Hillary Clinton Standing Up for Farms and Families in South Dakota

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Thu May-15-08 08:58 PM
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Hillary Clinton Standing Up for Farms and Families in South Dakota

Edited on Thu May-15-08 09:56 PM by bigtree

RAPID CITY, S.D. – After a day spent doggedly campaigning and talking only of her agricultural agenda, Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton held an impromptu news conference on a windy airport tarmac today to criticize President Bush and Senator John McCain. (http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/05/15/clinton-criticizes-bush-mccain/)

Mrs. Clinton first addressed Mr. Bush’s remarks, made in a speech in Jerusalem, suggesting that talking to “terrorists and radicals” is no different than the appeasement policies toward Hitler and the Nazis.

“President Bush’s comparison of any Democrat to Nazi appeasers is offensive and outrageous,” Mrs. Clinton said. “Especially in the light of his failures in foreign policy. This is the kind of statement that has no place in any presidential address.”

She also took Senator John McCain to task over his speech this morning, in which he stated a new timetable for withdrawing troops from Iraq.

Mrs. Clinton said Mr. McCain’s statement “didn’t come with any new strategy or a clear recognition of the very serious difficulties that the Bush policy, now continued by Senator McCain, will encounter. I think it’s time for a change in course.”

Hillary Clinton defended Sen. Barack Obama today after President Bush gave a speech to Israeli lawmakers during which he seemed to align the Illinois senator’s foreign policy views with a strategy of appeasement. (http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2008/05/15/clinton-criticizes-bush-over-appeasement-remark/)

“Some seem to believe that we should negotiate with the terrorists and radicals, as if some ingenious argument will persuade them they have been wrong all along,” Bush said, “”We have heard this foolish delusion before. As Nazi tanks crossed into Poland in 1939, an American senator declared: ‘Lord, if I could only have talked to Hitler, all this might have been avoided.’ We have an obligation to call this what it is — the false comfort of appeasement, which has been repeatedly discredited by history.”

When a reporter reminded the New York senator that she too has criticized Sen. Obama for his statements on meeting with Iranian leaders, Clinton said, “I have differences with Sen. Obama on certain foreign policy matters, but I think we are united in our opposition to the Bush policies and to the continuation of those policies by Sen. McCain.”

Clinton continued, “I disagree that any president would ever meet with a leader of a country which we have such deep and profound differences as Iran, for example. However I believe there should be diplomatic engagement, which President Bush has resisted from the very beginning. So I think that I have more in common with Sen. Obama and the Democratic position in our understanding of what we have to do to re-engage with the world.”

"This is the kind of statement that has no place in any presidential address, and certainly to use an important moment like the 60th anniversary celebration of Israel to make a political point seems terribly misplaced," Clinton told reporters after landing at the airport here. (http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2008/05/15/1028185.aspx)

"I think today we've had two examples of why this country is going to be voting for a Democratic president," she said. "I hope people really look seriously at both President Bush's comment and Sen. McCain's speech and realize that the only way we're going to restore our leadership and our moral authority and deal with the very real challenges we face in the world is by electing a Democratic president . . ."

BATH, South Dakota -- New York Sen. Hillary Clinton brought her presidential hopes back to South Dakota Thursday, this time to a farm northeast of Aberdeen.

She arrived at 11:45 a.m. in a motorcade escorted by police. The arrival drew whistles, cheers and clapping. She was about an hour late.

Standing on the porch of a farm house in front of several hundred people, started a speech on rural issues at 12:01.

Clinton was in Sioux Falls last Thursday, where she addressed a crowd of about 1,000. That setting was a hangar at the Sioux Falls Regional Airport. She went on to win a lopsided victory Tuesday over her opponent, Illinois Sen. Barack Obama.

This setting couldn’t be more different. While it rained during her Sioux Falls visit, the weather today is sunny and warm. Many people say they’re happy just to be outside.

Clinton’s speech today was much different than one she gave a week ago in Sioux Falls. That speech was filled with emotion, both from Clinton and people who attended.

But today’s speech was far more intimate. About 600 people listened to Clinton speak for about 15 minutes. Then Clinton took questions from people in the audience. Much of her talk dealt with agriculture and the Farm Bill.

Clinton called it a privilege to be in South Dakota. Like her first talk, Clinton stayed away from criticizing her rival, Illinois Sen. Barack Obama.

This was Clinton’s first appearance on the campaign trail since her overwhelming victory in West Virginia’s primary and John Edwards’ endorsement of Barack Obama. The endorsement combined with the increasing number of superdelegates siding with Obama have only further fueled questions about Clinton’s future in the race. (http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2008/05/15/clinton-campaigns-in-sd-hits-mccain-on-farm-bill/)

“I’ve never been impatient with democracy,” Clinton told hundreds of supporters, many of them farmers. “I think actually letting people vote is on balance a really good thing and has served our country well over many, many years. So it’s a privilege to be campaigning in South Dakota,” she said, adding that she and husband President Clinton would be there often between now and the primary date.

