Barack's Rock Opens The Convention

I began to write this post at the Pepsi Center. Monday's lineup included House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr., Caroline Kennedy and Sen. Ted Kennedy. With the exception of the Kennedys, the delegates and guests mostly ignored the speakers and talked throughout their overly scripted remarks.

Though the band played "Gonna Have a Funky Good Time," there wasn't much energy in the Pepsi Center. That is until Michelle Obama rocked the house. ...

Michelle was introduced by her brother Craig who spoke lovingly of his big sister:

We lost my father in 1991.

And I know he's looking down on us tonight, so proud of his daughter, not because of who she married, though he was a big fan of Barack – but because of the hard-working, brilliant woman she is, what she's accomplished in her own right, the mother she's become, and the values she's instilled in her daughters.

With that Michelle stepped out on stage and shared her story:

I come here tonight as a sister, blessed with a brother who is my mentor, my protector and my lifelong friend.

I come here as a wife who loves my husband and believes he will be an extraordinary president.

Michelle also shared stories about Barack, the man who would be the first African American President of the United States:

And you know, what struck me when I first met Barack was that even though he had this funny name, even though he'd grown up all the way across the continent in Hawaii, his family was so much like mine. He was raised by grandparents who were working class folks just like my parents, and by a single mother who struggled to pay the bills just like we did. Like my family, they scrimped and saved so that he could have opportunities they never had themselves. And Barack and I were raised with so many of the same values: that you work hard for what you want in life; that your word is your bond and you do what you say you're going to do; that you treat people with dignity and respect, even if you don't know them, and even if you don't agree with them.

While acknowledging that their improbable journey could only happen in America, Michelle said:

America should be a place where you can make it if you try.

After her speech, Michelle was joined on stage by her two daughters, Malia and Sasha. Stevie Wonder's "Isn't She Lovely" was playing in the background.

Yes, she is.

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