Waterloo Events

Since returning from NH, I've attended two candidate's events in my hometown. Hillary Clinton had a large event on the fourth of July, and she was accompanied by her husband, former President Bill Clinton. Mr. Clinton introduced his wife with a speech of his own, which really connected very well to the audience. Senator Clinton's speech that followed touched on the inaptitude of the Bush administration, and focused on turning America back around, focusing on withdrawing from Iraq and restoring the economy to a balanced budget. The event was not exactly the retail political event that Iowa can boast of, and was swarming with national media outlets, especially since this was the first time former President Clinton had campaigned with his wife. The next event I went to was the Bill Richardson event, the following week in downtown Waterloo at La Chiquita Mexican restaurant. The Richardson event was midday, but considering the venue and time, had a very strong turnout. Richardson was able to have a question and answer session, which proved useful because it forced him to speak to pretty much every major issue for the 2008 election. What struck me about Richardson was his emphasis of his experience with foreign policy, and his ability to integrate his sense of humor while campaigning. Both events were interesting in their own way, and I hope to attend many more in the upcoming months.