Hillary Says She's (Still) Ready to Lead
Hillary Clinton almost seemed optimistic.
After her stinging nine-point defeat at the hands of Barack Obama in the Iowa caucuses, Clinton told a ballroom full of dejected but cheering supporters at her campaign headquarters in the Hotel Fort Des Moines, “We’re going to take this enthusiasm and go right to New Hampshire.”
Standing on a stage in front of Bill Clinton, her mother, her daughter and her most high-profile supporters, Hillary said the incredibly high turnout sent a clear signal to the country that “we are going to have change and that change will be a Democratic president in 2009.”
Clinton, dressed in a black pantsuit and smiling persistently, congratulated both Barack Obama and John Edwards, who she also appeared to finished behind according to (rounded-off) figures provided by the Democratic Party. With 97 percent of precincts reporting, Obama had 38 percent, Edwards finished with 30 percent and Clinton finished with 29 percent.
There will now be serious, and painful, discussion within the Clinton campaign about it was a monumental misstep to compete in a state where she started with little infrastructure and where her best political asset, her husband, had not competed in 1992.
In her concession speech, Clinton said she the intense campaigning, while unsuccessful, was not fruitless.
“I am ready as I can be after having had this incredible experience here in Iowa,” she said. She added, “We have always planned to run a national campaign.”
If the speech, and the last few weeks of campaigning are any indication, Clinton will continue to try to run on a message not only of experience and preparedness, but of change.
“We’re not just trying to elect a president,” she said. “We are trying to change our country.”
With Wesley Clark, Madeleine Albright, Terry McAuliffe, David Paterson, Antonio Villaraigosa and other high-profile supporters looking on, Mrs. Clinton told the crowd she was ready to move on.
“I am so ready for the rest of this campaign,” she said, “and I am so ready to lead.”
- Poll
- Obama (D)
- McCain(R)
- Spread
- RCP Average
- 46.4
- 41.6
- Obama +4.8
- Candidate
- Favorable
- Unfavorable
- Spread
- Obama
- 55.7
- 32.7
- +23.0
- McCain
- 52.4
- 34.7
- +17.7
"Our time for change has come"!
"They said this day will never come"!
"You have done what the cynics said we couldn't do"!
Dear Friend,
Tonight, the people of Iowa sent a loud and clear message to the rest of the country that we are ready for a change. That change is Barack Obama. Now, as we head to New Hampshire, I am optimistic that the people of New Hampshire will come out in droves, particularly the young and those who tend not to be involved in politics. Washington pundits and so-called political experts said that Obama will not win and that it was not his time. Well, Iowans said it clearly: WE ARE READY FOR CHANGE!
I will be travelling this weekend to Nashua, New Hampshire to campaign for Barack. I will be joined by my partner, Cossette and 17 year-old brother, Joey (both die-hard Barack supporters). They both travelled with me to Washington, DC for my dinner with Barack back in July. My brother is travelling from Philadelphia and we are taking off Saturday at 4AM. We are looking forward to seeing Barack again at the Nashua North High School where he will be speaking at 10AM Saturday and canvassing for Barack.
Many people thought I was crazy to go with Barack and not with our State Senator. I told them then, and I tel them now, Barack is what America needs. We have had enough of traditional politicians who talk the talk but do not walk the walk. Barack is the JFK of our time!
I was THRILLED to know that Hillary Clinton didn't let the defeat in Iowa sway her focus or her determination! I had hoped for her to be victorious on the first leg of this race, but I will continue to support her efforts, goals, and beliefs. She is a strong woman and has the knowledge, and, for lack of a better word, BALLS, to get this country back on track and on its way to a stronger economy, with stronger communities, and stronger ties to the rest of the world. I believe she is exactly what this country needs!
I only wish I didn't live in Texas, since I have discovered, in the last TWO elections, that my vote didn't really count, since it seems that Texas is supposedly a 'Republican' state. (Based on the electoral college votes, which mean absolutely NOTHING to me... yet, somehow have kept some of the most qualified and politically SINCERE candidates from being victorious in this state, simply based on their 'Party.')
I even thought about moving to a 'Democratic' state, just to 'feel' like my vote counts. But, Texas would still give their electoral college votes to the Republican candidate, no matter where I lived, so I decided against the move.
I just HOPE this country doesn't listen to the media, to decide who they will vote for. If everyone would see how much worse this country is, than it was in 2000, THAT should be enough to prove the need for change! I can't even walk through the aisles of the grocery store, without getting nauseous at the thought of how much I have to pay for an EGG, or a gallon of MILK. And let's not even think about the price of GAS to GET to the grocery store! And, please don't get me started on the IDIOTIC TAKS TEST that has been shoved down our childrens' throats, in the pursuit of 'keeping up with the rest of the world.' Yet, if you ask ANY teacher in this state who has to teach that stuff, they will tell you that it is a WASTE, and that if they were ALLOWED to teach the basic, necessary and essential curriculum, that our children are just as smart and capable of 'competing' with ANYONE! (And, I'm SURE that the rate of children taking anti-depressants, and dropping out of 12th grade, will DECREASE dramatically. And, certainly NOT the least of our concerns... Our older children are being killed for a cause that got so 'confused' that it's not even about what it began as! And, because of it, WE have become the most HATED country in the world! And, the people who hate us the MOST, (despite what the media may say,) have the potential to KILL US ALL!
Those are the thoughts that make me wish that Texas had more of a Democratic attitude, instead of being 'faithful' to the Republican party, simply because one of their Governors made it to the presidency. (I only hope they can see the disasterous effects it has had on the entire country, and vote DIFFERENTLY this time.)
I hope someone who knows Hillary herself, reads this, and passes it on to her! And, that anyone who disagrees with me, feels free to voice their opinion, because, LUCKILY, THAT RIGHT hasn't been taken away from us, YET. (Keep voting Republican, and I'm sure that's not too far off in the future.)
Thanks for letting me vent and show my support for the best candidate in this election! I hope I have made a difference. But, if I haven't, GOD save us all from what is likely to happen if we don't get the right person in office.