CHARLOTTE, NC—Former President Bill Clinton officially nominated current President Barack Obama as the Democratic presidential 2012 nominee Wednesday while further emphasizing the party’s populist convention theme in an address to the delegates.
Taking the stage to the loudest cheers of the convention so far, Clinton argued Obama deserves another four years in the oval office to finish cleaning up the “total mess” he inherited from the GOP and fully enact his agenda.
“No president—not me or any of my predecessors, no one—could have repaired all the damage in just four years,” Clinton said. “But he has laid the foundations for a new, modern, successful economy of shared prosperity. And if you will renew the president’s contract, you will feel it.
The 42nd president also rebutted many Republican claims against Obama from their convention last week, chiding their basic arguments about the role of government and the individual in society.
“We believe ‘we’re all in this together’ is a far better philosophy than ‘you’re on your own,’” Clinton told the crowd.
After Clinton wrapped up his remarks, Obama, who arrived in Charlotte earlier in the day, briefly joined him on stage.
Prior to Clinton’s speech, Eau Claire Delegate Judith Willink said she was looking forward to it more than any other address at the Democratic National Convention because she felt a personal connection with him, having gone door-to-door for Clinton during his 1992 White House bid.
“When he was elected, that was euphoric,” Willink said. “So I’ve always had a real soft spot for Bill.”
Massachusetts Senate candidate Elizabeth Warren spoke in the slot right before Clinton, asserting middle class Americans are fed up with an economic system that is rigged against them and that Obama’s policies will provide them with a fighting chance.
“President Obama believes in a level playing field,” Warren told the audience. “He believes in a country where nobody gets a free ride or a golden parachute.”
Instead of formally accepting the party’s nomination Thursday at the outdoor Bank of America Stadium as originally planned, Obama will address the convention at the Time Warner Cable Arena instead due to severe weather forecasts.
