I’ve been keeping my eyes open for the much-ballyhooed Bitter Hillary Supporters, and while there are certainly a large number of enthusiastic Clinton delegates here, I’m just not sensing the bitterness. According to a Gallup poll cited in the Congressional Quarterly freebie given out daily at the convention, 23 percent of Clinton supporters consider themselves open to voting for McCain. While I’m sure there are still some disappointed Hillary fans here, no one is making a big stink about it as far as I can tell, except for one guy I saw in the lobby on Monday who kept loudly proclaiming he was voting for McCain. I’m guessing he might have been a Convention troll of some sort, though I have no way of knowing for sure.
While roving the floor yesterday, I came across a Clinton delegate who seemed to be making herself available to the media. Jo-Ann White is here representing Democrats Abroad; she currently resides in Florence, Italy (nice!).
Jo-Ann insisted that spiteful Hillary supporters are an overblown media myth. She’s proudly casting her vote for Hillary here at the convention, but has no problem with voting for Obama in November. She emphasized the importance of getting the millions of Democrats living abroad registered to vote.
As a Democratic activist, Jo-Ann clearly reflects the party line on unity — yet as I mentioned, I have yet to see any substantial evidence to contradict her. But I’m only capable of being so many places at once, so it’s possible that there is more going on than meets my eye.
Hillary’s speech did draw a wildly effusive response from the crowd last night, which I suppose you can interpret either as a sign of unity or a sign of divisiveness. From my notes:
"Huge applause for video [shown before she appeared onstage]."
"Biggest applause of the night by far. She waved, people in my section waved back. Packed house. Deafening cheers."
"Lone guy during the middle of her speech: ‘WE LOVE YOU!’"
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As for myself, I thought her speech struck just the right tone, and most everyone I spoke with was in agreement. And wow, she even mentioned gay rights. My wonderful hostess in Highlands Ranch, who is not a Democrat, raved about it, even comparing it to Obama’s speech in 2004.
Overall, it appears to me that the Dems’ decision to give Hillary supporters their space, and plenty of respect, has worked out reasonably well. I expect we’ll find out more during the nominating process today.
What did you think of Hillary’s speech? Feel free to weigh in below.