Tampa, Florida. Thursday, August 30. I was again able to watch the RNC speakers from the Romney-staffer box, so I managed to experience some interesting reactions from some of those involved in planning the day’s events. An added bonus was meeting Governor Bob McDonnell (VA) and former governor and presidential candidate Tim Pawlenty when they dropped by to watch the final three speakers with us.

The final day’s theme was “We believe in America,” and the time was spent honoring all of us working hard (or not working at all) to survive in an Obama economy and how through the electoral process we can change the direction in which this country is heading by changing who is in charge.

One notable speaker was Jeb Bush, brother of President Bush ’43. He essentially did two things. First, he went off-script to defend his brother from constant attacks by President Obama, telling the President to stop blaming him for everything. Second, he spoke extensively on the benefits of school choice and school voucher programs, hitting his point home by bringing students and teachers on-stage to share success stories due in part to the ability to choose which school to attend. I thought it was interesting and effective for Governor Bush to focus so much on one issue, whereas the vast majority of other speakers at the convention spent less time on a variety of issues.

The bulk of the convention speakers this day provided character testimonials on behalf of Governor Romney. These broke down into three groups—those speaking about his religious and volunteer work, those testifying to his business-building prowess while at Bain Capital, and Olympic athletes, including men’s speed skating gold medalist Derek Parra and figure skater Scott Hamilton, praising his leadership during the Salt Lake City Winter Olympics.

There were four Mormons who provided remarks the last day of the convention—one who gave the opening prayer, one who provided an overview of the Mormon Church and a brief explanation of Governor Romney’s duties and efforts while bishop of a congregation in Massachusetts, and three congregation members who shared experiences about how Governor Romney’s service touched their lives. I was particularly moved by the three members’ anecdotes, as were most in attendance. The Oparowskis talked about how Governor Romney administered to their 14-year-old son after he was diagnosed with non-Hodgkins lymphoma, took time out of his busy work schedule to draw up a will for the boy, and provided the eulogy at his funeral shortly thereafter. Mr. Oparowski distinguished between what the public has seen of Governor Romney on the campaign trail and his personal relationship with the man: “The true measure of a man is revealed in his actions during times of trouble. The quiet hospital room of a dying boy, with no cameras and no reporters—that is the time to make an assessment.”

Pam Finlayson spoke next, sharing a story of how Governor Romney comforted her family when her daughter was born premature, suffering from underdeveloped lungs, an unstable heart, and a brain hemorrhage. She said, “When it comes to loving our neighbor, we can talk about it or we can live it. The Romneys live it every single day.”

The strong presence of Governor Romney’s faith at the convention was, in my view, a welcomed change from what has been a marked effort by him to distance himself from his faith. This effort was largely in part to reduce any pushback from the Evangelical block of the Republican Party, which has been notoriously hostile to Mormons, although to a much lesser extent than when he ran in 2008. Some campaign staffers spoke of a shift in the balance of power in the campaign that led to a push for more openness about his faith and a promotion of the LDS Church. Whatever it was, it was in full force Thursday evening and proved to be very effective; as the stories of church service moved many to tears and showed a tender side of Governor Romney that I always knew he had (such a characteristic is commonly held by Mormon bishops). I thought it was the best way to show the human side of Mitt and add some color to the gray, corporate-insider tone cast by the Obama administration.

The strongest of the Bain Capital testimonials was provided by Tom Stemberg, the founder of Staples. He spoke of his company’s success and how Governor Romney was instrumental in its growth and development. His theme was that the Obama administration just doesn’t get it: why would an administration that didn’t create any jobs demonize someone who did? When it comes to economic growth, Democrats just don’t get it and are out of touch with ordinary Americans. He got the crowd riled up and had them chanting “they just don’t get it.” After his remarks, one Romney staffer sitting next to me commented that he did so well, he should be placed in regular rotation on the campaign speaking circuit.

Then came Clint Eastwood. It was supposed to be a surprise, but most of us knew he would talk the day before. I’m sure all of you know the details, given his was the most talked-about speech. I thought it was awkward. He went off-teleprompter, which caused him to search for words frequently. Romney aides were a little frustrated—he was supposed to stick to the script and only speak for five minutes, whereas he took ten, pushing Governor Romney’s talk past 11 p.m. However, the crowd and the Republican base loved it, ate up every word, and became electrified when he had them join in on saying his beloved phrase, “Go ahead, make my day.” He had some funny moments, such as when he mentioned his experience 2008 Democratic National Convention: “Oprah cried. I cried. Haven’t cried like that since learning 23 million people are unemployed.” He also had the now-famous empty chair routine, which I also thought was a bit awkward, but I seemed to be in the minority at the convention, as it was received favorably by all others I spoke to. The symbolism was spot-on and now empty-chairing is a fun activity for both the left and the right. Judging by the reaction at the convention, his performance did not detract from Governor Romney’s speech but instead provided an exciting lead-up to what would be the candidate’s defining moment of his campaign.

