CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — A stirring speech by former President Bill Clinton and a surprise appearance by President Barack Obama unified the Democratic Party just hours after it had been forced to abandon plans for an outdoor pageant and been riven by rushed changes to the party platform.
By changing their convention venue and hurriedly adding platform references to God and Jerusalem, Obama and Democrats risked looking disorganized, divided and uncertain just a day before the president takes the stage to make his case for a second term in office.
Top Democrats hoped the sight of Clinton and Obama embracing Wednesday night would alleviate the disappointment of moving Obama's Thursday night address indoors and drown out the spectacle of a party rushed into revising its platform.
