It’s not always about the numbers sometimes it’s about people

Political conventions are supposed to gin up the base, bring together party leaders to work on a platform, hear partisan speeches, have a good time but most of all; it's a time when the nation tunes to hear their vision and plans.  I believe the Republicans accomplish what they wanted and last night the Democrats  got  off on the right foot.

I've been disappointed with the Democrats who have not embraced what we now lovingly  call Obamacare because they were too lazy to read the legislation and understand that it had to take small increment steps to succeed.  They should have recruited last night speaker, Stacy Linh, who told a story of her young daughter Zoe, who underwent two open heart surgeries.  It would not have been possible were it not for the repeal of the lifetime caps in Obamacare. Stacey said that Mitt Romney said he would repeal Obamacare, which would be devastating to her family because they could not afford to pay for Zoe's upcoming surgeries and care.  She had an answer for Mitt Romney's key line when he said,  "you know there's something wrong with the kind of job [Obama's] done as president when the best feeling you had was the day you voted for him. " She said,  that she knows that her best feeling was when she read the letter from her insurance company stating that Zoe would no longer have lifetime caps." The second best day for her was when the Supreme Court upheld Obamacare.

I think the Democrats did a great job of stagecraft because the under card speakers such as former Governor Strickland, Governor O'Malley, Rahm Emanuel, Tammy Duckworth made compelling reasons to reelect President Obama, and they were not there to promote their own agenda.  They effectively warmed up the crowd for the three speakers who would eventually bring it home.

Governor Deval Patrick of Massachusetts gave a fiery speech about Mitt Romney's lack of accomplishments and said, "All that today’s Republicans are saying is that if we just shrink government, cut taxes, crush unions, and wait, all will be well. Never mind that those are the very policies that got us into recession to begin with! Never mind that not one of the governors who preached that gospel in Tampa last week has the results to show for it. He left with a message I will remember when he said, "Quit waiting for pundits or polls or super PACs to tell us who the next President or Senator or Congressman is going to be. We’re Americans. We shape our own future. 

The keynote speaker was San Antonio's Mayor Julian Castro, who had all the pressure in the world for him to deliver a speech that would make him worthy of the honor of being the keynote speaker.  It was the first time I've ever heard the mayor speak, and I was impressed by his style.  He would smile, yet was firm in making his case of reelecting President Obama.  He told a story of coming from poverty and thanking those that made it possible for him to attend Stanford and Harvard.  His grandmother and mother were not(still aren't) wealthy, so he had to take advantage of Pell Grants, Affirmative Action, programs just to get the opportunity, so he could prosper.  He said that the kids at Stanford and Harvard were no different from the ones at Thomas Jefferson high school in San Antonio, so he spoke of “invest now for prosperity in the future. “ He spoke a little about the pre K program he's trying to start in San Antonio.  It's on the ballot for November, and it will cost taxpayers 1/8 of one penny or $7.81 per household.

I can't come up with enough accolades for Michelle Obama's speech last night.  It was an emotional plea to give her husband one more chance to complete the job.  She made an excellent point and brought the house down with these words " "Being president doesn't change who you are. ... It reveals who you are." I think she was trying to say that economic events changed but the president values never did. That message was for the undecided because most political strategists  say that those voters cast their vote for President Obama in 2008.

There's always that difference of opinion, Chris Wallace said the first lady, and the Democrats were just be asking for more government, and Charles Krathammer said it was a well-written speech and delivered brilliantly but said that"he didn't buy one single line of it.”

The first night is in the books, and the pundits on both sides will get their chance to evaluate it.

My wife thought that I was a little overboard last night, but I didn't want to miss a thing, so I used PIP to go back and forth between CNN's and MSNBC's coverage.  I also had my iPhone, so I could keep up with Tweets, and I used my iPad to watch ABC's special coverage application.  Tonight I'll have to watch the convention after the football game because I do have priorities.

The Democrats can thank their lucky stars that they have their version of  the old Mariano Rivera to pull them out of a bind; when they need it, like the "Big Dog" Bill Clinton…..Bill Clinton will be tonight's  keynote speaker tonight and there's no doubt that he will do what's he's been doing since he's became one of America's greatest politicians.