Michelle Obama - Spoke to Women of the World

Speech writers can only do so much to create magnificent oratory. The impact is in the delivery. It's typical to not fully understand the impact of a speech until days afterward. Those who give speeches are usually delighted to have the experience behind them. But they generally don't know how many people they reached. It's not necessarily about how many hear the speech, but the impact over time.  Last night's speeches were a cumulative articulation of pent up exuberance for President Obama's re-election.  It's like a volcano of enthusiasm erupted, led by the opening video tribute to the late Senator Edward Kennedy, a brilliantly inspired production.

Last night, Mrs. Obama spoke eloquently to the world when she flawlessly delivered her heartfelt Democratic Convention speech in Charlotte. It didn't look to me like she was ready to leave the podium when her speech concluded. Rather, the energized audience seemed ready to hear more. 

Was it just me, or did Mrs. Obama have the capacity to look directly through the teleprompter, into the eyes of everyone watching her?

As for First Ladies giving future political Convention speeches, there won't likely be another like the one Mrs. Obama gave in Charlotte. 

She wins the trifecta- an Oscar, a home run and hole in one.

Mrs. Obama spoke more than words. Her self esteem beamed to the women of the world. Her presence told women, "If I can be here as First Lady speaking to you, then you can, one day, stand in my place". In other words, she was a role model for all women.

A line up of magnificently motivating speakers led to Mrs. Obama's speech. Each trumped the other with enthusiasm and clarity of message. All Convention speakers were fantastic, too numerous to name, but standouts were Tammy Duckworth, Governor Deval Patrick and Mayor Julian Castro.  

Duckworth spoke meaningfully about her experiences growing up poor and, later, as a war Veteran.  What I liked about her speech was, in spite of the challenges in her life, she was optimistic.

Governor of Massachusetts Deval Patrick delivered like a fiery Sunday morning Evangelist. Patrick called on his experience as Governor of Massachusetts to tell the world how his predecessor, Governor Mitt Romney, ran the state into higher unemployment.

"Mitt Romney talks a lot about all the things he's fixed. I can tell you that Massachusetts was not one of them," Patrick said to applause. "He's a fine fellow and a great salesman, but as governor he was a lot more interested in having the job than doing the job."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/09/04/deval-patrick-speech_n_1852775.html?utm_hp_ref=mostpopular

"Patrick touted Obama's decision to order the mission to kill Osama Bin Laden, ending the war in Iraq, starting the process to withdraw U.S. troops from Afghanistan, the Lily Ledbetter law, ending 'don't ask, don't tell', and other moves," reports Huffington Post.

"With a record and a vision like that, I will not stand by and let him be bullied out of office -- and neither should you." This particular line drew roaring applause from the crowd.

Patrick set the audience on fire in anticipation of the keynote by Julian Castro, mayor of  San Antonio Texas.  

Castro certainly projected his charming political astuteness to the cheering audience.  

"My family's story isn't special. What's special is the America that makes our story possible. Ours is a nation like no other, a place where great journeys can be made in a single generation. No matter who you are or where you come from, the path is always forward.
America didn't become the land of opportunity by accident."
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2012/09/04/transcript-julian-castro-speech-at-dnc/#ixzz25aqxEaR2

Castro said, "Now, in Texas, we believe in the rugged individual. Texas may be the one place where people actually still have bootstraps, and we expect folks to pull themselves up by them. But we also recognize there are some things we can't do alone. We have to come together and invest in opportunity today for prosperity tomorrow."

"This(election) is the choice before us. And to me, (Castro said) to my generation and for all the generations to come, our choice is clear. Our choice is a man who's always chosen us. A man who already is our president: Barack Obama."

Mrs. Obama spoke to the world when she described, from her experience, what it means to be an American. "I’ve seen it in teachers in a near-bankrupt school district who vowed to keep teaching without pay. I’ve seen it in people who become heroes at a moment’s notice, diving into harm’s way to save others…flying across the country to put out a fire…driving for hours to bail out a flooded town. And I’ve seen it in our men and women in uniform and our proud military families…in wounded warriors who tell me they’re not just going to walk again, they’re going to run, and they’re going to run marathons…in the young man blinded by a bomb in Afghanistan who said, simply, '…I’d give my eyes 100 times again to have the chance to do what I have done and what I can still do'.”  

Delivering with poised compassion, Mrs. Obama painted a picture of Americans as caring people, a startling counter image to the one tarnished among many foreigners, because of the frequency of gun violence.

"Every day, the people I meet inspire me…every day, they make me proud…every day they remind me how blessed we are to live in the greatest nation on earth", she said.

Modern electronic communications projected a positive image about America to the entire world during the speeches in Charlotte.

It's the positive America Mrs. Obama reinforced in her speech. 

America was beautifully portrayed in Charlotte, but it's up to the voters to deliver the message home.  President Obama supports progressive policies and a positive image of America.  

Mrs. Obama is a mirror to her husband's soul.  The First Couple are role models to the world, especially to half the citizens who are women, who identify with their compelling storybook journey to living the American Dream.

Link to a USAToday review of Mrs. Obama's remarkably personal and effective convention speech:  
http://content.usatoday.com/communities/theoval/post/2012/09/michelle-obama-convention-speech-twitter-reaction-/1#.UEtOmMFmSj8