Politics

Last week I shared my thoughts on the Republican national convention.  This week, I’ll focus on the Democratic national convention.

Last week’s Democratic convention in Philadelphia was laced with plenty of drama, only some of which was in the convention hall.

Coming into the convention, it was clear Donald Trump had received his post-convention bounce. Polling showed him closing the gap or even moving a bit ahead of Hillary Clinton.

Trump’s boost was far overshadowed by the WikiLeaks post of roughly 20,000 emails hacked from the Democratic National Committee.  Those emails inflamed Bernie Sanders supporters because some showed that the DNC had worked internally to back Clinton during the nomination process.

The Clinton campaign and the White House moved swiftly to sack DNC Chair Debbie Wasserman-Schultz but that was not enough for the Sanders folks. Monday was notable for widespread booing by Sanders’ delegates at the mention of Clinton despite a strong pitch by Bernie Sanders himself on behalf of Clinton.

On Wednesday, much of Idaho’s delegation and those from other strongly pro-Sanders states walked out after Clinton’s nomination was official.

Many Democratic officials (with some basis) linked the DNC hack to Russia, implying that it was part of an effort by Vladimir Putin’s government to tip the U.S. presidential election.

On Wednesday, Trump inserted himself into the story by staging an absolutely bizarre press event (frankly, raising again the question of his mental stability) where he expressed his hope that Russian intelligence services had hacked Clinton’s email account and would release email messages.

Inside the convention hall, Michelle Obama on Monday delivered a classy and impactful speech, arguing the greatness of the United States.  She far out-shown Melania Trump, even disregarding the plagiarism issue.

I thought Bill Clinton’s address was a bit strange, particularly his reference to his wife’s water breaking when Chelsea was born. 

President Obama was masterful.  Regardless of your political persuasion, he is probably the best speaker in the country.  He radiated optimism and he effectively embraced Clinton, literally and figuratively.  He will play a key role this fall in attacking Trump and rallying the Democratic base to turn out.

Tim Kaine was rather flat.  Competent but not flashy.

I quite enjoyed Chelsea Clinton’s introduction of her  “wonderful, thoughtful, hilarious mother.”  I was struck by the contrast between her personal anecdotes and the Trump kids’ lack of the same.

Clinton’s address was well-written.  She is a strong speaker but not a great one. I think her message was contained in two passages: “We have to decide whether we all will work together so we all can rise together” and, “He [Trump] wants us to fear the future and fear each other.”

To me, the most impressive Democratic speaker was Khizr Khan, the Muslim father of a U.S. soldier who was killed in Iraq.  In response to Trump’s Muslim ban, he encouraged Trump to visit Arlington National Cemetery, noting the graves of American soldiers of every ethnicity and religion. “You [Trump] have sacrificed nothing and no one.”

Overall, Democrats had a much stronger cast of speakers and far better speechwriters. The initial television ratings show that Democratic audience was considerably larger than the Republican one (as I write this I don’t know how Hillary’s ratings compared to Trump’s).

I expect Clinton to retake the polling lead this week as her convention bounce takes hold. 

But, will it last?  Only the next few weeks will show.

Watch closely for the respective position of the candidates right after Labor Day in about four weeks.

Steve Taggart is an Idaho Falls attorney specializing in bankruptcy (www.MaynesTaggart.com).  He has an extensive background in politics and public policy.  He can be reached at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .