Potpourri

It's been 7 weeks since we left New Hampshire, and I've spent the majority of that time writing about our adventures while there. Time has not stopped, however, and much has happened in the campaigns during my hiatus from current events. I can't recapture all of it, but here's some catch up stuff:

Switching Parties: I have a new question for Giuliani: Is Joe Torre a flip-flopper?

Finding his O Spot: If Letterman did the introductions at an Obama event now, would he update his infamous joke from the Oscars several years back - "Oprah, Obama. Obama, Oprah."

Perhaps other candidates should seek out celebrity endorsements. Obama has Oprah, Huckabee has Chuck Norris. I'd love to see Phil Donahue stump with his body double, Chris Dodd. Fred Thompson might want to consider signing on with that talk show guy who talks to dead people. Maybe he'll listen to Fred.

Are You Talking to Me?: During the last Democratic debate, Hillary was speaking about inspiration on the campaign trail, and she mentioned the thrill of seeing "fathers who had driven hundreds of miles with their daughters to see me". Cherie is convinced that Hillary was referring to me and Marra. Of course she was. We had a sign.

The Plant People: Marra and I learned why Hillary didn't call o us during the 2 events we attended. Seems her campaign was caught in Iowa of planting people in the audience with specific questions. Don't we already have a President that does this stuff? Just because she plants Democrats to ask questions doesn't make it right.

Biden His Time: I have a suggestion for the Biden camp. Run an ad in Iowa and New Hampshire with quick cuts from the last Democratic debate. Everyone on that stage at one point or another said, "I agree with Joe", or "Senator Biden is right on this point", or "Sen. Biden has been a leader on this issue". He seems to be the consensus choice of every candidate running. He should capitalize on that. Could be a cool ad. "Instead of voting for someone who agrees with Joe, let's cut out the middle man. Vote for Joe."

I fear he won't survive past January 6th.

Richardson Open Veep Exploratory Committee: Why can't he just admit that he wants to be Hillary's running mate? It would free up some time during the debates for other candidates to speak.

Real Time Reality Check: Watching Bill Maher on Real Time after the trip, I heard him fillet Giuliani for telling a kid that he would protect us from alien invasion. Funny take, but we were in the room in Exeter, NH when that happened. Maher took the experience completely out of context. It was a harmless joke this time, but I wonder how often that happens every day during the 24 hour news cycle.

Hostage Crisis: If Hillary's campaign office in Rochester, NH had come under siege during Oprah's tour with Obama, how long would it take before someone would cry, "Conspiracy!" The woman inspires divisiveness. Will she ever be able to adequately overcome that?

Immigration Nation: The demagoguery on the GOP side is unrelenting. Romney and Giuliani both used to have balanced and reasonable points of view on the issue, and both have abandoned those positions in search of right wing support in the primaries. When will someone say that most illegal immigration is caused by people coming here legally, but overstaying their visa periods? It is not all landscapers and painters with dark skin and accents.

C-SPAN 2: Enough with these "Book TV" programs. Let's see more candidates shaking hands of regular folks for hours on end. Riveting stuff like that.

JS

Marra's Version (!!!)

Before we left for New Hampshire, I wrote a note to all of Marra's teachers, explaining why she would be absent for up to 4 days of school. In each note, I encouraged the teachers to assign a project to Marra based on her experiences chasing candidates. Fortunately, one of her teachers took me up on the offer, and asked Marra to write a one-page summary of the trip. Marra was thrilled (insert sarcasm here).

She refused to write about the trip while we were there, insisting that the trip had to be completed before she could put pen to paper. I insisted that she entertain herself on the 10 hour drive home to Virginia by getting it done. Here below is the first draft, three hand written pages plus recap. Be forewarned, she loves the exclamation point - it's her favorite piece of punctuation:

"On Friday, October 12th, my Dad and I left for Manchester, New Hampshire. We got to see six candidates for the 2008 election! We saw John McCain, Dennis Kucinich, Mike Huckabee, John Edwards, Rudy Giuliani, and Hillary Clinton. We also visited the headquarters of Barack Obama, Fred Thompson, Mitt Romney and Chris Dodd.

Let me start at the beginning. First thing, we went to a global warming conference. We had a huge lunch and listened to a guy make a speech about global warming. Finally, we got to hear three candidates talk. I didn't know that there was so much to know about global warming, and I had never even heard about nuclear power plants!

Nuclear power plants are a form of energy that takes atoms and splits them to cause a mini-bomb. This is cleaner, but the plant lets off a very dangerous waste that can cause cancer. Right now, they just put it in a barrel and either bury it or throw it in the ocean. You can see why that can cause a terrible accident.

After the global warming conference, we went to the Huckabee house party. House parties are my favorite event. You go to somebody's house (in this case because of the global warming theme, it was a green house. A green house is a house that uses solar power. Plus the floor was made of bamboo and the carpet was recycled!) and you can walk around and maybe talk to the candidate personally. (I met Mike Huckabee and got a picture with him!) Then he/she will give a short speech and answer questions. Plus, there's food!

We went to an Edwards event after the house party. John Edwards is my favorite candidate. I like all his ideas the best. This event was a town hall meeting. He gave a speech and answered a few questions. I was so glad to go to bed that night. I was sooooo tired!

The next day, we went to a house party for Edwards. Immediately after, we went to Young's restaurant where Rudy Giuliani was walking around, talking to people! My Dad and I were lucky to get a seat by the door, so we were the first people he met!

I felt like we were stalking Rudy Giuliani! After the restaurant, we saw him at a town hall meeting. I sat on the edge of the balcony so I could look down at him and not have to look over someone's head. He made a speech, then answered a few questions. After that, we just hung out at the hotel pool until we had to go to church.

On Monday, we visited all the candidates' headquarters in Manchester. Some of them were really cool, the Barack Obama's headquarters. The guy who showed us around, Garrett, was very thorough and let us sign the wall to show that we supported Obama. Others, like Rudy Giuliani's headquarters, had people who hardly talked to us. Overall though, most of the headquarters were really cool.

After the headquarters and eating lunch, we went back to the hotel to do homework. Yuck! Anyway, after I did about half of my homework, we went to one more headquarters, then to dinner.

Tuesday was a Hillary Clinton day. We went to her speech in the morning, and a town hall meeting in the afternoon. I waved around a sign I'd made that said, "We drove 500 miles to see you, so CALL ON ME!". I hoped the sign would persuade Hillary to call on us for a question, but it didn't. We did get her to autograph the sign though! Plus, we got a couple of pictures with her!

Overall, it was a really great trip and I learned a lot. New Hampshire is also really beautiful, so I hope I can go back someday."

By Marra...and JS!!!!!

Epilogue

Mission Accomplished.

But like the original "Mission Accomplished" slogan, this did not mean that we were completely done. We still had to get back to Manchester, and we were starving. We got Katie Sullivan's attention before we left Salem HS, and she gave us simple directions. Actually, what made the directions simple was my increasing familiarity with the New Hampshire highways and byways. I was starting to figure this place out, just in time to leave tomorrow.

On the way back, we decided on dinner at the Red Arrow diner one more time. It had a history as mandatory stop for primary candidates, and it had a menu we could both agree on at prices I could justify. We ate and talked politics. Marra was an Edwards supporter at this point. His pledges to help feed and educate everyone in the world during his administration hit home for her. I told her to start looking for tax shelters off shore as soon as possible once Edwards was elected. Not sure she understood that joke, but maybe someday.

I was still undecided. I told her that I had eliminated some candidates so far, however. Kucinich was out. I could not see myself ever voting for either Thompson or Giuliani. Before the trip, I had soured on Richardson. Hunter and Tancredo were never considered, and Paul, while entertaining, is not an option, unless we plan on closing the country permanently. I was leaving Edwards, Obama, Clinton, Biden, Dodd, Romney, and McCain on the table. The trip, I told her, would influence my final decision, but the hands-on experiences we had here couldn't be the sole factor for me. Choosing a leader requires more reflection, and I, unlike the residents of the state, had more time to sort through all this information.

The owner of the Red Arrow recognized us from our previous visit, and that made for a nice end to the official portion of the New Hampshire 2007 journey. We were in Manchester, New Hampshire during presidential primary season being recognized by the locals. And my oldest daughter was living history with me. As the whole trip unfolded, though, I was beginning to think that perhaps this trip was really just about our history together as father-daughter. And this was destined to be a big chapter.

The next morning, we packed up quickly and left the Radisson at approximately 9 AM. We were ready to go. The ride home was thankfully uneventful. We miraculously missed the traffic in NYC, Baltimore and Washington, arriving back in Chantilly before 6 PM that evening, still in daylight. The odometer showed 1,371 miles traveled.

We had seen some of the giants of electoral politics battling for the highest elected office in the world, but a comment from Marra as we neared our house brought it all back to reality for me. We drove past dozens of signs for all of the local politicians, vying for school board, commissioner, sheriff, delegate, state senate. Election Day 2007 was only 3 weeks away. Marra asked an innocent question. "Daddy, which one of these candidates will you vote for?"

I was embarrassed to say that I did not know. The truth is that I did not know in many cases which were Democrats and which were Republicans. I did not now which were pro-growth and which were anti-tax. I did not know which represented corporate interests, and which represented their church agendas. I was ignorant of the local political scene, and for that I was ashamed. At that moment I vowed to myself to learn more about the candidates and issues facing my local community. It was time to think globally and act locally, as it were. And it was time to set a better example for my daughter than just chasing political stars around like rock groupies. It was time to be involved.

The trip to New Hampshire with Marra was supposed to be about finding a leader we could support in 2008. We learned about several, and were impressed by many. I hope what Marra found in New Hampshire was that her father was a leader by example, and that I would be a greater influence on her life than any President ever could (except maybe Ron Paul). I will always strive to be that leader she can believe in. I hope I've earned her vote. She's got mine.

JS

Questions Without Answers

Hillary entered from behind the big curtain just to our right and strode up the short stairs while honoring the crowd with her princess wave. She was still wearing the tailored brown pants suit from this morning, but it did not look like most pants suits after a busy day of work. There wasn't a wrinkle or a crease anywhere to be seen. She did have a large set of red lips plastered on the right side of her face, however, and that punctured the air of perfection. I did wonder whether her husband had ever campaigned in NH with a similar lipstick tattoo on his face, but I quickly decided that should I be called on, that is not the question I would ask.

Senator Clinton provide us with her stump speech before taking questions. She talked education, and favors universal pre-K and debt forgiveness for college grads who commit 2 years to serving the country in areas and professions where we have the most need (doctors in Appalachia, teachers in the inner city, that sort of thing). She views government as a great initiator of social change and industrial progress. She reminded us that the Internet was born from a government project, and of course, the space program could not have gotten off the ground (pardon the pun) if we had waited for the private sector to begin investing in it. Government has been at the leading edge of jump starting change in this nation for years, and we cannot ignore this important role. In particular, she sees energy innovation as having to begin with the government before it can truly take root and be profitable for independent business.

On health care, she is in line with most other Democratic candidates. Give the public access to buy into the Congressional health care plan. She stated that she will tell the "big" insurance companies that "you can no longer make money by denying people coverage." Big applause line. There is one thing she mentioned during her speech that I still need to research. She mentioned a boy named Graham Frost, a 12 year old car accident victim. She had dropped his name in the morning speech as well. She gets all emotional and angry and says that the Republican attack machine could go after her, but they had better leave a 12 year old boy alone. I had no idea what she was talking about. Perhaps I need to read more blogs. I did not understand the reference, but again, big applause line.

For me, one of the most telling moments of the speech was her definitive statement about getting out of Iraq. As she makes this powerful statement and the cheering is at its loudest, she adds "as soon as it is safe to do so." I am not sure who else heard that, but I did. I wanted her to define "safe". My gut tells me that she would not have defined "safe" for me or anyone else. She is the consummate politician, leaving all her options open while convincing the public that her mind is made up and she is steadfast and resolute. I'm not so sure.

Once questions began, an African American woman standing in the back directly in the center called out to Hillary and everyone hushed. For those of you who remember her, it was Carol Simpson, former ABC News reporter who had even once moderated a presidential debate. She has retired from the media and is now a school teacher in Massachusetts. She said that she had brought her students so that they could hear her say in public that she was supporting Hillary Clinton for the Presidency of the United States. A very spontaneous moment that I am sure was carefully orchestrated. Bravo, it looked natural and unplanned.

Hillary took maybe 5 questions, and none from us. Even with Marra waving that homemade sign, we were left to create our own answers to the questions with the little she gave us. She called on the woman behind us, and she asked a softball question about health care. Every question that was asked had been asked before in a larger forum than this. No one had anything tough to ask. That was a shame. I was hoping someone would grill her, force her into answering a new question, one she had not rehearsed for. It was not to be tonight.

