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Erin Burnett Outfront

Clinton Becomes First Woman Nominated for President By a Majority Party; President Jimmy Carter's Grandson Addresses Convention; Hillary Clinton Wins Democratic Nomination for President. Aired 7-8p ET

Aired July 26, 2016 - 19:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

(CHEERS AND APPLAUSE)

[19:00:11] GOV. TERRY MCAULIFFE (D), VIRGINIA: And you can support that effort right now by going to HillaryClinton.com. Now, folks, I've known Hillary and her husband Bill for more than half of my life. I love this woman. I still remember her playing mermaid in the pool with our youngest daughter Sally for hours on family vacations. I was proud she was the first person to call and congratulate our oldest son Jack when he began his career as an officer in the United States Marine Corps, and I'll never forget when she and then President Clinton did not hesitate to travel through a blizzard to attend my father's funeral.

That is something you will never forget. That is friendship. Hillary is tough. She is determined. She is an amazing mother, grandmother and wife, and I know that she loves this country more than anything else. Compare that to what we just heard from Donald Trump and the Republicans. They spent four days tearing down our country. They blamed immigrants. They blamed refugees. They blamed affordable health care and offered no solutions other than giving the nuclear codes to a man who praises Vladimir Putin and Saddam Hussein.

If Donald Trump really cared about American greatness, he wouldn't attack Democrats. He would follow our lead. In Virginia we're putting our values into action to create jobs and bring our unemployment rate down from 5.3 percent when I took office to 3.7 percent today, the steepest decline a governor has seen at this point in 32 years in Virginia. We have made record investments in public education, expanded access so we have a healthy, nutritious plan for all of our children and let me tell you this, folks, I am so proud of Virginia. We were the first state in the United States of America to be certified to have ended veteran homelessness in our state.

(CHEERS AND APPLAUSE)

We have fought Republican efforts to discriminate against LGBT Virginians, and we have stood up for a woman's right to choose, and we are overcoming obstacles to deny hundreds of thousands of former felons their right to vote because history tells us that enemies of progress can slow the march toward justice and equality, but they cannot stop us.

(CHEERS AND APPLAUSE)

We have come so far since 2008, but there is more work to be done, that's why I support Hillary Clinton, because they'll want a president who have built an economy that works for everyone not just knows at the top. A president who tackles global warming head-on and stands up for common-sense solutions that keep guns away from dangerous people, a president who has vision, purpose and the experience to lead our nation not cheesy slogans and silly hats, a president who will build our country up and not tear it down to scare up votes.

My friends, I have known Hillary for decades. I have seen her in action. I know that she will be the kind of leader that she will be, and she will lead this nation. Tonight we made history, but the fight has just begun. It is time for all of us to get to work and to make my friend Hillary Clinton the next president of the United States of America. Thank you!

(CHEERS AND APPLAUSE)

ERIN BURNETT, CNN ANCHOR: And that was Governor Terry McAuliffe of Virginia, speaking, of course, this was the historic moment that we all just witnessed. Hillary Clinton interestingly becoming the first woman ever to be nominated as the head and the nominee for a major political party here in the United States.

Let me just ask you, Patti Solis Doyle, you were obviously a campaign manager for Hillary Clinton. How did that moment feel?

PATTI SOLIS DOYLE, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Erin, for me, personally, it was extremely emotional. I started working for Hillary in September of 1991, before she was thrust into the public eye when she was the first lady of Arkansas and really when she was a working mom. So the journey from there to here has been remarkable, and let's face it, it's been pretty tough, too. She has had some very trying times in the public eye. So trying that a lot of other people would have quit long ago. So to see her here tonight and get the nomination is just incredible and also even on a more personal level for me.

[19:05:11] You know, she hired me when I was very, very young, and she trained me, she taught me, she mentored me. She created a work environment where I could succeed at my job and also raise a family, and it wasn't just me. There have been hundreds of women through that journey that got her here today, and I think that's her legacy, here as the first woman nominee for a party for president, she has so many women that she has mentored throughout that career.

BURNETT: And Bakari, it was a moment in history for women, but also watching you react to that.

