Tag Archives: Hillary Clinton for president

What’s at Stake in this Election? Everything

Hillary Clinton at a rally following the first presidential debate at Hofstra University, Long Island © 2016 Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com
Hillary Clinton at a rally following the first presidential debate at Hofstra University, Long Island © 2016 Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com

By Karen Rubin, News & Photo Features

Most elections involve some measure of hysteria, assertions that they are “transformative,” “historic,” and “the election of our lifetime.” This election between Hillary Clinton, the most qualified candidate ever to seek the most powerful office on the planet and the first woman to ascend to the Presidency, and Donald Trump, the most unfit, is just such an election.

“We’ve never had such a stark contrast – of character, of vision. The stakes in this election could not be more clear,” First Lady Michelle Obama declared.

Their differences are not merely matters of degree, these two individuals are diametrically opposed in every conceivable way.

But even if Donald Trump weren’t the most temperamentally unfit, inexperienced, morally bankrupt and wrong-headed candidate to ever seek the presidency, I would still whole-heartedly endorse Hillary Clinton, beginning with her biography, her career, her values, and finally, her experience, her competence, her platform and agenda.

I could go down the list of the extraordinarily detailed policy plans she has presented – to address income inequality, immigration reform, criminal justice reform, climate action, education, college affordability, health care, drug prices, infrastructure development, research and development, women’s reproductive rights, gun violence prevention, voting rights,  workers rights, parental leave (I could go on and on and on). (Go to her website, hillaryclinton.com, for details.)

I am cheered that at last, a Presidential candidate really “gets it” – prioritizing issues that have never before been at the forefront precisely because she is a woman and understands what families are going through, what women are still going through, the struggle the middle class is going through. She knows the slings and arrows of being the first woman to have crashed through the barriers to become a major party’s nominee for President and (hopefully) and would be the first woman to hold the office in our history. She brings that sensibility, that understanding, that lifetime of triumphing over adversity as a true trailblazer for women’s equality, going back to her earliest years after Yale Law School, fighting against discrimination and the backlash in Arkansas until she dropped her “Rodham” name for a married name of “Clinton.”

And in the same way as I whole-heartedly supported Hillary Clinton over Bernie Sanders, she has the skills, the big-picture vision, the pragmatism and the tools to actually get these done (assuming she isn’t blocked, obstructed, stymied and delegitimized by the Republicans as they already promise they will do as they did to Obama). I am excited about a pragmatic progressive as President.

But while Hillary Clinton has been specific in her long, long list of policy proposals, which indicate her sensibilities and priorities, Donald Trump, has been vague, offering pie-in-sky – promising on Day 1 to end criminal violence, restore law and order, defeat ISIS (the list goes on and on giving you the idea that Day 1 will be Biblical in length). To the extent he has been more detailed, he has been frankly, frightening.

His pronouncements of what he would do to the nation domestically (repeal Obamacare, rescind the Clean Power Plan, withdraw from the Paris Climate Agreement, shut down the EPA, overturn regulations, eliminate corporate taxes, round up millions of undocumented immigrants), would destroy millions of jobs, raise the national debt and plunge the US into another recession. But while what he would do domestically is chilling, his outrageous, erratic statements about military and foreign policy are horrifying.

His fawning over dictators, strongmen and tyrants like Vladimir Putin and North Korea’s Kim Jong-un, while gushing in the admiration they express for him, and indeed, his close collaboration with Russian interests (including encouraging Russian espionage and interference in US elections) is unsettling, but his willful ignorance, naivete about his role as Commander-in-Chief should strike terror.

Trump has said he knows more than the generals, has touted using torture and killing family members of suspected terrorists. He has said he would not come to the support of NATO allies who don’t pay and would advocate nuclear weapons for Saudi Arabia, Japan and South Korea, and is cavalier about using nuclear weapons in Europe (“If you have weapons, why wouldn’t you use them?” “I would bomb the shit out of them.”). He tries to disguise is lack of an actual plan by saying he wants to keep it “secret” and he wants to be “unpredictable.”

Trump has demonstrated over and over that he is temperamentally, intellectually and morally unfit as commander-in-chief, and completely ignorant and inept in anything approaching foreign policy. His undisclosed but suspected business dealings, including Russian oligarchs and debt to the Chinese National Bank, coupled with his propensity to use his campaign to enrich his business, are warnings that he would run foreign policy for his own self-interest. Indeed, as a narcissist, he would conflate the national interest with his own.

Since declaring his candidacy, he has swept away decades that have slowly led to a cultural acceptance of diversity, reinvigorating racism, misogyny, religious bias. He’s made it okay to hate “others” and brought White Nationalists and Neo-Nazis unbelievably out of shadows and into the mainstream.

Trump has run as the “successful businessman,” the anti-politician, the outsider with the predictable outsider, non-politician slogan of bringing “change” to Washington and “draining the swamp”.  And during a campaign built upon one lie after another (75% of the time, according to fact checkers), the biggest lies are that he is a successful businessman, a philanthropist (he isn’t), and basically everything he has promised. Trump has basically boasted that he sees politics as a sales job – or more accurately, a Con Job – leaving a string of defaulted and defrauded investors, contractors, workers and customers. For him, getting sued and suing (3500 lawsuits, including pending ones concerning Trump University and an allegation of rape) are all par for the course – he thinks because he has more money than his adversary, he will win. (Not to mention his henchman, Roger Stone, who may well have been the connection between Russian hackers and Wikileaks, was a dirty trickster for Richard Nixon.)

He has stoked a strain of populism that is virulent, divisive, full of hatred and bigotry – because it has served his political purpose. He has shown contempt for the Bill of Rights protections of religious freedom, press freedom, freedom of speech and ignorance of the Constitution.

Consider who Trump, who has surrounded himself with bullies, misogynists, profligates, sexual predators, racists and corporatists, would appoint to key offices: Roger Ailes, Steve Bannon, Chris Christie, Rudy Giuliani, Newt Gingrich, Steve King, David Duke, Carl Icahn. And he has already provided a list of Supreme Court likely nominees, each and every one who would overturn Roe v Wade and continue down the anti-democratic path to oligarchy.

Finally, consider the fact that if Donald Trump wins the election, it means that the Senate and House will also remain in Republican hands, the Supreme Court will shift wildly further toward right wing extremism overturning civil rights, women’s rights, voting rights, criminal, economic and environmental justice for decades; all the committees will remain in control of Republicans who have been responsible for the stagnation, gridlock and dysfunction in government that is the source of national malaise.

“We can’t have a racist climate denier who lies about his personal fortune lead our country,” said Raúl Grijalva. “Our country needs a president who understands that issues like climate change, systemic racism and immigration reform are serious and demand a competent federal response.

“Donald Trump has nothing to offer but anger and grievance and blame. And so he – his closing argument asks, what do you have to lose? Well, I’m here to tell you: everything,” President Obama said at a campaign event in Miami Gardens, Florida. “Progress is on the ballot. Civility is on the ballot. Tolerance is on the ballot. Justice is on the ballot. Equality is on the ballot. Our democracy is on the ballot.”
Quite literally, all the values that America is supposed to stand for are on the ballot.

It’s why this is not an election where out of pique against Hillary Clinton (recognizing a 30-year propaganda campaign waged, yes, by a right-wing conspiracy), voters either cast a ballot for the absolutely unvetted third party choices, Gary Johnson (whose outrageous comments suggest he broke his own promise not to smoke marijuana during the campaign), or Jill Stein (if the same level of scrutiny had been leveled, or the same standard of measure, would they get a vote?), or stay home. Staying home is exactly the objective of Donald Trump’s campaign, whose officials have declared that the only way Trump can win is to suppress the vote of three key groups: idealistic white idealists, young women and African-Americans.

On the other hand, if Hillary Clinton is elected, there will be comprehensive immigration reform, a further move toward universal access to health care and rationality in drug prices, continued push to climate action and environmental protection, tax reform that both promotes jobs creation and narrows income inequality, pay parity and paid parental leave, more access to child care, affordable college tuition, and a wide array of policies that promote the well being of families and working people, and the biggest investment in infrastructure since World War II.

“This is truly an unprecedented election,” First Lady Michelle Obama declared in Winston-Salem. “I don’t think we’ve ever had two candidates with such dramatically different visions of who we are and how we move forward as a nation. One candidate has a vision that’s grounded in hopelessness and despair, a vision of a country that is weak and divided, where our communities are in chaos, our fellow citizens a threat. This candidate calls on us to turn against each other, to build walls, to be afraid.

