A transcript of President Barack Obama's remarks Thursday night at the Democratic National Convention, as provided by the Obama campaign: ___

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Preaching patience, President Barack Obama is telling voters at the Democratic National Convention that solving many of the nation's toughest challenges will take a few years. Obama says that Republicans are calling for tax cuts to solve every problem. While he supported breaks for the middle class, he says he doesn't believe tax cuts for the wealthy would generate jobs or pay down the deficit.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — For President Barack Obama, hope has become hang in there. On the biggest stage of his re-election bid, Obama is dropping some tough love on voters, offering no fast solutions for a nation whose spirit has been sapped by economic insecurity.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The jobs outlook in the U.S. brightened a bit Thursday just before President Barack Obama was to make his case for re-election to the American people. Fewer people applied for unemployment benefits last week, the government reported. And companies boosted hiring in August, according to a private survey.

CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney on Thursday defended his decision not to discuss the Afghanistan war in his convention speech. He said he didn't plan to watch President Barack Obama's convention address but offered some advice, saying Obama should discuss promises he has already made instead of offering new ones. As Obama prepared to deliver his acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, N.C., the Republican nominee stopped to visit veterans as he drove from an adviser's home in Vermont to his own estate on Lake Winnipesaukee in New Hampshire. Asked by a reporter why he decided not to discuss the Afghanistan war on his party's biggest stage last week, Romney pointed to an address he gave to the American Legion the night before as evidence of his commitment to the armed forces.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — God is back in the Democratic platform and people rooting for President Barack Obama hope the dazzle is back in him. With war ending, the health care system recast and the creaky economy overshadowing all, Obama takes the stage of the Democratic National Convention on Thursday to appeal for a second term before a huge prime-time audience. He's got several tough acts to follow — his wife Michelle's crowd-swooning speech of a few days ago, former President Bill Clinton's rollicking turn on stage Wednesday night and his own soaring oratory of four years ago.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — In an impassioned speech that rocked the Democratic National Convention, former President Bill Clinton proclaimed Wednesday night, "I know we're coming back" from the worst economic mess in generations and appealed to hard-pressed Americans to stick with Barack Obama for a second term in the White House. Obama strode onstage as Clinton concluded his speech. The 42nd president bowed, and was pulled into an embrace by the 44th as thousands of delegates jammed into the convention hall roared their approval.

A transcript of former President Bill Clinton's remarks Wednesday night at the Democratic National Convention, as provided by the Democratic Party: ___

WASHINGTON (AP) — On Day 2 of the Democratic National Convention, speakers cherry-picked employment numbers to make President Barack Obama's record on jobs look better than it is and misrepresented Republican proposals on Medicare to cast them in the worst light. A look at some of the claims from the stage, in speeches preceding former President Bill Clinton's featured address Wednesday night, and how those assertions compare with the facts:

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — President Barack Obama inherited a wreck of an economy, "put a floor under the crash" and laid the foundation for millions of good new jobs, former President Bill Clinton declared Wednesday night in a Democratic National Convention appeal aimed at millions of hard-pressed Americans yet to decide how to vote. "If you want a you're-on-your-own, winner-take-all society, you should support the Republican ticket," Clinton said. "If you want a country of shared prosperity and shared responsibility — a we're-all-in-this-together society — you should vote for Barack Obama and Joe Biden."

FRANKLIN, Tenn. (AP) — The Secret Service said Wednesday it is investigating the reported theft of copies of Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney's federal tax records during a break-in at an accounting office in Franklin. Someone claiming responsibility demanded $1 million not to make them public. An anonymous letter sent to Romney's accounting firm and political offices in Tennessee and published online sought $1 million in hard-to-trace Internet currency to prevent the disclosure of his tax filings, which have emerged as a key focus during the 2012 presidential race. Romney released his 2010 tax returns and a 2011 estimate in January, but he has refused to disclose his returns from earlier years.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Secret Service says it's investigating the reported theft of copies of Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney's federal tax records before 2010. A letter sent anonymously to Tennessee political and newspaper offices demanded $1 million to prevent their disclosure. Romney's accounting firm, PricewaterhouseCoopers, said there is no evidence any Romney tax files were stolen. The letter said the returns were stolen in late August during a Watergate-style break-in at the company's accounting offices in Franklin, Tenn.

PROVO, Utah (AP) — Republican vice presidential nominee Paul Ryan said Wednesday that he supports prayer in public schools. The Wisconsin congressman addressed the issue during a brief stop inside a Republican volunteer center in Provo, Utah. He was in the state to attend a fundraiser.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Some unpleasant, uninvited guests dropped in on the Democratic convention. The federal debt hit $16 trillion. U.S. factory activity shrank for a third straight month. And a new poll found President Barack Obama's "unfavorable" ratings higher than his "favorables" for the first time since February.