Ann Richards for Hillary?
February 26th, 2008 at 10:32 pm
An email from the Hillary Clinton campaign arrived in our inbox yesterday. It proclaimed that today a subset of the campaign, Women for Hillary, would “gather to showcase a video highlighting the life of former Texas Governor Ann Richards and how if she were alive today, she would support Hillary Clinton’s historic campaign for president. ”
At the midday event at their South Austin campaign headquarters, the Clinton folks sought to employ the former governor, who passed away 18 months ago, in their Texas electioneering.
It was part of the campaign’s efforts to mobilize “a million Texas women” ahead of the March 4th primary.
A former Clinton staffer, Courtney Spence, who now heads a group called Students of the World, produced a Web video for the campaign titled “This One’s for Ann.” Spence, a native Austinite, said she grew up idolizing Richards. “I came of age when Ann stood up as my governor. Because of her, I never questioned what I could do or who I could become,” she told a room tightly packed with Clinton supporters.
Standing in front of the projection screen, she introduced the film this way, “The bond between the legacy of Ann and what Hillary brings to us today is palpable and it is strong. It’s this legacy that is uniting the young and the young at heart. We here in Texas are standing up together, uniting to help women break that ultimate glass ceiling.”
Spence provided the voice over for the short film that spliced together clips of Richards and Clinton. We would have linked to the video, but we haven’t been able to find it on the Clinton Web site yet. (Updated below.) She closed the film by saying, “Today, Ann would be asking all of us to make a statement. She would be traveling to every big city and small town in Texas, urging us all to take a stand, to make a difference, to make history. This one’s for Texas, this one’s for our country, this one’s for Ann.”
There was hardly a dry eye in the room.
After the film, Cathy Bonner with standupforhillary.com and the MC for the event, returned to the mic. “Thank you, Courtney, for being the voice for a sister who can’t be here.”
Next at the podium was Emily’s List founder Ellen Malcolm. “If you all felt as moved by that, your friends will too,” Malcolm said. “When you all go home, send the video to everyone of your women and men friends in Texas and say in the spirit of Ann Richards, we have to elect Hillary Clinton….so people can understand the difference women can make in office. ”
Emily’s List will run radio ads over the next week in major Texas cities on behalf of Clinton targeting rural women, senior women, and women who have not attended college. (Malcolm had a lunch with Austin-based reporters to further press the Clinton case later in the day).
Bonner provided that last word at the Richards event and left little doubt what the take-home message was meant to be. “Ann’s legacy to us is that it does matter that Hillary Clinton become president and that a woman become leader of the free world, ” she said. “Who better than a mother to stop this war?”
We don’t have time to do a proper poll of the other outstanding deceased Texas women to see who they would support. Barbara Jordan? Billie Carr? We do have some words from Molly Ivins. We will let you know if she communicates a change of heart.
UPDATE: The Clinton campaign has the video up.
February 26th, 2008 at 11:52 pm
awwww… i loved Ann Richards.
Come on, Texas, it’s not too late to vote for Hillary!!!
gigglechick.com/erin/blog
February 27th, 2008 at 12:59 am
Richards’ sons are objecting to the ad, having withheld permission With a tip o’ the hat to Christine at BOR:
Richards’ sons object
AUSTIN, Texas — The two sons of Ann Richards, the late former Texas governor, are objecting to an Internet video published by Hillary Rodham Clinton’s presidential campaign that suggests their mother would have supported Clinton.
Clinton’s campaign had permission from Richards’ youngest daughter, Ellen, who said in a statement provided by the campaign that her mother was an “ardent feminist” who would be thrilled by her friend Hillary Clinton’s candidacy.
……
Dan Richards said in an interview Tuesday that they denied permission and he’s angry the campaign published the video anyway. He said the campaign contacted him again last Friday to ask him to reconsider, and he repeated his objections.
“They asked me if I would sue the campaign, and I said no, I wasn’t in the business of suing the campaign, but I didn’t think they should do it,” he said in a telephone interview. “To try to present who she would endorse a year and a half after she died is offensive to me.”
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/…
February 27th, 2008 at 9:57 am
Ann’s circle of friends — bridge buddies, staffers, campaign volunteers — was as large and diverse as Texas. Like Texas, it is divided on whom to support. Once a nominee is chosen, it will unite again around that person.
I think it’s a telling anecdote about the Clinton campaign that they would only reconsider releasing the video, not out of respect for the wishes of Ann Richards’ children, but because of their fear of litigation.
February 27th, 2008 at 10:14 am
The video is here. Maudlin and content-free, as expected.
February 27th, 2008 at 10:22 am
I find the video offensive (it was up at BOR). I was a big supporter of Gov. Richards, and I miss her humor, but I don’t support Hilary. I have no clue who Richards would have supported, but unless Sen. Clinton has a really good Ouija board, she shouldn’t presume to think she knows, either.
February 28th, 2008 at 1:33 am
Gov. Richards daughter did support this video. If this video offends you then maybe we should be offended by the JFK video.
February 28th, 2008 at 9:12 am
Ann and Hillary were long time friends. I see no reason to think that she wouldn’t have supported Hillary’s campaign. Ann’s daughter approved it, so if there is an issue about it from her brother it seems like that’s a private issue for them.
And knowthetruth got it right….were you offended by Caroline Kennedy suggesting that Obama would have the support of her father? Or what about Dr. King? My personal opinion is that he would have supported a candidate based on the actions of a lifetime over the color of their skin. But maybe that’s just me.
February 29th, 2008 at 7:48 am
This is in good taste and this message is important. Anne Richard’s daughter said that her mother would campaign for Hillary with a passion and she approved this ad. Also, Ann campaigned for Bill Clinton for President. Bill and Hillary knew Ann for 30 years and they were close friends. Ann was a feminist and there is no question that she would approve of a woman in the White House. George Bush beat Ann for Gov. in the end. We know how Hillary and Bill feel about George Bush. Ann was an amazingly strong woman, and there is NO DOUBT that she would have campaigned for Hillary. Ann’s daughter said it was OK, and that is good enough!
May 14th, 2008 at 2:36 pm
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May 23rd, 2008 at 12:50 pm
Obama is the least qualified, least experienced candidate … not to mention the continuing pattern of unsavory Obama associations … some lasting over 20 years. Of course these facts don’t matter to the Obama supporters, who like cult members, follow him with blind faith, as if they all were sharing one brain. The blogs of Obama supporters have been extremely arrogant, sarcastic and condescending towards Mrs.Clinton and her supporters (even though Mrs. Clinton has received 17 million votes) however they will need us Clinton supporters in November, if they want to get their messiah elected … and, after the way they have disrespected Mrs. Clinton, as well as her supporters, I suggest they look elsewhere to get their cult leader elected.
October 10th, 2008 at 11:29 pm
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