My question to Senator Clinton made headlines around the country on Saturday.
The Senator came to my town of Eugene, Oregon, and delivered a wonderful stump speech about her qualifications for President and her plan for America. As Meteor Blades said in his front page story today, she said a lot of things that I liked - REALLY liked, in fact - and some things I disagreed with. It was a treat to get to hear her speak.
After her speech, she took questions from the audience. The second question she took was mine. Her response was emphatic, passionate, and articulate. I've seen it discussed by CBS News, NBC News, NPR and every local media outlet's coverage of the event. Look up "Hillary Clinton Eugene" on Google News, and most of the news stories will describe the tough question from the "young man describing himself as an Obama supporter" and how she fielded it.
I am that young man. And this is my response to her.
(NOTE: My last diary on Daily Kos was about my experiences at Barack Obama's rally, including getting the chance to shake his hand. You can read about it here)
I was so nervous about asking the question that I was shaking. It wasn't the public speaking aspect of it - I've done a lot of that. And it wasn't that I didn't know what I wanted to say - I knew exactly what question I wanted to ask.
I was nervous because I was standing in a room of 2400 people there to see Hillary Clinton, and I was going to ask her why she was doing so much to hurt the guy who was beating her in the race. Again, let me put emphasis on this fact: I was not just asking the question in the abstract, or to a surrogate or a member of the campaign. I was standing about twenty feet away from Senator Clinton, and was going to look her directly in the eyes and ask her if she was making herself bigger than the Democratic Party.
I had been chewing on the question for awhile. The night before the rally, I talked to my friend, Suzi, about what I would ask Senator Clinton if given the chance. It took me a while to formulate it, and even in that relaxed setting I couldn't say it exactly the way I wanted to. But I couldn't escape this simple fact:
I admire the hell out of Senator Hillary Clinton. I think that right this moment, she possesses a greater amount of experience than Obama in dealing with key issues, and that she is intelligent in a way that I have rarely seen in politicians in my short political life. Prior to and following the rally, I grappled with a difficult thought: Am I only supporting Obama because so many people my age are doing the same, and because it's the "cool" choice? Or do I have a concrete reason why I would be picking this younger, less seasoned candidate for President over this amazingly intelligent woman?
I went to the Hillary Clinton rally in Eugene on Saturday because I have an active interest in American politics. It's been an eternity since Oregon's voice meant anything in the primary, and it will likely not happen again any time soon. And Hillary Clinton is a huge figure in American politics - a former First Lady, a US Senator, and one of two remaining candidates for the Democratic nomination. I would be foolish to miss seeing someone so important to American politics come to my fair town, and even more foolish to not give her a chance to make her case to me about why she should get my vote.
Of course, the campaign she has been running has been my biggest deterrent. Her advisors have been insufferable, some of her more extreme supporters completely divorced from reality (I know, they're on both sides, but some of the diaries on the blogs, and sites like HillaryIs44 and NoQuarter have been of a new, special, superior brand of stupid), and even the Senator herself has said things that cross the line of what I believe should be said in a primary that will by NECESSITY end with a call for party unity.
So when I showed up an hour early for the rally that would hold only 2400 people, and I was treated to a good seat because turnout was so low, I made a note of it. When the Clinton campaign staff came out and tried to get the people to yell "This is Clinton Country", I snickered. When the people planning the event had ABSOLUTELY NO MUSIC playing over the PA system for about 30 minutes, when the supporters in the crowd couldn't muster up enough excitement to maintain a slow clap for more than 30 seconds, and then the campaign desperately tried to get people to phone bank from their seats, I felt it hard to suppress a feeling of victory, a feeling that said "This is why Obama is winning - the people running this campaign are doing a terrible job, and it shows in this crowd".
And then the Senator spoke.
Let me say this: Hillary Clinton gives a vastly superior stump speech than Barack Obama. She is clearer in defining her goals and her plans, she speaks with more passion about issues important to Democrats, and she possesses a special ability to convey how much she truly cares about fighting for this country. After being underwhelmed by Senator Obama's speech at his rally, I was moved by how well she spoke and how much her plans made sense.
Then came the questions. First, someone asked about mental health care in Oregon. Then, the Senator pointed at me, said "Yes, this gentleman, since you're near a microphone", and called on me to ask my question. Shaking, nervous, I stood up.
NBC News has a very rough transcript:
At a town hall in Eugene, OR yesterday, Hillary Clinton was asked by man in audience who is supporting Obama whether her attacks on Obama were hurting the Democratic Party.
