Hillary’s Still Focused on the Issues that Matter

Well today could have gone better for us, but Camp Obama did a good job in South Carolina today and are to be congratulated. Hillary just released a statement on her website

Statement from Hillary Clinton

"I have called Senator Obama to congratulate him and wish him well.

"Thank you to the people of South Carolina who voted today and welcomed me into their homes over the last year. Your stories will stay with me well beyond this campaign and I am grateful for the support so many of you gave to me.

"We now turn our attention to the millions of Americans who will make their voices heard in Florida and the twenty-two states as well as American Samoa who will vote on February 5th.

"In the days ahead, I’ll work to give voice to those who are working harder than ever to be heard. For those who have lost their job or their home or their health care, I will focus on the solutions needed to move this country forward. That’s what this election is about. It’s about our country, our hopes and dreams. Our families and our future."

Up next - Florida on Tuesday and then on to Tsunami Tuesday.

Hillary’s Communications Director, Howard Wolfson sent out a campaign memo to “Interested Parties” earlier today, and it says this in part…

Regardless of today’s outcome, the race quickly shifts to Florida, where hundreds of thousands of Democrats will turn out to vote on Tuesday.

Despite efforts by the Obama campaign to ignore Floridians, their voices will be heard loud and clear across the country, as the last state to vote before Super Tuesday on February 5th.

This remains a delegate fight, with 1,681 delegates at stake on February 5th, and 2,025 needed to secure the nomination -- and we are ahead in that fight.

As Senator Clinton has said from the beginning, we have built a national campaign with the resources to compete and win across the country.

Coming off of victories in Nevada, Michigan and New Hampshire, Senator Clinton has demonstrated the importance of focusing on achieving real solutions on the economy, health care and Iraq .

As she campaigns throughout the United States over the coming weeks, Senator Clinton will continue to work hard for every vote, making sure that Americans know she will be a President who focuses on what matters most—making a difference in people’s lives.

In other words, this thing’s not even close to being over, and Hillary’s out there 24/7 meeting with voters and asking us for our vote.

The campaign also had some interesting info up on a few of the upcoming states.

Strength in the States:

In Tennessee, a new poll from NBC affiliate WSMV-TV has Hillary up by 14 points over Sen. Obama (34-20)...
In Missouri, a new Rasmussen poll has Hillary up by 19 points over Sen. Obama (43-24)...
In Arizona, a new Behavior Research Center poll has Hillary up by 10 points over Sen. Obama (37-27)...
In Alabama, a new Rasmussen poll has Hillary up 15 points over Sen. Obama (43-28)...
In California, a new Public Policy Institute of California poll has Hillary up by 15 points over Sen. Obama (43-28).

Meanwhile Hillary’s staying with the issues she knows will resonate with families like mine – and the economy’s right up there at the top of our list. Families like mine worry about how we’ll send our kids to college, help our folks in their old age AND save for our own retirement. Living paycheck to paycheck doesn’t really allow for any of that and if one or both of us loses our job we’re screwed with nothing in our savings account. Rethugs tell us to scale back and give up the luxuries, but we’ve already done all that. When a family’s reduced to thrift stores and the dollar store there’s nothing left to cut from a budget.

Hillary understands all that.

The L A Times has a great article out today about Hillary called Running for the economic empathizer in chief

She has been railing about the price of gasoline, wondering how working mothers pay doctors' bills, and generally echoing complaints of everyday folks: How can you afford to put kids through college? What about paying that inflated adjustable-rate home loan? Or holding onto a job in a teetering economy?

New York Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton made her final push Friday across South Carolina in advance of today's Democratic presidential primary, channeling the central imperative of her husband's first run for president: a focus, "like a laser beam," on the economy.

Though the candidates quibbled Friday over their stimulus packages and longer-term prosperity plans, what mainly divided them was the issue of who was most likely to effect economic change.

Clinton laid out a list of college loan assistance, mortgage relief, heating oil assistance and more. But people who said they would vote for her today focused less on the specifics than on a prospect of a return to the booming economy presided over by her husband in the 1990s.

On Monday at Benedict College in Columbia, S.C., she worried aloud about people she had met on the campaign trail: a mother who can't get healthcare for her child and the "worker who has done everything he is supposed to do and then he's laid off. And all of a sudden he is disposable."

Voters who went to see Clinton this week didn't appear to be focused on the details of the candidate's $40-billion tax rebate plan or her proposed a five-year freeze on sub-prime mortgage rate hikes. Instead, they talked about how much they liked the last Clinton era.

"We just have faith and trust that she will bring the country back to its rightful place," said Julius Sneed, a retired school administrator who attended the rally in Columbia.

Sneed said his wife, also an educator, had to go back to work to help make ends meet.

John J. Pitney Jr., a professor of government at Claremont McKenna College, said the shift of the election to economics should benefit Clinton. "This is an issue where the Clinton brand has the greatest impact," Pitney said. "It points to the most popular aspects of Bill Clinton's administration -- a booming stock market, low unemployment, low inflation."

I’m still fighting off that cold so I’ll let Hillary close this one out tonight in a recent ad where she talks about our ailing economy, and her plan to jumpstart it …

Open Thread

Two ways to help spread the word about Hillary's historic run for the White House...

Change your outgoing message on your home answering machine - here's ours

Hi, you've reached the _______ family.
We can't talk right now because we're out campaigning for Hillary. Please leave us a message and we'll call you back soon. In the meantime don't forget to vote for Hillary in Maryland, DC and Virginia on February 12th! Thanks!

You can also add a message about Hillary in your signature line of the emails you send out to your friends and family.

How's the campaign going in your neck of the woods?

So tell us what's on your mind.

Amsterdam News for Hillary

Hillary has received the endorsement of New York's Amsterdam News. This endorsement stands out for me. This is a local endorsement. Amsterdam News is part of the BlackPressUSA Network. This endorsement stands out for me because it's creative and so well written. It reads like a poem, and I'm a reader.

Editorialist Wilbert A. Tatum sets up the papers hope for how the endorsement will be recieved by readers:

People get nervous, upset, angry and frightened when they are not certain about the position they have taken and realize it may be the best or the worst decision they have ever made. This is especially true when it comes to having the ability to guide others to make decisions for themselves. That is not to suggest that we tell them what to do, but to say to them, “This is the decision that we have made. Would you follow us?”.

He characterizes Hillary as sharp minded and quick witted:

Hers is a razor wit with a meat, vegetable, corn and potatoes mentality. She is a farm girl without the hayseed. She is blunt, determined and funny in the same way that the good farmers that we have always known have wielded their craft. Her mind is a razor blade that is always open for sharpening as she opens herself to the American people for the Presidency of the Untied States. One must believe that she means everybody.

