First lady Michelle Obama endorsed Hillary Clinton for president Monday, in a speech that wowed the Democratic convention and made waves on social media.
The deeply personal speech touched on Obama’s time in the White House, her values as a mother and an unequivocal endorsement for Clinton, who she described as “one person who I truly believe is qualified to be president of the United States.”
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The first lady celebrated Clinton for being a positive role model for young women in the U.S. and around the world, adding that Clinton’s quest to be the first woman elected president would follow in the historic footsteps of Barack Obama’s historic tenure in the White as the first black president.
“That is the story of this country, the story that has brought me to this stage tonight, the story of generations of people who felt the lash of bondage, the shame of servitude, the sting of segregation, but who kept on striving and hoping and doing what needed to be done so that today I wake up every morning in a house that was built by slaves. And I watch my daughters, two beautiful, intelligent, black young women playing with their dogs on the White House lawn,” Obama said.
“All our sons and daughters now take for granted that a woman can be president of the United States,” Obama said.
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Of course, there were a few jabs at the opposition.
While Obama never mentioned Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump by name in her speech, she made several references to Trump’s campaign — including his love for Twitter.
“I want someone with the proven strength to persevere, someone who knows this job and takes it seriously, someone who understands that the issues a president faces are not black-and-white and cannot be boiled down to 140 characters,” she said.
“Because when you have the nuclear codes at your fingertips and the military in your command, you can’t make snap decisions. You can’t have a thin skin or a tendency to lash out. You need to be steady and measured and well-informed.”
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The crowd erupted with applause when Obama pushed back on Trump’s campaign slogan — “Make America great again” — saying, “Don’t let anyone ever tell you that this country isn’t great. That somehow we need to make it great again. Because this right now is the greatest country on earth.”
The speech is already being celebrated by pundits as one of the most memorable convention speeches in history. New York Times writer Rebecca Traister wrote, “It was not just one of the best and most ingenious speeches ever given by a political spouse at a party convention, it was one of the finest speeches I have heard at a convention, period.”
Moments after the speech ended, the #DemConvention hashtag on Twitter was overrun with support for Obama — some even suggesting she should consider a presidential run.
President Barack Obama also shared his support for his wife on Twitter.
— With files from The Associated Press
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