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DNC Day 4 LIVE: Hillary accepts the nomination

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Karen Yi, Mike Davis, and Andrew Ford
Asbury Park Press

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PHILADELPHIA – Hillary Clinton embraced her daughter before a roaring crowd as she took the stage to accept the Democratic nomination for president, the first woman to be nominated by a major party.

From veterans to senators to clergy to Katy Perry, a wide array of speakers endorsed Clinton. Clinton's daughter introduced her as an attentive mother and grandmother.

Delegates wave signs at the end of President Barack Obama's speech at the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia, PA,  Wednesday, July 27, 2016.

New Jersey's delegation heard from Sen. Cory Booker and Sen. Bob Menendez this morning.

TAKE OUR POLL: What was the best Wednesday moment from the DNC?

AS IT HAPPENED: Coverage of DNC day three

11:45 p.m. After a benediction, the convention was concluded.

11:23 p.m. Clinton concluded her speech, the crowd went wild to Katy Perry's "Firework," under a red, white and blue balloon drop.

11:17 p.m. "A man you can bait with a Tweet is not a man we can trust with nuclear weapons," she said.

11:10 p.m. "In Atlantic City, 60 miles from here, you will find contractors and small businesses who lost everything because Donald Trump refused to pay his bills," she said.

11:05 p.m. Clinton pledged to make college "free for the middle class and debt free for all."

"We will also liberate millions of people who already have student debt," she said.

11:02 p.m. "I believe Wall Street can never, ever be allowed to wreck Main Street again," Clinton said.

"And I believe in science. I believe climate change is real and that we can can save our planet while creating millions of good-paying clean energy jobs."

10:57 p.m. "I will be a president for Democrats, Republicans, independents," she said. "For the struggling, the striving, the successful, for all those who vote for me and for those who don't. For all Americans together."

10:50 p.m. Clinton described a humble upbringing, noting her family name wasn't written on buildings.

10:47 p.m. Clinton accepted her party's nomination for president.

10:40 p.m. "Don't let anyone tell you that our country is weak, we're not," Clinton said. "Don't let anyone tell you we don't have what it takes, we do. And most of all don't believe anyone who says 'I alone can fix it.'"

10:34 p.m. Clinton thanked Bernie Sanders.

"To all of your supporters here and around the country, I want you to know: I heard you. Your cause is our cause."

10:33 p.m. "America is stronger because of President Obama's leadership and I'm better because of his friendship," she said after noting prominent speakers earlier in the week and thanking her family for their support.

10:30 p.m. Hillary Clinton embraced her daughter as she took the stage before a roaring crowd.

10 p.m. Chelsea Clinton introduced Hillary Clinton as an attentive mother and grandmother. She recalled early memories, like her mother reading her Goodnight Moon.

"I never once doubted that my parents cared about my thoughts and my ideas," she said.

"That feeling of being valued and loved, that's what my mom wants for every child," she said.

Chelsea Clinton addressed the crowd in a gentler tone than previous speakers.

"This November, I'm voting for a woman is is my role model as a mother and as an advocate," she said.

9:55 p.m. Katy Perry took the stage.

"You have as much say as any billionaire, or you can just cancel out your weird cousins vote if you like," she told the crowd before singing "Rise," then "Roar."

9:40 p.m. Senator Sherrod Brown showed off his suit made by union workers in Brooklyn, Ohio. He pointed out Trump's clothing is made in other countries.

9:30 p.m. Medal of Honor recipient Florent Groberg recalled the moment that he tackled a suicide bomber whose explosive vest killed four of his men.

"I remind you in their memory that your military protects you with their lives and that our president should protect us in return," he said.

9:20 p.m.  "We must choose hope," said retired U.S. Marine Corps General John Allen. "Every American in uniform."

The crowd erupted in chants of "USA, USA, USA."

"My fellow Americans, I tell you with out hesitation or reservation that Hillary Clinton will be exactly the kind of commander in chief America needs," Allen said.

9:10 p.m. "Tonight we are honored to stand here as parents of Captain Humayun Khan and as patriotic American Muslims," said Khizr Khan, father of the American Muslim Army captain killed in Iraq.