He describes the interdependence between Hillary and the public she wishes to serve:

Mrs. Clinton chose to connect and to continue until the time came when the eleventh hour was at her door and she, at the twelfth hour with those who she needed and who needed her in order for us to make a new and better America by the simple process of governing correctly, had to make a choice. Now Hillary is running with our need, God’s anger and our power to vote. For those who believe that Mrs. Clinton will be waiting around to make up her mind about whether or not she chooses us, there is a major problem. She has stood in the well of the United States Senate and said that she wanted us and on the floor of the Speakers Assembly of the State of New York and said that she could not do it without us. There is a lot more. It will come. There is time now, since guidelines have finally been established and commitments made.

The endorsement is just lovely. I encourage everyone to read it. Also, if you have not already read the poem Maya Angelou recently penned, State Package for Hillary Clinton, I encourage you to read it as well. I wrote about that poem here.

Open Thread

We're still celebrating Hillary's amazing win in Nevada, and gearing up to help her win in South Carolina now.

What about you?

Have you tried that new calling tool at the campaign's website yet?

When was the last time you sent Hillary some love by kicking in a few bucks?

Talk to us! ;o)

Hillary, Maya's Poem and the NH Primary

The Observer Unlimited reports Maya Angelou has recently penned a poem for Hillary Clinton. For those of you who do not know, Maya Angelou is a renowned poetess and author of National Book Award winner, autobiographical novel, I know why the caged bird sings. The poem borrows from an earlier work of Ms. Angelou, her iconic classic, Still I Rise. Hillary can take great honor in Maya's use of the imagery of that poem as it is an important work, and indicative of her great love for Hillary that she made her "family" in her heart that way. Maya's poem really struck a chord with me after my experience volunteering for Hillary in Southern NH, and I would guess it was written in that time period. I was campaigning for Hillary from hours before she lost Iowa until hours before she won NH. My story and the poem below the fold.

Maya recently remarked on her commitment to Hillary saying:

I made up my mind 15 years ago that if she ever ran for office I'd be on her wagon. My only difficulty with Senator Obama is that I believe in going out with who I went in with.

I can relate. I was seventeen when Hillary became First Lady and she was incredible. I think I was more excited about her becoming FL, than Bill becoming President. She was just a powerful, exciting female voice in a political landscape for which there were few. When I arrived in NH, I met a young man from my home state named Ray. Ray had only decided two weeks previous that he would support Hillary. He is an executive of what I think is called the Young College Democrats. I was explaining the roots of my long support for Hillary when he said, "You knew she would be the first woman President." He hit the nail on the head, though I wavered over the years. I was uncertain at the beginning of this primary race if I was still on her wagon. But, she won me over pretty quickly and it's probably because, like Angelou, I had made up my mind so long ago.

I volunteered for the week, and drove up to NH on a whim. I just knew Hillary wouldn't win Iowa, and I didn't want to be stuck, perched at my laptop, watching her lose. That first night was something. We were devastated by the loss, but within fifteen minutes we were deep in our work, and maybe because of the loss, and our not wanting to think about it, we worked nearly through the night.

Hillary had amazing supporters in NH. Just to mention a few; our own New Hampster; Ann, a woman who works on Hill's health policy (she's a real firecracker. I wish I could remember her last name because then I could link to her wiki page. She won Jeopardy, and apparently there is a fan club); Caroline, a college girl at a nearby school (she’s great, exactly the kind of young woman Hillary should have speaking for her at college campuses around the country), originally from Long Island; and Eric, Hillary's former Director of Events (?) in NY. Eric is awesome. He was up from California. Had done all of this before so he knew stuff like we're just volunteers so we can skip out for a while and go to the rallyies, or go get Margarita's with Caroline and watch the debate, that sort of thing.

Eric told me some interesting things. First, Hillary and Obama are quite friendly. Eric had arranged a fundraiser for Hillary for Obama. Second, he knew she would win NH. He could tell by her performance, past performance, what was happening on the ground, and other signs in NH.

Everyday more and more people showed up; a bunch of folks from New York, the Arkansas Traveler’s, etc. It was great. We worked hard days, going door to door in brutal weather. Nights were spent making calls, entering data, and drawing signs. Older women came in every evening with hot casseroles, and trays of sandwiches. The support in my part of the state seemed to fall completely on socio-economic status, Obama in the rich sub-rurals, Hillary in the working class towns.

Initially, I shied away from the phone duty. But as time pressed on, I wanted Hillary to win, and I wanted to be a part of it. The phone banking became something to behold, everyone was speaking so passionately about Hillary, not going by the script at all, but giving detailed, issues based, even personal reasons, why the person on the line should support Hillary. Every day I felt more support for Hillary.

But the process was emotional. And, as we would drive from site to site for our canvassing, they would drone on and on, on NPR about how Obama was ahead by double digits, and with no sleep, in the freezing weather, it became almost unbearable. Eric and I went to two of Hillary's rallies. One was at a highschool where I realized there really was alot of interest in Hillary. The line was thousands of people long. I went into that event to find myself standing next to Chris Matthews. He got there early, and stayed long after Hillary was done speaking, done answering questions, and after even I had left(I know this because apparently there was some sort of altercation between the two at that point). And, let me just say, he IS obsessed with her. Here he was right next to me and I wanted to tell him how biased and cruel he had been in his coverage of Hillary, but I froze.

For her part, Hillary was excellent. She was finally doing what I thought (and actually suggested over the summer to Ann Lewis) she should do. She was just taking tons and tons of questions. That's Hillary's gift. She shines in Q&A, which is especially unique for a politician, and Eric was sure that strategy would lead to a win. Hillary went anywhere where there were two undecided voters and took their questions. She was at dunkin donuts at 4:30am talking to voters on primary day. Work horse, that's Hillary.

The night before the primary, Caroline and I drove around in her very sweet BMW with our heated seats turned up, and our windows rolled down(which I am convinced gave me bronchitis), passing out door knockers a little, but mostly listening to music from the '60's and '70's. We were melancholy. Our girl wasn't going to win. Despite everything we were seeing on the ground, the media kept telling us she would lose.

Primary day, I was overcome. I had been so disappointed with Iowa. Particularly that she had lost the women's vote. How could this be? I was tired. I was just plain at my end. So I was sent to stand at a precinct with this sweet teenage girl, very involved, not old enough to vote, and a local supporter, her daughter, and a former Hillary staffer (she was her aging policy person. Apparently, Hillary is one of the only Senators to have a policy department devoted to aging). And, that's when I lost it.