"I am an Obama supporter -- don’t boo me -- I am being respectful. I came here to listen to you," the man said. "I was an Edwards supporter then Obama. But recently, some of the things your supporters have said -- some of it self serving. So my question is, is electing the Democrat the most important thing? And is there anything you said or one of your surrogates that might have hurt Sen. Obama? Anything that you would like to apologize for?"
First of all, as a 20-year old kid that will likely get carded until he's 35, I appreciate the NBC News being so gracious with the "man" designation. Though "some kid" probably wouldn't have been very journalistically acceptable.
Here's a video from KEZI news in Eugene of the Clinton rally. If you wait for it to load, you can move the video to the 50:15 mark and see Hillary call on me for my question. The actual version was slightly different from the one reported by NBC News, but similar in overall message. My transcript:
ME: Uh, hi. This is intimidating. So this is my question. Immediately I'm going to say it, and I don't want anyone to boo, because this is a nice question. I'm an Obama supporter, and I'm here because I support Barack Obama and I wanted to hear what you had to say. That's my entire reason, I'm not here to play "Gotcha" or anything like that. It's respect.
CLINTON: Well we're glad you're here.
ME: Thanks. So my question is, like, I originally went over to O...I was a John Edwards supporter, and then I switched over to Obama because I like the way people responded to him, the way that in my short political attention span, I haven't seen...ever. And I responded to that, so it was my choice. But over the last couple of months, it's been really, really hard as a Democrat to watch some things that have happened. Like, things that you've said and your top advisors have said that don't seem in the interest of building the Democratic Party, or of helping the person that very well might be the nominee, but of a person that
[AT THIS POINT, THERE WAS A SMATTERING OF APPLAUSE FROM SOME OBAMA SUPPORTERS, FOLLOWED BY BOOING BY HILLARY SUPPORTERS]
I guess it just seems so much more...I don't know, the mean word, self-serving. So my question IS
[MORE HECKLING]
Hold on...
CLINTON: Go ahead, let him ask his question
ME: I'm getting there, I'm prefacing. So my question is: Is electing the Democrat the most important thing to you, and is there anything either that you have said or that one of your surrogates or advisors has said that might have hurt Senator Obama that...anything you'd like to apologize for
[BOOING AND HECKLING]
OK, so I'm not Abe Lincoln. And I really, truly wish that I could've pushed through the nerves and asked that question better - brought up the "Commander in Chief threshold" and the "Shame on you, Barack Obama" and the "Those states don't matter" comments and everything else that's just saddened and infuriated me over the last couple of months. But I didn't do that - I asked this question. And it came across as "Is electing the Democrat most important thing to you, and do you think you've done anything that hurt Obama in the general that you'd like to take back". This was the question that had been hurting me for months.
NBC News paraphrased her response as this:
"Every question is a fair question, and I am happy that you came. I am happy that you asked your question. I obviously see it differently. First of all, I think this has been, by and large, one of the [most] positive and civil campaigns that I know of or have been a part of. Now for those of you who are new to politics ... it can be a little eye-opening, especially when you choose sides and you are for one or the other of us."
She went on, "I have to tell you there have been some things, believe it or not, said about me by his campaign. And you know, I don't take any of it personally. I don't take of it seriously. That is what happens in politics, and if you can't stand the heat, don't run for president because it is a really hot kitchen in the White House. I will tell you that much. So for my perspective, the goal is to elect the Democrat. And I believe we will be a stronger Democratic Party -- because look at all the people we are bringing into this contest.
Clinton concluded, "Elections are about choices, and you are supposed to present your case and you're supposed to critique the other case. That is what you do in an election. It is not a coronation. It is a contest. This country is worth fighting for, and I am going to fight for it. I'd rather you be involved and not for me than to be apathetic and not involved."
Omitted from that, Senator Clinton also told me in the first paragraph, where the ellipses were
"And that is so great, because there are so many new people, and not just young people, but I meet people all the time that have never voted before, never registered before...I bet there are some of you in this room today, who are going to participate for the first time. It can be a little, you know, eye-opening, especially when you choose sides, and you're for one or the other of us, that you can take very personally anything anybody says. I have to tell you that there are some things, believe it or not, that have been said about me by his campaign. And I take none of it personally, and I don't take most of it seriously."
Senator Clinton, you had the microphone, and it's your campaign, so you got the ability to answer my question at length. I could not respond, obviously, and I couldn't tell you how much of an issue I had with what you said. So this is my attempt at saying it now:
I didn't word my question as well as I would have hoped. But you looked into my eyes, and watched me nervously ask the question, and knew because I told you that I was an Obama supporter giving you a chance, and that I wasn't there to heckle or harass, but was there to ask you a question, and hopefully get an answer that would lead me to believe this party, this election, and this country are more important to you than your personal success.
