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As Obama Passes Baton, Some Worry Dems Shifting Too Far Left

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PHILADELPHIA -- The third night of the DNC welcomed President Barack Obama, Vice President Joe Biden and vice presidential nominee Tim Kaine to the stage Wednesday night to make the case for why Hillary Clinton should be the nation's next commander in chief.

For some, the most poignant point of the evening is when Clinton and Obama embraced on stage. It's a scene that took a long time to realize in America: an outgoing black president flanked by a woman nominated by a major political party running to replace him.

"So with the presidency of President Barack Obama and potentially the combination of President Hillary Clinton, I think this affords us a window of opportunity to really revisit and recapture what my father was trying to lead us toward before he was killed," commented Rev. Bernice King, daughter of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Thursday night, it's Clinton's turn to begin the process of unifying her party and make the case why voters should send another Clinton to the White House.

According to journalist Roland Martin, the most crucial thing is that Clinton be herself.

"You know what, here's the most important thing for me: I believe it is a mistake when people say Hillary Clinton has to show softness, she has to show toughness, she has to build trust," he said. "Her deal has to be, 'This is me, okay? This is who I am. I'm a person who is going to work, who's going to stay late, and who's going to work hard.'"

Passing the Torch

Meanwhile, the president made it clear he believes Clinton is the woman for the job as he sought to pass the torch to his former rival.

"There has never been a man or a woman, not me, not Bill, nobody more qualified than Hillary Clinton to serve as president of the United States of America," he declared. 

He has come full circle, a two-term president who burst onto the national stage just 12 years ago at the 2004 Democratic Convention. Then an unknown Illinois state senator, he would become president of the United States just four years later.

Now, if Donald Trump wins, his legacy is on the line. With that in mind, he's working hard to promote a like-minded political veteran.

"Look, Hillary's got her share of critics. She's been caricatured by the Right and by some folks on the Left, accused of everything you can imagine – and some things you can't," he continued. "But she knows that's what happens when you're under a microscope for 40 years."

Kaine Accepts VP Nomination

Meanwhile, Kaine introduced himself to Democrats as he officially accepted his party's vice presidential nomination.

The Virginia senator touted his humble Midwestern roots along with his faith, sharing how he took a year off from law school to serve as a missionary in Honduras. He also talked about his Jesuit schooling. 

"Now, we had a motto in my school, 'men for others,'" Kaine said. "And it was there that my faith became something vital, my North Star for orienting my life. And when I left high school I knew I wanted to battle for social justice."

He also sharpened his teeth as Clinton's "Never Trump" attack dog. 

"He never tells you how he's going to do any of the things he says he'll do. He just says 'believe me.' So here's the question. Here's the question: do you really believe him?" Kaine probed.

Before Kaine took the stage, Vice President Joe Biden showed him how it was done. Living up to his nickname, 'Fighting Joe,' he told the audience that Donald Trump "doesn't have a clue."

"He tries to tell ya he's pulling for the middle class – that's a bunch of malarkey," Biden charged.

Kaine's About-Face on Abortion

For Clinton, Kaine brings a potential win in battleground Virginia. Kaine's already moving to the left to appease liberal Democrats.

He's reversed his position on the Hyde Amendment, saying he will fall in line with the new party platform and support efforts to repeal the 40-year-old law that prohibits the use of federal tax dollars for abortion.

Even before his decision on the Hyde Amendment, Kaine has been under fire from Catholic leaders for his pro-abortion policies.

On the same day the Virginia senator was selected as Clinton's running mate, Bishop Francis Di-Lorenzo from Virginia issued a statement saying, "Catholic teaching informs us that every human life is sacred from conception until natural death and any law denying the unborn the right to life is unequivocally unjust."

Kaine says although he disagrees with abortion, his faith isn't central to his political life.

It's another let down for pro-life Democrats who already felt like outcasts. They say Planned Parenthood is pulling the strings.

"As a pro-life Democrat I'm not really that concerned about the platform because it's only a guiding document and it only sets off the desires and wishes of those people who drafted it. And the drafting committee is always controlled by Planned Parenthood, which controls a lot of money – the Planned Parenthood Action Fund -- which controls a lot of money for candidates," Janet Roberts, Democrats for Life of America, said.

Abortion rights is just one of the issues important to liberals that Clinton will champion as she works to become the first woman president.

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