The Hillary I know
By NewHampster on March 28, 2008 at 1:46 AM in Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, Florida, Hillary Clinton, John Edwards, Michigan, Women and Children, Workers
I’ve met this woman 3 times. They were your quick handshake and hello type of meetings. Not the sort of meeting that would allow me to say I know Senator Clinton.
But when I looked in her eyes and held her hand, my rather substantial gut said this is a woman I can trust. This is a woman who has my best interest at heart.
Now, I’m not one to scour the web for numbers and quotes. Read on to learn about the Hillary I know in my gut.
The Hillary I know went straight from Law School to Fall River, Mass. to work for the Children’s Defense Fund. Not to the high paying corporate jobs she was offered, but to where she could help the most helpless of our society.
As a law student, Hillary represented foster children and parents in family court and worked on some of the earliest studies creating legal standards for identifying and protecting abused children. Following graduation, she became a staff attorney for the Children’s Defense Fund.
The Hillary I know worked to bring down the most corrupt presidency in American history. She was still young and may have made a mistake or two, but she was on the side of the good guys.
After serving as only one of two women lawyers on the staff of the House Judiciary Committee considering the impeachment of Richard Nixon, Hillary chose not to pursue offers from major law firms. Instead she followed her heart and a man named Bill Clinton to Arkansas. They married in 1975 and their daughter Chelsea was born in 1980.
The Hillary I know continued to work for children after her marriage.
Hillary ran a legal aid clinic for the poor when she first got to Arkansas and handled cases of foster care and child abuse. Years later, she organized a group called Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families. When she was just 30, President Carter appointed her to the board of the United States Legal Services Corporation, a federal nonprofit program that funds legal assistance for the poor.
The Hillary I know took on the mantle of the Woman’s movement and worked tirelessly around the world to bring the horrible treatment of women into public awareness.
When her husband was elected President in 1992, Hillary’s work as a champion for women was recognized and admired around the world. She traveled the globe speaking out against the degradation and abuse of women and standing up for the powerful idea that women’s rights are human rights.
The Hillary I know spoke in 1995 to The UN Fourth World Conference On Women, Beijing, China
I want to speak up for mothers who are fighting for good schools, safe neighborhoods, clean air and clean airwaves . . . for older women, some of them widows, who have raised their families and now find that their skills and life experiences are not valued in the workplace . . . for women who are working all night as nurses, hotel clerks, and fast food chefs so that they can be at home during the day with their kids . . . and for women everywhere who simply don’t have enough time to do everything they are called upon to do each day.
If there is one message that echoes forth from this conference, it is that human rights are women’s rights . . . And women’s rights are human rights.
The Hillary I know spoke once again at the 5 year follow-up to the Beijing meeting. When she finished her speech the 1000’s of women at the U.N. began to hold hands and sing the anthem of freedom, “We shall overcome”. This is an inspiring woman and republican’s don’t like that.
The Hillary I know is in it to win. She’s in it to win the nomination and she’s in it to win the Presidency.
Quoting the owner of Daily Kos, Markos Alberto Moulitsas Zúniga:
What’s more, Clinton was the only top-tier candidate to refuse the ultimate Iowa and New Hampshire pander by removing her name from the Michigan ballot. That makes her essentially the de facto winner since Edwards and Obama, caving to the cry babies in Iowa and New Hampshire, took their name off Michigan’s ballot. Sure, the DNC has stripped Michigan of its delegates, but that won’t last through the convention. The last thing Democrats can afford is to alienate swing states like Michigan and Florida by refusing to seat their delegates.
So while Obama and Edwards kneecap their chances of winning, Clinton is single-mindedly focused on the goal.
The Hillary I know has an awesome record in the Senate. She came to the Senate, rolled up her sleeves and learned the ropes better than most Senators ever do. She’s worked across the aisle more than any and she has fought the rethug controlled Senate to keep our progressive agenda out front.
The Hillary I know has not only fought the wrong wing smear machine for 20 years, she knows how to successfully stand up and fight their crap now.