BAKARI SELLERS, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Yes.

BURNETT: A very emotional moment for a lot of people in this room.

SELLERS: Well, I think Kayleigh and I are probably the two younger people that you see on TV on a nightly basis on CNN. I'm 31 years old, and it was 2008 when I got a chance to see this same moment when we nominated the first African-American president of the United States and now to be here to witness the first female president of the United States -- or female nominee of a major party, I mean, you just can't really put it into words what we've been able to do here today. I'm very proud to be a part of that moment. I'm very proud to have an 11- year-ol step daughter that I can tell about this moment.

This environment was just amazing, but whether or not you're a Democrat or Republican, whether or not you're black or white, I think you can take a step back for a moment and just appreciate the journey because we have come a very long way. We have come in this country a very long way. We still understand we have progress that has yet to be made, but tonight is a moment when we can sit back for a moment and just be proud.

I mean, it's tough for some people on a certain side of the aisle to be proud of Hillary Clinton but tonight I'm just so full of emotion. And so thankful that I can call her a friend, so thankful that people like Patti and I am extremely proud to say that Hillary Rodham Clinton is the Democratic nominee for president of the United States.

BURNETT: And Gloria, when Bakari is referencing that people on both sides of the aisle might be able to feel that, sure, there are some who probably can't. But there are many who cannot. There are many who feel that this is a moment for this country that this can happen.

GLORIA BORGER, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, just think of the history. It's been almost a century in this country since women were first granted a right to vote. Almost a century.

BURNETT: Right.

BORGER: Now, finally, you have a woman nominee of a major party. Hillary Clinton tonight stepped into history, and we were here to watch it, and whether you like Hillary Clinton or you don't like Hillary Clinton it is a moment in history and you know, Hillary Clinton talked about punching through that glass ceiling in 2008. She was not able to do it. There were cracks, as she said. Tonight she did punch through it, and I think that just taking a step back about where we've come in this past century and this country, it's taken us a lot longer than some other countries, but it is quite remarkable.

BURNETT: David, it's also something to think about during this primary process. I remember speaking to young women, Bernie Sanders supporters, and they said, why does this matter? There will be a woman president in our lifetime. This doesn't matter. Do you think that some of them will be moved now and perhaps feel a little bit differently because they truly didn't at one point?

DAVID AXELROD, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Well, I actually took it as a reflection of progress --

BURNETT: That they felt that way.

AXELROD: That women felt this way.

BURNETT: Yes.

AXELROD: But it didn't seem extraordinary that a woman could be the nominee for president which I think is progress in and of itself. But let me say this, I am not among the youngest on this platform tonight.

(LAUGHTER)

And I've been through this process a lot, and I still find it so moving, and I was in a hotel room in Denver in 2008 when Hillary Clinton walked out on to the floor after a long, difficult battle, and moved the convention to embrace Barack Obama as the nominee, and I remember how emotional it was for me to see that happen. So -- and to see Bernie Sanders do it here.

BURNETT: Yes.

AXELROD: And we should just take a step back and say, you know, we've got problems and we've got challenges in this country, but democracy is a beautiful thing and to see two opponents come together and respect that process and join together in common cause is an inspiring thing.

BURNETT: Fierce moments and it was very emotional. I think anyone watching would have to admit that they felt some emotion watching Bernie Sanders at multiple times today, tearing up when his brother spoke and at that final moment, you know, the graciousness that he exhibited but also on some level, you see someone who sees it and there's pain, too, right?

DAN PFEIFFER, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Right. I mean, this is incredibly hard and you put everything you have into a presidential campaign and you go for year-and-a-half like he did. And come up just so short, it's very hard. I know it was hard for the Clinton supporters and the Clinton campaign, but the way he did it and to be here and to soak in the support and the recognition for everything he achieved. He may not have won the election but he scored real policy victories and set up an infrastructure for progressive movement going forward, and the way he did this was like the epitome of class and grace, and as Democrats we should praise him for that.

[19:10:16] BURNETT: And David, that's what you saw. I mean, and the tone felt different. There was so much cheering today for Bernie Sanders, but it didn't feel that it was against Hillary Clinton or as much booing or it really felt like it was -- it was very joyful on behalf of him, but also moving to support her. The feeling was different.

DAVID CHALIAN, CNN POLITICAL DIRECTOR: I think we saw over these last two days in this convention that the Clinton team made a strategic decision and one perhaps they were forced into by the reality of the numbers. But made the decision to let the Sanders forces for two days co-own this convention with them and let them breathe through and work through the difficult process of losing that Dana's talking about.

And they did it every step of the way including the way this roll call vote went down, and I think that was extraordinarily helpful for the Sanders folks even if they're not all there, I think it was helpful for Bernie himself to start getting to where he needed to go as well as the bulk of his supporters. It was a wide, strategic decision even if it was one that was needed just from the reality.

BORGER: It was helpful to Hillary Clinton.

CHALIAN: Yes.

AXELROD: Oh, absolutely.

BORGER: It unified this convention.

AXELROD: Can I just make one point here? Twenty four hours ago everyone was talking about disunity, chaos, that was the story of the day. Now the story is unity, and it's just a reminder to all of us that this is a dynamic process and we need to analyze it in the moment, but it's a long process with lots of chapters and we should be a little humble in trying to evaluate any given epic.

BURNETT: So, Kayleigh, as a Donald Trump supporter, but as a woman, and as a millennial and as someone who is a young woman millennial. How did this moment feel to you? I mean, did it catch you?

KAYLEIGH MCENANY, TRUMP SUPPORTER: Oh, I congratulate the Secretary of becoming the first female presidential nominee, that's certainly an achievement at the part of history. No one will be able to take that from her, but you know, for Donald Trump supporters we realize that we can talk about history but the stakes are very grave right now, certainly when there is an ISIS terrorist attack every 84 hours and there are issues that come above history and national security would be one of them and the economy would be another. I'm happy for her. I applaud her on this remarkable achievement, but as a young woman I'll be voting on other issues.

BURNETT: All right. Well, thanks to all. All staying with us. And ahead OUTFRONT, the mothers of Trayvon Martin, Eric Garner, Michael Brown, united by the deaths of their children, they all will be featured in this convention in the next hour speaking. And he could be the country's first gentleman, Bill Clinton, the headliner tonight, making the case for his wife to be president.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:15:36] BURNETT: And we are back live at the Democratic convention on a truly historic night. Hillary Clinton now officially the first woman nominated by a major party for president of the United States. Ahead, the heavily anticipated appearance of Bill Clinton, that is the keynote tonight many are expecting an especially powerful appeal on behalf of his wife tonight. And yet, that is going to be the big focus of this evening, right? I mean, he has a crucial hour, not going to be speaking that long, but a good portion of it is going to be Bill Clinton.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Exactly. Don't kid yourself.

(LAUGHTER) NIA-MALIKA HENDERSON, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL REPORTER: Yes, and I

think a lot of people are going to tune in to see Bill Clinton. He was a star last go around for Obama in 2012 and explained in his words why the Democratic Party was a better choice for Americans back then. I think this go round he has a role similar to Ann Romney in 2012 and Michelle Obama in 2008. I don't encourage him to read either of those speeches too closely because he wants to get into the plagiarism problem --

BURNETT: Plagiarism is what can happen if that happens.

HENDERSON: But, you know, that is his role, I think, tonight to really soften Hillary Clinton. The Clinton campaign likes to say that she's the most famous woman in the world that nobody knows. So tonight I expect we'll get some stories about Hillary Clinton, about what she's like as a mom. What she's like as a grandmother, and what she's been like as a wife and also Bill Clinton often talks about Hillary Clinton being the best change maker he knows. The greatest change maker he knows. So, imagine how he gets into that a bit as well.

BURNETT: Gloria?

BORGER: Spouses are supposed to humanize, you know, their mate who is running for president. But I keep saying Bill Clinton is a guy and I don't know how -- how he may be the only guy I know who can do that because he feels your pain. But I guarantee you that while it's going to be a personal speech because of course it will, there's going to be a lot of policy woven into this because Bill Clinton is such a wonk and cares so much about policy and it has kind of governed his life. So I think we'll going to hear a combination of both, but there is no model for this.

BURNETT: Yes.

BORGER: I mean, he's a former president --

BURNETT: Right.

BORGER: -- and his wife is running for president and it's kind of hard to figure out what his speech is going to be because it's got to be packed with so much.

AXELROD: That, of course, is a microcosm of the larger question because we've never had two presidents who were married to each other.

BORGER: Right.

AXELROD: So, you know, there are all kinds of questions associated with that, but I think he would make a terrible mistake if he -- if this sounds in any way like a political speech.

BORGER: Right. Yes. Yes.

BURNETT: Right. AXELROD: It would be a terrible mistake. The fact is he knows

Hillary better than anybody. He's been with her every step of the way through personal and her public life, and remember, the theme of this night is the battle she's fought or something similar to that. And so if he can give us a sense of her motivation, of what it is that's in her gut, what drives her, that would be very helpful to Hillary Clinton.

BURNETT: All right. And as we take a break, getting ready for that, Bill Clinton, his wife's most powerful surrogate taking center stage.

And next, one of the first women in Hollywood to endorse Hillary Clinton, actor, director, producer, Elizabeth Banks with a very special appearance and performance you're not going to want to miss it. We'll be right back OUTFRONT.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:22:45] BURNETT: And welcome back live from the Democratic convention. Hillary Rodham Clinton is now at this moment officially her party's nominee for president, a moment of history that all of us here in this hall were able to see. Bill Clinton is going to be speaking, the 42nd president is the featured speaker here tonight, expected to highlight his wife's history as a champion, for women, for the poor and the middle class.

And coming up in just a couple of moments, you will going to hear live Jimmy Carter, the 39th president speaking on the 48th anniversary of his own nomination.

And David Chalian, it's a significant thing here that you have seen the depth of the party coming out in support of Hillary Clinton, something obviously very different than what we saw last week in Cleveland where you had Mitt Romney, Jeb Bush, and George Bush not there.

CHALIAN: Sure. But she had the establishment side of the party of all the office holders the entire time.

BURNETT: Right. Right.

CHALIAN: It was the new energy and youthful part of the party that Bernie Sanders brought in. You know, it was a moment in history, and I do think this feels a new moment for Hillary Clinton. This is someone that we have seen on the public stage for 25 years, Erin. We think we know everything about her already and we do know a lot, but we are now seeing her for the first time do things that we haven't seen her do in that quarter century, such as pick a vice presidential candidate as a running mate. Come out, you know, accept this nomination and hit this siege (ph), and set forth in a new way. So, we are seeing even after a quarter century in the public stage, Hillary Clinton in a new light.

BURNETT: And Bakari, obviously Jimmy Carter is going to be a significant address, his grandson Jason Carter is actually about to introduce him so let's listen to that right now. DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: He's a war hero. He's a war

hero. He's a war hero because he was captured. I like people that weren't captured, okay? I hate to tell you.

ANNOUNCER: Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome State Senator Jason Carter from Georgia.

(MUSIC PLAYING)

JASON CARTER, JIMMY CARTER'S GRANDSON: Greetings from the battleground state of Georgia. When my grandfather accepted the Democratic nomination for president he stood before this group and said it is time for America to move and to speak not with boasting and belligerence, but with a quiet strength. To depend in the world of fears not merely on the size of an arsenal, but on the mobility of ideas. And to govern it home not by confusion and crisis, but with grace and imagination and common sense. Those words feel even more relevant today than they did 40 years ago, and I promise that he is itching to get on the campaign trail and elect Hillary Clinton.

This last year has been a remarkable one in our family. Almost exactly a year ago my grandfather was diagnosed with cancer. He approached this diagnosis with the exact faith, dignity and strength that we've come to expect. He never stopped working for health and peace around the world, and he never stopped teaching Sunday school at home on the plains. Today, thanks to the miracles of modern science and the power of prayer, I am happy to report that the cancer is gone.

(CHEERS AND APPLAUSE)

And not only that, but earlier this month he and my grandmother celebrated their 70th wedding anniversary. My grandparents -- my grandparents demonstrate that there is a strength in love, humility and service that no amount of anger or pride or salesmanship can match. That principled strength is what drives them in the work that they do every day and that same principled strength will elect Hillary Clinton as our next president.

(CHEERS AND APPLAUSE)

JIMMY CARTER, 39TH PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Good evening, Democrats. Forty years ago, in our nation's bicentennial year I stood before you to accept your nomination as president. Rose and I wish we could be there with you tonight to prepare for what would be an extremely important election, one that will define for a generation who we are as a nation and as a people.

[19:27:11] We, Americans, have a force before us and I feel proud that two Democratic candidates who competed throughout a long primary season like Bernie Sanders and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton comforted themselves with dignity and talked about issues that matter and presented a vision for our nation. Now, I thank Senator Sanders for energizing and bringing so many young people into the electoral process. To all of the young Americans I say stay engaged, stay involved and be sure to vote this November.

At a moment when it's become more important than ever to lift people up, to offer hope and a road map for a brighter future, instead we see a Republican presidential candidate who seems to violate some of the most important moral and ethical principles on which our nation was founded. We can and must do better. Unfortunately, the Democratic nominee will soon be choosing over the stark contrast in both substance and style and also competence and experience to what the Republicans have chosen. I've known Hillary Clinton for decades, when she was a young attorney.

I pointed her out to the legal services corporation where she became the first woman chair. There, Hillary have fought to make sure that in our courts, those with the least were treated the same as those with the most. And since then, as you know, Hillary has always demonstrated a willingness to take on the most difficult challenges and to get things done. Her life has been dedicated to advance the human right across the globe especially for women and children. These are perilous times who needs someone with a strong heart, a deep understanding of issues, challenges and opportunities and a steady hand. Hillary Clinton has my support. I know she will also have yours. A united Democratic Party will prevail in November.

Thank you all and God bless the United States of America.

(CHEERS AND APPLAUSE)

ANNOUNCER: Please welcome Senator Chuck Schumer from New York.

SENATOR CHARLES SCHUMER (D), NEW YORK: Hello, New York. I love you! Now, there is a statue in the harbor of the city I represent, a mighty woman with a torch. To me, that torch represents the American dream, and if you ask the average American what that dream means to them they put it simply and not in fancy language, they'd say, if I work hard I'll be doing better ten years from now than I'm doing today, and my kids will be doing still better than me.

[19:30:11] Each generation must keep that torch burning brightly. It's the source of our optimism. President Obama did. He fought every day to defend fundamental American hope, but we have more work to do. Middle-class incomes have not grown enough, too many families struggle to make ends meet and if that continues, the torch will flicker.

Its power to inspire hope will dim. Some are using this unease to pit Americans against each other. Not us. We Democrats fight for an America that works for everyone, that's focused on leveling the playing field for all of us. And when Hillary Clinton wins the White House and Democrats win back the Senate majority, that is just what we will do.

My friends, Hillary understands what middle-class families need better than anyone. I know because I know Hillary. I worked by her side for eight years. As senators together we were representing the great state of New York, and now, folks, I'm from Brooklyn. It's in our blood to sniff out bull. Now, there's a lot of that in politics, but not in Hillary. When she

tells you something, take it to the bank. I saw it. Her remarkable ability to listen, internalize the concerns, fears, hopes and dreams of everyday Americans, and then work hard and get things done for them. Hillary listened to the factory worker at the Bechtel plant in Schenectady worried sick that his company was leaving town. Hillary got tough. She read the corporate honchos the Riot Act until they agreed to keep their plant open, saving his job and many others.

And Hillary listened to the first responders and union workers who rushed to the pile after that terrible day, 9/11. They were searching for signs of life in the smoldering rubble, breathing in toxic fumes with every breath. She championed their cause, fought to get them the health care they deserved and they got it!

That, ladies and gentlemen, is the kind of leadership this country needs, and the stakes could not be higher. Most elections are about two different visions for America. This election is about two different visions of America, and Donald Trump can only see an angry America, fearful, small, closed to the world and suspicious of our friends and our neighbors.

Hillary sees a different America. An America that strives to live up to the promise written here in Philadelphia that every man, every woman has a right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, and America where we don't build walls. We break down barriers. We shatter ceilings and that's because of our differences make us stronger, stronger together.

So, Hillary Clinton has the right vision for America, but my colleagues and my Senate colleagues will agree with me, we cannot do -- she cannot do it alone. She's going to need a majority in the United States Senate! A Senate majority that puts a new Supreme Court justice on the bench, who will protect women's rights, voting rights and undo that awful decision, Citizens United.

A Senate majority that will raise the minimum wage, ensure equal pay for women, that will pass comprehensive immigration reform, make substantial investments in infrastructure and give every student a shot at affording a college education and that changes our trade policy so it doesn't represent corporate America, but represents the average American.

With Hillary Clinton as president, a strong Senate majority by her side, we will keep that American dream alive for a new generation, and ladies and gentlemen, that torch in the harbor of the city in which I live, it won't flicker. It won't fade. It will burn brightly in the heart of every American.

Thank you. God bless you, and God bless America!

ERIN BURNETT, CNN ANCHOR: Chuck Schumer, the senator from New York speaking glowingly of Hillary Clinton, who of was his colleague for eight years. He was one of the first senators to endorse her in 2008 and has been a supporter of hers all of the way along. We're getting ready for what's going to be a very big moment,

Elizabeth Banks, actress, director, producer is going to be taking the stage with a performance and also introducing a couple of the key themes that we'll be hearing a lot more of throughout the evening and one of them Hillary Clinton's work with children and families and another they're dubbing social justice and you're going to be hearing the mother from the likes of -- and let's listen.

(MUSIC)

ELIZABETH BANKS, ACTRESS, PRODUCER AND DIRECTOR: You know, I don't usually say this about Donald Trump, but that was over the top. I confirmed it just now. The Trump campaign is so hard up for money I just bought that fog machine for eBay for $30. I don't feel good about it. I don't.

It's night two. Who's pumped up?

(CHEERS AND APPLAUSE)

Who's excited to pound a dozen cheese steaks with me after this?

(CHEERS)

Let's try that again. Who is ready to elect Hillary Clinton the next president of the United States?

(CHEERS AND APPLAUSE)

Whew! Me, too. I'm Elizabeth Banks. Some of you know me from "The Hunger Games" in which I play Effie Trinket, a cruel, out of touch reality TV star who wears insane wigs while delivering long-winded speeches to a violent dystopia.

So, when I tuned in last week I was, like, hey, that's my act. Part of me really likes being up here joking around, but the other part of me knows that this election is too important for jokes because when I think about what this election means for America, I think about my family. My father, a Vietnam vet worked the second and third shifts on the factory floor in my hometown Pittsfield, Massachusetts. My mother worked at the library and the local bank.

And they worked hard. They struggled because like millions of American parents they wanted to give their kid, four of us, a good life with boundless opportunities. And it is because of what Democrats built -- good public school, affordable health care, help in the hardest times -- that they were able to do that.

And their dreams and mine took me here to Philadelphia, really. Through scholarships and financial aid, I worked my way through the University of Pennsylvania. I got a world-class education, and I met my wonderful husband and partner Max.

I will never forget that day in 1992 when we went on a big, romantic date, a rally for Bill Clinton. And it was there that I learned really important about show business. The headliner should always watch out for someone stealing the show.

Hillary Clinton rocked my world. A smart, committed, successful and not for her own benefit, but a fighter for women and children, cops and first responders, health care and girls around the world. That's Hillary Clinton, and that is what tonight is all about, the fights of her life.

[19:40:01] Did you know that when Hillary Clinton graduated law school, she didn't just sell out and go work for some fancy law firm. She went to work advocating for children and families. It was one of her first fights, and since, then she has never let up.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HILLARY CLINTON (D), PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: One of the areas that I've been particularly interested in is the area of children.