When Hillary completed her grueling 5 answer set, she exited the stage to "Every Little Thing She Does is Magic" again, and came our way. We had quite a bit of luck with Hillary coming right in our direction. I wanted to get Marra's sign autographed. We bartered with a woman seated behind us. We would have her program signed by Cllinton if she would take a family shot of Marra and me with the candidate. Deal.

Hillary came up to Marra and admired her sign. She gave her a big signature right in the middle of the colorful poster board, and graciously posed for a quick shot with the two of us. I'll say this, the woman knows how to work the rope line. Autographed sign, reserved seating sign, and camera in hand, we got out of the mosh pit and dove across a few folding chairs to avoid the crush. It got a little hairy in the front row, but we survived without cuts or bruises.

As we left the gymnasium, we saw the Clinton staffers working the crowd for votes. We felt like we knew them at this point, so Marra and I said good-bye to most of them and wished them well. We were a part of the primary fabric. It was a very comfortable feeling. Four days completed, and we knew our way around a campaign event.

Nothing left to do but find our way to the hotel, pack and leave the state in the morning. Everything I had dreamed about doing for 4 years had come true. Mission Accomplished.

JS

"I Must Be in the Front Row..."

The final campaign event for Marra and me was the Hillary Town Hall meeting in Salem, New Hampshire. Doors were scheduled to open at 5 PM, with Hillary hitting the stage at 5:30. We snacked in the car on the way, because we knew that 5:30 meant 6:15, and dinner would be late into the evening for us. Salem reminded me of Exeter, where we saw Giuliani two days prior, but 50 years into the future. There was the same small town feel, but the amenities had been upgraded. I might have seen a 7-11 or a chain grocery store on the way. We found the high school without incident. I did not break the news to Marra yet that I had not mapped our route back to Manchester before leaving the hotel earlier in the day. I'll save that tidbit for later.

There were students in team sweatshirts milling about the main entrance waiting for their parents to pick them up now that their after school sports practices had ended. They did not seem interested in the growing throng of people headed inside. Top tier candidate in town? Just another day in Salem, NH. But the crowd was growing quickly and it was barely 5 PM.

Inside, it was a controlled mob scene. All the voices were magnified by the cinder block walls and hard floors. The doors to the gymnasium were shut tight, and the line began there. At least there was a line this time. The people snaked toward us at the main entrance then broke left down one of the corridors. We followed the line past at least 10 classroom doors before finding the end. I estimated there were 200 rabid Democrats there already. Marra was starting to go negative at the prospect of another long wait. But I had our "Go to the Front of the Line" card in my pocket from Sarah Nolan, Clinton's NH Political Director. Time to test her clout.

I convinced Marra to stand in line and hold a place for us, just in case this hall pass didn't work. I thought for a moment that having her sad face with me might help the cause, garner some sympathy, but I couldn't stand the thought of ending up even further back in the line. I had to have an insurance policy. Marra would have to wait.

Up at the front of the line, I recognized one of the event coordinators from the policy speech this morning. She was a beautiful Asian woman, maybe early 20s, totally in control of the situation, walkie talkie working at full capacity. She was giving instructions to about 5 volunteers on their assignments for the evening. During her hallway huddle, she was interrupted 3 times with questions, answered them without a hint of hesitation, and returned her attention to her recruits. This woman has a career ahead of her in this business. Once instructions were handed out, I jumped in and introduced myself. I played the insider angle immediately.

"We were just with Sarah Nolan at the house party and she said that if I mentioned her name and showed her card, my daughter and I could be seated up front. Can you help me with this?" I could tell by the look on her face that Sarah was a somebody, somebody with power, someone not to be disappointed. This was going to work.

"Let me introduce you to her boss, and he'll take care of you." She whisked me over to Colin, in his blue blazer and what appeared to be a white dickie under his blue oxford. Preppies for Hillary, I thought. Another constituency to worry about. Colin was clearly in charge, because he did not seem to have as much to do as the other staffers running around. I even saw the campaign workers that we had met Monday and again this morning, and this time they were engaged in actual work. No donuts in sight. Good to see. Perhaps the Senator lit a fire under them this morning.

Colin was very gracious and right to the point. "No problem, you'll have seats in the front row, just to the right of the stage. We will place a sign on two seats that say "Reserved for Joe', and those will be for you and your daughter. Will that work?"

Yeah, that will work.

