I is Queen of the Peoples!
Posted on 11/09/2007 10:32:39 AM PST by Chi-townChief
Organizers claim they didn’t intend to come off as secretive
"It won’t happen again."
Given the uproar over a closed-door meeting in which Clinton delegates gathered at the Parkway Ballroom on Wednesday for a pep talk from former President Bill Clinton, I’ll bet it won’t.
Traci Otey Blount, a spokeswoman for the Hillary Clinton campaign, moved swiftly to douse the fire storm caused when media were locked out of a meeting billed as a “People’s Rally.”
A gaggle of cameramen and reporters were forced to stand in chilly temperatures for three hours across the street, while a predominantly black crowd of about 450 Clinton supporters gathered inside.
“It was a misunderstanding on the Clinton campaign’s part,” Blount said Thursday. “We discussed whether it was to be a closed event or an open event. We were talking with everybody. We didn’t finalize if it was closed or open. With all the support that we have in Chicago, it was definitely something we wanted to showcase. We take full responsibility.”
According to Bishop Tavis Grant — head of a group called the 21st Century Alliance of Aggressive Leaders and spokesman for a group of community groups that have come out for Clinton — the campaign didn’t verify the former president’s schedule until last Friday.
“The advance people weren’t on the ground until Monday. And it wasn’t on the media wire until Tuesday,” Grant said. “We didn’t want to come off as a secretive or back-door meeting.”
‘Marching orders’ But that’s exactly what it looked like Wednesday when scores of prominent and lesser-known Chicagoans filed into the historic Parkway Ballroom for a private chat with Bill Clinton.
Worse yet, apparently some of the people a public relations professional cited as being at the closed meeting apparently were invited but did not attend.
“But none of those people were there for the purpose of endorsing Sen. Clinton. The meeting was not designed or organized in that fashion with that intent or objective,” Grant said.
Bill Clinton’s appearance at the South Side venue must have been thrown in at the last minute because there was a fair amount of confusion about what was supposed to be taking place. For instance, some community leaders were under the impression that they were going to an open rally.
“The event was basically for former President Bill Clinton and was for all of Hillary’s delegates and supporters,” said the Rev. James L. Demus, pastor of Park Manor Christian Church, who is no longer on the fence about whom he is supporting.
“Clinton gave us some marching orders and told us here are some things you can say when people ask you why you are supporting Hillary and not some other candidate.
“I would characterize it as getting marching orders from one of the highest leaders in the campaign,” Demus said. “I’m a fan of [Sen. Barack] Obama — like him going on ‘Saturday Night Live’ with a mask on — but when it comes to who I feel is the best qualified from Day One to lead this country, with hands down it is Hillary Clinton.”
Demus said rather than trying to shield black supporters from media scrutiny, the media blackout was an oversight.
“It was just a blatant mistake that was made. That is why an apology has been lifted up,” he said.
‘Hillary is becoming very electable’ The Rev. Leslie Sanders, a delegate for Hillary Clinton, said he worked in Bill Clinton’s 1992 campaign and has a long history with the Clintons.
“There’s a tremendous field of candidates running for president,” he said. “All of them would make a better president than the one we have right now.”
But Sanders is putting a lot of stock in Hillary Clinton’s poll numbers. Among this group of leaders, this presidential primary is more about who has the edge among all voters and is not seen as an opportunity for an African American to make history.
“Those of us in Illinois have an emotional attachment to Barack other than looking at the overall picture of who has the best opportunity to bring about a change in the White House,” Sanders said. “From a national perspective, Hillary is becoming very electable.
“She has the right to reach out to all communities, just like Barack has the right to reach out to all communities.”
But Hillary Clinton hasn’t reached out to all communities — at least not in Chicago.
What she has done is reach out to a select group of allies, ministers and community activists in the black community who have jumped on her bandwagon.
mailto:marym@suntimes.com
It WILL happen again and the media will take it because they are co-dependent.
“People’s Rally”?
Interesting that she uses the same type of terminology as the ChiComs.
I like the comment >>> “Clinton gave us some marching orders and told us here are some things you can say when people ask you why you are supporting Hillary and not some other candidate.”
Traci Otey Blount, a spokeswoman for the Hillary Clinton campaign, moved swiftly to douse the fire storm caused when media were locked out of a meeting billed as a “People’s Rally.”A gaggle of cameramen and reporters were forced to stand in chilly temperatures for three hours across the street, while a predominantly black crowd of about 450 Clinton supporters gathered inside.
“It was a misunderstanding on the Clinton campaign’s part,” Blount said Thursday. “We discussed whether it was to be a closed event or an open event. We were talking with everybody. We didn’t finalize if it was closed or open. With all the support that we have in Chicago, it was definitely something we wanted to showcase. We take full responsibility.”
Think Mr. and Mrs. Susan Sarandon will go public and condemn this "chill wind that is blowing"?
They are voting for hillary - why attend a meeting you know the outcome.
I is Queen of the Peoples!
And
“The event was basically for former President Bill Clinton and was for all of Hillary’s delegates and supporters,” said the Rev. James L. Demus, pastor of Park Manor Christian Church, who is no longer on the fence about whom he is supporting.
“Clinton gave us some marching orders and told us here are some things you can say when people ask you why you are supporting Hillary and not some other candidate.
Gee .. seems to me that they can't seem to get their story straight
Apparently to get their marching orders
Definite BS ... may a tape leak to the media and they be unable to hide it any longer. “Marching orders” indeed.
“I would characterize it as getting marching orders from one of the highest leaders in the campaign,” Demus said. “I’m a fan of [Sen. Barack] Obama — like him going on ‘Saturday Night Live’ with a mask on — but when it comes to who I feel is the best qualified from Day One to lead this country, with hands down it is Hillary Clinton.”
So, hillary clinton is EVEN BETTER than Barack Obama on Saturday Night Live with a mask on! It's good to know what qualities these guys want in a president.
Is the media beginning to see the light?
There never is if the Rats are doing it.
Yes, she is a commie to the very bone marrow isn’t she.
I sure hope folks don’t sucker for that red state (republicans) blue state (democrats) crap next time.
Commie = red
End of discussion.
The Clintons don’t make those kind of mistakes on the campaign trail. If the reporters WANT to believe they froze their rears off via a novice dog catcher election kind of mistake.... they might want to first consider just how many campaign events the Clintons have under their collective belts.
Hillary and Bubba simply did not want national coverage of the pandering statements they were going to put foward to that largely black audience. Much like they now realize that sending Hillary’s Wellesly gender-war message across the nation in the blogoshere and some media was very unhelpful to Hillary.
Get used to it, Mary honey. In Hill World you are just another tool and you will speak when told to speak. This criticism of Her Highness does not bode well for your future.
My Peeps!
They were using Red for Democrat victories when Bill Clinton was originally elected President. The media changed the colors but some didn’t institute the change and didn’t want to regenerate all of their maps.
The fact that we NOW know victories as “Red” or “Blue” indicates that the color change was a deliberate thing. But Red is always the color of Communist revolutionaries.
They want to pretend to be “true blue” Americans.
Forced!
Forced! I tell you, it's slavery!
Interesting that she uses the same type of terminology as the ChiComs....
And the N. Koreans...
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