From Charlotte, North Carolina -        

As Democrats kicked off their convention in Charlotte, the focus turned from pre-convention parties to the actual event, as First Lady Michelle Obama helped lead a good-cop-bad-cop approach against Republicans and their nominee Mitt Romney.

"I have seen first hand that being President doesn't change who you are, it reveals who you are," Mrs. Obama said, drawing huge cheers when she touted her husband's support of education and women's programs.

"Barack Obama is still the same man I fell in love with all of those years ago," the First Lady said, talking about how he turned down "high paying jobs," seemingly drawing a distinction with Mitt Romney and his early years of marriage.

"We've got to keep working to do this," she quoted her husband as saying. "We've got so much more to do."

That prompted a round of cheers from the delegates of "Four more years!" as Democrats alternately played up President Obama's good points, and took aim at Romney and the GOP.

"If Mitt was Santa Claus, he would fire the reindeer and outsource the elves," said former Ohio Governor Ted Strickland, who chuckled repeatedly to himself as he rattled off line after line against Romney.

"Mitt never saw the point of building something when he could profit by tearing it down," Strickland added, as he offered a full throated defense of the President's efforts to financially boost the domestic auto industry.

Strickland, who was defeated in a bid for re-election in 2010, also blasted Romney over his refusal to release his tax returns and mocked Romney for having bank accounts in Switzerland and the Cayman Islands.

"Even his money needs a passport," Strickland said, clearly enjoying the moment as Democratic delegates cheered.

On the first night of their convention, Democrats defended the President's record on economic issues, but spent much of their time finding ways to either impeach Romney's own record or to argue that certain groups would be hurt by a Romney victory.

"You know, this is a great opportunity to set the record straight," said Sen. Bill Nelson of Florida, who charged that Republicans had stretched the truth repeatedly during the GOP convention last week in Tampa.