American first lady Michelle Obama hit the ball out of the park with her speech backing her husband for a second White House term last night. How? By doing something rare in American politics these days: not being nasty about his opponents.

While a parade of Democrats used the opening night of their convention to tell voters that Republican candidate Mitt Romney doesn't get it, Mrs Obama chose to avoid a negative edge. She spoke instead of opportunities, and the values and vision that guided Barack Obama, showing how – even in a race for the most powerful job in the world – warmth, dignity and focusing on the positives can get you so much further.

In other words, she achieved this (thank you to MacLeod cartoons):

Watch her out in action here. Way to go, Michelle: