Last night was the first night of the Democratic National Convention. I’ll only speak to what I saw, which was Hillary Clinton’s speech. I’m going to frame it in a broader context and then bear down on it, so stick with me.
I had thought it was a mistake for the DNC to invite the Clintons to speak this week. A stated theme for the convention is “moving forward.” Hillary Clinton lost an extremely winnable election 8 years ago. Bill Clinton left office almost 24 years ago. I don’t see how that’s moving forward. Add to that, Bill Clinton was embroiled in “Me Too.” National Democrats have repeatedly framed the party as the one that listens to women, yet it’s given him a prime speaking spot on Wednesday. What message is this supposed to this send to swing voters? We care about Trump’s accusers, not Clinton’s? That’s how it comes across. Party pundits may wish to dismiss this as a Republican talking point, but I’m sitting here saying it, so that’s not true. The party needs to move on from Bill Clinton. Allowing him to speak on the second to last night of the convention is, put kindly, an unforced error.
Despite my reservations about the Clintons’ invitation, Hillary’s speech was reasonably strong. She had some good lines, she owned the room. I still think her place in the line-up was incongruous with the “move forward” theme, but she turned me around on her being there, which I’m sure means the world to her.
It’s too soon to tell what Clinton’s speech will be most remembered for, but one of the first headlines I saw concerned her amused reaction to chants of “Lock him up!” That’s not good. It’s even worse when you consider the chants lasted for thirty seconds. Are swing voters just supposed to forget Democratic pundits’ reactions to the “Lock her up” chants of 2016, which ranged from “That’s distasteful” to “That’s anti-democratic”? I understand turnabout is fair play. I understand what’s good for the goose is good for the gander. But I also understand that if your pitch is you’re the adult in the room, this undermines your case. Clinton could have taken the high road. She could have shut the chants down and said, “No. It was wrong then and it’s wrong now.” The way the room was behind her, she would have garnered huge applause. But she did nothing and smiled. Another unforced error.
That’s all I have. The link is Clinton’s speech. It’s short, only 18 minutes. See what you think of it.