Hillary Clinton has called on Democrats to unite behind Barack Obama as
the party's presidential candidate, saying she was his "proud
supporter". Speaking at the party's nominating convention, Mrs Clinton said they could not afford to lose to the Republicans. "Whether you voted for me or voted for Barack, the time is now to unite as a single party with a single purpose. "Mr Obama, who beat Mrs Clinton in the primary race, will formally accept the party's nomination on Thursday night. He will stand against Republican John McCain in the presidential election on 4 November.
Mrs Clinton, who was given a standing ovation as she took the stage,
thanked those who supported her through her primary campaign but said
Mr Obama was now "my candidate". "We are on the same team, and none of us can sit on the sidelines," she said. The party could not afford "to see another Republican in the White
House squander the promise of our country and the hopes of our people",
she said.
Mrs Clinton talked of the reasons why she fought to win
the nomination - including creating a universal and affordable health
care system, fighting for an America defined by equality, and restoring
the US's standing in the world. "Those are the reasons I ran for president. Those are
the reasons I support Barack Obama. And those are the reasons you
should too," she said.
She described Mr McCain as "my colleague and my friend"
but went on to attack his record and links with President George W
Bush. "We don't need four more years of the last eight years," she said. Mr. Obama watched the speech from Montana and said it was an "outstanding" appeal for Democratic unity.
Mrs Clinton delivered the compulsory appeal for party unity but no one
knows if it will be enough to change the minds of die-hard Hillary
supporters, some of whom have threatened to vote for Mr McCain.
