by Frank James
It's official. Sen. Barack Obama is now formally the presidential nominee of the Democratic Party. History has been made in Denver as the senator from Illinois becomes the first African-American to become the official nominee of a major political party.
As planned, Sen. Hillary Clinton, once Obama's rival for the presidential nomination, asked that the convention stop the roll call and accept Obama as the party's nominee by acclamation or voice vote.
"With eyes firmly fixed on the future, in the spirit of unity,'' Clinton called out from the floor, "let's declare together in one voice, right here, right now, that Barack Obama is our candidate and he will be our president.''
A loud roar of approval went up and Obama was made the nominee, at 5:50 pm Mountain time.
It is a moment that many people in this convention center and in the nation will remember for the rest of their lives. Whether Obama is elected president or not, he will always be known, as long as American history is taught and learned, Obama's name will be remembered as the individual who broke one of the last color barriers in the U.S. It still boggles the mind to think that the Democratic Party saw its southern wing exit the party's convention to form the Dixiecrat Party to protest Hubert Humphrey's pro-integration speech at the Democratic party's gathering in Philadelphia, Pa that summer.
Today represents the latest stage in what has truly been one of the most improbable presidential runs in the nation's history. The 47-year old who only four years ago was an Illinois state senator is now the standard bearer of the Democratic Party. It has been a meteoric rise by any measure.
Now we journalists can stop using the term "presumptive nominee" to describe Obama. But while he has accomplished something remarkable, he is still the nominee. He will be sorely tested in the more than two months left before the election by the all-but-official Republican nominee John McCain. In the past 30 years, only one Democrat who's received the coveted Democratic nomination, has become president.
And that man was the husband of the woman who asked that Obama's nomination be accepted by voice vote. It was an act of unity on her part to seek the voice vote, an attempt to heal the rift in the party between Obama and Clinton's supporters. To beat McCain, the party will need every bit of unity it can get.
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Comments
A touching and historic moment. And Hillary Clinton was classy in helping it happen in a unified way. Go Barack!
Posted by: rupert | August 27, 2008 7:08 PM
Tonight Bill Clinton will give a rousing speech for candidate X. You know, the one you like but who couldn't get anything done for lack of experience.
Posted by: whatnow | August 27, 2008 7:13 PM
Senator Clinton should get an Oscar nomination for that performance. But what was certainly real, and good for the entire nation to see, was the occasional camera shot of an African American delegate crying, moments after Senator Obama went over the top. Amid all the fluff and phoniness of the typical DNC or RNC soiree, the genuine emotion was good to see.
Posted by: Tim1979 | August 27, 2008 7:39 PM
As an Independent voter, it has to be tough to be a Republican watching the DNC because the fact of the matter is if the infamous question,
"Are you better off today than 4 years ago?" is asked the answer is a meek, "no". You name anything from jobs, to gas prices, to food prices, to the state of the war, to global warming and it's environmental catastrophes, to the housing crisis, and lack of health insurance...and it just doesn't look good for middle-class families across the nation who are already struggling to stay afloat. The ironic thing is that the man who asked that question was a Republican.
Posted by: Gary | August 27, 2008 7:45 PM
It is sad that someone with no accomplishments and who has surrounded himself with "anti-americans" is the best that the Dems have to offer.
Posted by: Seamus | August 27, 2008 7:55 PM
"As planed" Obama was nominated by acclamation.
Why did the voting have to stop before all the votes from all 50 states were cast and counted? Was that to prevent Hillary' supporters from voting for her and potentially embarrass Obama? So much for the notion of one man (or woman) one vote. Kim Jung Il, Fidel Castro or Hugo Chavez could not have orchestrated a better voting scheme than this.
Posted by: Ryan | August 27, 2008 8:03 PM
If he wins ,it will be total coruption like in Chicago with all the people he owes favors-
Posted by: George | August 27, 2008 8:11 PM
The war is going great, the surge was a huge success. A large number of Americans support drilling (across party lines) so we know that is on the horrizan very soon, to take care of these high gas prices, and lowering the food prices which went up because of them, along with other areas that went up. Global Warming and Cooling exist, but now they are saying that is Global Cooling that we are in, which would disprove that MAN has anything to do with GB. Life works out funny sometimes ha. Have you seen housing prices lately, they are finally starting to go way way down, so the market will be picking up now that many of us will be able to afford one now.
