Dem convention finale: Catch up on everything you missed
Clinton to Bernie supporters: 'Your cause is our cause'
Clinton strode onto the stage, hugged her daughter and proceeded to thank all manner of people, from President Obama to her husband and daughter and every supporter. And even those who aren't.
"I want to thank Bernie Sanders," she said to raucous cheers from the crowd. "Bernie, Bernie your campaign inspired millions of Americans."
Clinton noted he particularly inspired young people to get involved in the primary campaign.
"You put economic and social justice issues front and center where they belong," she said. "And to all of your supporters … I want you to know I've heard you, your cause is our cause."
Prep for the polls: See who is running for president and compare where they stand on key issues in our Voter Guide
Chelsea on mom: She wants every child to have what I had
The prospective two-time first daughter characterized her mother as a loving, thoughtful parent who wrote her notes and attended every recital, sports game and other activities to support her.
"Every single memory I have of my mom is that regardless of what was happening in her life, she was always always there for me," she said.
Chelsea Clinton said her mother is a "listener and a doer" with a "fierce sense of justice and a heart full of love."
Calling out Trump on the Muslim ban
Khizr Khan, whose son Humayun Khan, 27, was a Muslim American and captain in the U.S. Army when he was killed by a suicide bomber in Iraq in 2004, had some harsh words for Republican nominee Donald Trump and his so-called Muslim ban.
"If it was up to Donald Trump, he never would have even been in America," Khan said, adding that Trump "consistently smears" the character of Muslims, women, judges and leaders in his own party.
"He vows to build walls and ban us from this country. Donald Trump, you're asking Americans to trust you with their future. Let me ask you, have you even read the United States Constitution?" he said, volunteering to lend Trump his copy and pointing to provisions for liberty and equal protection under law.
Khan also asked Trump to visit Arlington National Cemetery to view the graves of all the fallen service members. "You will see all faiths, genders, and ethnicities," he said.
"You have have sacrificed nothing! And no one," he exclaimed. "We cannot solve our problems by building walls. Sowing division. We are stronger together. And we will keep getting stronger when Hillary Clinton becomes our president."
The #NeverTrump faction quickly weighed in. But are they now Clinton voters?
Chants interrupt moment of silence
When Dallas Sheriff Lupe Valdez asked for a moment of silence in honor of the fallen police officers across the country, a few in the crowd weren't having it, yelling out "Black lives matter!" Via the Independent Journal:
#BernieOrBust? Bust
A group of loyalists to Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., planned to try and disrupt the big moment.
A group had managed Wednesday night to unfurl a banner during vice presidential nominee Sen. Tim Kaine’s speech that said “ELECTION FRAUD #WikiLeaks.” They had it up for 30 to 45 seconds before security nabbed them.
But while there were clearly protest signs and even some boos, there was no sign of major disruptions Thursday.
Members of the group — Caitlin Glidewell, 20, an alternate delegate from Colorado, North Carolina delegate Joshua "Fox" Brown, 34, and Tennessee delegate Katie Cowley, 39, — told USA TODAY that they were fed up with the Democratic Party’s treatment of Sanders and they signaled they would be part of a sort of Democratic tea party movement, agitating for more progressive policies going forward.
They want everyone to read the nearly 20,000 hacked emails released last weekend by WikiLeaks showing some DNC officials have been biased toward Clinton all along and attempted to undermine Sanders by proposing to push stories in the media saying his campaign was a mess and questioning his religious beliefs.
“The Democratic Party think that we’re just going to forget about this and act like it’s nothing, and we’re not,” Cowley said. “We’ve got proof, we’ve got evidence that this election was not fair.”
They say they have three demands if Democrats want them back in the fold: a more forceful acknowledgment of what happened, a better apology than the one issued earlier this week, and a cleaning house – consequences for the staffers who participated.
Women senators: Stand up, lipstick on, to fight for Hillary
The Democratic women of the Senate, 12 in all, took the stage before the prime-time broadcast to rev up support for Clinton, their former colleague.
Nicknamed their "dean," Sen. Barbara Mikulski of Maryland gave a nod to the historic significance of Clinton being a female nominee and urged other women to get on board.
“Families of America, it’s time to suit up — with our lipstick on, with our shoes polished, our shoulders squared, ready to fight to put Hillary in the White House,” Mikulski said “Because we know she’ll be carrying the torch for all of us.”
Dear C-SPAN viewers
Among the group was Tammy Baldwin, who represents Wisconsin in the Senate. Unfortunately, the folks putting up helpful IDs on the big screen behind the stage got the state wrong.
So for those of you watching on C-SPAN (or our live feed online), consider the record corrected.
Oh, look, a 'card stunt'
Via the awesome "Advance Guy Notes" (political speak for the guy who sets up stuff for political events):
The burning questions…
People really wanted to know more about Clinton Thursday. Compared to the Republican National Convention last week, this week’s Dem fest drummed up more interest, racking up 90% more Google searches. But the top trending question during the day Thursday was about, um, her wardrobe.
1. What will Hillary wear tonight?
2. What was in Hillary’s email?
3. Is the Convention helping Hillary?
4. Is Hillary Clinton a billionaire?
5. Will Trump debate Clinton?
Now, of course, we know. A white pant suit.
Early speakers feature a first for transgender Americans
Watch Sarah McBride become the first transgender individual Thursday to address a major party's nominating convention.
Can you find her?
The Philadelphia Police Department sent out an all-points-bulletin on Twitter looking for a woman who left a care package for officers with Life Savers “B/c that is what you are!” gum “so we can all stick together,” and Starburst “for an extra burst of energy during these 12-hour shifts.”
“Thank you for being great! XOXO”
Zing!
Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker had his Twitter game on.
The former GOP presidential candidate sought to highlight the Democratic Party’s dismissal of security issues raised by Clinton’s sending classified information over a private server when she was secretary of State and the party’s reaction to Trump asking the Russians Wednesday for help finding 30,000 emails she deleted. The Democrats hyped the remark as an actual invitation for international espionage with national security implications.
The Trump campaign took a similar, albeit broader, tack, issuing a statement from Trump talking about Democrats’ “fantasy world.”
“ 'Democrats have been speaking about a world that doesn’t exist,' he said, adding that it’s a world without unemployment, with secure borders, where crime is rising in places like Baltimore and Chicago and 'where there’s no such thing as radical Islamic terrorism.'
“In the Democrats’ fantasy world, there is no problem with Hillary Clinton maintaining an illegal, exposed server full of classified information that could have been hacked by any foreign enemy, and in which Hillary Clinton risked prison time to delete 33,000 emails that were simply about yoga and wedding planning.”
NRA counter-programming
The National Rifle Association’s Political Victory Fund says it ran a national cable ad during Thursday's convention broadcast seeking to counter some of the gun-control advocacy that has been front and center this week, including emotional appearances by mothers whose children were fatally shot.
The ad features a woman named Kimberly Corban who survived a brutal rape and realized the need to own firearms for self-defense. A narrator suggests American’s right to bear arms is on the ballot in November, before Corban adds: “Hillary Clinton would take away your rights.”
Whatever anyone’s personal feelings about the issue, it’s clearly going to be central in the presidential campaign in the months to come, particularly if there are more, horrific mass shootings …
And finally…
Tim Kaine as America’s awkward dad. Just because.
