First night about contrasts, insight into presidency

If the first night of the Republican convention was about introducing the human side of Mitt Romney, the Democrat's first night involved showing the clear differences between the two candidates along with providing insight into the difficulties the Obama administration faced.

In terms of raw energy and excitement, there was not comparing the two conventions.  The Republican convention did not really get rocking until night three.  The Democrats got to little bit of a slow start in passing the new platform, but things really started to pick up from that point.

By the time Gov. Deval Patrick was on the floor, the crowd was in a near frenzy.  A very well-produced video on Ted Kennedy helped get everyone in the mood with many delegates openly sobbing.

The keynote address by Mayor Julian Castro was electrifying and it seemed like it would be hard for First Lady Michelle Obama to keep up the momentum.  However, she immediately had the crowd spellbound with an intimate talk about the First Couple's first term in office.

We heard throughout the night comparisons of President Barack Obama and Mitt Romney.  It was clear that the Democrats wanted to show people that they had a clear choice between the two candidates. 

If the Democrats can translate even half of tonight's energy into work for their ground campaign, they will be in very good shape.

Tomorrow might, we can probably expect former Pres. Bill Clinton to attack Mitt Romney a little harder.  He will also likely endorse Obama's work and plans for the economy.  He may break down why Obama's plan will work, while Romney's will lead to the same problems that got us into the current mess.