We were standing there in the cold, thankfully I was not holding a sign nor did I have sticker or pin or any campaign stuff on, when Sean Hannity appears on the scene. First, he attacks the two young girls, even asking them about Monica Lewinsky, the pig. Frankly, I agree with Maya on that matter:

When he had his brush with Ms Lewinsky, the whole world was looking under Mrs Clinton's bedclothes. Many people expected her to fall or to become as hard as a rock,' she has said. 'She did neither. I love that about her. She didn't pretend she wasn't hurt and she didn't become a virago.

But I digress. Then, he lunges at the local supporter. "What has Hillary accomplished as Senator in the last seven years", he sneers. "She expanded health coverage to reservists, not on"-He cuts her off. "She failed at health care," he yells. So at that point I chime in and explain the expansion of Tricare she and Lindsay Graham worked on. He says I like the cameras. Minutes later, he's attacking my friend again. "People hate her, she's divisive. Why do they hate her? Why does everybody hate her?" He demands. And, I know better than to talk to the press, but still I blurt it out. "Maybe it's because she's a strong woman and the first woman with a credible shot at the White House." I tell him. "Oh, because she's a woman." He's sneering again. "That's not what I said." He leaves.

I think what I said is very controversial, and I instantly worry it will be all over Fox News. "Hillary volunteer blames sexism for Clinton loss in NH, film at 11." Now mind you, I wasn't referring to any outcome in NH, only this stuff about how "hated" he insisted she is, but I know the media. So then I really lost it. I really worried I had harmed her campaign. I felt sick. I got a ride back to the office, then the house I was staying at (a wonderful couple, Phil and Linda put me and another volunteer up in their lovely home), and I demand my husband come and get me. They kept saying on the radio, Obama was going to win by double digits. As my husband drives up, I'm totally exhausted. I feel like I have not done enough. Phil comes home and we talk a bit, but I'm like, so emotional. I'm tearing up. I want Hillary to win, and they keep saying she won't.

On the way home, I call my Dad, a political scientist by education, and a political junkie, he says even a loss here, won't stop Hillary. I start to plan for after NH, thinking out the scenarios. Because I know she will rise again, bound to stand another day. Later that night, I watch in amazement as she wins the NH primary.
Maya's poem speaks to me. It speaks to my experience with Hillary and her campaign in NH.

State Package for Hillary Clinton
By Maya Angelou
As first published in the Observer Unlimited
http://observer.guardian.co.uk/world/story/0,,2243668,00.html

State Package for Hillary Clinton You may write me down in history With your bitter, twisted lies, You may tread me in the very dirt But still, like dust, I'll rise. This is not the first time you have seen Hillary Clinton seemingly at her wits' end, but she has always risen, always risen, don't forget she has always risen, much to the dismay of her adversaries and the delight of her friends. Hillary Clinton will not give up on you and all she asks of you is that you do not give up on her. There is a world of difference between being a woman and being an old female. If you're born a girl, grow up, and live long enough, you can become an old female. But to become a woman is a serious matter. A woman takes responsibility for the time she takes up and the space she occupies. Hillary Clinton is a woman. She has been there and done that and has still risen. She is in this race for the long haul. She intends to make a difference in our country. Hillary Clinton intends to help our country to be what it can become. She declares she wants to see more smiles in the family, more courtesies between men and women, more honesty in the marketplace. She is the prayer of every woman and man who longs for fair play, healthy families, good schools, and a balanced economy. She means to rise. Don't give up on Hillary. In fact, if you help her to rise, you will rise with her and help her make this country the wonderful, wonderful place where every man and every woman can live freely without sanctimonious piety and without crippling fear. Rise, Hillary. Rise.

Why Hillary Will Win Nevada

In 2004 I had a the great pleasure of being posted to Las Vegas by the Kerry Campaign to work in the Nevada Democratic HQ as I speak English and Spanish. Here is my original post on DKos as I packed my bags in Sydney Australia and head to Las Vegas.

This time allowed me to meet and work with many key Nevada politicians including Shelley Berkley, Harry and Rory Reid, Ruben Kihuen and many others. We worked very closely with all the unions and union leaders. Therefore, I got a very first-hand training of how Las Vegas and Nevada politics work. Harry Reid was also running for re-election, and his office was right next to ours.

During this time I broke the Rethug Voter Registration Scandal on DKos in a diary entitled:Thousands of Nevada Dem Voter Registrations Destroyed by Repugs. This was my first diary ever on the Rec List and the fall out from that scandal resonated throughout Nevada and adjacent states.

So with this knowledge I am providing an analysis of why I feel Hillary will do well in Nevada and probably win the caucuses by 2-3%. I am also a Hillary partisan, as most Kossacks will be aware.


Hillary's Endorsements

NEVADA
Congresswoman Shelley Berkley
State Treasurer Kate Marshall
State Senate Minority Leader Dina Titus
State Senator Bob Coffin
Assembly Majority Leader John Oceguera
State Assemblyman William Horne
Assemblyman Ruben J. Kihuen
Assemblywoman Kathy McClain
Assemblyman Harry Mortenson
Assemblyman Morse Arberry
Assemblywoman Susan Gerhardt
Mayor of Lovelock, Lena Johnson
Former Congressman James Bilbray
Former Governor Bob Miller
Former Las Vegas Mayor Jan Jones
Rory Reid, Son of Harry Reid and top Democratic Official.

Unions who have endorsed (or parent bodies have endorsed)
AFCSME/ SNEA 5,000
PAT Local 2001 (Henderson, NV) 370
PAT Local 159 (Henderson, NV) 2,026
IATSE Local 720 in Las Vegas 1,722
NALC Branch 2502 (Las Vegas, NV) 1,673
ATU Local 1637 (Las Vegas, NV) 131
ATU Local 1758 (Las Vegas, NV) 82
BAC Local 13 (Las Vegas, NV) 984
SMW Council (Sparks, NV) 9
SMW Local 88 (Las Vegas, NV) 1,001
IAM Lodge 845 (Las Vegas, NV) 760
UTU Local 1043 (Reno, NV) 113
UTU Local 1117 (Las Vegas, NV) 63
UTU Local 1775 (Elko, NV) 20
Nevada Classified School Employees Association, 3,400

Note:The Nevada State Education Association (NSEA) has not endorsed Hillary, but many in their leadership have and the vast majority of its 18,000 members are widely perceived to be behind Hillary.

Newspapers
Las Vegas Sun

The endorsement list reads like a dream-list for Hillary. Shelley Berkley, Rory Reid and Dina Titus sit atop the Las Vegas Democratic machine which is a smaller version of the Chicago machine that was so effective for Obama in neighbouring Iowa. The combination of Berkley, Reid and Titus can be relied on to deliver big, and there is a strong chance they will. Likewise having the support of Assembly Majority Leader John Oceguera and Assemblyman Ruben J. Kihuen, two of Nevada's top Latino politicians can likewise be relied upon to make major inroads into the Latino community for Hillary. Ruben, who ran Kerry's Latino outreach campaign, is a major up-and-coming star in the Latin community. A young man blessed with extraordinary good looks and powerful speaking ability in both English and Spanish, he is widely looked to as the "Barack Obama" of Nevada politics.