“And then there’s Hillary’s vision for this country, a vision of a nation that is powerful and vibrant and strong, big enough to have a place for all of us, a nation where we each have something very special to contribute, and where we are always stronger together.”
What’s at stake? The Supreme Court. Climate Action. Immigration Reform. Civil Rights. Criminal Justice Reform. Tax Reform. Economic Justice. Environmental Justice. Women’s Reproductive Rights. Women’s Rights. Voting Rights. Gun Violence Prevention. Diplomacy. Alliances. National Security.

And on January 20, 2017, if she is elected – as I pray she is – I hope she will take the oath of office as Hillary Rodham Clinton and forever be known as President Rodham-Clinton. She never gave up her individuality and her personhood because she was married, and her legacy should be in her own name, as well.

_________________________

© 2016 News & Photo Features Syndicate, a division of Workstyles, Inc. All rights reserved. For editorial feature and photo information, go to www.news-photos-features.com, email [email protected]. Blogging at www.dailykos.com/blogs/NewsPhotosFeatures.  ‘Like’ us on facebook.com/NewsPhotoFeatures, Tweet @KarenBRubin

General John Allen to DNC: ‘With Hillary Clinton as our Commander-in-Chief, America will continue to lead in this volatile world’

General John Allen (Ret.) flanked by veterans addresses the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia, July 28, 2016 © 2016 Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com
General John Allen (Ret.) flanked by veterans addresses the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia, July 28, 2016 © 2016 Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com

In remarks to the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia, July 28, 2016, General John Allen (Ret.), flanked by a battery of generals, admirals and veterans, laid out the stakes in this presidential election, drawing contrasts between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton. “With Hillary Clinton as our Commander-in-Chief, the United States will continue to be that indispensable, transformational power in the world. “ Here is a transcript:

My fellow Americans, I stand with you tonight as a retired four-star general of the United States Marine Corps, and I am joined by my fellow generals and admirals, and with these magnificent young veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan. They went there and risked their lives because they love this country. They are here before you because this is the most consequential race for the Presidency in memory.

The stakes are enormous. We must not, we could not stand on the sidelines. This election can carry us to a future of unity and hope, or to a dark place of discord and fear. We must choose hope.

Every American, in uniform or out, in the White House or at home, must be a force for unity in America, for a vision that includes all of us: every man and woman, every race, every ethnicity, every faith and creed, every gender orientation – all of us together pursuing our common values.

From the battlefield to the capitals of our allies, friends, and partners, the free peoples of the world look to America as the last best hope for peace and for liberty for all humanity, for we ARE the greatest country on this planet.

So we stand before you tonight to endorse Hillary Clinton for President of the United States of America.

We trust her judgment. We believe in her vision for a united America and we believe in her vision of America as the just and strong leader against the forces of hatred, chaos, and darkness. We know that she – as no other – knows how to use all instruments of American power, not just the military, to keep us all SAFE and FREE.

I tell you without any hesitation or reservation that Hillary Clinton will be EXACTLY the kind of Commander-in-Chief America needs today. I know this because I served with her. I know this as the former Special Envoy to the Global Coalition against ISIS.

With her as our Commander-in-Chief, America will continue to lead in this volatile world. We will oppose and resist tyranny as we defeat evil. America will defeat ISIS and protect the homeland. America will honor our treaty obligations. We will lead and strengthen NATO, the Atlantic Alliance, and our allies in East Asia and around the world whom we have solemnly sworn to defend. America will stop the spread of nuclear weapons and keep them from dangerous states and groups. Our armed forces will be stronger. They will have the finest weapons and equipment. They will have the support of the American people, and the American military will continue to be THE shining example of America at our very best. Our veterans will be thanked by a grateful nation, and they will be cared for in the manner they deserve for the sacrifices they have made for all of us, for this great country, and for world peace.

But I also know that with her as our Commander-in-Chief, our international relations will NOT be reduced to a business transaction. Our armed forces will NOT become an instrument of torture, and they will NOT be ordered to engage in murder or carry out other illegal activities.

With Hillary Clinton as our Commander-in-Chief, the United States will continue to be that indispensable, transformational power in the world.

To our allies and our friends and our partners: We are with you. America will not abandon you. To those acting against peace, civilization, and the world order: We will oppose you. And to our enemies: We will pursue you as ONLY America can. You will fear us. To ISIS and others like you: We will defeat you.

Ladies and gentlemen, this is THE moment. This is THE opportunity for our future and that of the world. We MUST seize this moment to elect Hillary Clinton as President of the United States of America.