"Donald Trump consistently smears the character of Muslims," Khan said.

9:05 p.m. "Donald Trump's idea to register Muslims and prevent them from entering our country is the very tyranny Jefferson abhorred," said Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. His speech was brief.

8:42 p.m. Dallas Sheriff Lupe Valdez asked for a moment of silence in honor of all the slain officers.

"The people of Dallas know that even though our men and women in uniform are hurting, we never stop doing the job," she said.

8:36 p.m. Doug Elmets, a Republican who worked for former President Ronald Reagan, said he would vote for a Democrat for the first time this November.

"To my fellow Republicans, if you believe like I do, you believe loyalty to our country is more important than loyalty to party," said Elmets. He called the Republican Party's platform the "most alarming I've every seen" due to its anti-immigrant, anti-gay and anti-women positions.

Jennifer Lim, another Republican also urged her party members to vote for Clinton. "We're not just Democrats and Republicans, we're Americans."

8:30 p.m. "Hillary Clinton gets it. And that's why she has huge plans to create good-paying jobs in America," said former Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm. "Imagine that. Imagine that Actual plans. I must have missed that night at the Republican convention."

8:25 p.m. "At this moment, when we need to restore the fundamental American idea that if you work hard, you can get ahead and stay there, we need a president who recognizes that an economy that doesn’t work for everyone, doesn’t work at all," said Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf. "We need a president who believes that our society can only succeed when economic prosperity is shared broadly. We need Hillary Clinton."

8:11 p.m. More celebrities took the stage, including actor Ted Danson and Mary Steenburgen, who shared stories of their time with the Clintons.

"Anybody can brag, anybody can talk, hers is the poetry of doing," said Danson.

7:52 p.m. Sen. Tim Ryan of Ohio talked about the working class and said Trump "got rich ripping people off." Ryan said if Trump really cared about "our jobs," he would have hired some of our people.

7:25 p.m. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo began by acknowledging his father, Mario Cuomo, who passed away last year. He railed against Trump's campaign and said he was using "people's fears and anxiety to drive his ratings."

In a pointed attack Cuomo said the Republican plan was to "fan the flames of fear and offer a scapegoat for all our problems." "Their message comes down to this: be afraid of people who are different -- religions, colors, language. Stop immigration and the national will automatically rise."

Cuomo said Republicans were suffering from short-term memory loss because unless they were Native Americans, "they are immigrants, too."

7:15 p.m. Hillary signs are being passed around the crowd. She's expected to speak after 10 p.m.

7:04 p.m. Lorella Praeli, director of Hillary for America Latino Vote, was hit by a car when she was 2 years old and lost her leg. Her parents brought her to the U.S. for medical treatment. She was undocumented for 15 years before she became a citizen.

"It was my undocumented mother who taught what it is to be an American," said Praeli. "Our voice is our vote," she added in Spanish, urging Latinos to vote for Clinton.

6:51 p.m. The crowd erupts in cheers as Sen. Elizabeth Warren speaks. "Hillary Clinton knows how to fight back against dangerous, loud mouth bullies," said Warren. She said Clinton was someone who would not quit, back down or run to Twitter when attacked.

6:43 p.m. Women in the Senate spoke vigorously of Clinton, telling stories of when they worked or met Clinton. "She has the heart to lead this country," said U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill of Missouri.

6:37 p.m. U.S. Sen. Barbara Mikulski of Maryland gets huge cheers and standing ovation. In 1987 she was 1st Democratic woman elected to the Senate in her own right.

"I lit one candle but I wanted more women so we could light a torch," she said. "Women: Put your lipstick on. Men: Polish those shoes. Our shoulders are square, we're ready to fight to put Hillary in the White House because we know she'll carry the torch for all of us."

6:20 p.m. Carole King performed "You've Got a Friend." Rep. James Clyburn of North Carolina then took the stage to tout Clinton's fighting spirit. "Hillary Clinton knows that we must take effective action on the issue of income inequality."

6 p.m. Sarah McBride, a transgender woman, received a loud reception as she spoke about LBGT rights.

