Mr Kennedy’s appearance wiped away, at least for the evening, some of the tension that continued to plague the party in the wake of the primary fight between Mr Obama and Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton.
It also represented an effort by the Obama campaign to claim the Kennedy mantle, and it set the stage for the second part of what was designed to be an emotionally powerful two-act evening: an appearance later by Michelle Obama, who began a weeklong effort to present her husband — and his entire family — as embodiments of the American dream.

“You see, Barack doesn’t care where you’re from, or what your background is, or what party, if any, you belong to,” said Mrs Obama, without explicitly mentioning the racial undercurrents that have swirled around her husband’s candidacy.

“You see, that’s just not how he sees the world. He knows that thread that connects us — our belief in America’s promise, our commitment to our children’s future — he knows that that thread is strong enough to hold us together as one nation even when we disagree.”

Family tableau

At the end of the evening’s proceedings, Mr Obama appeared before the convention by video hookup, with his young daughters, Malia and Sasha, joining his wife on stage for what was clearly intended to transmit a loving American family tableau.

Even as Mrs Obama led the effort to present a warm and positive portrayal of her husband during the portion of the proceedings broadcast by network television, Democrats moved aggressively earlier in the proceedings to portray his likely Republican opponent, Senator John McCain of Arizona, in harsh terms.

In an early taste of coming efforts to define Mr McCain negatively, they attacked him for his ties to President Bush, his opposition to abortion rights and as being out of touch with the concerns of ordinary Americans.
After a speech by his niece Caroline Kennedy and a video tribute, Mr Kennedy walked slowly to the lectern, limping slightly, with his wife, Victoria, who kissed him and left him there. The crowd, many of them wiping tears from their eyes, cheered for close to two minutes until he settled them down.

Blue-collar past

Mrs Obama spoke of her own family’s blue-collar past and spoke of her husband’s life as “a great American story.”

“Barack and I were raised with so many of the same values,” she added. “That you work hard for what you want in life; that your word is your bond and you do what you say you’re going to do; that you treat people with dignity and respect, even if you don’t know them, and even if you don’t agree with them.

“And Barack and I set out to build lives guided by these values and pass them on to the next generation.”