Texas State Democratic Convention: Day 2

The second day of the convention did not have the same atmosphere as the first day. This is probably because everyone was too tired to be excited. After the general assembly during the evening yesterday, several state senate districts had to reconvene in order to finish their caucuses that where started before the general assembly. Some of these caucuses ran long into the night and early morning. Senate District 17, which happens to encompass Travis County which is the home of the convention in Austin, ran until almost 4:00 in the morning and some delegates did not leave the Convention Center until 5:00 in the morning. This gave little time for sleep, as the convention reconvened at 7:30 this morning.

However, the morning of the second day was much more relaxed, as there were not the long lines of delegates receiving their credentials. Also, there where less of the activist and issues caucuses to attend. I did attend one caucus this morning, the caucus for Immigration and the Economy. At this particular meeting there was a presentation given by one of the members of the Alliance for Security and Trade. This presentation gave interesting perspectives on the immigration issues, and focused on statistics and data rather than rhetoric and propaganda.

Afterwards the general assembly was set to begin once again; however, there was something about to happen that everyone had been waiting for. Senator Hillary Clinton was preparing to give a speech in Virginia, and this was going to be her concession speech. Clinton would endorse Senator Barack Obama. The delegates gathered as a feed from CNN was played over the four large projection screens. Shortly after the assembly was reconvened Clinton took the stage in Virginia and in a way she took the stage in Texas. Clinton gave thanks to everyone that supported her, and officially endorsed Obama.

Her speech was heartfelt, and gave closure to what has been a historic and at times emotional primary. Her speech was interrupted twice by technical difficulties; however, her message was clear: Democrats should unite behind Obama. It was possibly the best speech that I have ever seen Clinton deliver, not because I am an Obama supporter or because it was the ending to the primary. Clinton gave a heartfelt and passionate speech, and spoke in a way that was without regard for political perception. I think it was the first step for Democrats to unite and come together as one. I think it is ironic that the first step toward the White House for the Democrats was not taken by Obama, but by Clinton. Whether or not Obama could win the general election with or without Clinton on the ticket is debatable, but what is not debatable is that with Clinton’s support Obama will win in November. If Barack Obama is elected President, it is not only the Democrats who win, America wins.