Clinton Makes History By Becoming The Nominee

PHILADELPHIA: Hillary Clinton on Tuesday became the first woman to be nominated for president by a major political party on a historic night on which her campaign also sought to reintroduce her to skeptical voters and calm continuing tensions here.

The former secretary of state formally secured the nomination during the roll call of states at the Democratic National Convention, which ended with a symbolic gesture: her primary rival, Sen. Bernie Sanders, asking that Clinton be declared the nominee by acclamation, a move that prompted resounding cheers.

Soon after, Clinton sent out a video on Twitter showing Sanders's remarks and declaring "Stronger together," her campaign motto.

Sanders's action, however, wasn't sufficent to bring on board all of his delegates, some of whom walked out of the hall in protest, adding to the difficulties the party has had this week in displaying unity as Clinton faces a pitched battle against Republican nominee Donald Trump.
 The program then turned to a long series of speakers - to be capped by former President Bill Clinton - offering testimonials to Clinton's character and record of service. They included a series of mothers who have lost their children to gun violence or in police custody and are fighting for reforms.

"Hillary is one mother who can ensure our movement will succeed," said Sybrina Fulton, the mother of Tryvon Martin, who was fatally shot by a neighborhood watch volunteer in Florida.

During the roll call of states at the Democratic National Convention, Clinton secured the 2,383 delegates needed to secure the party's nomination when the South Dakota delegation cast its votes.

In a bid to show party unity, Sen. Bernie Sanders, the runner-up for the nomination, appeared on the convention floor at the end of the process and made a motion to suspend the rules and declare Clinton the nominee by acclamation.
 "I move that Hillary Clinton be selected as the nominee of the Democratic Party for president of the United States," Sanders said, prompting the hall to erupt in applause.

And with the motion seconded, a loud roar of aye's arose, making her the nominee at 6:56 p.m. Eastern time.

Soon after, Clinton sent out a video on Twitter showing Sanders's remarks and declaring "Stronger together," her campaign motto.

The orchestrated show of unity followed a rocky first day of the convention on Monday, when it became clear that some of Sanders's supporters were not ready to accept Clinton as the party's nominee despite the senator from Vermont urging them to do so.
 Sanders's gesture Tuesday night clearly did not bring all of his delegates into line. Many soon exited the hall, chanting, "Walkout! walkout! walkout!" As the program continued, most of the seats in delegations from Maine, Kansas, Alaska and Oklahoma - all states Sanders won against Clinton - were empty.

Several Oregon delegates, meanwhile, wrapped black cloth around their jaws, as gags, and headed into the hallway of the Wells Fargo Center. There they met dozens of angry delegates from other states, including Norman Solomon, a California delegate for Sanders who had been trying to organize a new Bernie Delegates Network into just this sort of protest.

The anger of the protesters was fueled in part by leaked emails showing that some DNC staff discussed ways to help Clinton and hurt Sanders in the primaries. The party's chairwoman, Debbie Wasserman Schultz, announced her resignation Monday following the revelations.

Speakers appearing later on the second night of the convention started offering testimonials about Clinton's character and public service across a range of areas.

The program, billed as "Fights of Her Life," appeared aimed at rehabilitating the image of a candidate with unusually high unfavorable ratings - though not quite as high as her Republican opponent, Donald Trump - and deep-seated trust issues.

Speakers were to talk about Clinton's work for women and families, social justice, health care and global security, among other issues, her campaign said.
 Clinton's husband and former president Bill Clinton was also set to address the delegates.

The party began its nominating process shorlty before 5 p.m., with Sanders's name put forward by Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, D-Hawaii. She affectionately called him a "somewhat frumpy, and maybe even sometimes grumpy, 74-year-old guy" who created a progressive movement.

Sanders sat in the convention hall next to his wife, with a broad smile on his face, as a pair of seconding speeches followed. He stood up and waved to the crowd afterward amid an extended ovation.

Clinton was nominated by Sen. Barbara Mikulski, D-Md., the dean of women senators, who said she was putting forward the former secretary of state's name "on behalf of all the women who have broken down barriers."

Mikulski was followed by Rep. John Lewis, D-Ga., the revered civil rights leader; who referenced another "glass ceiling" that was broken with President Obama's election eight years ago, and Na'ilah Amaru, a Clinton supporter and Iraq veteran who won an online contest to nominate the candidate.

With the speeches complete, the convention began the long and often colorful process of the state-by-state roll call vote.
 When Illinois - Cinton's birthplace - got its chance, the honor of casting votes was given to her childhood friend Betsy Ebeling.

"On this historic, wonderful day, in honor of Dorothy and Hugh's daughter and my sweet friend - I know you're watching," Ebeling said, her voice heavy with emotion. "This one's for you Hill."

She called out Illinois's 98 votes for Clinton and let out a final "Yes!"

Clinton's campaign spent much of Tuesday in talks to give her vanquished opponent, Sanders, a symbolic role in the nomination process in a bid to heal rifts in the party.

Clinton's campaign chairman, John Podesta said earlier Tuesday that Democrats "need to move on" from infighting over the outcome of the primary, which saw Clinton soundly defeat challenger Sanders in both votes and delegates.

"We've got to get over it," he told "CBS This Morning."
 The Clinton campaign appreciates Sanders's endorsement and his decades of work on liberal causes, "but we need to move on and consolidate around Hillary," Podesta said. "And I think the people watching television last night, not just the people in the hall but the people watching television, what did they see? They saw that full-throated endorsement by Bernie."

Sanders doubled-down on his support for Clinton Tuesday morning. Speaking at a breakfast meeting of the California delegation, he dismissed the boos of supporters and urged them to back her.

"It is easy to boo, but it is harder to look your kids in the face" if Trump becomes president because Democrats didn't support the ticket, he said.

Sanders also confirmed on Tuesday that he will return to the Senate as an independent, not a Democrat.

"I was elected as an independent so I'll stay two years more as an Independent," he told reporters. As the longest serving independent in U.S. congressional history, Sanders had only declared himself a Democrat when he entered the presidential race last year.

Clinton's campaign manager Robby Mook said that Tuesday night's programming is designed to remind Americans about the former secretary of state's long public service career.
 "A lot of people aren't familiar with her accomplishments," Mook told ABC's "Good Morning America," noting that former president Bill Clinton will give the night's big speech.

The former president is poised to address a Democratic convention as a political spouse for the first time.

Clinton - who could soon become the country's first "first man" - has been a Democratic convention staple for more 40 years. His 1988 keynote address was widely panned as a meandering, boring speech, but his 1992 nomination acceptance speech buoyed his struggling campaign. In more recent years, the former president has served as a political character witness, most notably for Obama at his 2012 convention.

Hillary Clinton will not travel to Philadelphia to watch Bill Clinton's address to the convention, but will instead watch the speech from her home in Chappaqua, New York, aides said. The candidate and her daughter, Chelsea, are scheduled to address the convention on Thursday.

While the former president headlines the evening, the convention is also set to hear from several victims of gun violence or police-involved incidents, including Gwen Carr, the mother of Eric Garner, who died after being put in a chokehold by a New York City police officer in 2014; Sybrina Fulton, the mother of Trayvon Martin, who was fatally shot by a neighborhood watch volunteer in Sanford, Florida, in 2012; and Lesley McSpadden, the mother of Michael Brown, who was killed by a police officer in Ferguson, Missouri, in 2014.

Gun control has become a leading issue of concern for Clinton, but speakers are also set to remind Democrats of her work on health-care reform as first lady and a senator and foreign affairs as secretary of state.


© 2016 The Washington Post

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