Hillary Clinton's Performance in Nevada

After a double digit loss to Senator Bernie Sanders in New Hampshire almost two weeks before the Nevada Democratic Caucus, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was looking for a resurgence in her campaign. As the grassroots idealism of the Sanders campaign grew, Clinton's campaign was forced to take a step back and evaluate how her campaign needed to move forward towards the next vote. Based on exit polls received from Nevada it was clear that Clinton did a much better job than Sanders in regards to winning a diverse electorate. Voters that were women, voters that were over the age of 45, voters that were African American, voters that were registered Democrats, and voters that were also union workers, voted for Clinton more often than they voted for Sanders according to CBS News. However, Clinton was not able to gain an advantage with Hispanic voters or voters under the age of 45; Sanders continues to crush Clinton with this percentage. Yet Clinton seemed perfectly fine with this.

In her victory speech, Clinton focused on thanking her supporters both in Nevada and around the country for all of the hard work and donations that they have contributed to her campaign. She promised to "break down every barrier that holds you back" and went after the Sanders campaign stating that "we aren't a single issue country...we need more than a plan for the big banks, the middle class needs a raise." These cracks at the Sanders campaign were not the primary theme in Clinton's speech, but were instead used to highlight issues from her traditional stump speech. With the South Carolina primary and Super Tuesday rounding out the first month of official campaigning, Clinton is starting to focus on the general election in November rather than every primary between now and the convention.

Though she needs to find a way to excite young voters, particularly women, she continues to dominate the national media over Sanders. After winning three of the first four contests in the 2016 presidential election cycle, the media is realizing that Clinton still has the power to take the Democratic Nomination in July even with the growing momentum of the Sanders campaign. As the race begins to head South, the media is predicting that Clinton will dominate in almost every contest, especially during Super Tuesday. It seemed as if the media knew Clinton would win Nevada by a reasonable margin that they immediately shifted their attention to her national campaign strategies as soon as she was declared the winner in Nevada. According to Real Clear Politics, Clinton is ahead in almost every poll ranging from the Carolinas, to Michigan, to Illinois. It is clear that the media is predicting a large margin of victory in regards to pledged delegates to Clinton on Super Tuesday, but there is still the possibility that Sanders could have some surprise wins in the Northeast in Massachusetts and his home state of Vermont.

Day Four: Bernie Sanders

The only presidential candidate we had yet to see during our time in New Hampshire, and one who we were more excited to see than most of the others, was Bernie Sanders. We had been planning to go to his primary night rally at Concord High School just a few minutes from our hotel. One of the other students on our trip, Frank, had been volunteering with the campaign for some time and was supposed to be getting a ticket to the rally in order to get a better seat, while we waited in line and went in with the general public. In order to get his ticket we had to go into Manchester to the Sanders campaign office. Yet when we got there we were met by two deputy directors who didn't seem eager to help us out. These campaign staffers weren't welcoming to us, nor did they really believe that we were there just to pick up a ticket and see how they ran their office. They told us that because it was primary day they weren't willing to give tours or be able to talk to us for very long because they were so busy, something that was extremely disappointing to us. They also did not have any tickets to give out to the event which was odd because Frank had been promised one.

Obviously this entire situation angered us and reflected poorly on the people hired by the Sanders campaign, but we were hopeful that by showing up early to the rally we would be able to get front row seats. So we drove back to Concord, got a quick dinner and headed to the high school where the rally was being held. By  5:20 we were in line outside hoping to be let in by 6:00 so that we could wait inside for the rally to start around 7:30. 

Though it was a cold New Hampshire night everyone was willing to brave the weather in order to see one of the most intriguing candidates of this campaign cycle. At 6:00 the doors were opened and a security guard had us start to file in towards the metal detectors at the front entrance of the school. But right when we got to the doors the security guard said that this event was actually a ticket only event and anyone without a ticket would be turned away. We were all shocked. This had to be a joke. No where had this event been advertised as a ticket only event and at no point while we were waiting in the cold had anyone from the campaign or event come out to tell us we would only be allowed in if we presented a ticket. And we weren't the only ones in this situation. 90% of the people we had been waiting in line with did not have tickets either and had no idea that we needed them to get in. 

But we weren't giving up so easily. With so few people with tickets we figured that  if we just waited a little while longer the event staff would realize that the 200 people waiting outside to Feel the Bern weren't going anywhere and would have to be let in. 

We waited until 7:00. Almost 2 hours in freezing weather. And to make it worse no one from the event staff had any answers as to when we might be able to get in to the event or why it had not been advertised as a ticket only event. 

We were crushed. And more importantly we were frozen. So we went to our van  to warm up and try again in a half hour. But when we went back, nothing had changed. Now, we were devastated. 

The combination of unwelcoming staffers at the Sanders campaign office, having to wait in the cold for hours, and never being able to actually get in to the event did not leave us with a flattering image of how the Sanders campaign was being run. Now, we know that this was in no way Bernie Sanders' own fault and was most likely poor communications between various campaign staffers. But what we couldn't fathom was why we had to stand outside for so long without ever being told this event was for ticket holders only or why we never got a direct answer when we asked if there was a chance we would be let in to the event at some point during the night. Disappointed and slightly disenfranchised with the Sanders campaign, we headed back to our hotel to thaw and watch the primary results on tv. 

Probably the only good thing about standing outside for 2 hours was seeing this creative sign and the shirt pictured below. 

