DENVER -- Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's message to the nation Tuesday night was simple. The election is no longer about her, but about sending Sen. Barack Obama to the White House.

In a prime-time address, the former first lady's speech began with a heart felt thank you to her supporters.

"You taught me so much, you made me laugh, and you made me cry," she told the crowd holding a sea of white Hillary signs.

As a sign of how well orchestrated the convention is, and how important the delegates are in symbolizing the theme of the night, as Clinton moved in her speech from thanking supporters to talking about Obama as president, staff handed out long skinny posters with either Hillary or Obama on one side and Unity on the other.

"Whether you voted for me, or voted for Barack, the time is now to unite as a single party with a single purpose," she told the delegates. "We are on the same team and none of us can sit on the sidelines."

Speaking on the 88th anniversary of the 19th Amendment, which gave women the right to vote, Clinton said she ran for president to "stand up for all those who have been invisible to their government for eight long years."

"Those are the reasons I ran for President. Those are the reasons I support Barack Obama, and those are the reasons you should too," she said to a loud roar from the crowd.

Then, continuing the Democrats attacks against presumptive Republican nominee Sen. John McCain, Clinton called a McCain administration "four more years of the last eight years."

"It makes sense that George Bush and John McCain will be together next week in the Twin Cities, because these day's they're awfully hard to tell apart," Clinton said mocking her Senate colleague.

The McCain campaign responded to Clintons speech by calling Obama inexperienced.

“Senator Clinton ran her presidential campaign making clear that Barack Obama is not prepared to lead as commander in chief. Nowhere tonight did she alter that assessment. Nowhere tonight did she say that Barack Obama is ready to lead. Millions of Hillary Clinton supporters and millions of Americans remain concerned about whether Barack Obama is ready to be President,” said McCain spokesman Tucker Bounds.

Clinton called on her followers to support Obama in November saying "We don't have a moment to lose or a vote to spare."

But several delegates told 7NEWS right after the speech, they were not entirely convinced.

"I'm a loyal Democrat," Colorado delegate Kathy Ensz said. "Bottom line is I'm glad to have a Democrat in the White House."

When asked if she changed her mind about supporting Clinton, Ensz said only, "I'm a loyal Democrat."

Clinton supporter Sacha Millstone said that while she was impressed with the speech, she still wanted to vote for Clinton on Wednesday.

"Tomorrow, I'll be so proud to cast my vote for Hillary," Millstone said moments after Clinton's speech.

Officially, the theme for Tuesday night was Renewing America's Promise, but it could well be titled Renewing Democratic Unity as the party worked to address the rift caused by delegates who wanted to recognize Sen. Hillary Clinton’s historic campaign.

Clinton didn't indicate whether she would have her name placed in nomination to seek a formal roll call of the states when the nomination is awarded by delegates Wednesday night.

The New York Senator, who once seemed to have had the nomination in her grasp, must now play matchmaker between the delegates who supported her and the democratic nominee.

Both camps agreed to a deal that will limit Wednesday's potentially divisive nominating process, allowing some states to cast votes for both Obama and Clinton before the roll call to support Obama.

Dems Take Off Gloves

Attacking McCain took priority Tuesday night as speaker after speaker likened the Arizona senator to another George Bush.

Keynote speaker Virginia Governor Mark Warner warned that McCain would "explode the deficit that will be passed onto our kids."

Warner said McCain would continue spending $10 billion a month in Iraq.

"I don't know about you, but that's not just right. That's for more years that we just cannot afford."

Former Denver mayor Frederico Pena, addressing the national energy crisis, called on the country to abandon foreign oil saying if elected Sen. Barack Obama would "reduce our dependence on foreign oil" and create five million new green-collar jobs.

"America is on a liquid leash, a leash that's chocking our paychecks and the prosperity of our nation," Pena said early in the night to a crowd that seemed distracted by its own conversations rather than listen to the speakers at the podium.

Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio) fired up the crowd calling on them to "wake up."

"We went into Iraq for oil. The oil companies want more. War against Iran will mean $10-a-gallon gasoline. The oil administration wants to drill more, into your wallet. Wake up, America," the two-time presidential candidate yelled, the crowd at its feet.

The change in tone came after some Democrats said they worried the convention is missing a theme

On Monday, James Carville, who managed Bill Clinton's successful 1992 campaign, told CNN, "If this party has a message, it's done a hell of a job hiding it tonight, I promise you that."

Democratic party chief Howard Dean disagreed Tuesday saying, "We don't need to attack McCain. There will be plenty of time for that."

Republicans Seek To Use Clinton Against Candidate

Republicans on Tuesday tried to use the prime-time speaker against the nominee, pointing out Clinton's past criticisms of Obama.

McCain's latest TV ad played off a Clinton primary ad featuring sleeping children and a 3 a.m. phone call invoking crisis.

"I know Sen. McCain has a lifetime of experience that he will bring to the White House," Clinton said in the ad. "Sen. Obama has a speech he gave in 2002."

A narrator adds: "Hillary's right. John McCain for president."