Moving words from Michelle Obama, Edward Kennedy

The opening session of the Democratic convention in Denver was designed as a coming-out party for the presumptive nominee's wife, Michelle Obama.

Though nearly upstaged by Sen. Edward M. Kennedy's brave appearance, Michelle Obama confounded any skeptics with a well-crafted and emotional speech.

In an earlier interview with CNN's Roland Martin, she had announced her intention to "give people a broader insight into who Barack Obama is and not just as a candidate but as a man, a husband and a father."

In fact the burden of her speech was assumed to be to reveal more of herself. People were tuning in, we were told, to see if she could pass the Litmus test as a prospective president's wife. Could she put a warm and engaging face atop the perception of her as a haughty and strident person?

Apparently no one told her that she was being graded on style more than substance. Not content with presenting a friendly façade, she delivered a stirring message that touched on family ties, respect for others, hard work, and principles higher than self-interest.

Her posture may well have seemed stiff at times, her smile forced, but her passion and her sincerity enabled her to connect with the Pepsi Center crowd and, more important, with the cameras.

Earlier in the day, it was another woman who got the lion's share of the TV coverage, as pundits speculated about Hillary Rodham Clinton's crucial role in mending party rifts and her level of commitment to that cause.

CNN analyst Dana Milbank branded the Democrats as fractious, citing Will Rogers' witticism: "I'm not a member of any organized political party. I'm a Democrat!"

It certainly looked disorganized when party chairman Howard Dean called the convention to order at 5 p.m. Philadelphia time. There were more reporters and camera crews than delegates on the floor of the Pepsi Center.

Last night may not be remembered as a thrilling banquet of oratory, not after stiff, spell-piercing speeches by Nancy Pelosi and Caroline Kennedy.

But the evening built to a satisfying climax with the moving film tribute to Sen. Kennedy. Having the ailing senator from Massachusetts walk out on the stage afterward with his hand bandaged was a special moment, like Willis Reed limping onto the court at Madison Square Garden in 1970.