The Democrats: Out of the battle, into the war

It's hot in a Bernie Sanders jumpsuit at the best of times. But in the 97-degree midday sun it's really hot. So Oscar Salazar is sticking to the shade under the arches of Philadelphia City Hall, clutching an icy bottle of water as people grab him for photos and some words of encouragement.

Oscar has come to Philadelphia from Sleepy Hollow, New York, about 125 miles away. He used to put on the jumpsuit for Bernie Sanders rallies, but that is over now. Sanders himself has endorsed Hillary Clinton, leaving his most devoted supporters like Oscar a little bereft. "I don't want to vote for the lesser of two evils," he says.

Nor does anyone else gathered here as the Democratic Convention gets underway across town. With as much energy as the heat will allow, a hundred or two hardcore Bernie supporters have come to show a heartfelt middle finger to Hillary Clinton.

During the bitter primary campaign, she was the Great Satan - a more urgent foe than even Donald Trump. "She's the embodiment of the 1 percent" says Carla Reyes. The banner she holds says "Either Way, Wall Street Wins."

Suspicions of foul play

Many struggle to believe that Clinton beat Sanders fair and square. How could she have done, running a vanilla campaign against their grassroots sensation? Some suspect foul play, electoral fraud. And they've never doubted that the Democratic party machine was against them.

Of that, they now have some proof. Wikileaks' online dump of 20,000 emails from the party leadership came as a bombshell on the eve of the Convention. Mails showed that the party Chair, Debbie Wasserman Schultz and others clearly favored Clinton over Sanders during the Primaries.

This might have been expected given that Sanders sat in the Senate not as a Democrat but as an Independent, and yet it remained a huge embarrassment. Sanders demanded Wasserman Schultz's resignation and within hours she obliged. Her name was still on the passes around the neck of every attendee at the Convention she was meant to host. No time to reprint those.

Paul Simon takes to the stage in the Wells Fargo Center, the vast arena playing host to the Convention. He is a speck in the distance from here in the cheap seats high above; the big screens over the stage suggest the tight skin of surgery. But his performance of "A Bridge Over Troubled Water" is fresh and light and brings the delegates to their feet. They link hands and sway to the words.

Evidence of brotherly love?

Throughout the session there have been boos in the crowd; grudging bellows from Bernie supporters at any mention of Hillary Clinton's name. Simon's song seems a sentimental attempt stop to all that; Sanders used so much Simon & Garfunkel at his rallies and in his ads that its purpose seems clear.

The song is the prelude to the highlights of the night: speeches by Michelle Obama, Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders himself. Speeches that will set the tone for the rest of the week. Unity or division. A bridge or troubled water.

Michelle's role as above the fray is somehow understood by all; the boo-ers dare not interrupt. "When Hillary didn't win eight years ago, she didn't get angry or disillusioned," she says, a pointed hint to the Bernie crowd. And her endorsement is warm; her voice cracks as she says, "Because of Hillary Clinton, my daughters, and all of our sons and daughters, now take it for granted that a woman can be President of the United States."

For some on the left, Warren would have been the Democrats' true dream candidate - Sanders and Clinton rolled into one. But she has already come out strong for Clinton and tonight is no different. And that brings the boos back; they are long and lingering when she mentions Clinton's moderate choice of Vice Presidential running mate, Tim Kaine.

Finally it is Sanders' turn. And sure enough, Simon & Garfunkel bring him out on stage - this time the song is "America" played from tape; some in the audience must be wondering why Paul Simon doesn't come back on stage and sing it himself.

Sanders booed by fans

Sanders begins with a recount of his campaign's extraordinary achievements. "I want to thank the 13 million voters who voted for a political revolution, giving us 1846 pledged delegates tonight." And he adds: "I look forward to your votes during the roll call tomorrow night." That raises a deep, raucous cheer among delegates determined to cast their ballots for him, futile though the gesture may be.

But soon even Sanders is on the receiving end of the boos as he declares, "Any objective observer will conclude that, based on her ideas and her leadership, Hillary Clinton must become the next president of the United States."

Sanders can however pepper his speech with achievements; above all, with the Democratic Party Platform - a set of policies seen as the most left-wing in the party's history. From free higher education for middle-class students to a $15 minimum wage and banking reform, this was the lesser-known post-Primaries victory won by the Sanders campaign.

After Sanders' speech, Andy Sandler, a delegate and party activist from Kansas, claims the party's present platform is the most progressive the Democrats have ever had. There are a number of things to be enthused about going into the fall, says Andy. For him, this is as much the unifying force as anything Clinton could offer.

'Frightening foe of liberty'

But for Jennifer Rode, the unifying force comes from outside. She says a moment of clarity came during last week's Republican Convention, when the opposing party coalesced around Donald Trump. "I thought that Mr. Trump is a frightening foe of liberty." As for the Wikileaks revelations? "I was completely unsurprised. It was nothing new and it didn't change anything. I'm just disappointed that the democratic process isn't as democratic as I would like it to be."

And yet, for Bernie Sanders' most diehard supporters, that is not good enough. Sweltering in his jumpsuit in the heavy hot shade, Oscar Salazar is talking about moving on - to the Green Party. "I'm looking at Jill Stein. She has all the ideas that Bernie has. And I feel that she speaks to me more."

Others at this wilting protest at Philadelphia City Hall are saying the same thing. It is good news for Jill Stein, but what does it mean for Clinton? In the 2000 election, her predecessor Ralph Nader was seen as robbing Al Gore of votes that could have defeated George W. Bush. It has stood as an object lesson in the dangers of third parties.

And it adds to the list of dangers that Hillary Clinton will have to face - as she moves from the battle with Bernie Sanders to the war with Donald Trump.