Cory Booker to DNC: ‘We must build bridges across our differences to pursue the common good’

Cory Booker to DNC July 25: ‘”We are an even greater nation, not because we started perfect, but because every generation has successfully labored to make us a more perfect union.” © 2016 Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com
Cory Booker to DNC July 25: ‘”We are an even greater nation, not because we started perfect, but because every generation has successfully labored to make us a more perfect union.” © 2016 Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com

U.S. Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ) delivered a powerful speech to the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia on Monday, which drew the stark contrasts between Hillary Clinton’s values and Donald Trump’s. Here is a highlighted transcript:

Two hundred forty years ago, our forefathers gathered in this city and declared before the world that we would be a free and independent nation. Today, we gather here again, in challenging times, in this City of Brotherly Love, to reaffirm our values, before our nation and the world.

Our purpose is not to start a great nation, but to ensure that we continue in the best of our traditions, and with humble homage to generations of patriots before, we put forth two great Americans – our nominees for President and Vice President: Hillary Clinton and Tim Kaine!

Our founding documents were genius. But not because they were perfect. They were saddled with the imperfections and even the bigotry of the past. Native Americans were referred to as savages, black Americans were referred to as fractions of human beings, and women were not mentioned at all.

But those facts and other ugly parts of our history don’t detract from our nation’s greatness. In fact, I believe we are an even greater nation, not because we started perfect, but because every generation has successfully labored to make us a more perfect union. Generations of heroic Americans have made America more inclusive, more expansive, and more just.

Our nation was not founded because we all looked alike, or prayed alike, or descended from the same family tree. But our founders, in their genius, in this, the oldest constitutional democracy, put forth on this earth the idea that all are created equal; that we all have inalienable rights. And upon this faithful foundation we built a great nation, and today, no matter who you are – rich or poor, Asian or white, man or woman, gay or straight, any religion or none at all – you are entitled to the full rights and responsibilities of citizenship. 

In this city, our founders put forth a Declaration of Independence, but also made a historic declaration of interdependence. They knew that if this country was to survive, we had to make an unusual and extraordinary commitment to one another.

I respect and value the ideals of rugged individualism and self-reliance. But rugged individualism didn’t defeat the British, it didn’t get us to the moon, build our nation’s highways, or map the human genome. We did that together.

This is the high call of patriotism. Patriotism is love of country. But you can’t love your country without loving your countrymen and countrywomen. We don’t always have to agree, but we must empower each other, we must find the common ground, we must build bridges across our differences to pursue the common good.

We can’t devolve into a nation where our highest aspiration is that we just tolerate each other. We are not called to be a nation of tolerance. We are called to be a nation of love. Tolerance says I am just going to stomach your right to be different. That if you disappear from the face of the earth, I am no better or worse off.

But love – love knows that every American has worth and value, no matter what their background, race, religion, or sexual orientation. Love recognizes that we need each other, that we as a nation are better together, that when we are divided we are weak, we decline, yet when we are united we are strong – invincible!

This understanding of love is embodied in the African saying: “If you want to go fast, go alone, but if you want to go far, go together.” This is one reason I’m so motivated in this election. I believe it’s a referendum on who best embodies the leadership we need to go far, together.

Donald Trump isn’t that leader.

We’ve watched him try to get laughs at others’ expense; try to incite fear at a time when we need to inspire courage; try to rise in the polls by dragging our national conversation into the gutter. We’ve watched him cruelly mock a journalist’s disability. We’ve watched him demean the service of my Senate colleague. “He’s not a war hero,” Trump said. “He was a war hero because he was captured. I like people who weren’t captured.”

We’ve watched him, with a broad and divisive brush, say that Mexican immigrants who came to America to build a better life are “bringing crime, they’re bringing drugs.” He says many of them are “rapists.” He said that an Indiana-born federal judge can’t be trusted to do his job because of his Mexican ancestry – a statement that even fellow Republicans have described as racist.

We’ve watched and heard him call women demeaning and degrading names. “Dog.” “Fat pig.” “Disgusting.” “Animal.” It’s a twisted hypocrisy when he treats other women in a manner he would never, ever accept from another man speaking about his wife or daughters. In a nation founded on religious freedom, he says ban all Muslims, don’t let certain people in because of how they pray.