Once again quoting Markos:
Clinton, by far. No one has taken more shit from the VRWC, not by a long shot. Edwards earned valuable campaign experience in 2004. It makes me wonder why he’d go through it all again a second time, but still, it’s something. Obama has never had a competitive race against a Republican. His best experiences comes from winning primaries. But he’s never been in the crossfires of the GOP. Maybe that’s why he can pretend that he can move beyond partisanship. Because he’s never had to run a partisan race.
The Hillary I know is a progressive whatever that means and a lifelong fighter for our liberal beliefs.
Markos once again:
Clinton isn’t horrible on this front, but Obama has made a cottage industry out of attacking the dirty fucking hippies on the left, from labor unions, to Paul Krugman, to Gore and Kerry, to social security, and so on. People think I was being ticky tack with the Gore thing, and in isolation it would’ve been but a minor non-event. But it was the proverbial straw that broke the camel’s back for me, yet another in a pattern of attacks against Democrats and their constituencies. He is the return of Bill Clinton-style triangulating personified.
The Hillary I know is a funny, likable woman. She admits she is uncomfortable talking about herself but she can speak to the issues better than any candidate in this race.
Even Markos likes her:
In other words, I’d have a beer with any of them. But I do love the idea of breaking a new barrier this year, whether it’s by having a woman president or an African American one.
The Hillary I know is a Woman. She is the best spokesperson the woman’s movement has ever had and republican’s don’t like that either. Women, over 50% of the population, may not always like her policies but they respect her and admire her fighting spirit.
The Hillary I know is the greatest threat the GOP has ever faced. Why have they relentlessly attacked her for all these years? Because they know what will happen to the GOP if Hillary is nominated for the Presidency of the United States.
Women. Single mothers. Working women. Feminists. Housewives. Women. Bartenders, Convenience store workers, mill workers. Women. Hookers, Strippers, Black Jack Dealers. Women.
Women. who have never voted. Women. who have voted Republican. Women. who are independents.
The Hillary I know when nominated will unite these women into the greatest force for freedom that the world has ever seen.
The Hillary I know when nominated will cause the largest voter registration the country has ever seen. All those women voters standing with their sisters to see the first Woman President will be registered as Democrats.
The Hillary I know is the greatest threat the GOP has ever faced. She is a Woman.
If you’d like to hear how some others feel, please visit The Hillary I Know
Once $299.98, now yours for $149.99.
+ ALL 
New Hampster..
Excellent Work…Thanks so much for laying this out in an Easy thread to read..Thanks for sharing the Picture..Nice..
I enjoyed this very much and agree with all your points..
This is why we should vote for Hillary:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VlN5HBzmEbQ&eurl=ad.php?t=3582
Nice sentiments. I’ve never met either of the Clinton’s personally but, having spent a lot of time listening to the testimonials in the video series “The Hillary I Know,” I got a very nice solid feeling about her. Her story is amazing.
I widgetized the entire Hillary I Know series so that it can be easily distributable. (The widget is embeddable just about anywhere). It can be found either at my website or here.
Done! It’s a great widget. Thanks,
Judith
New Hampster -
Fabulous! Great pic too.
It is funny but I met President Clinton recently and felt the very same way about him.He looked me square in the eye and said “God bless you”.
It felt like I mattered to him, my concerns mattered.
Contrast that with the fact that as a a core democrat Senator Obama acts like I don’t exist.He’ll get the nomination with “other voters”.That coupled with the fact that the man will not take a principled stand, stick his neck out if his life depended on it! I mean today he said he’d have left the church if Wright stayed! For heaven’s sake that is convenient because the guy retired coincidentally so I guess he and his family have that problem solved.Only problem though is the new pastor is same old same old. Just an extension of the present votes, really. A character thing to me, a lack of spine.
New Hampster,
Kudos and thanks for sharing this. Great pic and well done!
Love the pic. It’s looks like Bill and Hillary are both having fun. Whatever you did made them smile.
Thanks for the post. It’s wonderful.
Bill is good but Hill is ten times better. His presidency is just a foreshadowing of what’s to come. The woman is amazing and transforming. She’s magic.
OK now I read the entire thing. Wow.
New Hampster
Fantastic Round up and expresses my feelings also.
I love your screen name - it is the name John Edwards son, Jack, used for New Hampshire when his dad took him to visit. Are you from New Hampshire? What part?
