Michelle Obama Brings the House Down at the DNC

Military mom Winona Bry took the stage tonight to introduce the night's most anticipated speaker. A military mom and wife, she credited Dr. Jill Biden and Michelle Obama for helping military families make it through hard times, especially after they become civilians. Her inspiring introduction about how the First Lady cares about veterans and how she and many others like her have been helped by the president's policies helped set the stage for the First Lady's equally electrifying speech.

Mrs. Obama genuinely looked happy and comfortable as she took the podium to a rousing applause that lasted nearly a full minute. During her speech, she talked about how she and President Obama come from similar backgrounds: families who struggled to give their kids a better life, who taught the value of hard work and honor, with a strong focus on family and giving back to their communities.

She talked about how, during the last several years as First Lady, she met people every day who inspired her, like military veterans who struggled to find work, or the teachers in bankrupt school districts who vowed to teach no matter what. She talked about her own father, who suffered from multiple sclerosis but hardly missed a day of work at Chicago's water pump station. She talked about her husband's grandmother Madelyn, who helped raise him in Honolulu by taking a job at a bank, often training the men who would be promoted over her, despite being more qualified.

Her speech centered around honor, integrity, and trust, and called her husband someone the nation can count on. She said that both of them grew up with the belief that success "doesn't count unless you earn it fair and square."

Her speech was in stark contrast to Ann Romney, nicknamed by some as "Android Romney" due to her resemblance to a Stepford wife with little to no emotions. Whereas Ann's speech about her husband lacked fire and sincerity, Michelle's speech brought tears to the eyes of standing room only convention goers.

Her jabs at Republicans who made it thanks to social programs and public assistance (like Paul Ryan) were subtle yet effective. To an energized crowd she said that she and her husband believe that "when you walk through the doorway of opportunity, you don't slam it shut behind you."

Her speech about how at the end of the day, Barack Obama still takes time to spend with his daughters, he is still a father, first and foremost, grabbed convention delegates by the heartstrings and did not let go. She literally drove home the fact that President Obama is a man of the people, where his opponent is a man of corporate wealth and privilege without ever saying it directly.

Her speech highlighted the issues of the night: that those who love and serve their country in the military, as volunteers, as teachers, as parents, shouldn't have to struggle alone. The social issues front and center for the night's convention were capped by her reassurance that who you love is no one's business but your own, and vowed that if elected, the president will continue to move forward with what he believes is right for the nation.

In the end, Michelle Obama brought the Democratic National Convention to its feet when she said, "Let us never forget that doing the impossible is the history of this nation. It is how this country was built."