DENVER – Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton last night declared that former rival Barack Obama “is my candidate” and urged her backers to let go, lay down their swords and vote for him over John McCain.
PHOTO GALLERY: Hillary At The DNC
But while throwing her political weight behind her one-time foe, Clinton said little that boosted Obama’s personal story, political résumé – nor did she defend him against GOP attacks that he’s unqualified for office.
She mentioned some of her strongest stump points and lavished praise and thanks on those who supported her – calling them “my sisterhood of the traveling pantsuits” – but urged: “I want you to ask yourselves, were you in this campaign just for me?”
Calling herself a “proud supporter of Barack Obama,” Clinton added, “Whether you voted for me or you voted for Barack, the time is now to unite as a single party with a single purpose.
Read the Text of Hillary’s Speech
“We are on the same team, and none of us can afford to sit on the sidelines,” she said, warning her staunchest backers not to cross party lines out of anger.
“No way, no how, no McCain,” Clinton said, eliciting the most rousing applause of the night.
Watching the speech from a campaign stop in Billings, Mont., Obama himself applauded when she said she didn’t want Democrats to “suffer through more failed leadership.”
Former President Bill Clinton, tears glistening in his eyes, watched the speech from a private box alongside the son of the late Ohio Rep. Stephanie Tubbs Jones – one of Hillary’s most stalwart black supporters – and the widow of slain Arkansas Democratic Party chairman Bill Gwatney.
Daughter Chelsea introduced her mom by narrating a tribute video featuring clips from Clinton’s life, including her time on the campaign trail.
“Barack Obama is my candidate,” Clinton declared. “And he must be our president. Tonight, I ask you to remember what a presidential election is really about.”
And she cited her major reasons for running for office as “the reasons I support Barack Obama for president.”
There were no major eruptions on the floor, and the crowd was well-behaved, amid concerns about wild shows of support for Clinton distracting from her speech.
The rousing call for unity came at a time when tensions between Obama and Clinton supporters – and some high-level loyalists in each camp – have become the dominant story line of the convention.
Even after the speech, the Democrats were rife with confusion about how the party will handle tonight’s roll call when both candidates’ names are entered into nomination – with many Clinton delegates complaining about a lack of clear instructions on what she’d like them to do.
Many political watchers believe she’s itching to run again in four years if Obama loses.
Across the Pepsi Center during the prime-time speech, signs featuring Clinton’s signature reading “Hillary” – different from her own signs during the campaign – waved wildly. After the speech, many were handed signs saying “Unity” on one side.
Clinton called McCain her “colleague” and “friend,” but she still painted him as a clone of President Bush.
And she had the party faithful cheering when she said it was fitting the two men will be in the Twin Cities in Minnesota for the GOP convention next week, “because these days, they’re awfully hard to tell apart.”
Hill tipped her hat to Bill, saying Obama would restore America’s economy to the one the nation enjoyed during his two terms in office.
Obama called it “excellent” and a “strong speech.” He nodded approvingly as Clinton praised Obama’s wife, Michelle, and the speech Michelle delivered the night before, and spoke with the New York senator by phone afterward.
There were some moments that stood out to political watchers, like when Clinton said Obama would make certain “every American” is assured of universal health care – even though she slammed Obama’s plan during the primaries and claimed it would leave 15 million people uncovered. Team McCain – which in recent days has been running ads using Clinton’s criticisms of Obama and questions about his experience – instantly said there were points missing from her speech.
“Nowhere tonight did she say that Barack Obama is ready to lead,” said a McCain spokesman.
Additional reporting by Geoff Earle and Kevin Eggleston