I returned to save Marra from the line people and deliver the good news. It was like waking her on Christmas morning and walking her down the stairs to a shiny new bicycle. "Marra, did I tell you I'd take care of it or did I tell you I'd take care of it!" There is nothing quite like the feeling of leaving the masses behind as you glide to the front of the line. Now if there was a VIP reception before hand, that would have been pretty good, too. Oh well, Marra was happy again, and assuming we didn't get lost driving home, I felt confident that the rest of the trip was a "slam dunk".

We stayed close to the gymnasium doors and tried to blend in with the group already waiting there patiently for the doors to open. After 15 minutes of soaking in the excitement, Katie, the staffer we had met yesterday in Manchester, gestured to us to come forward, and we were allowed into the gym before anyone else (except the press). I was basking in the glow of knowing that my daughter was impressed by her dad at this moment. I was delivering on a promise. Just as Colin promised, there were two seats at the corner of the stage, front row, with signs "Reserved for Joe". We saved them as proof. We sat and relaxed as the gym filled up.

The room was cut in half by a large curtain. The bleachers were pulled out on the sides, the left side for press cameras, and right side for overflow that could not find a seat on the floor. I would guess capacity at about 500 people, but they were all behind me and Marra!

We were fortunate enough to be seated next to a Vietnam vet who was supporting and actively working for Hillary. Great for Marra to see and hear a war veteran talk about world issues and health care. Just another example of a committed New Hampshirite accepting his role in the process of choosing the nominees of the major parties. We had met some serious thinkers, and very few blindly partisan people during our stay. Except for the JFK conspiracy guy, of course.

Our entire section had to sign waivers again in case our image was used in a future Hilary commercial. We were old pros and explained the form to those around us. Several ladies behind us were intrigued that we had seen Hillary already that morning, and I dazzled them with tales of our 4 day odyssey to NH. It was fun to impress the locals with our commitment to the process. Everyone was very positive. Then one of the woman asked, "So, who do you like?"

The weight of the question caused me to hesitate. In New Hampshire, my answer to these strangers would help to form their opinions of all the possible candidates. Something I say could influence their vote on primary day. Something I say could be relayed to one of their friends, who uses my reasoning and my judgment to develop their own favorite. I could not be glib, I could not exaggerate in any way. I had to tell it as I saw it, and be sure not to leave anything out. I was helping to shape the race. Plus Marra was listening. I deliberately worked to stay neutral, to offer observations both good and bad about every candidate or campaign we encountered. With her listening, I felt like the voting booth curtain was closing behind me, but Marra was looking over my shoulder. I have been asked this question by many people since the trip, but it has never impacted me the way it did that evening.

I tried to be fair about everyone. "I thought McCain had the greatest mastery of all of the relevant issues. I thought Giuliani was extremely intelligent. I thought that Huckabee presented the clearest and most memorable message about his values and beliefs in the campaign. He had the best answer to why he should be President. I thought Kucinich was over the top with his goal of public ownership of "a lot of things". He sounded more communist than liberal. We thought that Obama had the most organized and focused campaign operation. We found Edwards to be the most passionate and the most specific about his plans. We felt that Hillary was the strongest campaigner and appeared by far the most presidential." I added that we did not see Biden, Richardson, Dodd, Paul, Thompson, Obama, Romney, Brownback, Gravel, Tancredo or Hunter. Hardly a complete view of the field in 4 days, but nonetheless, we had had many experiences upon which to base our humble opinions.

Exhale. I had voiced my opinion in New Hampshire. I was part of the decision making process now. Then Hillary made her entrance.

JS

The Shut Out

It has been said that bad things come in threes. The first "bad" thing was that we went to the Little Gym appearance for Hillary and were shut out. Her schedule on the Internet for the day did not indicate that the appearance was a closed event, but no matter. We drove to see her for the second time that day, all for nothing. It was still worth the chance, and there were two Clinton events left for the day. Marra and I both felt we were cheated that afternoon, but piled back into the van for the house party.

Then we got lost - "bad" thing #2.

I was OK with the unfortunate turn of events. We had extra time, we had a full tank of gas, it was a gorgeous day, and we weren't hopelessly lost - just slightly misguided. I had some optimism. Marra was not as optimistic. "Daddy, where are we going? Are you sure you know?" She had a tone of exasperation in her voice. The girl wanted to see the Senator again and wave her new sign. I was an obstacle for her. I tried to set a positive male role model example for her by stopping for directions at a roadside convenience store. We were back on track quickly thereafter, but we (I) had wasted at least 20 minutes with the unexpected detour.