Senator, I didn't get that answer.
In your speech, you implied to me that I was young, and that this campaign was just "eye-opening" to the sometimes rough realities of the political world. Senator, I'm by no means an expert, but I spend every day looking at the political world. I was paying attention when the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth killed our candidate in 2004. When you say "Rovian politics", I know all about John McCain's black baby. I know who Max Cleland is. And I know who Bill Clinton is, too. Just because I'm young doesn't mean that this entire process has been new or novel to me, or that this is my first real experience with electoral politics.
And this also isn't about not being able to understand "the heat" of the White House, either. Senator, I read your autobiography, and I read the autobiography of your husband. I know what HillaryCare was, I know who Newt Gingrich is, and I can tell you all about Denny Hastert and John Boehner and Bill Frist and Tom DeLay and Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity and Bill O'Reilly and George Bush and Dick Cheney and many other right-wing operatives who have damaged this country and impeded meaningful progress over the last 20 years. I know what partisanship is, and I know that the challenges of this country aren't going to melt away because Obama says "Yes We Can" in his political speeches.
I asked you if you had anything you'd like to apologize for, if there's anything you've said or done that you regret, because I understand the amount this country needs help and I DON'T BELIEVE YOUR ACTIONS HAVE BEEN HELPING IT.
I don't support you getting out of the race because I think that you don't deserve the chance to run, or because I think people shouldn't have a voice in the process. I was only able to see you come speak because this process has gone on so long. In fact, if you were running a campaign more like that of Mike Huckabee, that was about building up your ideas without tearing down the opponent, I would support you staying in the race until the last vote is cast. I have no problem with a candidate being vetted or tested, and I DO NOT think that it should be a coronation - but I don't think the primary should be a scorched earth deathmatch, either.
I don't support you staying in the race because so many of your efforts in the past few months have done damage to a prominent leader within this party - someone who is working just as hard as you to make America a better place again. There is running for America, and there's running solely for you - and I think you've been drifting toward the latter lately.
Finally, Senator Clinton, allow me to make one last observation:
You are losing this race.
You're losing it because you no longer grasp what America wants and needs above all else. You're losing it because you're still trying to project yourself as the best fighter in the race, showing it by battering someone that stands for almost all the same values you do, when the majority of Democrats and everyone are saying that they're tired of the fighting that has been raging for decades.
You're losing this race for the same reason you have now lost my vote for good.
When I asked you a question, you dismissed the very real feelings behind it. You told me that I was young, that I was naive, that I didn't understand. You tried to "inform" me about the nature of politics, and you implied that my belief in a better way was misplaced, misguided and incorrect.
Well, Senator, I'm not just some punk kid. I'm a voter. I'm a voter just the same as the women, African-Americans, college kids, veterans, Republicans, senior citizens, and latte-sipping Prius drivers around this country are voters - and all of our votes are equally powerful, which makes all of our feelings and hopes and desires for the future of this country equally valid.
The majority of those people aren't voting for you, Senator. You're losing this race, and there's a reason for that. I tried to explain that reason, tried to ask you to acknowledge my worries as valid and real...
And you just gave another speech telling me about the "realities" of this rough and tumble political world of ours.
I'm young, Senator Clinton, but I understand a lot of the realities of this political world. And one of these realities is that you're losing because you no longer are fighting for what the majority of America wants.
(UPDATE: I'm always thrilled and amazed when people respond to something I write, especially when it's as positive as these comments have been. I'm overwhelmed by how encouraging everyone has been. Thank you all so much for your kind words and encouragement.
I'm planning on taking the advice that was given by others in the comments. I've posted this on MyDD, will be sending a link to BlueOregon (my "home state" blog) and have linked it for everyone on my Facebook.
More importantly, I will take the advice given here, refine this into an article about 600 words in length, and send it along to the Oregon Daily Emerald, the (Eugene) Register-Guard, the Oregonian, the major newspapers and (only because it was encouraged by some of you here) to Keith Olbermann.
I won't make it into a video because I doubt my ability to create a video with good enough production values to send on, and because I also doubt how attractive it would be for media outlets.
If you have any favorite parts of my diary that you think would be ideal for publication in print, let me know in the comments, or by emailing me at chaley2@uoregon.edu. I'm open to ideas, especially since I'm mostly doing this based on your encouragement.
Again, thank you so much for your kind words. I asked Senator Clinton the question that has been weighing on my mind, and it would seem that it's been weighing on many other minds, as well. I was content to write me diary and let it be, but if there is this much of a call to pass it along, I will try to do just that so that more people can hear this perspective that many apparently share.)