I am from the Concord area. In all Honesty John Edwards was my first choice, not only for his program issues, but because he actually was able to get Lou D’Allesandro to act like a real human, instead of like the old Lou.
Thanks to Susan Hu, whom I have absolutely trusted for years, and her unique way of pushing me to research, I too now wholeheartedly share your sentiments and solidly support Hillary.
I had the opportunity to get to see and speak with Hillary and Bill many times in 1992, when they had their office on Elm St in Manchester. Bill always was a smoothie and cutie. Hillary was more of a “good listener”, and she responded with real action once she “got” the importance of what people were feeling and telling her.
If you are a fellow Granite Stater, don’t you love how Tom Brokaw called us “professional voters”? If we can get NH values put in place in DC, people would be astounded at what a wonderful country we can be.
Thanks again for this stellar roundup.
Londonderry and the Londonderry Democratic Committee are where the hampster resides.
I think that the one good thing to come out of this year is that people in other states are getting a taste of what Iowa and New Hampshire experience. Difference is that they each get one week and we got a year to kick the tires this time.
The outcome will be a renewed understanding of the value our small states play in the process.
“I looked the man in the eye. I found him to be very straightforward and trustworthy. We had a very good dialogue. I was able to get a sense of his soul; a man deeply committed to his country and the best interests of his country.”
G.W. Bush regarding V. Putin.
How’d that gut prediction work out…???
Mitchman:
Not everyone who makes such an analysis of another’s personality and integrity is a total psychopathic self-absorbed dumb ass like Bush. Unless you have some personal knowledge that supports a conclusion that New Hamster is as clueless as Bush, then you can’t make a supportable comparison of their analytical abilities.
Clever. As in what? As in what’s the connection, troll? But hey - I know someone tried to look Barack Hussein in the eye too - except it didn’t work.
His eyes are always so SHIFTY.
Great post, New Hampster! The NY Times had a great new Krugman article comparing the mortgage crisis plans of the three candidates, and an explanation of Hillary’s health care initiatives. The links are below:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/28/us/politics/28clinton.html?_r=1&th=&oref=slogin&emc=th&pagewanted=print
and
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/28/opinion/28krugman.html?_r=1&th=&oref=slogin&emc=th&pagewanted=print
My sentiments exactly and then some.
I have had no small amount of outrage brewing over the lack of women standing up for Hillary. Not to vote for her but as one of our own, an American Woman.
No woman in this country should stand by idly while another is being destroyed for political gain. Even if they still said they would vote for Obama, I wish some of the leaders in our country would put a voice to what I (and I believe many others) are feeling.
It saddens me deeply that our country still cares so little for its women. I served my country well and would have died for it had it been necessary. But I see now that being a woman in this country is being even less than a black man. And I wonder, would my sacrifice had been worth it? Would I lay down to give the Barak Obama’s of America his day while destroying another woman?
I never thought I would think this way.
REAL MEN FOR HILLARY!
YOU HAVE WON OUR HEARTS AND EARNED OUR VOTES!!!
I have a button from the NH Primary. “Real Men Vote Hillary”.
a really nice post about Sen Clinton’s work. i will happily, enthusiastically vote for her in November. but i hear people say they won’t vote for her if she wins the dem ticket — and i hear people won’t vote for Obama if he wins it….
we don’t need a McCain in the WH, we need a democrat in the WH. will we ever come together to get the democrat elected?
thanks for this entry about Sen Clinton.
My big criticism of her is that her campaign is doing a terrible job of getting this kind of information to the public. Most people have no clue about all the things she has done. Her campaign needs to get people out there now to get this across. If she does it herself it will just sound like bragging, just like leaving a candidate to defend themselves makes them look defensive and weak. You need others to make the case for you and come to your defense when you are attacked the way the Republicans always do.
and then get our “NEWS” media to COVER it !!
“Most people have no clue about all the things she has done.”
This column had a nice personal touch, but it still was pretty lacking in listing specific accomplishments of Hillary. “Fights for women and children”, etc. Why doesn’t someone here help out and list some specific accomplishments?
http://hillaryclinton.com/about/mom/
Great post! Could you provide the link(s) to the Markos quotes?
