The Democratic Party made history this week when it made Mr. Barack Obama, the junior senator from Illinois, its nominee for the 44th president of the United States. Mr. Obama is the first African-American — his father was Kenyan, his mother a white Kansan — to claim a slot on the ticket of a major American political party.
National party conventions are tightly scripted events, designed to highlight the party's appeal, spotlight its stars and climax at the acceptance speech of the candidate. While this meeting in Denver was no exception, a large question mark hung over the event: How would his rival, Sen. Hillary Clinton, respond? Would she embrace Mr. Obama and rally her disappointed — and often bitter — supporters around him? Or would she vent her frustrations and damage her party's prospects in November. The same uncertainty surrounded her husband, former President Bill Clinton, who is said to have been angered about his treatment by Mr. Obama's team during the campaign.
All doubts vanished when Ms. Clinton made a rousing speech — itself a result of protracted negotiations with Mr. Obama to ensure that she received the respect she felt was due her — in favor of Mr. Obama and called upon the entire party to back him. Then, during the roll call vote of delegates, once it became clear that Mr. Obama would win, Ms. Clinton asked that all delegates back him to make their verdict unanimous "in the spirit of unity, with the goal of victory" — another carefully scripted moment that gave Ms. Clinton her due.