Hillary Clinton focused on agriculture Thursday, drawing parallels with the work she’s done with upstate New York farms and attacking John McCain for not supporting the bi-partisan Farm Bill passed today.

“The idea of getting to a legislative compromise on something as complex as the Farm Bill is a huge undertaking, but it was finally accomplished,” said Clinton from the porch of a farmhouse. “President Bush says he’ll veto this bill and Sen. McCain said he’d do exactly the same thing as President Bush. You know, they’re like two sides of the same coin, and it doesn’t amount to much change does it?”

From the road leading to the farm, to the front porch where the presidential hopeful stood as she spoke, it was obvious Hillary Clinton was working to appeal to a specific group of people.

"I think that rural America, and particularly our farmers, deserve to have a president who stands up for you," Clinton said.

As she addressed the crowd on issues like broadband internet access and high fuel prices, she wrapped each issue around how it affects those living in areas where there aren't a lot of people.

"I believe saying no to the farm bill is saying no to rural America," Clinton said.

With tractors in the yard and baler twine used to rope off the media, it seemed as though everything but her attire belonged on the farm. But she relied on her background to gain credentials.

"We have 34,000 family farms in New York," Clinton said. "And I have to stand up for my farms because these are people who've also been on the land for a long time."

She was joined by farm-owner Dennis Jones, and his son, Jarrett, who both spoke of the challenges they face and the benefits that the Farm Bill would bring South Dakota farmers.

Hillary reinforced her support for the Farm Bill, which is expected to be voted on in the Senate today, and its benefits for the over 31,000 South Dakota farmers. Hillary also criticized Senator McCain for his opposition to the Farm Bill. Hillary believes South Dakota’s farmers deserve a president who will stand for them.

“Saying no to the farm bill would be saying no to rural America,” said Senator Clinton. Yet two weeks ago, Senator McCain made it clear he sides with President Bush, who has repeatedly threatened to veto the Farm Bill.

“When Bear Stearns needed assistance, we stepped in with a $30 billion package. But when our farmers need help, all they get from Senator McCain and President Bush a veto threat,” said Senator Clinton.

Sen. Hillary Clinton greets people inside Jerry's Cakes & Donuts during a campaign stop in Rapid City, S.D., Thursday, May 15

Hillary Clinton Speaks to Voters in the Louisville Courier-Journal | May 14, 2008: (http://www.courier-journal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080514/OPINION02/805140824)

Day after day, I've been inspired by the people I've met -- people who embrace opportunity, never waver in the face of adversity, meet hard times with hard work, and never stop believing in the promise of America.

I'm in this race to stand for you -- to stand for everyone who's struggling to pay the grocery bills and the doctor's bills, the credit card and the mortgage payments, and the ridiculous price of gas at the pump.

With two wars abroad and an economic crisis here at home, we need a president who knows how to turn our economy around, and who is ready on day one to be commander-in-chief, end the war in Iraq and keep our families safe. We need a president who will get this country back in the solutions business. That is exactly what I'm offering.

Because the real test is not the speeches you deliver -- but whether you deliver on the speeches. You have to get the job done, and that is exactly what I will do as president.

I'm the only candidate with a plan to provide universal health care. More than 576,000 Kentuckians are uninsured -- and so many more have insurance that doesn't cover the care you need. Under my plan, if you like your insurance, you keep it. If not, or if you're uninsured, you'll choose from the same options as members of Congress -- and you'll get tax credits to help pay for it.

I'm the only candidate who would make the oil companies pay the gas tax this summer instead of you. They have been making record profits, and it's time for them to pay their fair share.

I'm the only candidate with a plan to freeze foreclosures on families most at risk of losing their homes. And I've been calling for action on the home mortgage crisis for well over a year, because I know that you're home isn't just your greatest source of wealth, it's the center of your family.

Finally, I will work day and night to make this economy work for middle class families again -- from creating good, high-paying jobs to providing tax cuts for middle class families, to getting tough on countries that break our trade rules -- I'll only sign trade agreements that are good for our workers and our economy.

Accomplishing all of this won't be easy. But you know that I don't back down from a challenge. I'll be there for you long after the speeches are over and the cameras are gone, and I will never stop listening to your voices and standing up for your families.

The challenges we face are great, but the possibilities are endless if we roll up our sleeves and get to work with a president who works her heart out for you every day. I hope you will go to the polls on May 20 and give me the chance to be that president.

5/15/2008
Hillary Clinton Hails Passage Of The Farm Bill, Criticizes Senator McCain For Saying He Would Veto It -- (http://www.hillaryclinton.com/news/release/view/?id=7712)

5/15/2008
Senator Clinton Statement on Senator McCain's Speech Today
http://www.hillaryclinton.com/news/release/view/?id=7707