And after what we learned tonight, it's going to be harder for the DNC to paint him as an uncaring plutocrat without seeming appallingly negative themselves. If they try, just ask them when Barack Obama has quietly and humbly served anyone anywhere, simply because it's the right thing to do. Or whether Joe Biden has given as much of his own money to charity in his whole lifetime as the Romneys have done in one year.
Clearly, in tone and in content (especially the absence of hard-core "red meat") the speech was intended to appeal to women, and in that, I believe it succeeded. Romney's love for his wife comes through so clearly . . . and his story about his mother running for the Senate, and the love his parents shared (that story about the rose!), were elements that, I think, most women will appreciate. Likewise, his enumeration of all the women he has chosen to work with provides a revealing contrast with you-know-who.
Romney's goodness and inherent decency comes clearly through. That's primarily what he needed to achieve . . . It will help convince persuadables, especially the women among them, that it is "safe" to vote for Mitt Romney.
My assessment: Mitt Romney helped himself A LOT with women tonight. I absolutely loved his speech, and -- although I was always a supporter -- after tonight, I feel a deeper emotional "connection" with this campaign, and Romney himself as a person and as a candidate.