Switchin’ tones when the cameras come on: spitting fire all day, smooth jams at nite!. They learned from Obama’s anger translator:

In the first track of the convention, an unapologetic, full-throated Democratic assault on from figures like Strickland and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid showed little restraint toward Mitt Romney, who was criticized for withholding his tax returns, for his Swiss bank account, and for his trouble connecting with average Americans. It was designed to be replayed countless times on cable TV and YouTube — the home of the political junkies who devote time and money to the Obama effort. Inside the Time Warner Arena, each attack drew the crowd of party faithful to their feet, cheering or booing as the moment demanded.

But in the end, the Dems are on message and have no problem actually lauding their nominee, early and often:

Unlike the Republicans, the Democrats did not have to stage a rainbow. It’s who they are.

The second impressive thing about Tuesday night was the exquisite balance between a diverse array of speakers and the consistency of the message. The speeches were carefully reviewed by the convention political team, but the managers of the affair had the wit to let Tammy Duckworth sound like Tammy Duckworth and Deval Patrick sound like Deval Patrick. (One of the few surprising lines that sounded almost like a critique of the Obama administration was Patrick’s cry that “It’s time for the Democratic Party to grow a backbone.”)

There were no self-referential goofballs like Chris Christie upstaging the nominee, and no loony freelancing a la Clint Eastwood. The whole thing ran like a Swiss watch. And while media attention mostly focused on Michelle Obama’s terrific speech, what impressed me was the strength of the rest of the front bench.

[…]

After decades and decades of being internally divided, the Democrats are stunningly unified and almost shockingly professional, yet without sacrificing genuine passion. Though an incumbent’s convention with no real business to transact can be criticized as just another stage show, there are good shows and bad ones. This one is off to a great start.

source: Party Animals.