Pundits Impressed With Clinton's Speech But Focus On What She Did Not Say

Washington, D.C. (AHN) - Sen. Hillary Clinton's (D-NY) prime time convention speech Tuesday night wowed critics, and even the presumptive nominee himself, Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL). But some pundits point out what she didn't say - that her former rival is ready to lead - a fact that Republicans argue is evidence of a continued rift in the party.

"What we saw tonight is that Hillary Clinton cares a great deal about her party and her country... she posed exactly the right question to her supporters: were you in this just for me or were you in this for the larger causes?" CNN senior political analyst David Gergen declared.

Fox's Chris Wallace took note of Clinton's talking about a lot of issues, such a healthcare and education, in very specific terms for the first time since ending her campaign. "You've got to transfer your support, and what a better way to say it than I fought for this and so will Barack Obama," he said.

ABC's George Stephanopoulos agreed, saying the former first lady "aced" the toughest speech of the convention by "going further than any losing candidate." But Stephanopoulos also pointed out that "the one mission" of her speech - for her to say Obama is ready to lead - seems to have gone unaccomplished.

"Perhaps the calculation in the Clinton camp - that would've seemed inauthentic in some way, too calculated, too political," he said, before adding, "In her speech, she called Joe Biden pragmatic, tough and wise [but] there was no personal adjective to describe the man she spent so many months on the campaign trail with."

Republican strategist Alex Castellanos echoed the argument, saying, "It's 3 a.m. and that phone is still ringing."

"Hillary Clinton gave a workmanlike speech tonight. She checked the boxes... She gave all the reasons she ran for president and then said if you believe in those, vote for the Democratic nominee. Not exactly a ringing endorsement."

The campaign of Sen. John McCain is using the argument to sow doubt among Democrats. "Senator Clinton ran her presidential campaign making clear that Barack Obama is not prepared to lead as commander in chief. Nowhere tonight did she alter that assessment," McCain spokesman Tucker Bounds told MSNBC.

Obama himself thought Clinton gave a good speech. He called it an "excellent, strong" speech, according to the New York Times. "She made the case for why we're going to be unified in November and why we're going to win this election. I thought she was outstanding."

Clinton famously ran two "red phone" TV ads during the primary asking voters who they want answering the phone at the White House at 3 a.m., referring to Obama's inexperience in national security issues.

James Carville had no complaints about the New York senator's address. "You just saw what a hall of famer looks like... The skill at the top level of the Democratic party is as good as I've seen it in a long time," he said a day after criticizing the convention's opening night speakers for not lodging enough attacks against Republicans.

Tuesday's convention speeches seemed to focus exclusively on bashing McCain, contrasting with the previous night's approach of showcasing the life story of Obama. Clinton gave "some of the strongest hits" against McCain, all while asking her backers to support Obama, according to MSNBC's Keith Olbermann. "I don't know how it could have been better, I don't know how it could have been better," Olbermann added.

Clinton is keeping her options open for a possible run in 2012, pundits say. An Obama victory is in her interest since Democrats will have a difficult time running again in four years otherwise.