More than a thousand people gathered to hear Democratic candidates for the state legislature, three area members of Congress, congressional candidate John Hall, and Bill Clinton. I wanted to live blog the event but couldn't get online.
The event began appropriately with State Senate Candidate Andrea Stewart-Cousins who lost a close race 2 years ago by 18 votes talking about the importance of getting out the vote: "You know who I am - I am the reason that you have to remind everyone you know to vote," she said. "Get on the phone, you matter! Knock on doors, you matter! Tell you neighbors they matter." Despite disenfranchisement and vote suppression efforts, she said, "We're going to vote in numbers that they never could believe could happen. We're going to let the nation know that Democrats are awake."
Quotable Bill after the jump!
The twenty speakers also included union leaders, state legislators, and candidates, including State Senate candidate Mike Kaplowitz, and US Representatives Maurice Hinchey, Elliot Engel, and Nita Lowey, followed by John Hall and William Jefferson Clinton.
John said we are "poised on the brink of restoring checks and balances, of restoring equal branches of government to this country. There are over 1000 people who have volunteered for our campaign here, days with over 3500 voter contacts in one day. That power, that individual power, one person speaking directly to another, can counteract all the negative advertising they can buy. Keep at it for another 8 days and we can take back the House of Representatives and take back our country."
Bill thanked the crowd, the MC Westchester County Democratic Chair Lafayette, the members of congress, and "Most of all thank you John Hall for running for congress."
Bill: "John Hall, when he filed it must have looked like a fool's errand, but he was a musician so he has to believe in the impossible, and he was a grassroots activist so he has to believe in the power of citizens to change the world. He was a school board president and county legislator which are hard jobs where you actually have to listen to people, so he is superbly well qualified to undergo the rigors of this campaign and also to serve in Congress."
Bill on the Republicans: "They have tried to push America in places it has never been and doesn't want to go. They have left us democrats being both the traditional progressive and conservative party. Think about it. I gave them 3 surpluses. We never had a social security problem. The president says he wants to quote revisit social security after the election. When I was in college we called that a euphemism. Stick a fork in him after the election."
Bill: "They can say cut and run all they want. Cut and run is not what we're for, we're for stop and think."
Bill: "This is basically a contest between the politics of special interests and the politics of the common good, a contest between government based on evidence and argument and their way based on assertion and attack."
Bill also talked about Bob Woodward's new book, and why Republicans take it as a compliment to be told they are in a state of denial, because they have to be, because they are ideologues who look down on people who are trapped in the reality based world.
Bill: "I grew up in an alcoholic home, I spent my entire youth trying to get into the reality based world, and I like it here."
Bill: "The decisive margin between victory and defeat is comprised of people who know they ought to vote for change but are scared because they haven't done it before. The balance of power is in the hands of Americans who desperately want change, who are tired of the attacks and the negativity. But we are asking them to do something they've never done before, like when you first learn to swim and you get up on the diving board. Karl Rove still thinks they can prevail by doing a better job then we do by getting their base to vote, and to get all these people standing on the diving board scared.
Bill explains the Republican campaign message: "ok so we messed up, we probably shouldn't have put the guy who ran the horse show association in charge of FEMA before Katrina, and we messed up the Medicaid drug bill that's too expensive and complicated because we were concerned with the money of the special interests not the seniors, and it does look funny that we can't afford to implement the 9/11 Commission recommendations because we want to give 10,000 families more estate tax relief. We messed up but you still have to vote for us because the Democrats will tax you to the poorhouse and on the way there you will be attacked by terrorists and at every street corner you will trip over an illegal immigrant."
Bill brings home the extended metaphor: "We have to get every one of our folks to vote. You have now a little more than a week. Do not give up on anyone. When you're at work, the grocery store, think about this every day. Ask yourself if they are standing on the diving board. The whole future of the country is riding on the people standing on the diving board. Talk to them, offer to hold them by the hand and jump off to a better tomorrow."
Lots of speakers talked about the importance of GOTV. You know it! Contact the campaign of your choice. If you want to do some GOTV for Hall email me at Mobilizenow at gmail dot com.
Together we will win.
I'll put more from the event in the comments.