Politics

Over the past few weeks, President Obama has been heavily courting the youth vote with visits to college campuses in swing states nationwide. And at the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, N.C., there's been a big push for youth involvement, with 644 delegates under the age of 35, and even an official youth engagement coordinator.

Polls show support for Obama among 18- to 29-year-olds at around 55 percent, slightly down from when he was elected in 2008.

As the political conventions wrap up, talking points concerning the economy may seem locked into place: Growth is continuing, but at a slow pace.

Don't be fooled.

There's still plenty of time for big surprises, and Thursday provided a stunning example. Stock prices shot to highs not seen in years.

Good evening from Charlotte. Tonight during the last day of the Democratic National Convention, President Obama will accept his party's nomination.

It will be a star-studded evening with performances from James Taylor and the Foo Fighters and appearences from stars like Eva Longoria and Scarlett Johansson.

We'll keep tabs on it the whole night. Also, along with NPR's Liz Halloran and Becky Lettenberger, we'll hit the floor and bring you updates on several of the delegations. Make sure to refresh this page to the see the latest.

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ROBERT SIEGEL, HOST:

Last night, former President Bill Clinton delivered a speech remarkable both for its eloquence and for the sheer quantity of facts it contained. The folks at FactCheck.org described it this way: A fact-checker's nightmare - lots of effort required to run down his many statistics and factual claims, producing little for us to write about.

We're going to put a few of those claims of fact to the test now with Robert Farley, who's the deputy managing editor at FactCheck.org. Welcome to the program.

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ROBERT SIEGEL, HOST:

From NPR News, this is ALL THINGS CONSIDERED. I'm Robert Siegel.

And this is President Obama's big night in Charlotte. After two days of impassioned speeches by others, making the case for his re-election, Mr. Obama takes the stage later tonight. And this hour we begin in Charlotte with NPR national political correspondent Mara Liasson. Hi, Mara.

MARA LIASSON, BYLINE: Hi, Robert.

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People in Charlotte are watching the convention by the thousands, but people who are watching on television are doing so by the millions. Last night, the convention had some serious TV competition. NBC went with the NFL season opener, the Cowboys-Giants game, instead of Bill Clinton's speech.

How many people are watching the conventions? We turn now to Eric Deggans, who is TV and media critic for the Tampa Bay Times. Hi, Eric.

ERIC DEGGANS: How are you doing?

Audie Cornish talks with various people attending the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, N.C., about what they think President Obama needs to say in his speech Thursday night.

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ROBERT SIEGEL, HOST:

This is ALL THINGS CONSIDERED from NPR News. I'm Robert Siegel.

Four years ago, then-Senator Barack Obama took the stage in Denver to accept his party's presidential nomination. He spoke of overcoming partisanship and economic turmoil. Well, tonight, President Obama will do it again with four years of experience under his belt. Since taking office, he has struggled to overcome a crushing recession, a weak recovery and a deeply divided electorate.

NPR's Scott Horsley has this story on the path the president has traveled.

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ROBERT SIEGEL, HOST:

From NPR News, this is ALL THINGS CONSIDERED. I'm Robert Siegel.

AUDIE CORNISH, HOST:

And I'm Audie Cornish at the Democratic National Convention.

All week the conversation here has been about jobs. But other than a primetime appearance by Costco's co-founder, big business supporters have been MIA. I did find a meeting of progressive business leaders, where I met a CEO named Kim Jordan.

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A rare moment of dissention at the Democratic National Convention. After a routine adoption of the party platform on Tuesday, critics pointed out that the document omitted any mention of the word God and did not identify Jerusalem as Israel's capital. Then yesterday the chair of the platform committee, former Ohio Governor Ted Strickland, proposed amendments.

(SOUNDBITE OF CONVENTION)