Trump says he would run our country like he has run his businesses. Well, I’m from Jersey, and we have seen the way he leads. In Atlantic City, he got rich while his companies declared multiple bankruptcies. Yet without remorse, even as people got hurt by his failures, he bragged, “The money I took out of there was incredible.” Yes, he took out lots of cash but he stiffed contractors – many of them small businesses, refusing to pay them for the work they’d done. America has seen enough of a handful of people growing rich at the cost of our nation descending into economic crisis.

Americans, at our best, stand up to bullies and fight those who seek to demean and degrade others. In times of crisis we don’t abandon our values – we double down on them. Even in the midst of the Civil War, Lincoln called to the best of the country by saying, “With malice toward none and charity toward all.” This is the history I was taught.

My parents never wanted me to get too heady. Gratitude was to be my gravity, so they never stopped reminding me that my blessings sprang from countless ordinary Americans who had shown extraordinary acts of kindness and decency; people who struggled, sweat and bled for our rights, people who fought and paid the ultimate price for the freedoms we enjoy. I was told that we can’t pay those Americans back for their colossal acts of service, but we have an obligation to pay it forward to others through our service and sacrifice.

I support Hillary Clinton because these are her values, and she has been paying it forward her entire life. Long before she ever ran for office, in Massachusetts, she went door-to-door collecting stories of children with disabilities. In South Carolina, she fought to reform juvenile justice so children wouldn’t be thrown into adult prisons. In Alabama, she helped expose remnants of segregation in schools. In Arkansas, she started a legal aid clinic to make sure poor folks could get their day in court. She’s always fought for people, and she’s always delivered. That’s why we trust her to fight, and deliver, for us as President.

We have a Presidential nominee in Hillary Clinton who knows that, in a time of stunningly wide disparities of wealth in our nation, America’s greatness must not be measured by how many millionaires and billionaires we have, but by how few people we have living in poverty.

Hillary knows when workers make a fair wage, it doesn’t just help their families, it builds a stronger, more durable economy that expands opportunity and makes all Americans wealthier.

She knows that in a global knowledge-based economy, the country that out-educates the world will out-earn the world, out-innovate the world, and lead the world. 

She knows that debt-free college is not a gift, it’s not charity, it’s an investment. It represents the best of our values, the best of our history, the best of our party: Bernie’s ideas, Hillary’s ideas, ourshared ideas. Our shared values.

She knows that we need paid family leave, because when a parent doesn’t have to choose between being there for a sick kid and paying rent, or when a single mom earns an equal wage for equal work, it empowers the most important building block this nation has for our success – the family. 

She knows that true security doesn’t come from scapegoating people because of their religion, alienating our allies, stoking fear and pointing fingers. It comes when we band together to face down and defeat our common enemy.

She knows that our criminal justice system desperately needs reform, that we need to bring back fairness to a system that still, as Professor Bryan Stevenson says, treats you better if you are rich and guilty than poor and innocent.

She knows that we can be a nation that both believes that our police officers deserve more respect, support, cooperation, and love – and believes that a young twenty-something black protestor deserves to be valued, that they should be listened to with a more courageous empathy, and that change is needed in our system.

Hillary Clinton knows what Donald Trump betrays time and again in this campaign: that we are not a zero-sum nation, it is not you or me, it is not one American against another. It is you and I, together, interdependent, interconnected with one single interwoven American destiny.

When we respect each other, when we stand up for each other, when we work together against the challenges our neighbors face – be it a neighbor with a beautiful special needs child or one struggling with the ugly disease of addiction – when we help them, when we show compassion and grace, when we evidence our truth, that we are the UNITED States of America, indivisible, that is when we are stronger. That is when we go from an already great America to an even greater America.

When Trump spews insults and demeaning words about our fellow Americans, I think of the poem by Maya Angelou. You know how it begins: “You may write me down in history / With your bitter, twisted lies, / You may trod me in the very dirt / But still, like dust, I’ll rise.”

This too captures our history: 240 years ago, an English King said he would crush our rebellion, but Americans from around our nation joined the fight. From Bunker Hill to the Battle of Trenton, they stood, and so many fell giving their lives in support of our daring declaration that: America, we will rise.

This is our history: escaped slaves, knowing that liberty is not secure for some until it’s secure for all, sometimes hungry, often hunted, in dark woods and deep swamps, they looked up to the North Star and said with a determined whisper, America, we will rise.

Immigrants, risking their lives in a time of sweatshops and child labor, organized labor unions devoted to lifting the tired, and poor and huddled masses – with the fiercest grit, they shouted so all could hear: America, we will rise.

