Posted by student JAMES MITCHELL- If you didn’t know, Iowa is cold; and by cold I mean freezing. Yesterday was no exception with the late afternoon temperature hovering near 20 degrees and a thick layer of fog floating just above the ground. The inclement weather forced the plane carrying former President Bill Clinton to land in Omaha, Nebraska, and to make his way by ground to the packed gymnasium that awaited his arrival in Storm Lake, Iowa.
Clinton arrived at Storm Lake Middle School 45 minutes late, but his tardiness did nothing to dampen the enthusiasm of the crowd of over 200 people waiting to hear him speak. After being introduced by Christy Vilsack, wife of Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack, Clinton opened his speech by singing the praises of his wife’s competitors. He noted that Governor Bill Richardson held two positions in his administration; that Senators Chris Dodd and Joe Biden were two of the most capable members of Congress; and that he has personally campaigned for both Senators Barack Obama and John Edwards in the past.
Clinton told the crowd of Iowans that they held a unique responsibility and obligation to the nation to wisely select the most qualified candidate for president. Clinton then asked the crowd gathered in Storm Lake to measure their presidential candidate on four points: vision, plans, track record and electability. He claimed that if they did so they would see that “there is no doubt that Hillary is the most qualified of all the candidates.”
Clinton forcefully argued that the United States needs a president like Hillary; a president who can rebuild the faltering American dream. He told the crowd that in the United States today, an individual who graduates from high school in the top 25% of his or her graduating class but comes from a family in the bottom 25% of median household income is less likely to attend college than an individual who graduates in the bottom 25% of his or her graduating class but comes from a family in the top 25% of median household income. He stressed that while each of the Democrats is a strong candidate, only Hillary has the ability to solve complex issues such as education while handling the pressures of the Presidency.
Clinton closed his speech by asking the members of the audience to caucus for his wife on Thursday, promising them that “if you caucus for her, you will always be proud you did.”
James Mitchell is a Clinton School student covering the Iowa Caucuses for the Clinton School Blog.