Discussion of the Culinary Union. Of course the one star missing in the crown in the endorsement by the Culinary Union Local 226, which has gone to Barack Obama. While the Culinary Union is a major Nevada power broker no doubt, it is not as powerful as would appear from their claim of 60,000 members. First they do not have 60,000 paid up members or even close. This boast, done by most unions on their website, refers to rolling membership over 3-5 years and to any retirees and often to family members on union pensions or support.

Lets look at an example, SEIU Nevada, which has also endorsed Obama, claims 17,000 members on their website, but when you look at their audited figures available on the AFL-CIO Website, they in fact have between 8,000-9,000 paid up members (less then half of their website bost):

SEIU Local 1107, 8,142
SEIU Local 135, 21

The Culinary does not post its audited figures on the website (surprise, surprise) but their likely number of currently paid up members will be more like 40,000 than 60,000. Furthermore, the Culinary Union in Las Vegas, is one of the most transient unions in America as workers come and go from the Strip with huge turnover. When we were using Culinary union phone logs to call for Kerry, wrong numbers and false contacts were over 50%. Also many Culinaries are greencard holders that are not able to vote. So when you wheedle the 60,000 number down to a real figure of eligible voters who even could possibly turn out, then you are more likely down to 25,000-30,000 members. These numbers are well matched by Hillary's Unions (I have used the audited accounts for her numbers above). Plus Hillary's unions with AFSCME, the Postal Workers, Brick Layers and School Employees are we are well-distributed across the state giving strong representation in each and every geographic area.

So at the end of the day Hillary's union members can almost match Obama's union numbers worker for worker and and have a far wider geographic spread, giving them a likely tie in union households if everyone follows their union script. It will all be about turnout.

Effect of the Law Suit: While the lawsuit has likely galvanised some of the Culinary workers for Obama, it likewise has galvanised the other unions for Hillary and John Edwards who together would have more worker members in their combined union endorsements than Barack. Many of the other Nevada unions have historically expressed displeasure over the power of the Culinaries and how they have wielded it in the past, and this whole lawsuit dispute highlights this historic and on-going tension. This will likely lead to a high turnout on both sides of the fence, and guarantee Hillary and Obama a good block of votes. Also one of the main issues is that Las Vegas-based Culinaries got their own caucuses, but the the Upstate Culinaries (Reno, Tahoe, Carson City etc) did not, and this was apparently part of the original agreement that the big Upstate Casinos thought they would have. So this leaves the Upstate Culinaries left out and more likely to break ranks and move to Hillary.

Conclusion with Unions: With the unions, it will all be about turn out and who can keep their ranks from breaking. Hillary's union ranks are already tight and not likely to break. Obama's ranks are already fractured in Las Vegas and the Upstate along both Latino support lines and Upstate-Downstate lines, so Obama is on the back foot in terms of breakage with a slight front foot in terms of overall plurality numbers.

Upstate-Downstate Divide: Like in New York, Minnesota and Michigan, there is a big geographic divide in voting in Nevada. With the perception of Las Vegas getting all the attention in the south, and the more rural and sparsely distributed Upstaters tending to get left out. Hillary is leading in the Upstate by huge margins both union and non-union especially in the rural areas. Look at Upper Michigan where over 20 counties voted Hillary 75+ when in the rest of the state she got 55%. Hillary will clean up in the rural and remote areas, and it is these voters which will likely throw her over the top.

California Effect: Always in Nevada presidential politics, hundreds/thousands of Californian partisans flood in just before the polls. Both Hillary and Obama have trucked in bus loads of people, and it is likely that they will have canceled each other out with equally good numbers in both camps.

Polls:
The polls are now slightly trending for Clinton after giving Obama slight leads right after Iowa. RCP has a good run down.

Reuters/CSpan/Zogby, 01/15 - 01/17, 814 LV, Clinton +5.0
Clinton 42
Obama 37
Edwards 12

Mason-Dixon, 01/14 - 01/16, 500 LV, Clinton +9.0
Clinton 41
Obama 32
Edwards 14

American Res. Group, 01/09 - 01/14, 600 LV, Clinton +3.0
Clinton 35
Obama 32
Edwards 25

Research 2000, 01/11 - 01/13, 500 LV, Obama +2.0
Clinton 30
Obama 32
Edwards 27

However, given the perils of Caucus predictions combined with the new caucus and format here, the polls are likely of limited use.


WHO WILL WIN NEVADA
Being as I did predict New Hampshire quite well between Hillary and Obama, and considering the above analysis, I will come out with a prediction, which this time is actually very close to where the polls are now.

HILLARY 40%
OBAMA 37%
EDWARDS 23%

And I will further predict that it will be a high turnout Upstate for Hillary which will clinch the state victory over a razor thin small Obama lead in Las Vegas and overall tie in Clark County. So I am out on the branch again.

Anyway I welcome all or any critiques of my critique. I am no expert on Nevada, but I certainly enjoyed my time there and learning about the great Silver State.


Cross-posted on DKos and MyDD

Open Thread

So tell us how things are going with the campaign in your neck of the woods.

Have you tried using that online calling tool on the campaign's website yet?

By the way... I just received the following note from President Clinton - he might be able to explain the importance of helping out with a contribution a bit more eloquently than I ever could...

In all my years in politics, I've never seen anything quite like what you did for Hillary last week.

In the 48 hours before New Hampshire, there was an incredible outpouring of support from Hillary's online community. And I saw the results on the ground.

I was in New Hampshire on Primary Day. I saw the signs, the phone banks, the vans taking people to the polls. After spending the day talking to volunteers and voters, both Hillary and I knew the ground was shifting, and it was shifting toward us. Your support made the difference in that election.

Now Hillary faces an unprecedented challenge: reaching voters in 24 states in just 25 days, and she cannot do it without your help.

Contribute now to help Hillary win.

There has never been a challenge like this before in the history of American politics: building a national campaign in less than one month. I know that Hillary is up to it. Just look at how she won New Hampshire, with grace and passion and hard work. You're going to see that every day when she's president.

But first you have to be there for her, just like you were in New Hampshire. Will you help make sure Hillary's campaign has the resources to run a national campaign in less than a month?

Every day is going to count. Every vote is going to count. And yes, every dollar is going to count.

