...And I don't mean 2004. I mean this convention.
Schweitzer was attention-grabbing. The Clintons were pitch perfect. Bill in particular made a stirring case for Obama. But, like Eve, I thought John Kerry came closest to what Democrats needed to achieve, which was to define John McCain. Only Kerry highlighted the miles-wide gulf between the 2002-era McCain and the McCain who's running for president. Better yet, Kerry framed the idea in remarkably pithy and memorable terms.
Team Obama should have inserted similar language into every speech this week (with the possible exception of Biden, the Clintons, and Michelle). If the convention falls a little short, that will have been the big missed opportunity.
--Noam Scheiber