All of us have a responsibility to ourselves, to our children, to each other.

We intend to be sure that everybody in this room and every child in this state is somebody.

No matter where they're born, no matter to whom they are born.

Our children's future is shaped.

Both by the values of their parents and the policies of their nation.

It's time to protect the next generation, fill the lives of our children with possibility and hope.

Open up the doors so that every child has a chance to live up to his or her God-given potential.

I've spent my life fighting for children, families and our country, and I'm not stopping now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(CHEERS AND APPLAUSE)

THADDEUS DESMOND, CHILD ADVOCATE & SOCIAL WORKER: In her early 20s, Hillary Clinton spent time at the Yale New Haven Hospital researching child abuse. She saw children who had been beaten, burned and neglected. The experience turned her into a lifelong champion for kids in need.

As a child advocate social worker, I, too, am a champion for children and I am lucky to work with a team of champion, social workers, case managers, attorneys, and other individuals us who lifelong work is to ensure that all children have a chance at greatness. Child advocacy has made significant strides in the right direction, but our work is far from finished. Every child deserves an advocate who truly cares for them and they have one in Hillary Clinton.

Hillary knows that when you fight for our kids, you're fighting for our futures. That's why I am with her.

(CHEERS AND APPLAUSE)

BURNETT: That was Thaddeus Desmond, a 28-year-old social worker speaking on behalf of Hillary Clinton.

And coming up, these emotional moments continue. The mothers are of Trayvon Martin, Eric Garner, Michael Brown and others are all going to join together after the deaths of their children for the cause of racial justice. They will be speaking here tonight and everyone in this hall waiting to hear from the headliner this evening, Bill Clinton. It's all ahead.

We'll be back in just a moment OUTFRONT.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BURNETT: We are back OUTFRONT at the Democratic convention.

Bill Clinton getting ready to take the podium tonight. His wife's historic nomination for president is now official. And Dana Bash is here on the floor with me as we are getting ready for the big keynote speech of this historic evening, Bill Clinton.

Dana, what are you learning about that crucial speech tonight?

DANA BASH, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, it's going to be, obviously, something that we have never seen in history. It's going to be one of many things that are a first in history today and that is a former president introducing or talking about, rather, his wife who was just nominated as the first woman at a major party ticket, pretty remarkable.

But I have to say just being down here on the floor watching what effectively was sort of the last gasp of the Bernie or bust movement, it was remarkable to watch during that roll call that we took live throughout the entire -- all of the 57 states and territories. There were Bernie delegates who were trying to get close to the their voices heard, but the Hillary Clinton campaign and the superdelegates and delegates who announced the states' roll calls were determined to not let that happen.

And so, the people at home didn't see that there was a little bit of discord, but I also think that there was a lot less that we had anticipated based on the people that we were talking to, the Bernie or bust delegates, they were hoping to get a lot more sort of the optics of people being upset with Hillary Clinton, and it didn't happen as much as we thought, Erin.

BURNETT: And, Dana, thank you.

David Chalian, we are getting ready now for Donna Brazile. This will be a very important speech. Of course, very well known to us and to all of our viewers and at the crucial role at the helm of the DNC after the Debbie Wasserman Schultz departure. DAVID CHALIAN, CNN POLITICS DIRECTOR: The departure, the party in the

moments of disarray, Donna Brazile now coming in and her role is to stitch it all back together and to make sure that for now and through the election, the party feels as one.

BURNETT: Bakari?

BAKARI SELLERS, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Let me point out something else, the chairman and CEO of this convention is Leah Daughtry, the incoming chairman of the Democrat Party is Donna Brazile and Stephanie Rawlings-Blake. We had Marcia Fudge who ran this convention, and we had Michelle Obama taking home last night.

What you saw were five African-American women who are now dictating the pace of the Democratic Party and I was today I had an opportunity to have lunch with Donna Brazile and Moore and many, many others and it was an amazing feeling that that is the group that Hillary Clinton needs to come out and come out big. That's a group that she actually had to ride to the nomination.

But it's the group that's dictating the pace of the Republican Party and I was very proud to be a part of that moment.