Contribute now to help Hillary win


Every day Hillary tells me how much she appreciates what you are doing for her campaign. Thank you from the both of us.

Sincerely,

Bill Clinton

You Know, This Is Really Personal For Me

That’s what Hillary had to say when someone asked her how she keeps getting up each day in this campaign. Now some of you might have heard… Hillary’s tired and (gasp!) her voice cracked a bit during that Q & A session.

Stop the presses folks! She’s HUMAN!

Kidding aside, she's been through a lot, dealing with the attacks from the from the right and now from the left, putting in 18+ hour days 7 days a week, living in a fishbowl and having the MSM jump down her throat over every word she utters – every look she gives – or even her laugh, how can anyone be surprised she let a bit of emotion and passion show through?

This lady really believes in what she’s doing. Take a look…



Ya know what? She’s right. This is personal.

Here’s a bit of what Ben Smithreported earlier today, about a campaign stop at a diner in Portsmouth, NH on how Hillary gets up every day and fights so hard in this campaign...

"It's not easy, it's not easy, and I couldn't do it if I just didn't passionately believe it was the right thing to do," she said.

"I have so many opportunities for [from] this country. I don't want to see us all fall back[wards]," she said, her voice breaking in the last phrase.

"This is very personal for me," she said to supportive applause from the small gathering, at which she'd been discussing policy around a table for an hour. "It's not just political, it's not just public — I see what's happening. We have to reverse it."

"Some people think elections are a game — it's about who's up and who's down," she said. "It's about our country's future, it's about our kids' future — it's really about all of us together."

"And some of us put ourselves out there and do this against some pretty difficult odds, and we do it each one of us because we care about our country," she said.

"Some of us are right and some of us are wrong. Some of us are ready and some of us are not. Some of us know what [we] are going to do on day one, and some of us haven't thought that through enough," she said.

"When we look at the array of problems that we have, and the potential for it really spinning out of control — this is one of the most important elections America's ever faced," she concluded.

(Emphasis mine)

The article concludes with the Mrs. Pernold (the lady who asked the question of Hillary) saying she’d gone to the event “smitten” by Obama, but that she was very moved by this exchange with Hillary and was now thinking of voting for her tomorrow.

"Showing that emotion — I really find it refreshing," she said.

One more quote from that video linked above...

“I just believe so strongly in who we are as a nation. So I’m going to do everything I can to make my case and then the voters get to decide. Thank you all.”

The NYTalso covered the visit to that diner, and I like what the lady who posed the question had to say. Take a look...

Friends of Mrs. Clinton who were here at the Portsmouth event said they were struck by the moment; one said she had only seen Mrs. Clinton tear up like this once in decades, and it happened in private.

"You saw there was a moment when it flicked inward – it was her inner being answering, `Why am I doing this?' " said the woman, Gloria Cabe, a former aide to Mrs. Clinton in Arkansas. The woman who asked the question, Mrs. Pernold, said after the event that she was moved by Mrs. Clinton's response. A television reporter asked her if she thought the tears might be manufactured ...

"I don't think she could make up it up. Could you do that? I think she really cares about us," Mrs. Pernold said.

Asked who she was going to support in Tuesday's primary, she said she was going to "make up my mind when I have some quiet time."

(Emphasis mine)

Apparently, this is turning out to be a pretty newsworthy event. I found the following footage on YouTube – check it out...



Hillary’s traveled our country for the past year, talking with voters, making her case, and listening to our stories. Those stories have stayed with her and (contrary to what they haters say) she’s running this gauntlet to make it a better world for all of us.

When Hillary said “this is very personal for me” I realized just how personal this has all been for me since I joined our local campaign. I wrote a diary back in September called Team Hillary: What’s Your Story?where I talked a little about how my involvement in Hillary’s campaign is a deeply personal thing for me. After talking with some neighbors at our debate watch party Saturday night, I’ve come to realize now more than ever that this campaign is about my children. And that’s about as personal as it can get for me.

It’s about my son – and the work Hillary’s done on behalf of him and probably millions of other special needs children & adults over the past 35 years.

It’s about my daughter – and the promise that Hillary’s rise to the presidency would mean to her and to every girl of her generation and beyond.

Take a look at what I said a few months ago...

My son was born nearly 5 years ago and by the time he was 8 weeks old, our pediatrician realized he wasn't developing at the "normal" rate. She referred us to the genetics clinic at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), where they tested him for every syndrome under the sun over the next few years. His low muscle tone, delays in hitting the regular milestones such as sitting up, walking, talking, and all that other stuff prompted us to sign him up with the Infants & Toddlers program in our county. We were lucky – our son was able to get home-visits from physical therapists, speech therapists and a special ed teacher by the time he was 18 months old, and they worked with him until he turned three. After his third birthday, we signed him up with the PEP program at a local school, where he continued to work with dedicated teachers & therapists. My sweet boy is in his third year of preschool and is making REMARKABLE progress – we have no doubt that this early intervention will make all the difference in his young life to the point where he'll catch up to his peers in school.

Early in her career, Hillary spearheaded a project for the Children's Defense Fund (CDF) in New Bedford, MA to reconcile the discrepancies between the number of school-aged children and school enrollment figures. She went through a school district and knocked on doors until she got her answers. She found that children with special needs – those with physical disabilities like blindness, developmental delays (like my son's) and those in wheelchairs – were being denied schooling. She submitted the results of the survey to Congress and two years later, at the urging of the CDF, Congress passed the Education for All Handicapped Children Act of 1975, which mandated that all children with physical, emotional and learning disabilities be educated in the public school system.

Now remember... Hillary had just graduated from one of the top law schools in the world – she could have written her own ticket – raked in the big bucks and yet she chose to go work for the CDF, knock on doors, and find out why kids like my son weren’t going to school. She’s trained in early childhood development and this lady gets it like no one elsewhen it comes to what our kids need to thrive and succeed!

THAT’s the kind of passion, laser-focus and dedication I want in our next president.

More...

As Senator, Hillary helped improve the education of children with special needs by working to reauthorize the Individuals with Disabilities in Education Act (IDEA). She championed provisions to provide targeted help for children with behavioral and emotional disorders, to increase the pool of special education teachers, and to provide those teachers with additional professional development opportunities.

There was a time when children like my sweet boy would have been written off – he never would have gotten an education or any sort of help. But thanks in part to Hillary's work in the mid-70s in getting the Education for All Handicapped Children Act of 1975, and her continued support for the ADA, and the Individuals with Disabilities in Education Act, he's been able to attend the Infants & Toddlers, and later the PEP program in our county.

If my son had been born 35 years ago, he would have been written off as retarded and that would have been that.

No testing.

No early intervention.

No physical or speech therapy.

No help in developing his cognitive skills.