It was a 45 minute drive to the house party. The scenery is best described as rolling countryside. The leaves were in brilliant shades of amber and deep red - peak colors dulled only slightly by the lack of rainfall recently. It was just beginning to approach dusk, when the lights cast mild shadows and the leaves reflect the sun right into your eyes. I was getting tired of driving, and most of the CDs we had brought were into a second rotation. We were having one of those moments thinking, "What are we doing here?"

We drove about a mile into a sparse woods, our view punctuated by spectacular homes with wrap around porches, stables, and long driveways with tall pine canopies. The members of the middle class probably clean these houses for a living. The smell of old money hung heavy in the air.

We had to park on the side of the road in a ditch to be sure that oncoming traffic wouldn't crash into our rear bumper. We had no idea how far a walk we had in store. We only knew that we couldn't park any closer. We were even that sure where the event was. We crawled out of the car and started walking towards the other parked cars. This looked like it was going to be pretty crowded, and I was worried that we wouldn't be able to get very close to Hillary.

As we turned up the gravel driveway, we could see the house straight ahead. Yellow with green trim, and it did not look that big from the front. It had to be sitting on several private acres, however. I was certain that an Irish Setter would come bounding down the drive at any moment to complete the picture.

No Irish Setter, but a buttoned up young lady in a tailored blue suit holding a clipboard bounded toward us. She had a friendly smile but a tight bun in her hair that was all business. "May I help you?" We were about 10 yards from the house.

"Sure, we're here for the house party." Apparently, it was time for bad thing #3.

"I'm sorry, this party is invitation only." I was exasperated, and I started whining. I launched into our story of 800 miles of driving, seeing all the candidates, going to events all week without incident or invitation. "The posted schedule on the Internet did not indicate that an invitation was required, and your campaign posted that schedule." I fibbed a little there. "We've told several staffers that we were planning to come this afternoon and not one mentioned that an invitation was required." That was not a fib. Someone could have stopped us before we had come this far.

I could not see Marra's face, but the woman bouncer must have seen something in her eyes. "Look, my name is Sarah Nolan, and I am the Political Director for the campaign. Take one of my business cards to the Town hall meeting in Salem tonight, and they'll be sure to seat in in the front row. Sorry about the confusion."

I was satisfied. For me, the trip to this invite only party paid off. We'd be front row for the second event of the day!

Marra and I thanked her, and as we started to leave, the Secret Service stopped us cold. "You'll need to wait a few minutes, sir." Hillary was arriving up the driveway in a thunder of 5 black Suburbans. We could not see which truck was carrying her, but I am sure that was intentional. The whole arrival was very tightly controlled, very presidential. It's impressive when you need 5 secured vehicles to go anywhere safely.

Hillary must have been in the first Suburban, because we heard her voice greeting the hosts of the party around the corner from where we were standing perfectly still. We did not want to arouse the suspicions of the agents. This was the 3rd time we had seen some of these agents today, and it is their job to remember shady characters like us. In a moment, her voice was gone and she was in the house surrounded by cheering supporters. We were out in the cold, free to leave.

Walking back down the driveway with the sounds of applause echoing in our ears, Marra lost it. I don't know how else to put it. The waves of audible sobbing came pouring out, part disappointment, part anger. "The house parties are the best part. Why can't we stay?" she cried. She could hardly walk straight. Four full days of chasing history in New Hampshire had finally caught up to her. She was fading fast. My mature traveling companion had reverted back to her chronological age of 11.

I attempted to fix the situation with reason. "Marra, because we came here, we will have front row seats for the Town Hall tonight. It's all working out for the best. We've seen Hillary already, and we have her picture. It's OK."

No, it wasn't OK. She was inconsolable, and that brought my disappointment and fatigue to the surface. I was ready to lose it, too. "Marra," I threatened, "I have seen everything I had planned to see. We can head back to Virginia tonight. Pull it together, or we can just go home." Idle threats against an overly emotional preteen. Not exactly textbook parenting, but it had been a long 4 days. Perhaps there is such a thing as too much of a good thing. I felt the entire experience of father-daughter bonding was melting away in one explosive episode of tears and shouts.

We walked to the car in a few minutes of silence. "Marra," I broke the mood, "Maybe we've had too much togetherness for one week, what so you think?" She quietly agreed. I apologized, and we drove to Salem listening to Hanna Montana. She'll cheer us up.

One more event and our journey is complete. How could anything go wrong? We were going to be sitting in the front row, and we had a sign. Hopefully, these directions are good...

JS

Nothing Happens

Hillary's policy address ended at lunchtime, so we walked to a nearby Subway for sandwiches and a debrief. It was another picture perfect day of New England fall weather, not a cloud in the sky, making for a nice walk to Jared's Place. Our excitement over the face-to-face encounter with the former First Lady was tempered only by our inability to get called on for a question - again. We tried. We sat up front, raised our hands respectfully, and tried to play the "ask a little girl a question" card. We were disappointed to be passed over time and again, but convinced ourselves that we looked too intimidating and knowledgeable to be recognized for a question by the candidate. Maybe it's because we hadn't been planted...

We had two questions ready:

"Senator, the Senate recently voted on a non-binding resolution declaring the state army of Iran to be a terrorist organization. Sen. Edwards believes a "no" vote would have been correct because Pres. Bush will use this vote as a pretext to continue the drumbeat toward unilateral military action in the name of the "War on Terror". Sen. Obama did not vote, and his camp is saying that non-binding resolutions are political only, and we should be focused on the issues, not political posturing. You voted "yes". Can you explain your vote, and tell us what is wrong with your opponents' viewpoints?" (side note: this was all before Clinton's Iran stand was making headlines in the campaign - we were actually ahead of the curve on this one!)

Our second question is the same one we had for Edwards - what are your plans to simplify the tax code? (You'll have to read old posting for that one in its entirety, I am NOT retyping it here)

There would be 3 more opportunities today, and the quest for a photograph and an autograph would not distract us. We would get our measure of this woman before the day was done. We had to increase our odds of being picked for a question, we had to differentiate ourselves from the masses. Marra suggested a sign, and I quickly agreed, assuming that she would handle design and execution while I handled finance. I paid for some markers and a clean white sheet of poster board at the downtown CVS, and we were back to the room for a short break.

I did my best to allow Marra full artistic freedom to create her sign for Hillary. I really tried. I am sure, however, that I was getting under her skin with my silly comments about readability from across a room and my maniacal obsession with proper spelling. The sign came out fantastic, and I can take no credit. Now we would be rabid, sign waving supporters. What was I creating here?

With signage complete, we detoured before the Little Gym event to the University of Southern New Hampshire bookstore for some family gifts. We were running out of time and were desperate to take a piece of New Hampshire and this experience back to Virginia with us. We would settle for T-shirts and campaign stickers. These were the imperfect ways that we could share the trip with others because the private memories would remain selfishly our own. As I told Marra, "We'll always have Manchester." She didn't get the movie reference.

The second stop of the day for Sen. Clinton was the Little Gym in (some town whose name I forget). This followed her theme of the day of helping build strong families. I wish I had had the chance to ask her how dropping Junior off at the Little Gym at 8 AM and picking him up at 6 PM supported her message of "strong families". Sounded more like outsourcing, but I digress.

There were a few people - maybe 6 or 7 - congregating near the pathway that led to the Little Gym entrance, mostly employees of the other businesses within the small strip center. The walking path was blocked by two black Towne cars, conspicuously discouraging any would-be trouble makers. Men in suits with short hair cuts, sunglasses, earpieces were milling around, looking for their smiles. I asked one of the friendlies if Marra and I could go closer to the front door to catch a glimpse of Hillary's arrival. "This is a private event, sir, please step back." I thought that made sense, given that she was going into a center with a bunch of little kids everywhere. "Large Crowd of Hillary Supporters Freak Out Pre-Schoolers; Parents Threaten Lawsuit" would be an ugly headline, not to mention the close up shots of little kids crying on the front page of every right wing blog in America. Perhaps it was best if we missed this one. Some press cameras were allowed past us, but only after a thorough once over from the SS - I mean, Secret Service.

While we were waiting, we visited some of the shops nearby. Not sure that any of the struggling "working families" Hillary loves to mention in her speeches did much shopping here. If you can afford an infant sweater for $80, then that Bush tax cut you've been enjoying might just be going away during the Clinton 44 administration. Look out!

We waited for nothing. Before we even realized it, Hillary was inside the center. Apparently, there's a back entrance, and she was whisked inside without a whiff of fresh air. We never saw it happen. The men in suits were a lot more uptight now, though. That made us uptight, and also convinced us that we were waiting for nothing. We decided to head to the house party early, about a 25 minute drive.

JS