BURNETT: And, Dan, this is a woman who knows Democratic politics incredibly well. She has worked on every single Democratic campaign since 1976.

[19:50:02] She is known, she knows and she is incredibly well- respected.

DAN PFEIFFER, FORMER OBAMA SENIOR ADVISER: I first worked for Donna in the Gore campaign in 2000. She is a beloved figure in this party and she's a great strategist and the she's the exact person we needed to get over the disarray to get over Debbie Wasserman Schulz and we are very fortunate to have her waiting in the wings to take over this moment.

BURNETT: And here she is so let's listen in to Donna Brazile.

ANNOUNCER: Donna Brazile.

(MUSIC)

(CHEERS AND APPLAUSE)

DONNA BRAZILE, INTERIM DNC CHAIR: Growing, growing up I was always told that a lady should never reveal her age, so I will simply say this. I'm no spring chicken. I've seen some things in my time, and as a child, I lived through and survived the segregated south. Who dat! I sat at the back of the bus when America wasn't as great as it could be.

As a grown woman, I saw the first black president reach out and touch the face of a child like I once was, lifting his eyes toward a better future, but I have never, ever in all of my years seen a leader so committed to delivering that better future to America's children as Hillary Clinton.

(CHEERS AND APPLAUSE)

Let me tell you, Arkansas, when I first met Hillary Clinton, when Hillary graduated from law school, she could have gone to work for a corporation or a big law firm. Instead, she went to work for the children dispense fund.

She didn't sit in the office. She traded pumps for tennis shoes. Hillary went undercover going door to door, school to school investigating discrimination and the treatment of children with disabilities. During that same time, Donald Trump was facing a federal discrimination lawsuit for refusing to rent to minority families.

Hillary Clinton -- Hillary Clinton risked her own safety to seek out the truth and comfort the afflicted and to make a home for justice where there was it was at the children defense fund that I met Hillary Clinton. I was 22, feisty and ready to fight. I remember thinking immediately, here is a woman who doesn't mess around, and you know, us Southern girls, we don't mess around! Steel in her spine. Hillary didn't want to talk about anything other than how to make children's lives better.

That's the Hillary I know. That's when she is. When nobody was watching she fought hard for the voiceless among us. Over her career, that has never changed. She has never changed from expanding early childhood education as the first laid of Arkansas to helping win healthcare for 8 million children as first lady of the United States for standing up for women here at home and girls around the world as secretary of state.

Hillary has never forgotten what she learned at that very first job, and rooting her to this earth. It's the belief that every child, black or white, native born, immigrant or undocumented they deserve to have the opportunity to live up to their God-given potential. My friends, as a child, when I sat in the back of the bus, I was told time and time again that that potential did not exist in people like me.

I spent my life fighting to change that and from the first day I met Hillary Clinton, I have known that she is someone who cares just as much and will fight just as hard for children everywhere. Poor kids, you've got a champion. Kids who live in poverty, you've got a champion! Kids who need help, you've got a champion! As long as she's in charge, we're never going back and that's why I am with her!

(CHEERS AND APPLAUSE)

[19:55:08] And let me say this, as your incoming chair of the Democratic National Committee -- I promise you, my friends, I commit to all Americans that we will have a party that you can be proud of. We will elect Democrats up and down the ballot and we will celebrate together the inauguration of President Hillary Clinton in January 2017. God bless you and God bless America!

(CHEERS AND APPLAUSE)

BURNETT: Bakari, an impassioned speech and the crowd here is roaring for Donna Brazile.

SELLERS: Donna Brazile deserves all of this. I'm loving it. She's sauntering across the stage. She was the epitome, just as we saw last night with Michelle Obama, with the intellect and that elegance and you can hear the crowd behind us because the Democratic Party, if we need anything right now, we need Donna Brazile.

BURNETT: And these are some of the biggest cheers of the night that we've heard by far for Donna Brazile. Everyone in the hall is getting ready and waiting to hear from Bill Clinton, that of course, the headliner tonight.

Anderson Cooper and Wolf Blitzer will pick up our coverage after we take a brief break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)