For the second time in as many weeks, a presidential candidate came to South Bend. I saw Obama in person earlier this month and when Hillary made a return trip on Saturday, I jumped at the chance, figuring this second opportunity to witness history will never again happen in my lifetime. I had my digital camera with me, so these are all my pictures, and you can see I had a good view. The picture above is Hillary making her way to the podium, right in front of me.The rally took place at our minor league stadium for the Class A Silverha
wks. So there was a lot of room and no need for tickets, unlike Obama, which was very difficult to secure a seat for unless you knew someone with a connection. The rally was scheduled to begin at 2:00 p.m. and I think it began at about 2:02 p.m., right on schedule (Obama was 40 minutes late). Pictured on the right are former governor Joe Kernan and Senator Evan Bayh. Hillary was introduced by former congressman John Brademas.
wks. So there was a lot of room and no need for tickets, unlike Obama, which was very difficult to secure a seat for unless you knew someone with a connection. The rally was scheduled to begin at 2:00 p.m. and I think it began at about 2:02 p.m., right on schedule (Obama was 40 minutes late). Pictured on the right are former governor Joe Kernan and Senator Evan Bayh. Hillary was introduced by former congressman John Brademas. 
Hillary's speech was quite different than the one Obama gave when I saw him. His was basically a pep rally with little detail (which is by design, he hasn't had to give much detail). Hillary was more specific about what she would do, and with lots of detail. Although, maybe that's been a problem of hers, too much detail. At one point, she's talking about biofuels and NAFTA and China and, I don't know, maybe those things get lost on a lot of the crowds. Some of the applause she got was muted at best. Although, some of this may have to do with the venue. Noise in an open air stadium is quite different than in a compact high school gymnasium where Obama appeared. Her biggest cheers came when she vowed to stick it to the oil companies, make college affordable, and do away with No Child Left Behind (and, of course, bring the troops home).
Overall, a much different atmosphere than the Obama rally. Hillary is just not as good a speaker in this setting. Up close, her age really shows, and the youthful vigor of Obama really does create a striking contrast between the two. There was another contrast that was oh so evident. In scanning the stadium, I could count on both hands the total number of African-Americans in the audience. Hillary has all but totally lost this voting bloc. A far cry from the days when her husband was called "the first black president." Will the two sides unite in time for the general election? Recent history says a party divided will lose in November (see the Democrats in 1968 and 1980, and the Republicans in 1976 and 1992). Could it happen again? I'm just not sure at this point how eager the supporters of the losing candidate will be to join forces with the other.
One thing about Hillary you can't deny, she knows her stuff. But all the experience in the world has been taking a back seat to Obama's "change we can believe in" campaign. She pretty much left Obama alone, until the end. She talked about how his campaign aides were complaining about the last debate and the questions that were asked. She said she was issuing a challenge to a debate with no moderators. My guess is Obama won't go for this. Neither of them did particularly well at the last debate, but Obama particularly showed some cracks in his armor and the last thing he wants is to make people start thinking Hillary's right and he's not ready on "day one" like she says she is.
Overall, a much different atmosphere than the Obama rally. Hillary is just not as good a speaker in this setting. Up close, her age really shows, and the youthful vigor of Obama really does create a striking contrast between the two. There was another contrast that was oh so evident. In scanning the stadium, I could count on both hands the total number of African-Americans in the audience. Hillary has all but totally lost this voting bloc. A far cry from the days when her husband was called "the first black president." Will the two sides unite in time for the general election? Recent history says a party divided will lose in November (see the Democrats in 1968 and 1980, and the Republicans in 1976 and 1992). Could it happen again? I'm just not sure at this point how eager the supporters of the losing candidate will be to join forces with the other.
One thing about Hillary you can't deny, she knows her stuff. But all the experience in the world has been taking a back seat to Obama's "change we can believe in" campaign. She pretty much left Obama alone, until the end. She talked about how his campaign aides were complaining about the last debate and the questions that were asked. She said she was issuing a challenge to a debate with no moderators. My guess is Obama won't go for this. Neither of them did particularly well at the last debate, but Obama particularly showed some cracks in his armor and the last thing he wants is to make people start thinking Hillary's right and he's not ready on "day one" like she says she is.
After she was done, Hillary walked around for a while signing campaign signs and posing for pictures (all of us up close were given a sign). I tried to hand her my sign as she passed by, but to no avail. Then, as I was preparing to take more pictures, my batteries ran out. I changed them and then noticed a break in the line that was
waiting for Hillary to come by. I snatched up the spot and the picture to the right is Hillary, seconds before she was standing right in front of me, autographing the campaign sign you see below. I said "Thank you, Senator" and she smiled back and also said "Thank you."
On this day, I wasn't here with my partisan feelings. I wasn't thinking about sniper fire in Bosnia. I was just excited to be a part of history. This is so cool, I love it! So, with apologies to my fellow Republicans who wouldn't cross the street to see a Clinton, it really was an honor for a fleeting moment to be the person that the former First Lady was talking to.
waiting for Hillary to come by. I snatched up the spot and the picture to the right is Hillary, seconds before she was standing right in front of me, autographing the campaign sign you see below. I said "Thank you, Senator" and she smiled back and also said "Thank you."On this day, I wasn't here with my partisan feelings. I wasn't thinking about sniper fire in Bosnia. I was just excited to be a part of history. This is so cool, I love it! So, with apologies to my fellow Republicans who wouldn't cross the street to see a Clinton, it really was an honor for a fleeting moment to be the person that the former First Lady was talking to.
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