Day 2 takeaways: In the spring of 1971, Clinton met a girl

PHILADELPHIA — Democrats gathered here Tuesday took the historic step of officially nominating Hillary Clinton for president of the United States, the first major U.S. political party to pick a woman for the honor.

That's really the only takeaway that matters. But while we have you here, there were some other things that we'll remember:

'In the spring of 1971, I met a girl'

In 2012, he was the "secretary of explaining stuff" for President Obama. In the past, he's spoken on behalf of Democratic nominees Michael Dukakis, Al Gore and John Kerry. And, of course, in 1992 and 1996, he took the stage to explain his vision for the country as the Democratic Party presidential nominee.

But on Tuesday, he offered a very different testimonial, tracing his 45-year relationship with wife Hillary, from their courtship to their years in public service together.

"In the spring of 1971, I met a girl," the 42nd president began, before describing his early efforts to meet his future wife while at Yale Law School. He went on to recount nearly the entire span of their lives together — in a comprehensive, almost year-by-year recitation — and why Hillary Clinton's life in public service from their earliest days as a couple had prepared her for the presidency and helped shape his own evolution in politics.

"Hillary opened my eyes to a whole new world of public service by private citizens."

The latter portion of the speech was more of a traditional Bill Clinton address, as the former president systematically laid out the case for his wife and the Democratic ticket.

What are we going to call Bill Clinton if Hillary is elected president?

His 2016 convention speech was the kind of personal testimonial for a Democratic nominee Bill Clinton could offer for only one candidate. While it may not go down as his best DNC address, it sure seemed like it was his favorite.

Bernie bids a tearful farewell

Bernie Sanders said his campaign was a political movement, but everyone including Sanders was moved when his brother Larry Sanders, a delegate from "Democrats Abroad," cast his own vote for Bernie. Larry fought back his own tears and said their parents would be so proud of their son. Bernie sat in a box and was caught on camera fighting back tears of his own.

A few minutes later, Bernie came to the floor and joined the Vermont delegation, casting its votes last in the roll call of the states. Sanders took the microphone and urged that the convention declare Hillary Clinton the presidential nominee by acclimation. A few Bernie-or-Bust-ers shouted "Nooo!" but the majority of the crowd hollered "Aye!" and the deed was done. Hillary Clinton was the nominee and Sanders was gone from the floor, leaving the Democrats a salty tear as a memory of the night.

Two different worlds, part 1

One who has paid attention to both major party conventions could be forgiven for thinking they are taking place in parallel universes. The Republican convention focused heavily on the threat of the so-called Islamic State, rising crime, economic malaise and the worldwide plague of radical Islamic extremism. The Democratic convention through two days has been heavy on tales of inspiration and American diversity, with little mention of terrorism.

Last week, former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani gave a barn-burner of a speech, recounting the 2012 terror attack on the U.S. compound in Benghazi, Libya, and saying Hillary Clinton was to blame for the deaths of four Americans. "Who would trust Hillary Clinton to protect them?" he exclaimed. "I wouldn't!"

On Tuesday night he made a cameo appearance at the Democratic convention in a film about the terror attack of 9/11. It was an old news clip of Giuliani saying the air quality at the debris pile was safe, and it was a segue to firefighters thanking Clinton for helping to pass legislation to provide health care to first responders who were exposed to toxins on the site. It was the longest conversation the Democrats had yet engaged about terrorism — but it was really about the environmental impacts of terrorist acts, not about jihad.

Two different worlds, part 2

From “law and order” to “Black Lives Matter,” day two of the Democratic convention further illustrated the starkly differently views the two parties have on criminal justice in America. At last week’s Republican gathering, Donald Trump described himself as the “Law and Order candidate,” who as president would “liberate our citizens from the crime and terrorism and lawlessness.” African-American pastor Mark Burns led the delegates in chants of “All lives matter!”

Contrast that with Tuesday night when the Mothers of the Movement, a group of African-American women, took the stage in Philadelphia to offer power testimonials about losing a son or daughter, many at the hands of law enforcement.

"Hillary Clinton isn’t afraid to say black lives matter," said Lucia McBath, whose 17-year-old son Jordan Davis was killed in 2012 for playing music too loudly. "She isn’t afraid to sit at a table with grieving mothers and bear the full force of our anguish."

From race to criminal justice to national security, the conventions have crystallized the different ways the parties and their nominees look at the country and the world. It is almost as if they are speaking different languages.