Why don’t you just go to the site and use the search function and find them if you are so inclined. A lot of us here don’t go there anymore, not sure if NewHampster is one of them. I don’t see any need to provide revenue or support in any way there. Maybe after the GE my sentiments will change.
Exactly. I have not been to Dailykos for about a month now. I just wanted the link to use in future comments. If I have to go there…nevermind!
Here’s where most of them came from
http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2008/1/2/12427/74720
We do not say the name of said site here anymore… just to keep them from getting hits.
No biggie. But I think it’s a good plan, first proposed here by Fleaflicker.
Lovely picture NewHampster and a really great post! All three of you look fabulous! I’m so glad you are here.
Bad News Clinton supporters:
Casey to Endorse Obama
http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/03/28/the-early-word-casey-to-endorse-obama/index.html?hp
Hey Will:
In the immortal words of Dick Cheney: Patrick Leahy can go F_ _ K himself!!
Could it be that his state of Vermont went for Obama in the caucus? Using the reasoning of you Obama supporters (when you aren’t out to change the “math”) shouldn’t that mean that the sound trouncing that Obama received in Massachusettes mean that Kerry, Kennedy, and Deval Patrick come out in support of Clinton? Or Bill “I never met a woman’s ass I didn’t want to smack” Richardson’s state of New Mexico which Clinton won.
Oh, I forgot, Obama is going to blow McCain out of the water in the fall because he was won in red states we won’t carry in the fall, and caucus states that disenfranchise large numbers of voters.
Every single liberal i know — particularly liberals i know in Pennsylvania — detests Bob Casey.
I doubt this endorsement will mean much to any of those people.
This is a great diary. Thanks so much!
I am all for facts and figures, and looking at what someone has done in his or her life to predict what he or she will do. That’s one reason I support Hillary, because she has a great voting record (91% progressive according to ProgressivePunch.org), and because she has a history of trying to improve the lives of all Americans.
But I think we also need some gut checks in American politics. Let’s face it, the first time I saw George W.’s eyes - that lunatic thousand-yard stare - I knew he was completely unfit to be our President. He made me nauseous every time I saw him.
If more people would trust their own eyes and ears regarding Hillary, instead of looking through their devil-tinted glasses, I think she’d be winning this nomination in a landslide.
My husband, who really just wants any Democrat in 2009 (as do I, but I prefer Hillary more strongly), is incredibly impressed by her whenever she speaks. So yes, women should stand up for her, but men should too. After all, they are going to benefit from her Presidency just as much as women will. More jobs, a 5-year interest rate freeze on mortgages, universal health care, getting us out of Iraq…
Great post New Hampster !! Thank you for sharing it here. She is one amazing woman !!
A little off-topic, but I must share how the reason why the Democrats are totally screwed was encapsulated on the Lionel Show on Air Obama Radio this morning:
Caller: “The problem is, the media takes a few clips of Wright’s speeches, and they are presented out of context.”
Lionel: “That’s right.”
Caller: “Of course Barack heard those sermons, but he heard them IN context.”
Lionel: “Any you know, I’ve heard the sermons, and I can’t see what was wrong in anything the Rev. Wright said.”
Caller: “Me neither!”
Lionel: “You know, not everyone in this country wants to just put a flag lapel pin on their suits or a flag on their car and call themselves Patriots.”
Caller: “that’s right.”
And this, my friends, is why we are totally doomed if Barack Obama is the Democratic nominee. If he is nominated, expect month after month of Obamabots DEFENDING the Rev. Wright and calling anyone who criticizes his sermons as “racists” or people who “take him out of context.” And the millions of us who fall between the groups who think that “the US Government invented AIDS to wipe out the black population” is a loathsome commentary regardless of the “context” and those who think that “Patriotism” means putting a “Support the Troops” sticker on your car and voting Republican will have to choose between one of those two sides.
For me, the choice will be very, very easy. I will never assist in turning over my country to the supporter of a race-baiting lunatic and his disciples of Unconditional Love (being Obama means never having to say you’re sorry, you know.) I will not give one penny to the DNC because it’s clearly rigging the system to screw Hillary. I can’t vote for McCain, so I will simply not vote for the head of the ticket. Nor will I vote for any candidate who endorses Obama. Which means I will probably have a lot of free time on a certain Tuesday this November.
