Day three of the Democratic National Convention symbolized the passing of the torch for the Democratic Party.
There were plenty of great speeches throughout the night including those from Vice President Joe Biden, Vice President nominee Tim Kaine, former Mayor of New York City Michael Bloomberg, former Congresswoman Gabby Gifford, and of course the highlight of the evening, President Barack Obama.
Of all the speakers, Mayor Bloomberg was the most surprising. When Bloomberg first hit the stage, both Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton supporters wondered aloud why this one percenter was speaking at the DNC. However, Bloomberg captured the crowd from the beginning, and from the perspective of a businessman and billionaire, gave the best analysis of why Trump should not be President.
Vice President Biden as usual tugged at our heartstrings, especially when he spoke of his son Beau Biden who passed of brain cancer. Even Vice President nominee Tim Kaine, who has not shown to be the most dynamic speaker, rallied the crowd and bolstered the call to vote for Hillary. Former Congresswoman Gabby Gifford brought the crowd to their feet when she walked on the stage, and elicited a hearty round of applause when she proclaimed, “I want to say Madame President”.
At last came the moment we were all waiting for, words from our President Barack Obama. As they announced Obama to the stage, the crowd jumped to their feet cheering with pride and adulation. I was surprised how much love the Bernie Sanders supporters showed the President, many were even chanting “four more years.”
You could see the President getting emotional during his speech, and the crowd was just as emotional including myself. Many were moved to tears, as was my wife. Seeing the President speak was the highlight of this convention for me. My sons are 11 and eight-years old and this is the only President they have known. The election of President Obama allows my sons to believe that one day they could be President.
As the President took in the adoration and love from the crowd, we were all taken to a higher level of excitement when Secretary Clinton walked onto the stage to join him. This was the perfect conclusion to an emotionally inspiring night.
I would like to give a special thanks to my wife, Lalena Fernandez-Butler, who shared this special night with me and contributed to the writing of this article.