No education.

No expectations that he might one day catch up to his peers.

No support or guidance for us, his parents.

No help whatsoever.

Well thankfully Hillary saw a need and she got things done. And now (thanks in no small part to her efforts) millions of families with a special needs child are reaping the benefits of her hard labors on our behalf.

More...

I also have a remarkably bright and beautiful daughter – she's six and a half and is already watching this campaign unfold. In fact, she endorsed Hillary Friday evening... I asked her if she'd vote for Hillary if she were old enough and she replied with an enthusiastic YES! When I asked her why she liked Hillary she said "she seems like a really nice lady mom". What a remarkably bright girl!

She IS a bright girl and thanks to Hillary, the sky will be the limit for her and the other girls of her generation. Girls & women who've come before (me & my mom) grew up hearing people tell us we could be whatever we wanted to be when we grew up – even president. I think we all knew what a load of bull that was – no woman has ever held that job and that sent us a serious message (it's really not possible). But my bright – no make that brilliant little girl will actually, FINALLY get to see someone make it to the top job. And what a POWERFUL message that will be – that yes, a girl really CAN grow up to be President. Once a woman (Hillary) finally shatters that glass ceiling, the sky will be the limit for the girls who'll follow.

I just thank Goddess that Hillary didn't doubt it when her dad told her she could be whatever she wanted when she grew up if she worked hard and applied herself to achieving her goals in life. Hillary's obviously set her sites high, and I'm going to do everything I can to help her make it to the top.

For our nation.

For Hillary.

For my little girl.

And as way of saying thank you to Hillary for the remarkable and dedicated work she did on behalf of children – especially children like my sweet boy.

So yeah this is personal dammit. I’m not living in a fishbowl or putting in 18+ hour days, living on the road and never seeing my family, nor have I been attacked for the past 15 years by the extreme right AND now - by other Democrats...

...and even I find that I get choked up at the thought of what’s at stake this year, and how urgently I feel the need to make things happen – NOW! There’ve been times when I’ve had tears streaming down my face at the thought of what Hillary’s done for my son – our family, and at the promise her success holds for my little girl.

I love what Hillary had to say at that diner. She spoke from the heart and that really means something to me.

This isn’t about games or politics.

This is about us.

This is about repairing the damage done to our nation and to our good name around the world.

This is about my kids and their future.

And for me...

This is about doing everything humanly possible to help ensure that the most experienced, qualified, capable, passionate and dedicated public servant is elected as our next president - Hillary Clinton.

Note from Hillary - Last Night

I thought everyone might like to see a note I got from Hillary this afternoon. Some of us (MassLib, Ed & New Hampster) will be planting signs, knocking on doors and getting out the vote in New Hampshire. Others (like me) can't get away from our commitments here at home (kids to care for, jobs that won't allow us to take time off). If you can't drop everything to head up to New Hampshire, you can still lend a hand. She needs our help folks - if you're serious about helping her make it to the convention, please consider donating what you can now going in to the next battle in New Hampshire!

"We've got more work to do." That was my first reaction as I saw last night's election results come in. And today in New Hampshire, I'm pounding the pavement, looking for every last vote in next Tuesday's primary.

With your help, we can make it clear that the Democratic Party needs a nominee who can go the distance in a long, challenging campaign to win the White House, and that the American people need a president who can be an effective champion for them on day one.

Iowa sounded the opening bell of this campaign. New Hampshire is only four days away -- and the pace only quickens from there.

The stakes couldn't be any higher. Events couldn't be moving any faster. With everything on the line, let's show them what we're made of.

Please contribute now.

You and I know just what to do at times like this. Work harder than everyone else and rely on each other every step of the way. If we do that, I know we'll win.

You've already done so much. But today, I'm turning to you to help fund crucial activities in New Hampshire, Nevada, South Carolina and beyond.

Make a contribution today to help me win.

We're not just working to prevail over other candidates in a hard-fought contest for the Democratic nomination. This is about more than that. It's about our unyielding determination to reclaim our country from an administration that has failed us, betrayed our trust, and undermined our values.

That's why these next few days matter so much. I'm doing everything I can to drive our campaign to victory and I know you will do the same.

With your help, we can win. Make a contribution now.

Let's keep working to change America.

All the best,
Hillary

One more way to help... If you're in the Virginia, DC or Maryland area please consider taking the day off on Tuesday to lend a hand at the campaign's Headquarters in Arlington, Virginia. The office is just two blocks from the Ballston Metro Stop (Orange Line). To get plugged in to all the action...

4420 North Fairfax Drive
Arlington, VA 22203
Phone: 703-469-2008

Thanks for all you're doing guys. Together, we can each make this happen in our own way, and in our own neck of the woods. If we all do our part - we'll be looking forward to Hillary's inauguration this time next year!

Hillary’s Promise / News From the Ground

If you stand up for me for one night – I’ll stand up for you every day as your president.

After nearly a year of criss-crossing the state and talking with Iowans about her vision for change, Hillary made her closing argument in a televised appeal tonight that directly addresses the central question on the minds of caucus-goers. I thought folks might like to see what she had to say, and get a feel for what’s happening with her campaign in these final hours before the caucuses begin. I’ve been getting some reports from friends on the ground out there, and people have been sending me links to local Iowa papers as well.

Her two-minute pitch CROSSROADS follows. Take a look...



Make the jump – there’s more...


Note: Hillary’s still talking about bringing our troops home to their families & mentions this goal twice in this message. She’s got a plan to bring them home swiftly and safely, and will be ready to put it into action on day one.

One other thing out of the campaign today... they’ve just put out a new ad which will be running up in New Hampshire called Best Choices. This ad highlights recent newspaper endorsements from across New Hampshire. Over the past two weeks, Hillary has earned the endorsements of key newspapers across the Granite State, including 11 Salmon Press weekly papers, Foster's Daily Democrat and Laconia Citizen, four Cabinet Press weekly papers, the Keene Sentinel and the Concord Monitor. All agree that she is the right candidate to tackle our country's toughest challenges starting on day one. Take a look...



A friend of mine has family out in Iowa and he sent me the link to a local paper. Here’s a report from Council Bluffs Iowa

And if it snows on caucus night, here's Hillary Clinton's secret weapon: a stack of shovels delivered to her Council Bluffs headquarters. A "Blizzard Brigade" of volunteers is prepared to dig people out if necessary to get them to Thursday's caucuses.

In Iowa, the first test of the 2008 presidential campaign, nothing is more powerful than what neighbor tells neighbor about the presidential candidates.

"This feels more like a local election than any campaign I've ever worked," said Megan Wilbur, Clinton's regional field director. "We love our volunteers. We can't do it without them."