King pointed to a mountain top, Kennedy pointed to the moon – from Seneca Falls to the Stonewall Inn, giants stood and said in a chorus of conviction that America, we will rise.

My fellow Americans, we cannot fall into complacency or indifference about this election, because still the only thing necessary for evil to be triumphant is for good people to do nothing. My fellow Americans, we cannot be seduced into cynicism about our politics, because cynicism is a refuge for cowards and this nation is and must always be the home of the brave. We are the United States of America. We will not falter or fail. We will not retreat or surrender – we will not surrender our values, we will not surrender our ideals, we will not surrender the moral high ground.

Here in Philadelphia, let us declare again that we will be a free people. Free from fear and intimidation. Let us declare that we are a nation of interdependence, and that in America love always trumps hate. Let us declare, so that generations yet unborn can hear us. We are the United States of America; our best days are ahead of us.

And together, with Hillary Clinton as our President, America, we will rise.

Democrats Rally Around Hillary Clinton’s Historic Nomination, Plans as President

Hillary Clinton and Tim Kaine cheered at Democratic National Convention © Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com
Hillary Clinton and Tim Kaine cheered at Democratic National Convention © Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com

Any notion that Democrats and women and just about every other marginalized demographic would not enthusiastically rally behind Hillary Clinton as their nominee for President was drowned out by thunderous cheers and chants at the Democratic Convention in Philadelphia on Thursday, as Hillary Clinton, the first woman to be nominated by a major party and very possibly the first woman to attain the presidency, accepted her party’s nomination.

She told the audience that, despite the challenges of a changing world, we must not resort to Donald Trump’s dangerous proposals. Clinton also paid tribute to the Americans who have inspired her lifetime in public service and who continue to sustain her belief that we are stronger together: her mother Dorothy; the survivors and first responders on 9/11 and our men and women in uniform.

“We have the most dynamic and diverse people in the world. We have the most tolerant and generous young people we’ve ever had. We have the most powerful military. The most innovative entrepreneurs. The most enduring values. Freedom and equality, justice and opportunity,” Clinton said.

“We should be so proud that these words are associated with us.  That when people hear them – they hear… America. So don’t let anyone tell you that our country is weak. We’re not. Don’t let anyone tell you we don’t have what it takes. We do. And most of all, don’t believe anyone who says: ‘I alone can fix it.’ […] Americans don’t say: ‘I alone can fix it.’ We say: ‘We’ll fix it together. […] It is with humility, determination and boundless confidence in America’s promise that I accept your nomination for President of the United States!”

Hillary Rodham Clinton makes history for the second time at the Democratic National Convention becoming the first woman to be nominated for president of a major party © Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com
Hillary Rodham Clinton makes history for the second time at the Democratic National Convention becoming the first woman to be nominated for president of a major party © Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com

In her speech, she brought together the themes of the convention – outlining why she is in fact the most qualified, experienced person to have ever sought the presidency; a lifetime of achieving results; a steadiness and consistency of purpose; the temperament and judgment to lead.

But she also outlined in detail an agenda, with specific details and the way to pay for it (close loopholes on Wall Street, corporations and the wealthiest), because as she said, “it’s not just a detail if it’s your kid, if it’s your family.  It’s a big deal.  And it should be a big deal to your president, too.”

Her biography – recapped during the week by countless speakers who have worked with her, whose lives have been impacted by her – many who have met her and others who never met her, as well her husband, Bill Clinton and daughter Chelsea, and a superb video which – also demonstrates a person who can forge coalitions, partnerships, alliances, who can find common ground.

Her speech itemized proposals that the Progressives have been demanding and are now incorporated into the Democratic Party’s platform, the most progressive ever: raising the minimum wage; affordable child care; universal pre-K; parental leave; debt-free college; the largest investment in infrastructure and jobs creation since World War II; climate action that includes moving to clean, renewable energy; criminal justice reform; tax reform that addresses income inequality; gun violence prevention; overturn Citizens United, protect women’s reproductive freedom; universal health care; comprehensive immigration reform; a detailed plan of action to defeat ISIS – it should have been Bernie Sanders’ wet dream.

And despite the extraordinary consideration and respect paid to Sanders, still there were protests from probably 100 out of the tens of thousands that crammed every inch of space in the hall. They were drowned out by chants of “Hillary, Hillary”. Hillary Clinton, showing that fearless persistence in face of a lifetime of dealing with bullies, forged on to deliver her message.

