After the Edwards rally, the journey continued to a panel discussion by the National Review Online about the New Hampshire primaries at the Radisson in downtown Manchester.
Many of the students appeared bored and restless, and they wandered around the Radisson looking for some political action.
Students stumbled upon a closed-door union rally in the next large room, but were denied access because they weren't union members. Unions represented included the Teamsters, the International Bricklayers union and AFSCME.
The star attraction was former President Bill Clinton, who spoke for ten minutes to resounding applause from a capacity crowd about getting out the vote for his wife, Sen. Hillary Clinton (N.Y.).
It was odd to see such tremendous support for the man who signed the North American Free Trade Agreement into law, since NAFTA was so harshly opposed by the labor movement. But the voters clapped and hollered away anyway.
Host of MSNBC's Hardball, Chris Matthews, attributed it to a show of support for the party, as opposed to directly for the candidate. "They are all pro-Democrat," he said.
Saturday, January 5, 2008
Edwards in Lebanon, N.H.
At Lebanon High School, University students got their first taste of what political scientists call "retail politics."
Edwards: 'We Have a Fight'
Sen. John Edwards (D-N.C.) was more than 50 minutes late to a scheduled event at the high school cafeteria which was filled to capacity. Edwards spoke to a second room filled with people prior to walking into the cafeteria.
He spoke for about twenty-five minutes, delivering a stump speech completely focused on domestic policy and on his underdog status.
"They told me we couldn't do it, but we did it," he said, referring to his second-place finish in Iowa behind Sen. Barack Obama (Ill.)
Edwards' message struck a populist tone; he spoke extensively about how the middle class is being squeezed by powerful interests in Washington, including the pharmaceutical, insurance, gas and oil lobbies.
"Haven't we found that enough is enough?" he asked.
Edwards delivered a thinly veiled attack on Obama's intention to bring all parties involved to a big table: "I dont think they'll sit at a table and voluntarily give their power away."
Edwards' aides emphaized how he was far outspent in the contest, and questioned the effectiveness of the spending.
"In Iowa, Obama got 17 delegates, we got 16 and Hillary got 15," said Joe Trippi, a chief adviser to the Edwards campaign. "Was all that extra spending worth the one delegate?"
Students were unimpressed by Edwards message. A voice poll taken on one bus after the rally found no new supporters of the Edwards campaign.
No students said they were Edwards supporters going in, either.
"The speech was lacking a certain pizzazz that you would think a former trial lawyer would have," said Nick Bond, a junior and president of the College Democrats.
Edwards: 'We Have a Fight'
Sen. John Edwards (D-N.C.) was more than 50 minutes late to a scheduled event at the high school cafeteria which was filled to capacity. Edwards spoke to a second room filled with people prior to walking into the cafeteria.
He spoke for about twenty-five minutes, delivering a stump speech completely focused on domestic policy and on his underdog status.
"They told me we couldn't do it, but we did it," he said, referring to his second-place finish in Iowa behind Sen. Barack Obama (Ill.)
Edwards' message struck a populist tone; he spoke extensively about how the middle class is being squeezed by powerful interests in Washington, including the pharmaceutical, insurance, gas and oil lobbies.
"Haven't we found that enough is enough?" he asked.
Edwards delivered a thinly veiled attack on Obama's intention to bring all parties involved to a big table: "I dont think they'll sit at a table and voluntarily give their power away."
Edwards' aides emphaized how he was far outspent in the contest, and questioned the effectiveness of the spending.
"In Iowa, Obama got 17 delegates, we got 16 and Hillary got 15," said Joe Trippi, a chief adviser to the Edwards campaign. "Was all that extra spending worth the one delegate?"
Students were unimpressed by Edwards message. A voice poll taken on one bus after the rally found no new supporters of the Edwards campaign.
No students said they were Edwards supporters going in, either.
"The speech was lacking a certain pizzazz that you would think a former trial lawyer would have," said Nick Bond, a junior and president of the College Democrats.
The Bus trip and Internet troubles in Lebanon, N.H.
Five hours on a bus, and the students finally got to their first campaign event, a rally for John Edwards at Lebanon High School in Lebanon, N.H.
The buses arrived at approximately 1 p.m., after stopping for sandwiches. The event was scheduled for 1:15 p.m.
Lebanon High School was not equipped for the Internet access required for the national press corps, and the campaign struggled to get its own "soapbox" network online, as the press corps struggled to file their stories on location.
The buses arrived at approximately 1 p.m., after stopping for sandwiches. The event was scheduled for 1:15 p.m.
Lebanon High School was not equipped for the Internet access required for the national press corps, and the campaign struggled to get its own "soapbox" network online, as the press corps struggled to file their stories on location.
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