Real commitment is required by the Iowa volunteers. They do more than go to rallies and pass out literature.

They make the calls, pound the signs, organize their friends and work the caucuses.

Rosa Wall of Council Bluffs volunteered for the Clinton campaign as a way of showing gratitude.

Wall, 51, recalled her days as a migrant worker minding the onion fields and tomato patches in Arkansas when Clinton was the state's first lady.

"She helped my kids go to school and bought them clothing," Wall said. "She's a good advocate for children."

Now Wall is a good advocate for Hillary. She was out last weekend putting up Clinton signs in her west Council Bluffs neighborhood. Wall won a commitment from Pat Ferretti to show up at the caucuses and to bring a neighbor, a niece and her daughter.

Wall's own car will be full. She will bring to her caucus four elderly neighbors who no longer drive at night.

And earlier today the Des Moines Register published an article on Hillary’s ground game in Iowa...

Council Bluffs, Ia. - Door knockers will hit the house of every Iowan who has declared strong support for Democrat Hillary Clinton within the next day or so, according to her campaign staff.

“It’s thousands and thousands and thousands of people,” he said. “We’ve found that phones just aren’t working any more. Everyone’s connection rate over the phone is really low. People are telling us they’re getting 10 and 15 calls a night.”

Over 60 percent of the Clinton campaign’s 1s and 2s have never caucused before. They believe their list of strong supporters is longer than the campaigns of Obama and John Edwards. “As far as we can tell, it’s way more than everyone else,” Carson said.

The Clinton campaign has ideas for counteracting the “flake rate” - flaking means blowing off the caucus. They are arranging for rides and catering food at the sites. If they notice a supporter isn’t there, they’ll go pick him or her up, officials said.

Clinton's campaign has rented SUVs to make sure volunteers can get through any snow that falls Thursday night.

Speaking of door-knockers... Over 50 Marylanders have traveled out to Iowa with our good Governor – Martin O’Malley. Regular folks like me, and also quite a few elected officials in our state – busy knocking on doors, making phone calls, and helping to get out the vote for Hillary. I got the following emails from a friend of mine who’s out in Cedar Rapids this week. Check it out...

From Sunday December 30th

OK Team, here's some thoughts from Iowa today... Envision Mary Boergers [former MD State Senator & Democratic candidate for Governor], Nancy Floreen [County Council Member], and me all in one, normal-sized hotel room. Three sets of luggage, clothing, toiletries, etc. The housekeeping staff is being remarkably cooperative with our requests. We're having a blast, working to make a difference out here!

Cheryl...

It's Sunday night before Thursday's caucuses, and everything is busy & exciting here in Iowa!

There are almost 50 Marylanders here for Hillary. We're mostly Montgomery County & the Baltimore area, but we also have representation from Frederick, Anne Arundel, etc. Our group is diverse by age, race, gender, and political experience. We're united by our passion to elect the most qualified candidate who can hit the ground running on Day One, ready to fix what this Bush administration has wrecked during his tenure.

This morning, we received training in canvassing. Yup on a day the TV weather forecaster predicted that it would be a "cool 9 degrees", we were out, knocking on doors! My partner is a lovely young woman who works at Planned Parenthood in DC. We made a great team as we hit our doors, looking to lock in commitments for Clinton supporters to attend their local caucuses this Thursday night.

Surprisingly, our briefings about what to expect out in the field were accurate. Iowans are NOT yet sick of talking about the election. They invite you into their living room and want to talk for 15 or 20 minutes! How likely is that to happen in too many other places?? Not! Yes, they have a disproportionate influence on the process. But they are aware of that and take it quite seriously.

After a group dinner at "The Irish Democrat"—a perfect place to eat in honor of our Governor—we dashed over to headquarters for a "Mock Caucus." Despite all the briefings, it was interesting to experience the faux-reality of dividing among candidates Jefferson, Lincoln, Washington, FDR, and Truman. We Truman folks were able to pick up several votes from the "non-viable" candidacies of Washington & Jefferson. Between the math, the arcane rules, and the lobbying, it got complicated and loud.

Ultimately, you'll be pleased to know that Truman got 1 delegate vote out of the caucuses. (Let's hope Hillary does a ton better this week!)

Tomorrow will be another long day, possibly culminating with a New Year's Eve party in Des Moines with both Clintons. I'm not likely to write tomorrow, so let me wish you a HAPPY NEW YEAR!! May 2008 bring us a more peaceful world, happy and healthy lives, and a (particular) Democrat elected to the White House!

Hugs from "cool" Cedar Rapids... and without feeling in my fingers or toes,
Cheryl

(Identifiers re Mary & Nancy were my additions)

And from Tuesday, January 1st...

Here's the latest missive I sent out to a few hundred friends and colleagues. Both my roomies got injured today. Mary Boergers got attacked by an aggressive screen door, and Nancy Floreen had a less-than-friendly meeting with an Iowa pooch. Here's to safer campaigning tomorrow!

Cheryl...

So... there are just two days to go before the Iowa caucuses, and we are working our tails off for Hillary in Cedar Rapids. More Marylanders seem to arrive daily, infusing a great new energy to the second-largest city in the state.

Remember my last missive, when I commented on the 9 degree weather being described by the forecaster as "cool?" Now I get it! Today was 2... and with wind chill factor, it is now NEGATIVE 19 degrees. Long underwear and lots of gloves, socks, etc are worn without regard for what we look like. It's too freakin' cold to care about making fashion statements!

With weather like this, we are especially grateful for the warmth of the local voters. They invite us into their (heated) homes, rescuing us from the winds and biting cold. It's remarkable how friendly these prospective caucus-goers are, despite the barrage of television ads, robo calls, mailers, and canvassers. Today, my canvassing partner was a young Clinton campaign staffer. Samantha's intimate knowledge of the precinct made for less meandering than normal.

Our assigned precinct included a mix of upper-middle income folks and seniors living in retirement homes. Seniors, especially older women, are just tickled to have the opportunity to come out to help Hillary's candidacy! Even in their mid-80s and using a walker, they are totally motivated to go to their caucuses. Other supporters are men and women in our age bracket (let's say 35-55) who appreciate both Senator Clinton's experience and relationships around the world as well as Bill Clinton's record of leadership.

Many of the caucus-goers will be participating for the very first time. I'd be pretty surprised if the turnout isn't dramatically higher than in the past. What's fun is that everyone here is a political insider. In DC/Maryland, either you're "in" or you're "out" (paraphrasing Heidi Klum on Project Runway). Here, everyone's involved and aware. The surprising conversations are with those who are still undecided. They've met each candidate a couple of times, have had policy chats, and they're still stymied. This isn't exactly what we're used to back home...