Senator Marco Rubio introduced Governor Romney and did a splendid job. His speech was very presidential and showed glimpses of what candidate Rubio would be like in 2016 (but hopefully that doesn’t happen and Governor Romney is running for reelection by then). He shared his origin story, about how is father emigrated to U.S. from Cuba to pursue the American dream of free enterprise and freedom from excessive government regulation. He focused on the Latino population, quoting in Spanish encouraging words from his father when he was young: “In this country, you’re going to be able to accomplish all the things we never could.” He compared his rise to that of Governor Romney’s father, George Romney, who also emigrated to the U.S. because of increasing government unrest in Mexico and provided a way for his son, Mitt, to be successful. His best remark, when talking about his father: “He stood behind a bar in the back of the room all those years, so one day I could stand behind a podium in the front of a room.” He likened his success to all: “It’s not just my story, it’s your story, our story, the story of our mothers and fathers who work two jobs.” He said Obama’s not a bad person—he’s a good husband, father, and (with lots of practice) golfer, but he’s a bad president, and pursues ideas that were not what Senator Rubio’s father left Cuba for. His voice and demeanor were so personable, so soothing, that I cannot wait to see what he does next in his political career.

Finally, Governor Romney spoke. It was the best speech he’s ever given and succeeded on every level. He successfully showed himself as more likeable, personable, and just plain human, while at the same time appearing very presidential, confident, and powerful. Overall, he was inspiring. His most personal moment came when he spoke about his parents: “Mom and Dad were married 64 years . . . every day Dad gave Mom arose, which he put on her bedside table. That’s how she found out what happened on the day my father died. She went looking for him because that morning, there was no rose.” He also explicitly mentioned his faith for the first time in quite a while: “We were Mormons and growing up in Michigan; that might have seemed unusual or out of place. But I really don’t remember it that way. My friends cared more about what sports team we followed than what church we went to.” He simultaneously owned his religion and implied it shouldn’t be a factor in November.

He focused heavily on the economy, touting his success at creating tens of thousands of jobs as head of Bain Capital. He compared this to President Obama, who has almost no experience working in a business—jobs to him are about government. He boldly promised to create 12 million new jobs during his first term. He would do this in five steps, succinctly incorporating the party platform: First, the U.S. will become energy independent, including reducing regulations on drilling; second, he will focus on school choice and school vouchers to increase the quality of education in the country; third, he will make new trade agreements with other countries while simultaneously sanctioning those who cheat in trade (China); fourth, he will cut the deficit and decrease spending, putting the U.S. back on track to a balanced budget; and fifth, he will champion small business by reducing taxes on them and repealing the biggest tax, Obamacare. This plan was lacking in detail, but usually that’s the case for a presidential challenger’s convention speech—it’s big on rhetoric and the details come later, often right before the debates.

His criticism of President Obama was more grounded in sorrow than in anger. Similar to Senator Rubio before him, he noted the President’s good intentions but argued those intentions haven’t worked. He channeled Reagan in asking if we are better off today than we were four years ago, something the Democratic Party has been wrestling with in the days leading up to its convention. He added: “There’s something wrong with the kind of job he’s done as president when the best feeling you had was the day you voted for him.” Governor Romney effectively made this election a referendum on the President. Republican reactions (and even some Democrats) were very positive—he didn’t have to knock it out of the park (even though I thought he did), all he had to do was show his personal side while bringing the discussion back to the economy. Everybody agreed he accomplished both those goals.

Now the ball is in the Democrats’ court. The enthusiasm from 2008 is gone, and judging by the reaction to this convention, it’s moved to the Republican side thanks to energetic speakers and rising stars in the party. President Obama is a great orator and he will probably do a great job Thursday, but I don’t know how he or the other speakers at their convention will address the 41 months of unemployment above eight percent or the fact that Americans are definitely not better off now than they were four years ago. I’ve enjoyed watching Vice President Joe Biden wrestle with that (and I admit he’s done pretty well with his “Bin Laden’s dead, GM’s alive phrase). However, I think everybody would agree this will be an exciting election.

William “Billy” Jackson is covering the Republican National Convention in Tampa for the Stanford Lawyer. Billy graduated Stanford Law School in 2012, was active in the Federalist Society, and will be clerking for Judge Eduardo C. Robreno, United States District Court, Eastern District of Pennsylvania, this fall.