Speaking of guts. My big gut told me the war was a bad idea. My gut tells me Obama would be a bad idea and Hillary a great one. So, like you, I gotta go with my gut. Brilliant.
This is a wonderful post. If everyone could know the Hillary we know, the world would be the far better for it. Let’s hope that many others discover the real Hillary Clinton before it is too late. Thanks for helping them do that!
Thanks for this great article. I somehow feel that I am living in an alternate reality. Because of the MSM frenzy over Obama, and the ‘Hate Hillary’ campaigns going on 24/7 on ONN (Obama News Network), I means CNN, it’s as if the Clinton White House never existed.
If I hear one more idiot proclaim that ‘Hiliary has no experience’, I think I will scream.
I DESPISE people who propogate ‘revisionist history’. Either you weren’t around as an adult during the Clinton years, or you were either a) in a coma, or b) in an oblivious fog.
People rode around with bumper stickers saying: “I didn’t vote for Hillary!” The REASON people disliked her during the Clinton White House years is BECAUSE she was running the country WITH her husband, as his PARTNER. And for the truly ignorant, YES THEY DID VOTE FOR HILLARY, because Bill Clinton was often quoted during his campaign as saying when they voted for him, they would get “two for the price of one” - meaning that Hillary would be sharing the Oval Office WITH him. They were often called “co-presidents” by the media, and even the term “Billary” evolved because they were one Presidential entity.
All that controversy was generated BECAUSE certain ignorant people thought she had no business running the country. You can’t just suddenly change history, and say, “Gee, what experience does she have?”
Now whether you loved, hated or cared less about the Clinton presidency, the fact of the matter is YES, she did spend 8 years in the White House - look it up on Wikipedia - she was the first First Lady that had an active, full-time role in the running of the country. And furthermore, she was an UNPAID VOLUNTEER - she didn’t even get a salary for what she did full-time. Great perks, yes, but no regular salary. No First Lady is ever paid a salary.
As far as I am concerned, we not only got a 2-fer, but a phenomenal ‘freebie’, and we were lucky as a country to have not one, but 2 of the smartest people to ever inhabit the White House there, working together. People seem to completely forget those pesky, trivial matters that they accomplished, like balancing the budget, eliminating trillions of national debt, and leaving George W. with a SURPLUS.
These people want to focus on much bigger issues such as Bill’s sex life, Bill lying about his sex life and Hillary’s failed health care plan. The fact that she WORKED HARD on a plan that would bring health care to the masses is what SHOULD matter, not the fact it failed. And these same idiots forget that nothing in this country is made into law by ONE person - it wasn’t Hillary’s failure, so much as the failure of CONGRESS to reach a consensus. Now I want to say to the brainwashed, kool-aid drinking MSM, whether you loved or hated Hillary, you can’t just re-write history and say “She has no experience”; it’s simply not true.
Because unlike every other First Lady in the White House since the beginning of this country, she did not stay in the East Wing of the White House where she ‘belonged’. Instead, Hillary had an office in the West Wing, right there were daily decisions and policies were being made.
Just what do people think the massive Clinton file stored at the National Archives contain? There is an estimated 78 MILLION pages of documents, plus 20 MILLION e-mail messages, packed into 36,000 boxes. I’d say that the Clintons did a hell of lot during those 8 years, and I’d like to see them doing it again next year. Thanks for highlighting some of Hillary’s experience in your article; too bad no one in the MSM will ever bring it the forefront of American consiousness.
Ria, I am awed by your comment and wonderful retelling of the real history that people conveniently forget. Thank you
Stand up and go have your voices heard.Sit on their front lawn.Obama and the others are just protecting their money.Florida and Michigan and now trying to have the people of PA,IND,N.C AND THE REST OF OTHER STATES NOT BE COUNTED.
I have my right to vote for our country.Our country is going to go the the tubes if Obama become president.It’s going be worth as is it now.We are going to be more the worst off.we won’t beable to dig out.They will have everything we own. ALL the way Hillary is for our country who really cares.