BOSTON -- Day Two of the Democratic National Convention is surprising as much for what hasn't happened as for what has happened.

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Gail Huff Reports On DNC Day 2

As delegates prepared for a second day of conventioneering, with speeches by Massachusetts Sen. Edward Kennedy and Sen. John Kerry's wife, Theresa, on the agenda Tuesday night, as well as the arrival of Sen. John Edwards, some politicians expressed relief that so far, everything is running fairly smoothly.

NewsCenter 5's Gail Huff reported that at a Massachusetts delegation breakfast Tuesday morning, local politicians acknowledged that much work and worry went into planning the event, and much is at stake.

"This is Boston. I'm afraid we may run this convention the way we drive. Nobody being nice to anybody else and complaining when somebody else isn't nice to you," said U.S. Rep. Barney Frank.

Local Democratic officials said they realize there is much to lose if the convention does not go off smoothly. From the start there were major concerns over money, labor disputes, security, FBI warnings and demonstrators.

"It was a long and winding road to get to the point where everyone now is in a political heaven," said U.S. Rep. Ed Markey.

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Now that the party is officially on without major problems, politicians are hoping Democrats can focus their attention on getting the job done during the fall campaign.

"I think the Democratic party is more unified today than I've ever seen it, and I think that the result of that, hopefully, will be that the delegates will leave this convention energized and working in those key states that are going to make all the difference in the world," said U.S. Rep Marty Meehan.

The buzz Tuesday morning was all about women -- Sen. Hillary Clinton's speech and her political future and a lot of excitement over Heinz Kerry's speech in the evening.

"She's not just another presidential wife. She won't be, it's clear. She's not going to be a conventional First Lady, and I think people are OK with that," said Middlesex County District Attorney Martha Coakley.

"If anything, America's got a woman who knows how to speak up and speak her mind and she's not going to be bullied by people insisting and forcing things on her. I think [Kerry's] got an asset," said Massachusetts delegate Ralph Cooper.

Now that they've introduced the Kerry-Edwards agenda to the country, convention organizers will turn their attention Tuesday to showcasing John Kerry's life and career. They will outline the ticket's experience and paint both men as the pair who will best fight for middle class values and to make America stronger at home and more respected worldwide.

Highlights of the Tuesday agenda also include a keynote speech by Illinois state senator and the Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Barack Obama and addresses by others who can speak firsthand about Kerry's public service, including his duty in Vietnam.

In a coup for the Democrats, also at the podium will be Ron Reagan Jr., talking about the importance of stem cell research. His father, former Republican president Ronald Reagan, died last month after a long battle with Alzheimer's disease and he's been critical of the Bush administration's opposition to such research.