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NEW YORK: Hillary Clinton came home to New York to praise her White
House campaign, not to bury it, to flex the muscles of her 18
million supporters even if her vaulting ambition has been thwarted
for now.
On the night that Barack Obama became the
Democratic heir apparent, the New York senator returned to her most
ardent supporters, whose tears and recriminations laid bare the
agonizing nature of her primary defeat.
But Clinton was not done yet, her never-say-die
spirit unvanquished by the cold, hard reality that the epic race is
over and that Democratic leaders have united behind Obama to take on
Republican John McCain.
“This has been a long campaign, and I will be
making no decisions tonight,” she said to the delirious joy of her
fans, pledging to consult with party leaders in the coming days to
chart a way forward.
In fact, Clinton’s “celebration” speech at
a Manhattan sports college sounded suspiciously like an extended job
audition, after she earlier told New York lawmakers that she was
open to serving as Obama’s vice president.
Diana Ross’s “Ain’t No Mountain High
Enough” rang out as Clinton took the stage with daughter Chelsea
and her husband, former President Bill, who looked more serene than
when condemning a critical journalist as a “scumbag” Monday.
The rally ended with “Simply The Best” by
Tina Turner, another woman who overcame heartache at her husband’s
hands to emerge as a force in her own right.
Complete with ritualistic plugs for her website,
this time inviting supporters to suggest what she should do now
instead of giving money, Clinton’s speech staked her claim that
her 18 million voters “deserve to be respected.”
Occasionally elegiac but more often defiant,
Clinton remained the policy wonk to the last as she listed her
policy priorities, topped as always by universal health care.
Fizzing with fury in the baking New York sun,
diehard Clinton supporters seemed in an advanced state of denial as
they queued around the block for their heroine’s final primary
campaign event.
Wearing a “Hillary fan club” T-shirt, Eva
Friedman identified the culprits she held responsible for her
candidate’s downfall.
The former first lady was the victim of rampant
sexism by a Washington press corps and political class afraid of a
woman with power, she said.
“Barack Obama was put up by someone, I’m not
saying who, who decided they were never going to allow a woman,
Hillary Clinton, ever to be president,” Friedman said.
And what if Clinton becomes Obama’s vice
presidential nominee?
“Then I’ll vote for the ticket with half a
smile on my face. But only half,” Friedman said.
-- AFP
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