Rain, Cold Does Not Deter Massive Turnout at Tuesday Night Rally

Bill Clinton Tells Crowd of Thousands in Kalispell: ‘This Race is Not Over’

By Dan Testa, 5-14-08

	Caption: Former President Bill Clinton addresses an audience in the thousands in the drizzling rain at Flathead Valley Community College. - Lido Vizzutti/Flathead Beacon Click here for more photos of former President Clinton's visit.

Shortly after Sen. Hillary Clinton gave her victory speech following a decisive primary win in West Virginia Tuesday, her husband climbed onto the flatbed of a red Dodge truck in Kalispell and told a shivering crowd of thousands they would “never ever ever have a chance to vote for somebody who is a better change-maker” than his wife.

Bill Clinton arrived at Flathead Valley Community College an hour later than the 7:30 p.m. scheduled time of his speech, but despite the chilly, rainy weather, a massive crowd waited to hear the former president stump for his wife and make the case that she is a better choice for the Democratic presidential nomination than her opponent, Illinois Sen. Barack Obama.

Introduced by Rep. Mike Jopek of Whitefish and Kalispell Mayor Pam Kennedy, Clinton spoke for about 40 minutes to a crowd of more than 2,800, according to FVCC event organizers, on topics ranging from wind power to improving hybrid cars, and from healthcare to the Iraq War.

Locked in a prolonged primary battle, Obama holds the advantage over Hillary Clinton in the popular vote, and he has drawn within 150 delegates of the 2,025 required for the nomination. Three of Montana’s eight superdelegates have endorsed Obama, and a fourth has indicated she will support him. With four states – including Montana on June 3 – and Puerto Rico left to vote in the primary, Clinton’s hopes for the nomination appear slimmer by the day. But you couldn’t tell that from the crowd in the Flathead.

“If someone tells you you can’t win, it’s because you can, and they are afraid you will,” said Pres. Clinton, who has stumped in 13 towns in Oregon over the last two days in the run-up to its May 20 primary. “This race is not over.”

But Clinton refrained from criticizing Obama, saying the party would remain united regardless of who receives the nomination.

Clinton said oil was unlikely to ever be cheap again and touted his wife’s plans to develop alternative energy sources, particularly by building a modern network of transmission lines to get wind-generated power ranging from Texas to Montana to market. He also described Hillary’s plans to advance battery technology in hybrid cars and her plan to offer tax credits to people who purchase plug-in vehicles.

He went on to blast Pres. Bush’s education initiative, No Child Left Behind, saying “it will never work,” and said his wife’s plans would make college more affordable. Clinton touched on healthcare reform, disparaged the use of military contractors in Iraq, and criticized the Bush administration for what he called the politicization and under-funding of scientific research.

Clinton also called the increase in children with autistic conditions one of the major health issues facing the United States.

“We are tripling the number of children with autistic conditions every 15 years,” he said. “Nobody can tell you a thing about it.”

“They don’t know because we are not investing in stem cell research, in human genome research,” he added.

Rebecca Kelly, 53, of Kalispell, was the first person on line to see the former president, arriving more than three hours before he eventually began speaking.

“I’m a little frustrated with the media, trying to give her all the exit plans,” Kelly said. “She’s got a lot of supporters out there that believe in what she’s doing.”

But it was difficult to tell how many in the crowd were Hillary Clinton supporters, and how many were people who came out to see a former president, and witness one of the biggest political spectacles in recent Flathead history.

After Clinton’s speech, Bill Dakin, 59, of Columbia Falls watched the former president shake hands and talk with the crowd until after 10 p.m. Although he is leaning toward Obama, Dakin enjoyed the speech.

“He’s a very powerful speaker and he makes a terrifically strong case for Hillary Clinton,” Dakin said.

“It’s so refreshing to hear a president speak in complete sentences,” Dakin added. “I’ve forgotten what it was like.” [End of article]

Hi! First here like we were first last night! =) What a night it was! We were there until a little after 11...it is still sinking in that we were able to meet, listen to and shake hands with President Clinton!

Obama’s win in NC proves beyond any doubt that he is a racially-based candidate.  He can’t win the general election with just the blacks and the young.  It would be another ‘Tsongas’ election!  Clinton’s win in Indiana, by a slim margin, also raises the big question why Obama lost a state that he is supposed to win!  With her win in WV, it was a loud alarm bell to warn the democrats that Obama, yet again, can’t connect with the majority of the Americans.  The press ignores that Obama’s head was just given to him on a platter!
The media continues to be anti-Clinton.  Her win should be presented in the proper context of the quality of each of these candidates’ electability!
The media has robbed the people of this country to see a strong campaign to continue in a fair and balanced manner.  It is the worst kind of unprofessional and unethical journalism!

I was pleasantly surprised by being able to carry on a short conversation with Pres. Clinton last night on whitecollar crime. Many have forgotten or never knew of his pardon of millionaire Marc Rich with strong ties to the aluminum industry upon leaving office (or the millions donated after that pardon). Or of the ties of the Flathead Valley with former Rose Law Firm attorney, Joe Girior, Hillary’s partner in the Whitewater scandal. Mr. Girior was an attorney on the defense team of the CFAC case. After being fired for being a whistleblower, I haven’t forgotten. My words to Pres. Clinton were that his or Hillary’s actions in Washington DC reverberate even to this remote part of Montana. Vote for change in the same old politics in Washington.

Excellent Photo/Slide series !

Bill Clinton said, “This race is not over.”

I think that he really did inhale.

The Former President is correct “the race” isn’t over until there is a winner with 2210 pledged delegates. Obama & his supporters including the media biased MSNBC ,& Print would like us to believe that but they do not have the last word in this matter. I cringed when John Edwards stood in front of the camera & called Hillary “his friend” before he threw her to the ground & ran over her body while endorsing Obama. Do these people know the meaning of “friendship?”. “A true friend is one who is there for you through thick & thin, & will hold your hands while falling together. If you are a friend, you NEVER, no matter what turn your back on that friend. “ One does not need any enemies with friends like those”. Have you noticed that the train jumpers from Hillary to Obama are all males?. Why do you think that is?. Because these men are intimidated by having a “strong” woman be their leader, & they are not prepared to be led by a woman. They are trying to old unto the “good old boys network” & by god no woman is going to destroy that network. WOMEN all over America lets show them the “power” of who we really are. We are the “backbone” to everything successful, & without us behind, & beside their “Nominee” he WILL NEVER REACH THE WHITE HOUSE! John Edwards deliberately took away the media coverage & momentum from Hillary’s BIG WIN by his prime time endorsement, & they want us to forget & forgive all of the ugly attacks against Hillary? “NO WE WONT!”. He looked even more shallow when he dared to call her “his friend"( that was insulting) because those of us who know the “true” meaning of friend knew his words were as empty as was his reason for the endorsement. If they somehow succeeded in making Obama the Nominee, all we do as Hillary’s supporters let them have their party & we will come back stronger than ever in 4yrs. McCain will only have 1 term as President, so WE WILL BE BACK!

Tell Mr. Dakin to stick with Obama. Sure, the Clintons are great speakers/persuaders, because they pander and cater their speeches to what the audience wants to hear. Obama has the courage to tell it like it is. When Bill Clinton told the crowd, “When they say you can’t win, that means you can win, and they’re just afraid,” did Mr. Dakin realize that Hillary, Bill, and Chelsea have based 3/4 of their own platform on the argument that Obama cannot win.? This double-talk, double-entendre, and double, make that triple, propaganda out of the mouths of Clintons is truly despicable, because they do best with people/voters who don’t know any better.