"Will we be a nation where there's only one way to love, one way to look, one way to live? Or will we be a national where everyone hast he freedom to live openly and equally, a nation that's stronger together? That's the question in this election."

4:56 p.m."The LGBT community is as diverse as the fabric of our nation," said Chad Griffin, chairman of the Human Rights Campaign. "We are Muslim, we are women, we are black, white and Latino. We are immigrants and people with disabilities.

"And when you attack one of us you are attacking all of us. That's why together we are all with her," he said.

4:45 p.m. Former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa made a plea for getting undocumented immigrants more involved in Democratic politics. He criticized Trump's immigration policies.

"He would vanquish the dream they carry in their heart when they answer that beacon of hope and light to dreamers from all over the world," he said.

4:42 p.m. "I cannot be prouder of our kids, our candidate and our country," said U.S. Rep. Ted Deutch, D-Florida, who said his two daughters would be casting their first votes in the fall.

4:33 p.m. Gene Karpinski, president of the League of Conservation Voters, criticized Trump for calling climate change a "hoax." The group added Trump to their "dirty dozen" list of politicians and candidates with policies or platforms that would hurt the environment.

"The question is simple: Are we going to go backwards on our success or continue going forward," Karpinski said, endorsing Clinton.

4:17 p.m. U.S. Rep. Marcia Fudge, D-Ohio, officially called to order the final night of the Democratic National Convention.

4:09 p.m. In a SiriusXM radio appearance on "Joe Madison the Black Eagle," Booker responded to Trump's call for Russian hackers to search for Clinton's missing emails.

"Trying to incite a foreign power to take an illegal action against someone who is your political adversary, to me, that clearly disqualifies him to be president of the United States," Booker said. "This alone should be outrageous enough to see what this person is capable of, what would he be like if he was sitting in the most powerful position on the planet Earth? What would his reaction be to inciting violence, to inciting a conflict, to inciting illegal action from the presidency?"

2:38 p.m. Rehearsals are starting for the last night of the convention. Delegates trying to snatch a good seat are already filling the Wells Fargo Center.

2:30 p.m. Menendez and Booker spoke to the delegation for nearly an hour on the final day of the convention praising the party but painting a dire portrait of life in America under a President Trump.

“I’m not saying I want to kill Donald Trump,” Menendez said. “But if you are going to ultimately go ahead and ask a foreign government to go ahead and hack into the election of the highest office in the land and the leader of the free world, well I am sure that if Hillary Clinton was suggesting that, Donald Trump would be calling it treason.”

“There’s been so many points in this campaign by what he utters should be the end of his campaign, but the reality is if we put somebody like that in the White House, who every single week is saying something that is either insulting, demeaning or degrading,” Booker said, “if we allow that into the White House, we could have someone that’s creating an international crisis with his words or a domestic crisis with his words every single week.”

Menendez: Trump's hack suggestion is treason

9:43 a.m. New Jersey rolled out its top political brass Thursday. Sens. Cory Booker and Robert Menendez spoke to the delegation, with Menendez opining: "It's great to go to a convention that isn't a telenovela."

He called Republican nominee Donald Trump's plea for Russia to continue hacking Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton's emails "an act of treason."

Booker, who spoke in a prime-time slot on Monday night, was introduced by state Democratic chairman John Currie as a "future president of the United States." The senator addressed the ongoing the week's controversy over the delegation's morning breakfast, sponsored by PSE&G -- who also contributes to the campaign of U.S. Rep. Scott Garrett, R-New Jersey.

Senate President Steve Sweeney, D-Gloucester, backed out of an appearance at the breakfast on Wednesday morning out of protest. The utility company has since stated it would pull its funding from Garrett, who has pushed for anti-gay rights legislation.

7 a.m. What would a presidential election cycle be without a Barack Obama hug?

Obama and Hillary Clinton provided a tender moment at the Democratic National Convention Wednesday night when they hugged after Obama finished his speech.

Reporter Dustin Racioppi contributed to this report. 

Karen Yi: 732-643-4277; kyi@gannettnj.com

Mike Davis: 732-643-4223; mdavis@gannettnj.com