I've run into a few colleagues from past political campaigns, who (like me) have all converged on these poor defenseless Iowans. Tonight after getting back to HQ, I saw an older woman I knew I had worked with in the past. It didn't take long for me to identify Emily & her daughter Mary as colleagues from the Cranston for President campaign in 1984! It's bizarre to think that some of the young Clinton staffers weren't even born yet when we were trying to elect Alan Cranston!

Tomorrow, Hillary Clinton is coming to Cedar Rapids. That should mean door knocking in the morning and afternoon, but with a break in the middle to be indoors, cheering her on.

That's all for now. It's tiring to be hustling around in sub-zero temperatures. Here's to a mug of hot tea and a warm bed.

More soon.

And one more video from one of Hillary’s campaign stops yesterday...

LATE DECIDERS



Hey better late than never right?

GO HILLARY!

Don't forget folks HILLARY WILL BE ON LETTERMAN TONIGHT!

One last thing - Rhoda Mae (from DailyKos) gives us one more update from Hillary's event in Cedar Rapids today (which my good friends from Maryland were most likely at)...

My family attended Hillary's event today

in Cedar Rapids. I just got off the phone with them for the scoop: They said the spirit of the audience was amazing. They sat between an undecided voter on one side, and an Obama leaner on the other. At the end of the event, the undecided voter decided for Hillary, and the Obama leaner is now leaning Hillary! They said there were many others who said they were undecided and are now chosing to support Hillary. My sister gave her prediction for tomorrow: She thinks Hillary will win, at least in her area. She said support for Hillary is broad and growing where she is. She saw the 2 minute video ad and said that she loved it, and thought it could potentially sway voters back to Hillary because she came across as a leader ready to win in November.

Tomorrow she has taken off work and will work on phoning voters, and before the caucus she will be picking up three voters who are unable to drive themselves to caucus!

To Rhoda Mae's family if they ever read this I've just got one things to say...

Y E A H !!!!

Bill Clinton @ Missouri Valley IA

Yesterday, Bill Clinton set out HRC's policy goals and plan of action at a speech broadcast on C-SPAN from Missouri Valley High School in Iowa:

Hillary will:

1. Use our military forces only as a last resort
2. Restore America's leadership in science & technology (hijacked by reseachers with political agendas like stem cell research & global warming)
3. Develop a comprehensive energy policy -- the only way we can succeed is if we create new jobs in this sector
4. Rebuild the middle class -- special interests have too much power, as illustrated by Medicare's inability to negotiate drug prices, and spending billions on no-bid contracts.
5. Enforce labor & trade laws. We can't tell China, Japan, Korea and oil exporting countries to clean up their act on defective toys amd other products when they're our #1 banker.

How do we fix things?

1. Education plan: Universal pre-K, access for HS grads to have vocational training, ditch No Child Left Behind. Replace by looking at schools that succeed in excellence, and modeling that behavior.
2. Energy/jobs: Create energy trust fund, and repeal oil company tax cuts. Accelerate hospitals/factories becoming green.
3. Healthcare -- cover everyone, bring costs in line, and invest in wellness.

Hillary has the leadership skills. Examples?

• President Bush and his advisors threatened to take away signing bonuses to disabled vets who were unable to fulfill their military duty. Hillary made sure they were restored.
• It only takes 41 members of the Senate to shoot things down. It's important to work with Republicans to get the job done. Hillary has done that.
• Six million more low income kids now have health care because of Hillary's leadership on SCHIP.

Highlight for me was how HRC has responded to "failure" by dusting herself off and getting back into the arena. Bill also sprinkled in wonderful stories about Arkansas politics to drive home the points.The final story he tells about running into a NYFD guy who was moonlighting as a golf caddie was a tearjerker, as he explained what HRC had done to protect NYFD workers from asbestos, PCB and other harmful materials they were breathing in their rescue efforts. "She fought for us, and some of us would have died if it wasn't for Hillary."

Bill's closing line: "This country needs the best leadership it can get.... Hillary will make a MAGNIFICIENT President. Please help her! And God bless you."

Check out the entire broadcast on CSPAN.

CrossPosted@
http://connect.hillaryclinton.com/blog/Knowvoxs-Blog/400030427

No Sitter? No Problem!

The Iowa caucuses are just 2 days off folks and it's getting down to the wire. I just found the following useful informatoin on the campaign's Iowa site and I thought it was worth passing along here - check it out...

As the caucuses approach, Hillary's Iowa team wants to remind everyone to take a few minutes to explore Hillary's caucus center. You can find all the information you need to caucus for Hillary on January 3rd and discover some unique services that Hillary's campaign is arranging -- free child care and transportation.

In order to make the process easier, Iowans for Hillary has set up several ways to assist you on caucus night including arranging for free childcare with established childcare centers in selected areas across the state. With so much at stake in the upcoming election, Hillary wants to make sure that everyone who wants to caucus has the chance to do so. Hillary has spent a lifetime giving opportunities to people, and for one night, she wants to give you the opportunity to take part in this uniquely Iowa tradition.

If you are planning to caucus but need child care on the evening of January 3rd,
HERE to sign up. It's that easy -- drop your kids off before the caucus, stand up for Hillary, and pick them up when it's all over.

In addition to child care, Iowans for Hillary is providing free transportation on caucus night. If you need a ride -- or want to provide one for someone else -- click
HERE If you are a first time caucus goer, you can sign up here to have a "buddy" join you on caucus night -- someone with caucus experience who will show you the ropes. If you have been to the caucus before, you have the opportunity to help a Hillary supporter who is new to the process.

Still a little confused about caucus night? Check out our Common Caucus Questons and learn how easy it is to caucus. (Don't forget to watch the Caucusing Is Easy video for a lighthearted explanation of caucus night.)

Need to find your caucus location? Simply enter your address HERE.
Hillary is working hard in these final days to earn the support of Iowans like you. If you stand up for Hillary on January 3rd, she promises to stand up every single day for you as President of the United States.

I'm not at all surprised that Hillary's making sure her supporters have access to childcare given her determined and non-stop work on behalf of working families and our chidlren. CampSkunk (a fellow contributor here) reminded me of the following work she's done in this area...

S661 legislation, the Kinship Caregiver Support Act. it helps grandparents raise kids. big issue now. she has a shitload of cosponsors this time. it's still sitting in Finance, though.

LINK

LINK

If you or anyone you know has friends or family in Iowa, please send them a link to this page. The information needs to get out there if we're going to help Hillary win!

Happy New Year Eveyone! Open Thread

Just two days until the Iowa Caucus.

So how are things going with the campaign in your nect of the woods?

Are you planning to go to an early state to help with the Get Out the Vote effort?

How's 2008 treating you and yours so far?