Waiting years to back Hillary Clinton for president

Jeanette Wagner

By JEANETTE WAGNER

The Democratic caucuses were overwhelming this year. Voting among my neighbors that night, I drew upon my strengths to "step up" at this time - my freedom from employment, and therefore, access to free time, the courage and knowledge to take on new roles and responsibilities, and an insistent drive to help Hillary Clinton complete her job for the nation.

My participation was set in motion 14 years ago. Hillary had come to the CU Medical School to speak on health care and had foreseen the crisis of health insurance. At the time, I was doing research in the Endocrinology Dept. on campus and I was fortunate to seat myself in the first row. She was logical, straightforward and quite worried. As I left the talk, my instincts told me, "She needs to be leading the country and show the House, Senate, and the insurance companies how to successfully support millions of Americans. If Hillary ever takes it on to run for the Presidency, I will do whatever I can to help her."

Of course, that was back before becoming a parent. Energies toward worthy causes are somewhat shifted after children arrive with all their needs and endeavors. However, along the road of raising my children, I read Mrs. Clinton's book, "It Takes a Village." By then, I could appreciate her maternal concern for others' children as well as her own.

Being an avid reader, I read her autobiography and Barack Obama's, "The Audacity of Hope." I immediately admired Obama's perspective and saw him as a great spiritual leader.

And of Ms. Rodham? It exhausted me just reading of all the causes, funds and policy changes in children's education and lower-income health care that she's been working at since back while she was still in law school.

For decades, long before Obama even considered a life in politics, long before even Bill imagined his life in politics, while holding no office whatsoever, Hillary was working and learning and effectively building civic protocols which we all benefit from.

Therefore, when one third of our precinct gave their official vote for Mrs. Clinton, I became a delegate to cast this vote to the entire party. I'm actually an alternate delegate because it is my understanding that I will likely go to the assembly and substitute for another precinct's absent delegate, thereby giving Clinton an extra, UNPREDICTED vote!

And so I await the March 15 assembly in Longmont, and watch the national caucuses determining the need for a run-off between the two candidates.

And I learn to blog.

Jeanette Wagner grew up in East L.A., where her father taught U.S. Government for 30 years. She received her BS in Biology from the University of California at Irvine, along with one year of graduate school at UC Irvine's Medical School. She has lived in Colorado since 1991, the last 12 years in Boulder. She has canvassed for Bill Ritter’s campaign, and is currently an alternate delegate to her county assembly where she will pledge her support to Clinton.

Bookmark/Search this post with: