I missed the RNC so my frame of reference may be skewed but the
Democrats put on a helluva shindig in Charlotte. The themes and issues
stressed give me the impression that they plan to run as Democrats
instead of putting a finger in the air and waiting for the wind to blow.
I’m very curious to see if the post-convention bounce is now a thing of
the past since Romney didn’t get one.
Here are a few random and discursive comments of 3 days of oratory.
Hmm, that sounds like aMad Men recap only with wider lapels and ties:
The Prez: Obama did what he needed to do. It was a sober and
reflective speech that fits the uncertain times. There were several
touches of humility and I liked it when he asked people to vote for him.
People like to be asked.
Big John & Joey the Shark: The best speeches-that I saw at least-on Thursday came from Athenae’s
boy friend John Kerry and America’s eccentric but lovable Uncle, Joe
Biden. Kerry was fiery, passionate and self-deprecating. Biden was, as
always, warm and likable and his focus on Obama as, uh,
decider-in-Chief was both fascinating and politically helpful. I really
get sick of everyone dissing Joey the Shark. The man took out Robert
Fucking Bork, y’all. Btw, if you’ve never read Richard Ben Cramer’s book about the otherwise desultory 1988 campaign, What It Takes, check it out. The sections about Biden are a hoot.
Arithmetic: It was classic Clinton, full of folksy humor and ad libs. The man riffs like a political version of, my personal hero, Crow T. Robot. It reminded me of his first State Of The Union speech, where he riffed early and often and substantively too. He also flipped the bird to all the pundits and Gopers who said he’d cause mischief for Obama. Who cares if they don’t roast schmores by the fireside and drink cocoa together in their jammies?
Michelle: FLOTUS has guns y’all. One of my lesbian twitter buddies said that she wanted to lick her shoulders. Anyway, loved the content, delivery and the bit about the rusted car. I also enjoy watching her talk with her hands. Her fingers are long and graceful, like birds fluttering about the podium.
The Perfesser: Elizabeth Warren’s speech has been underrated because she was Elvis’ opening act. I thought it was excellent; especially the content. I’m really hoping that she’ll beat that poser Scott Brown. I have an ulterior motive: I’d like John Kerry to be the next Secretary of State, and if she loses, he may not get the nod. Why? He’s qualified and Secretarys of State tend to be popular (see, Clinton, Hillary and Albright, Madeline) and the man deserves some love from his party and nation.
The Keynote: Julian Castro’s speech was probably the best written of the entire convention. The bit about immigration being like a relay race evoked JFK’s inaugural speech, and any time a speech gets compared to a Ted Sorenson/Jack Kennedy classic, it’s a real humdinger. I also enjoyed the Mayor’s mischievous smile when he was trashing the Mittbot and Ayn Ryan.
Red Meat Governors: Deval Patrick and Ted Strickland kicked some ass, y’all. Patrick’s telling Dems that it’s time to grow a backbone had me hitting the sound effects buttons in the only Crack Van I was able to make. And Strickland’s if “Mitt Romney were Santa Claus” line still has me chortling or is that cackling?
My lost cause: I’m one of the few who uses the proper pronunciation of the last name of 2 great 20th Century Presidents. It’s Rooo-se-velt not Rose-evelt. They were Dutch, y’all.
Final thoughts: The DNC reinforced my belief that Obama will win re-election. Candidates matter, y’all. Mitt Romney is quite simply the worst candidate of my lifetime: he makes Michael Dukakis look warm and charismatic and Bob Dole look sweet and cuddly. To paraphrase Joey the Shark: the Mittbot has a balance sheet instead of a heart.
Let the games begin…