An Unexpected Surprise

Now at the Trump rally I neglected to mention one smal detail. That I was able to get a picture with the billionaire himself. As the rally ended my friend Hannah and I were going to try and get a picture with Willie Geist, one of our favorite reporters from Morning Joe. But as we got to the top of our sections stairs a woman with the Trump campaign asked us if we wanted to get a picture with him. Of course! I may not agree with 90% of what he says but given the chance to meet the man in person and even get a picture with him was an opportunity I couldn't pass up.

So we waited in line and were lead to the basement of the arena where there was a holding room and more staff members. And then he just appeared. Trump walked in to the room like this was something he had been doing his entire life, talked for about a minute, and then started taking pictures with us. I couldn't believe it. The fact that just hours ago I shook former President Bill Clinton's hand and now I was shaking Donald Trump's was almost too much to comprehend. It was a day that could only have happened in New Hampshire during the presidential primary when the political circus is in town. 

I told you I met him, he even put his arm around me!

Day Three: Chris Christie

As the third day began we ventured back out into the madness of American politics see a whole variety of politicians. Our first stop was to see Governor of New Jersey Chris Christie at a small town hall event held on the floor of a factory outside of Manchester. We got to the event right as Christie was being introduced by Buddy The Cake Boss, a fellow New Jersey guy,  and Christie supporter. Christie spoke for around 20 minutes before taking questions from the audience for another hour. This event has been my favorite of the Republican candidates so far because Christie took the time to listen to each of the audience members questions and give thoughtful, detailed answers to their questions that ranged for homeland security to social security. Christie himself is also an impressive orator, knowing exactly how to work his audience and implicitly go after his opponents. 

Day Three: The Clintons

From the Christie event our team hit the road to go to a Clinton rally at Manchester Community College. While waiting at the Clinton event I was able to spot several journaists and members of the media including Willie Geist, Mile Barnacle, Sam Stein, and Lawrence O'Donnel. This event was such a unique experience because we were able to see Hillary Clinton, Bill Clinton, and Chelsea Clinton all at once. It was truly a historic moment, no matter if you agree with their politics or not, these are some of the most well known political figures of our time. 

As Chelsea and Bill introduced Hillary, the crowd's intensity steadily grew so that everyone was severely excited by the time Hillary took the stage. She then talked for around 40 minutes about healthcare, making college affordable for young adults, improve our energy standards, work on giving women equal rights, and how we need to take back the country from those who want to destroy it. Her most notable quote from the rally was when she indirectly went after the younger generations who have been supporting Bernie Sanders in record numbers by saying "You may not support me, but I will support always support you." As someone who goes between supporting both Hillary and Bernie this quote struck me because it showed that Hillary is presenting herself as someone who cares more about getting young adults into public service because they want to have a say in their countries future rather than saying something that makes it seem as if she only cares about winning and nothing more. 

However great these speeches were the venue that this event was held at was not the bet to accommodate such a large crowd. Because there were so many members of the mainstream media at this event the number of people allowed in to the arena was very limited. This meant that I had to stand just outside the glass wall that separates those from the room were the Clinton's spoke and the overflow room where I stood. It was slightly annoying to be forced to stand in the overflow area because there was clearly enough room to stand near the back where the media was stationed. But with this being the only downside to this event it was begrudgingly overcome.   

By the way, did I mention I shook former President Bill Clinton's hand and almost got a selfie with him? Because I did and it was awesome! 

Chelsea and Bill Clinton introducing Hillary Clinton. 

The woman of the hour, Hillary Clinton in the flesh. 

My almost perfect selfie with our 42nd President of the United States, Bill Clinton. 

Day Two: Carly Fiorina

In last nights post about the second half of my second day in New Hampshire I got so caught up in theVermin Supreme mayhem that I forgot to mention we also met Carly Fiorina. She was holding a pre game party for the Super Bowl at The Yard Restaurant outside Manchester. This event was much smaller than the Marco Rubio event we had visited earlier that morning, but that wasn't actually a bad thing. Because there were fewer people at this event everyone was able to meet Carly Fiorina, shake her hand, get a picture with her, and grab some free campaign swag. Though she may not be anywhere near getting the Republican Nomination it is impressive that she continues to campaign hard for votes and stick up for herself when most people in her party are trying to take her down.

Day Two: Rubio Rally

Another early morning for politics here in New Hampshire. After a quick breakfast at the hotel our vans headed off to a small town near Manchester called Londonderry to witness Marco Rubio in action. We got to the school where Rubio was scheduled to speak around 8:30 but were forced to wait almost 2 hours before he eventually showed up.

In the meantime we were able to watch how volunteers handled crowd control with the almost 800 person crowd in just a small elementary gym. By chance our group happened to be stationed near where the media were going to be filming Rubio as he walked in. This gave a lot of us the opportunity to ask questions to reporters and even be interviewed by the media. I myself was interviewed by a man from the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. I was asked about my views of the race thus far, what made Rubio a good candidate, and why Donald Trump seemed to be so popular with voters. 

Once Rubio showed up he proceeded to give his speech which highlighted the major focuses of his campaign. He talked about uniting the party, increasing the conservative movement, repealing most  of President Obama's policies, and increasing the size and quality of our military. Afterwards he shook hands with almost everyone in the room, but unfortunately I wasn't able to meet him personally. 

Candidate Signs in Action

Governor Kasich's signs could be seen as soon as we crossed the New Hampshire border. 

Signs for Trump, Jeb!, and Fiorina were not far behind. 

And of course I needed a picture with the giant Clinton sign outside of the campaign headquarters.