“It’s not gender, but a-genda,” a speaker at the Women’s Caucus earlier in the day proclaimed, giving a further nod to the milestone of a Woman president who “gets it” – gets that “women’s issues” are family issues and family issues are all the complex policies that impact the economy, national security, justice and fairness,  and political power. Clearly Hillary “gets it” because of her perspective as a woman having spent a career fighting for women’s rights from a time when women had none, and fighting to preserve rights against those who would go back. But she also “gets it” because of her unique combination of skills, sensibility and experience.

Democrats celebrate in Philadelphia choosing their nominees Hillary Rodham Clinton for President and Tim Kaine for Vice President © Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com
Democrats celebrate in Philadelphia choosing their nominees Hillary Rodham Clinton for President and Tim Kaine for Vice President © Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com

In her address, Clinton outlined a positive vision to move forward and make an America which was founded on democratic values revolutionary for the time, more fully realize the aspirations and ideals and promise, in effect, to make a “more perfect union.”

“The choice is clear, my friends.  Every generation of Americans has come together to make our country freer, fairer, and stronger.  None of us ever have or can do it alone.  I know that at a time when so much seems to be pulling us apart, it can be hard to imagine how we’ll ever pull together.  But I’m here to tell you tonight – progress is possible….

“Yes, the world is watching what we do.  Yes, America’s destiny is ours to choose.  So let’s be stronger together, my fellow Americans.  Let’s look to the future with courage and confidence.  Let’s build a better tomorrow for our beloved children and our beloved country.  And when we do, America will be greater than ever.

See: Highlighted Transcript of Hillary Clinton’s Remarks Accepting the Democratic Party’s Nomination for President

Day 4 DNC: Hillary Clinton makes history in accepting nomination for presidency

President Obama and Democratic nominee for president Hillary Clinton get thunderous cheers aqt the Democratic National Convention  © 2016 Karen Rubin/newsphotos-features.com
President Obama and Democratic nominee for president Hillary Clinton get thunderous cheers aqt the Democratic National Convention © 2016 Karen Rubin/newsphotos-features.com

History will be made for the second time  in two days in Philadelphia when Hillary Rodham Clinton accepts the nomination of the Democratic Party, the first woman to be nominated for President from a major party.

The program will build to the climax when after being introduced by her daughter, Chelsea, Hillary Clinton will give what may be the speech of her life, to demonstrate to America that she should be their choice to be the next president.

The program will pull together the various themes of last three days: Monday’s theme told how Hillary is fighting to build an economy that works for everyone, while the Republican nominee, Donald Trump has been fighting for himself and the ultra-wealthy like him; Tuesday’s theme explored the fights of Hillary’s life, the motivations that have driven her, her many accomplishments in more than 40 years of public service – a story told by ordinary people, some who have met and known her personally and others who never met her at all, recounting how their lives have been changed for the better because of what she has done.

Last night, America heard how Hillary has the leadership skills and steadiness Americans can count on. Vice President Joe Biden talked about how Hillary will fight for the middle class, while Trump would be a a disaster for the middle class and gave some hint of the pressures and complexity of dealing with multiple crises. Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, an independent, said burst Trump’s bubble of being a successful businessman calling him nothing more than a con man. Former CIA Director and Defense Secretary Leon Panetta reinforced the theme that Hillary has the steadiness and experience to keep our nation secure, and what a threat Trump’s temperament would be for our security..

Finally President Obama talked about the values that founded our nation are themselves at stake in this election – Hillary will protect them and Trump would endanger them. This election is too important to sit out, he declared. And then in the moment that set the hall thundering, Hillary Clinton came onto the stage with Obama.

“Tonight, Hillary will stitch together all these themes and how this moment is really a moment of reckoning for voters: are we going to succumb to very powerful forces tearing at our social fabric, dividing us economically and socially or are we going to come together to solve problems, build an economy that works for everyone, make our nation more secure and make sure every American has the same opportunities,” said Robby Mook, campaign manager for Hillary for America.

“We will hear her invoke the principles that have guided her throughout her career – how it takes a village, a theme from her 1992 book,  in this campaign, 2016, talking about how we are stronger together, and you will hear her flesh out not just what this means from a values standpoint, but specific policies to make our country stronger, and do it together.”

