Former US President Bill Clinton has set out the case why his wife and “best friend” Hillary should lead the nation.<\/p>\n
He told the Democratic convention in Philadelphia that she was the “best darn change-maker I’ve ever known”.<\/p>\n
In a very personal speech, he spoke warmly about how they met and her dedication to public service.<\/p>\n
Hours earlier, his wife became the first woman to be officially nominated for president by any major US party.<\/p>\n
Mrs Clinton ended the night with a video message, saying: “I can’t believe we just put the biggest crack in that glass ceiling yet.<\/p>\n
“And if there are any little girls out there who stayed up late to watch, let me just say, I may become the first woman president but one of you is next.”<\/p>\n
Earlier, Mr Clinton shared the story of how he and his wife met at Yale Law School in the spring of 1971.<\/p>\n
“I married my best friend,” he said. “We’ve been walking and talking and laughing together ever since.”<\/p>\n
Revealing a human side – Anthony Zurcher, BBC News, Philadelphia<\/p>\n
Bill Clinton tried to accomplish two things on Tuesday night. He shared personal stories to paint a portrait of a woman who has been in the public eye for so long that she has become as ubiquitous as your living room wallpaper.<\/p>\n
He also wanted to position his wife as an effective champion of the change many Americans crave.<\/p>\n
Although he dwelled on the details longer than necessary – with minutiae akin to a coma-inducing family reunion – he inundated the audience with examples of his wife as a mother, friend and compassionate life companion. It proved a stark contrast to Donald Trump, whose familial keynoters struggled to provide anything resembling touching personal anecdotes.<\/p>\n
His efforts to label his wife as a “change-maker”, however, proved somewhat more ineffective. It’s easy to tout Mrs Clinton’s wealth of experience. It’s harder to fashion her as an outsider who will cleanse a system perceived by many to be broken.<\/p>\n
Competent and controlled doesn’t exactly capture the public’s imagination – and it proved to be a challenge for even a gifted orator like Mr Clinton. But he succeeded in revealing an emotive, human side of his wife.<\/p>\n
The former secretary of state and first lady was uniquely qualified to be president, he said.<\/p>\n
“Hillary opened my eyes to a whole new world of public service by private citizens,” he said before recounting her early career.<\/p>\n
Hours before he spoke, his wife passed the 2,382 delegates needed to claim the nomination after South Dakota announced its delegate vote count.<\/p>\n
In a symbolic gesture of party unity, former Democratic rival Senator Bernie Sanders took the microphone to declare Mrs Clinton as the nominee by acclamation, to an eruption of cheers.<\/p>\n
In other highlights:<\/p>\n
The second night focused on race and justice, topics that dominated last week’s Republican National Convention in Cleveland.<\/p>\n
Dissention on the convention floor plagued the first day when Sanders supporters booed throughout the event.<\/p>\n
Mr Sanders later took centre stage as the final speaker on Monday night and directly told his supporters that “”Hillary Clinton must become the next president of the United States.”<\/p>\n
In declaring her the nominee, Mr Sanders echoed Mrs Clinton in a role she played eight years ago after a hard-fought primary.<\/p>\n
At the 2008 Democratic National Convention, Mrs Clinton called for a vote for Barack Obama by acclamation, ending the roll call vote in an effort to unite the party behind his candidacy.<\/p>\n
Mrs Clinton will face off against Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump in November.<\/p>\n
Recent national polls suggest the two candidates will be in a tight race for the White House.<\/p>\n
–<\/p>\n
Source: BBC<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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