" — an old campaign song — blared, and the crowd roared and roared.
"Thank you," Clinton said again and again, before finally imploring the crowd to "sit down."
"I love this and I thank you, but we have important work to do here tonight," he said.
Then he got to business — praising his wife's history-making run — the closest a woman has ever come to winning a presidential nomination.
"In the end, my candidate didn't win," Clinton said. "But I'm very proud of the campaign she ran. She never quit on the people she stood up for, on the changes she pushed for, on the future she wants for all our children. And I'm grateful for the chance Chelsea and I had to tell Americans about the person we know and love.
"I'm not so grateful for the chance to speak in the wake of her magnificent address last night. But I'll do my best. Hillary told us in no uncertain terms that she'll do everything she can to elect Barack Obama. That makes two of us."
Clinton, who was supposed to speak for 10 minutes, was on the stage for more than 20.
He hammered away at Obama's attributes, calling him "the man for this job."
"Barack Obama is ready to lead America and restore American leadership in the world," Clinton said."Barack Obama is ready to be president of the United States."
Later, in the evening's final act, Biden took to the stage.
Once he got there, he pounded away on foreign policy — a major reason that many experts believe he was chosen to be Obama's running mate.
"As we gather here tonight, our country is less secure and more isolated than at any time in recent history," said Biden, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. "The Bush-McCain foreign policy has dug us into a very deep hole, with very few friends to help us climb out."
Biden's wife, Jill, introduced "a very special surprise guest" — Obama.
The running mates stood arm-in-arm on the stage, and Obama took a microphone.
"Hello Democrats," Obama said. "Hello Democrats."
He had something to say. He hoped that people now understood why Biden was his running mate. He paid homage to the Clintons.
He looked ahead — to tonight.
"At the start of this campaign we had a very simple idea, which is change in America doesn't start from the top down," Obama said. "It starts from the bottom up. That change is brought about because ordinary people do extraordinary things. And so we want to open up this convention to make sure that everybody who wants to come can join in the party and join in the effort to take America back."
After the hugs and after the music died down, Biden and Obama walked from the stage, and the Pepsi Center cleared out, and eventually the lights dimmed in the convention hall for the final time.
Tonight they go on in a football stadium. Tonight the spotlight's glare shifts squarely onto Obama.
Aaron J. Lopez, Todd Hartman, Paul A. Anthony, Ryan Sabalow, Dan Kelley and Sara Burnett contributed to this report.
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