Well today’s post ended up being a little different than I had originally intended. To give you some back story, a few months ago I was talking with a friend about how I had never lived in a state where my vote mattered in the Presidential primary. Growing up in Alabama and then living in Texas, the primaries were typically over before it was my turn to vote. Then all of a sudden this year’s Democratic primary turned into quite a slobberknocker and the focus is now squarely on Texas and Ohio for the next few weeks.
This has been great for Houston as it held two huge rallies the past two nights, one on Tuesday night by Senator Barack Obama and one Wednesday night by President Bill Clinton on behalf of his wife Senator Hillary Clinton. This isn’t to say I’m leaning towards supporting the Democrats over the Republicans, but more a first hand report of what’s going on in Houston with the Texas primary closing in on March 4th. But for those Houstonians reading this, early voting has already begun, so if you’re interested in voting in either the Republican or Democratic primaries you can do so now.
The Blot had originally planned on covering both events and just giving a report of what it was like to be there. I had even lined up The Blot Says…’ first media pass for Senator Obama’s event at the Houston Toyota Center. Unfortunately some things came up and I had to stay home that evening, but thankfully all of the major news outlets covered the speech and the next day I had the opportunity to talk to some local democrats who had attended the event. Everyone spoke highly of the Obama rally and their opportunity to see the great orator live. From all reports, the Toyota Center was packed with over 16,500 people to hear what Senator Obama’s plans were if he were to gain the party’s Presidential nomination. I had really wanted to see Mr. Obama speak in person because he really is an amazing motivational speaker and truly radiates hope and change for the country. With that being said, from what I saw on the television coverage it seemed like there was more message than substance.
The feeling on Wednesday night was the complete opposite from the excitement and energy at the Toyota Center. President Clinton was to speak at the University of Houston’s Hofheinz Pavilion, home to the University’s basketball teams. Honestly, the turn out was pathetic compared to the night before. Hofheinz Pavilion holds 8,500 people and was well under half filled. To be fair it had been pouring down rain all day which I am sure scared off many people on the fence about attending the event, but come on, it’s the 42nd President of the United States speaking. Much like Mr. Obama, I was really interested in seeing a President of the United States speak live, former or not. People started filling in at around 8 but Mr. Clinton didn’t take the podium until close to 10 o’clock.
The entire Hillary Early Voting Rally (as the event was being called) felt stale and not planned well at all. Since the event took place on the University of Houston’s campus, as could be expected, a huge part of the crowd was college students to which the event was unfortunately not intended for. The event was supposed to start at 8:45, and at 9 it sort of started with the introduction of a gospel group/band who sang a few songs. This didn’t go over well with heavily attended college crowd, especially the part of the crowd I was standing in. Most were put off by the music and the length the band played instead of the group’s intended result which was pumping up the crowd. For a rally, there really wasn’t much rallying going on, and I thought most people looked warn out and tired by the time the first U.S. Congressmen took the stage to talk about the messages they were spreading as they trekked across the state of Texas.
The only time the crowd really got energized was for the introduction of the man they had been waiting over two hours to see, President Bill Clinton. Clinton was really good, no matter what you think of his politics or his ethical choices, the guy can speak. He came out with some a great story of Hillary’s background and interest in special education and how the two of them had to work multiple jobs while he was in law school. I was really impressed with how President Clinton addressed many key issues Hillary hopes to address while in office and the way she will go about making those changes if elected. It was a lot more substantive than motivational, and to be honest that isn’t necessarily what America seems to be looking for in its next leader. That being said Senator Clinton is still getting a ton of support and votes, so it could just be that Obama makes for better television, which he definitely does.
Hearing former President Clinton speak was great and he really did make some interesting points, including Hillary’s plan on how to help struggling students with government sponsored loans. I’d give Clinton an A+ for his speech but I’d grade the over all event a C-. I think Senator Clinton has chosen the wrong people to guide her campaign, because it really felt like the people in charge just don’t have a clue as to how to connect to the young people of America, something Senator Obama is very, very good at doing. I heard Mike Huckabee and Chelsea Clinton were in town last night as well giving stump speeches, but The Blot can only be in so many places at once. Hopefully I’ll be able to give some more political coverage as the both primary races heat up over the next few weeks.
While the Democratic presidential debate in Austin may be over (currently being replayed on CNN as I write this) and Senators Obama and Clinton are back out on the campaign trail, there is still one important issue to discuss…Senator Obama’s visit with the University of Texas’ football team earlier today. I was actually kind of shocked to find out that Mr. Obama took time out of his busy campaign schedule to take a tour of the school’s athletic facility and spend some quality time with Mack Brown and his players…but it did make for a pretty cool photo op.