Highlights tonight:

A governor of a must-win state, Pennsylvania, Governor Tom Wolf, “will actually be attending our convention (versus Governor John Kasich who did not attend the convention in his state of Ohio and did not endorse Trump). Also Governor John Hickenlooper of Colorado and Governor Andrew Cuomo of New York.

Also, former Reagan official, Doug Elmets and co-founder of Republican  Women for Hillary, Jennifer Pierotti Lim, Director of Health Policy for the US Chamber of Commerce,  who will build out the message Michael Bloomberg began that Republicans and Independents should come together o support Hillary

Speakers like General John Allen, former Commander, International Security Assistance Forces and Commander United States Forces-Afghanistan will also build on the case made Wednesday on national security. General Allen will outline Hillary’s commitment to veterans and how they can trust her ability and experience to keep the country safe and secure.

Marlon Marshall,  Director of State and Political Engagement for Hillary for America, will also speak. He is behind the organizing program that has been underway all week – holding watch parties – and underway in force after the convention, building up in every state, particularly the battleground state, the grassroots organizers who knock on doors and make phone calls.

The campaign launched the 3 million Stronger program on July 18, with a mission to register and commit to vote three million people. “We used the convention this week to continue to do this work, going into communities to register to vote and commit to vote for Hillary. Tonight there will be 350 house parties in battleground states and more tuning in tonight. In the hall, we will connect four of the watch parties with the attendees – you will see on the screen as they watch in Richmond VA, Brooklyn NY, Madison WI, and Denver CO. You will get a chance to see what is happening in their living rooms – see organizing first hand,  how we are using this convention to build.”

The convention was viewed as a unique opportunity to introduce Hillary Clinton and her plans to address economic and national security to people who don’t typically tune in. The firs ttwo nights set record viewership, she said and she expected the same for the third night, when Obama and biden spoke, according to April Mellody, the DNC’s Deputy CEO for Communications.

“Particularly since after what the country saw at RNC, America has a chance to see from Democrats why Hillary is the most qualified person to ever seek the office of president, and also how she has been motivated her whole life to help children and families and has the values to be a great president.

“They are seeing plans to make an economy that works for everyone, an economy that will grow – Mayor Bloomberg spoke effectively, he is not just as concerned American but as a businessman who said Hillary would be the best for business – not just growth but fair growth.”

Hillary Clinton, surprising the DNC after President Obama's rousing speech, embraces Obama (c) 2016 Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com
Hillary Clinton, surprising the DNC after President Obama’s rousing speech, embraces Obama (c) 2016 Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com

Obama was not shy mentioning Trump by name, Hillary is likely to be clear about what the choice is in this election and the threat his presidency would pose, and why she is better.

During a press briefing, she said, this week, Trump “suggesting that a foreign country – in this case a hostile state to US conduct espionage against an opponent running to seek the presidency of US is never sarcastic, never a joke, [the Hillary campaign] shall take it seriously. You should treat it seriously because he is the Republican nominee for president and we should hold him accountable. As the New York Times reported, US intelligence has told the White House they believe the DNC was hacked by Russians.

“This is first time in modern history that we’ve had presumably a foreign power seek to engage in influencing our election and there are a lot of questions that all you should consider seriously – such as Mr. Trump’s view that we should weaken our alliances against Russia. That the RNC platform chose to take away language that was in support of Ukraine and express support for Russia’s involvement there. Trump’s disturbing affinity for Putin and others. This is not a curiosity any more, not politics, this is a matter of national security and should concern every American and take seriously.”

President Obama and Democratic nominee for president Hillary Clinton get thunderous cheers aqt the Democratic National Convention  © 2016 Karen Rubin/newsphotos-features.com
President Obama and Democratic nominee for president Hillary Clinton get thunderous cheers aqt the Democratic National Convention © 2016 Karen Rubin/newsphotos-features.com

Asked about Obama’s reference to “jihadists and home grown demagogues,” she “Donald Trump demagogues in a way that we have not seen on the modern political stage, in a way that seeks to divide Americans.”

As for Hillary’s themes, “Throughout the week you have heard- culminating best in Obama speech – in the words of our president, the most qualified person to seek the office – and behind that, through the week, people she never met who has helped, the people closest to she has helped guide, and people she has sought out whose lives she has made her own passion – each night, what has motivated her for public service her own time.

“This is a moment of reckoning for America – two paths – one that seeks division, gives into forces whether economic or social that can divide us, versus a path that working together will make America stronger, and make the economy stronger.”