Things are going pretty wonderful. I think McCain will be an excellant president. He's a Maverick who has an incredible record on NO EARMARKS and he says as President he will go after those trying to put them thru, and NAME NAMES (how fun is that going to be). He has never supported a tax cut. McCain 08
Now, I'm dying to see who he will pick for his VP. I hope it Palin, but I like a lot of the choices I've seen.
Posted by: Don't be a pessimist, the cups half FULL | August 27, 2008 8:22 PM
To "Don't be a pessimist" -- your satire is hilarious! Thank goodness Obama and Biden are on their way to the WH. Can you imagine as our president a man who came in nearly last in his class at the Naval Academy and who ADMITS that he doesn't understand economics.
Posted by: Dan | August 27, 2008 9:15 PM
NotForObama August 27, 2008 10:02 AM PDT
Proof Barack Obama is an Elitis,
He has no Agenda, he answers no hard question,, He got Biden to give him more credibility ,,, Obama Stole the Presidential Seal ,,to call his own, I guess he thought he is Hitler for a second,
Now as we are speaking Obama is changing the stage,,,at the convention center, to a ROMAN THEME,
Now Barack Obama THinks he is Julius Caesar or worst He think he is the 2nd Coming of Christ,,,
The Ego on Barack Obama is getting worst and worst,, and its Barack Obama who wont let this go...
Soon He going to have some try to knight him, go for a dictator ship, what is next with Barack Obama,
Posted by: Jody V | August 27, 2008 9:43 PM
Jody V: Is English your second language? Do you regularly practice critical thinking? Do you honestly think Obama designed anything at all about the set we see on our televisions where all the convention action is happening? Do you not realize he has an entire, immense organization behind him? That he is NOT a dictator in any way? Begin to assess, evaluate, and think independently.
Posted by: Dan | August 27, 2008 10:05 PM
I hope you're all watching the film tribute to our veterans. Especially YOU, who believe so strongly in the rightness of this obscene war. I hope YOU are stepping up to it in order to take care of our vets when they return home -- integrating them back into communities, helping them find employment, contacting your members of Congress to ensure that they have the medical benefits they require -- since they served on behalf of YOU in the war over which YOUR president has presided. YOUR president -- who did NOT himself serve in Vietnam when it was the time for his generation.
Posted by: Dan | August 27, 2008 10:11 PM
DAn>you will NEVER EVER be able to explain away all the crazy radical MENTORS that are coming out of Obama's woodwork.
He's out there telling his supporters to go after a radio station who puts Kurtz on there who might report something that Obama might not like THE TRUTH !
He wants to degrade America abroad, thinks we should not be so proud, just a preview of things to come if he were in there.
He's written that he supports the idea of having a NATIONAL POLICE FORCE the size of the pentagon (brown shirt army ring a bell).
He has told the American people that he didn't know Rev Wright spoke like that.....then came back and admited he actually did know how he speaks>after 20 years in a racist church learning about BLT I'm just sure he did know.
He said he didn't really have a close relationship with Ayers (just a man that lives up the street), now it's turning out HE DID, and news is about to pour out about how close there were. Senator Emil Jones jr is a close mentor who is in the news for calling his opposition an UNCLE TOM (sounds like Obama's racial politics to me) and did his part to try and stop anti-corruption bills from making there way thru in Chicago.
Then, you have the radical mentor of Obama's youth> Frank Marshall Davis who Obama talks about ONLY AS FRANK in his book, still trying to keep secrets.
You have the loon mentor Rev Pflieger claiming Hillary was a racist. Rev Wright claiming Hillary was a racist. You have Obama claiming racism in his fight with Hillary/Bill and G Ferraro, and an attempt to use RACE attack claims with McCain that backfired.
He's a nasty politician. He has a horrible past....and we have to keep in mind, THE MAN HASN'T EVEN BEEN VETTED YET!
Posted by: WHO DO YOU THINK YOU'R FOOLIN | August 28, 2008 9:55 AM