Tuesday, Aug. 26, 2008
Deval Patrick, Governor of Massachusetts
Assertively and fluently mixed his personal story (growing up on the South Side of Chicago) with his vision for a "national community" for the U.S. He threw some daggers at the Republicans, including a pointed Katrina remark, but quickly moved on to a mature argument for hard work and partisanship with purpose. ("Democrats don't deserve to win just because Republicans deserve to lose.") The crowd seemed happy to listen, but he neither attacked McCain with specifics nor offered a detailed rationale for an Obama presidency.
— Mark Halperin