So much happened on Day 3 that it’s going to be tough to keep this recap reasonable in length.  In terms of official convention business, the main event was the official nomination of Sen. Barack Obama.  Since the primary season ended in early June, Sen. Obama has been the presumptive Democratic nominee as he won the majority of pledged delegates in the various primaries and caucuses, and he had enough pledged superdelegates to capture a majority of the total delegates at stake.  However, until the delegates cast their ballots at the Democratic National Convention on Wednesday, the nomination wasn’t official.  In a dramatic, though not unexpected, gesture for unity, Sen. Clinton interrupted the traditional roll call vote of each state’s delegates to move to suspend the rules and confirm Sen. Obama’s nomination by acclaimation (voice vote).  The emotional impact on the convention was palpable; you can hear my live play by play of the events in my post below.  As a young person, it’s easy to forget just how unbelievably momentous Sen. Obama’s candidacy is; during the roll call vote, Bertha Means, an 88 year old African American delegate from my Senate District in Austin, sobbed uncontrollably for over 15 minutes as the votes for Sen. Obama were being called out.  She understood the history, the improbability of the moment.

My day began with the AAPI Caucus meeting, where Maya, Konrad, and several AAPI political figures spoke to the AAPI delegates and guests about voter registration and outreach for the critical remaining weeks of the election.  Celebrities Kelly Hu and Tamlyn Tomita also made appearances.  I also got to meet Georgia McCauley, Barack and Maya’s hanai mother (a Native Hawaiian adoption tradition comparable to being a godparent, but with even deeper implications) and the Chair of Democrats Abroad Philippines.  Georgia reminded the audience that US citizens living abroad can vote in the presidential election, and it’s important for us to reach out to our friends, family, and colleagues abroad to vote for Sen. Obama.

Konrad Ng Speaks to AAPI Caucus

Maya Soetoro-Ng Chats with Attendees at the AAPI Caucus

Georgia McCauley, Barack and Maya’s Hanai Mother and Chair of Democrats Abroad Philippines, Talks About Encouraging Family Members Abroad to Vote Absentee

AAPI Elected Officials and Candidates Gather for a Photo at the AAPI Caucus
Actress and Former Miss Hawaii Kelly Hu Chats with DNC Vice Chair Congressman Mike Honda

Wednesday’s focus was service, and the convention featured an all-star lineup of speakers, including Iraq veteran, 2006 US Congressional candidate and Thai American Tammy Duckworth, Sen. John Kerry, President Bill Clinton, and of course, Vice Presidential nominee Sen. Joe Biden.  Tom Hanks also narrated a moving tribute to American veterans with heart wrenching clips showcasing the pride, patriotism, and sacrifice of soldiers from all backgrounds.

The evening of tribute to our fighting men and women also demonstrated the fighting spirit of the Democratic Party as President Clinton, Sen. Kerry, and Sen. Biden each aggressively made a strong case for why Sen. John McCain is the wrong candidate with the wrong policies at the wrong time for our country.

President Clinton reminded us of how government can work for people when responsible leadership is in power, as he recounted how the policies of his Democratic administration spread prosperity among all segments of society.  His famed charisma was on display as he worked the crowd to its feet, and the packed convention center shook with enthusiasm.

President Bill Clinton Addresses the Democratic National Convention

Sen. Kerry reminded us of how the virulent politics of personal destruction of George W. Bush and Karl Rove has poisoned our political discourse.  He recalled how the same John McCain that was the victim of such politics in 2000 and once denounced such tactics has now embraced them to attack Sen. Obama instead of engaging on issues.  Sen. Kerry very effectively dissected how “Candidate McCain” has flipped his position from “Senator McCain” on almost every major issue from energy policy to tax cuts to immigration (in several cases switching to even opposing legislation that Sen. McCain authored), while throwing in a bit of self-deprecating humor about being “for it before he was against it.”  Sen. Kerry called on Candidate McCain to finish debating Senator McCain before debating Sen. Obama on the issues.

The evening closed with the introduction of Joe Biden in a video about his childhood.  Joe grew up in a big Catholic blue collar family in Pennsylvania, struggling with a stutter as a child (his nickname was “Dash”) and facing unthinkable tragedy after triumph when his wife and daughter were killed in a car accident shortly after he won election to the US Senate in 1972.  Joe overcame these challenges by always keeping in mind his father’s mantra, “The true measure of a man’s character is not whether he gets knocked down, but if he gets back up.”

Joe’s son Beau Biden, Attorney General of Delaware, introduced his father, telling the story of how his dad stayed by his bedside while he and his brother, who survived the car accident, healed.  He talked of how his dad took the train home from Washington every day so he could tuck them in, cook them breakfast, and be with them through thick and thin.  Beau said he can’t be by his dad’s side this fall because he ships off to Iraq in October, but he asked each and every one of us to stand by his dad like his dad stood by him.  It was a moving introduction that brought tears to my eyes.

Sen. Biden closed by tying the values imparted to him by his parents to the fight today to overcome the many setbacks and challenges facing the United States.  Whether it’s the Iraq War, the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, or the economic recession, America is great because even though we’ve been knocked down a lot lately, we will always get back up.