As we select a Quote of the Day for the Democratic convention, it will be useful to compare the two conventions. On our Monday contest last week, Tom Brokaw spoke for many liberal journalists by declaring “as you look at the message, even with Mrs. Trump saying what she said, it's a pretty divisive message. There was no attempt to really pull the country together.”
Democrats unleashed a lot of mean-spirited invective on Monday night, but liberals saw it all as humor and happiness and unity. Apparently, speaking ill of Democrats is “divisive,” but speaking ill of Republicans is “unifying.” On Monday night, Tom Brokaw celebrated the president as “remarkable” and the Obama family as “exceptional.” Michelle was “pitch perfect.” And so was Comcast/NBC Universal in providing in-kind journalistic contributions.
“And the way that she built that moment was exceptional. What she did was take on Donald Trump and put Hillary Clinton in the Oval Office, saying this is a woman who is experienced, who can handle the military, can handle the nuclear codes. She keeps coming back, she doesn't give up, and then made that graceful transition into her own experience, a young woman who grew up in Chicago, whose father worked in a municipal work part and then went to Ivy League education, came home and married this remarkable man, Barack Obama, whatever you feel about their politics, they have been an exceptional family in the White House. She conveyed all those values and said that Hillary will continue them without saying she'll continue to be what my husband set out to do as president. I think it was about as pitch perfect an endorsement you can get.” – Retired NBC anchorman Tom Brokaw.
The runners-up felt like a competition Chris Matthews was holding with himself, the gushing was so ridiculous:
“I think the Democrats' first night may turn out to be more successful than the Republicans' last night. I thought it had a lot of charm and happiness. It had Al Franken's humor, perhaps a bit too sophisticated for some people, but it was brilliant. And I just thought the whole night was a slugger's row of wonderful sentiments from the high esteem the First Lady received to the passion of the progressives to the — I have to say good sportsmanship and better of Bernie Sanders. He really laid it in there for Hillary Clinton tonight and if his followers don't follow him, that's their call. But you can't ask more than what he said tonight. So overall for putting things together for what we call in politics fence mending, a ten strike, ten strike!” – Chris Matthews in the 11pm hour.
"I think Thursday night's going to be magic, no matter what happens tonight or tomorrow night. I think it will become so amazing that we see a woman nominated for the presidency of the United States in a very plausible future. She will be the president. And I think that's going to grab women my age, women younger, girls, men. Good people are going to say, "This is great for America." It's going to be very much like Grant Park back in 2008 when we saw people like Jesse Jackson crying, who was just here. I think it’s going to be an emotional night." -- Chris Matthews with the crystal ball in the 7 pm hour.
“Objectively, she is much more qualified than her husband was when he ran. Over the past 30 years, she's checked all the boxes: Globe-trotting First Lady. Superstar senator. Secretary of State. Logging nearly a million miles, visiting 112 countries...But she's been scandal-prone, partly through no fault of her own.” – ABC reporter David Wright on Nightline.
An honorable mention might be MSNBC's embarrassing screen graphic yesterday claiming outgoing DNC boss Debbie Wasserman Schultz was being cheered as she was being booed and heckled:
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