Those who rushed the stage in anticipation for Chelsea Clinton's appearance on behalf of her mother, listened to the first of three of Clinton's Texas campaign leaders with some patience, then less and then none as they screamed for the former "First Daughter" to speak.
Chelsea looked a bit overwhelmed at first, but obviously is warming to her life on the hustings. As she spoke and urged the unity her mother has said she wants to bring to the remainder of the presidential campaign.
"She will of course be doing what she always has done: Work to support Democrats across the country. And she will work to support and elect Obama in November. And secondly, she just wanted to make sure I just gave a great Texas size thank you."
Chelsea Clinton's face bore expressions from both her famous parents.
She bit her bottom lip as her father always did when a bit of sincerity was called for. And she nodded her head in agreement with herself in the manner of her mother.
"Thank you to everyone who has supported her campaign; who has knocked on doors; made phone calls, showed up and voted early; showed up and voted on March 4 and attended precinct caucuses on March 4, attended county conventions. I heard earlier that one of my Mother's supporters drove 650 miles to get here today. Thank you all so much for your support and your love and your enthusiasm," Chelsea Clinton said in thanking her mother's campaign workers. "As a daughter, it was so inspiring for me to be here in Texas, where my mother's political began registering people to vote in the Valley. And I just had the best time, so a very personal and heartfelt thank you to all of you who made me feel so welcome.
"But, we know our work has just begun. We know we need to be reaching out and registering more voters, for November, more Democrat voters. We all know what's at stake, whatever brought us here today; whether you were inspired by fixing No Child Left Behind or ending the war, or getting the economy back on track. We have to just keep reaching out to Democrats across Texas, like Rick Noreiga and why we have to elect Democrats across the country and turn Texas Blue.
Chelsea enjoyed her own moments of Rock Stardom, as she ended her talk, the crowd that had surged forward caught her attention and she walked to the skirt of the stage and leaned over, shaking hands to wild applause for about 10 minutes.
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3 comments:
Thanks for this update---I was just surfing from blog to blog and ran across yours. How nice of you.I live in Texas and I too am a Democrat. I was not elected as a delegate to the state convention, but I did participate on the county level and I've been working on Obama's campaign. Your blog gives me a birds eye view of the convention. Hope you have a great time and I hope we win in November!!
Thanks Lyndee,
It's really been fun and challenging to do in anything like real time. The speeches are hard because they come so fast after one another.
I'll be at the rules and maybe the platform and resolution committee meetings tomorrow. Something might be shaking there.
The logistics of the convention hall in Austin are really trying. The place is huge and ill-configured. Elevators go to levels 2 and 4 or 1 and 3. Then you have to wander around the halls to find the other one. They're not located at the same spot on each floor.
It's sort of laid out in a horseshoe, so you sometimes have to walk three quarters of the way around the building to get from one meeting to another (or to the press room.) The disabled people are having real problems with it.
Also, one of the escalators got stuck with a lot of people on it.
There was a really intense fight over the Wise County delegation seating, but that and four other credentials challenges were resolved. Hope you get to make it as a delegate some day.
I am just covering this as a journalist, but in 1984, I was a delegate to the state convention and an alternate delegate to the national convention. Big time fun.
Kathy, what a great blogsite! What an exciting and emotionally charged event that was! I was very impressed Saturday when all the veterans were asked to stand for recognition. It looked as if thousands stood up; old vets, young vets, vets of every color and gender, some disabled others not. No one knows the number that stood up. Hundreds? Perhaps a thousand, more? So moving.
Rick Noriega, another Democrat and vet running for the U.S. Senate (Republican John Cornyn's seat). Rick, a Lt. Colonel with the 141 Infantry Ballalion, recently completed a 14 month tour in Afganistan; now preparing to return for another tour of duty. An impressive speaker, Rick received his Master's Degree in Public Administration (at Harvard, I believe).
Democrat Senate contenders see the war from the ground combat "grunt" perspective.
Republican Senate contenders see the war from TV sets, and helicopter fly-over's around the Green Zone.
Roberta Ford, a Vietnam Vet gave an opening statement Friday, June 6 to the large audience, mentioning it was the 64th Anniversary of the D-Day Invasion of Normandy Beach, France.
Also on Friday on Level 4, Ballroom D were living legends: the original TUSKEGEE Airmen; Corp. Don Elder, Capt William Gray, and Capt. Claude Platte, among other Tuskegee vets. Colonel Lloyd McKeethen, last of the 944 pilots to retire was also there. Genuine WW2, Korea and Vietnam combat vets and Democrats to the core.
At the Senate District 30 seating area, I noted the elderly vet in the wheelchair. He was wearing his Blue & Yellow VFW garrison cap. I scooted my chair over to offer him a place with us, and he smiled back. "Thanks anyway son, but I'm joinin' my buddies over there", he said as he pointed. "We went to high school together", he added.
Over 185,000 vets from Afganistan and Iraq are currently seeking government assisted treatment for war related disabilities (msnbc.com 9/30/07)
John McCain and his Republican cronies are currently fighting to stop an improved G.I. Bill from passing into law. Too expensive they say.
And yet $9,000,000,000 is still unaccounted for from the first 14 months of reconstruction in Iraq (source H.R. 1585, Amend 2999 9/21/07)
Wolfawitz, Rove, "Five Deferment" Cheney, and the others who started this conflict, never served.
Before #43 Bush left Texas for Washington, Press Spokeswomen Karen Hughes went to Camp Mabry in Austin to retrieve all of his Texas Air National Guard personnel records. Though not reported often, this illustrates the secrecy and information control tactics used by the Bush handlers. #43's TANG personnel and medical (drugscreen?) records is something you won't be seeing in the new Bush Presidential Library at SMU.
There are many fine Republican veterans who I admire and greatly respect. Dwight Eisenhower's birthplace is just four blocks from my house. Heroes are not defined by political party affiliation.
But when I'm surrounded by thousands of proud veterans, all democrats; more than a few claiming to be former republicans, then I know I've really come to the right place.
Thanks for this blog, Kathy. Have a safe and happy two weeks off, while you rest on your vacation!
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