Democrats in N.Y. give Clinton nod to run again
War foes nearly rain on senator's parade
By Glenn Thrush
Tribune Newspapers: Newsday
Published June 1, 2006
BUFFALO -- With her husband sitting a few feet away, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) accepted her party's unanimous re-election endorsement Wednesday--even as state Democrats denounced the "error" of invading Iraq, an action Clinton supported and still defends.
Clinton delivered a nationally focused speech to delegates, attacking the Republican Party on Hurricane Katrina, rising gas prices, the lack of affordable health care and failure to raise the minimum wage.
"We all need to stand up and demand new leadership that will once again put our country back on the right track. ... We need a fundamentally different direction," Clinton told an enthusiastic audience whose fervor seemed to flag as her speech passed the 30-minute mark.
The crowd erupted when she introduced husband Bill, who had been sitting in the front row, praising him as "an inspiration, a mentor, a partner."
After the event, the former president seemed to suggest his wife might serve out a full term if re-elected, describing her message Wednesday as, "If you give me six more years, this is what I'll work on."
Overwhelming opposition to the war in Iraq was a subtext at the New York Democrats' convention. But Sen. Clinton addressed Iraq only once, echoing recent calls for Iraqis to speed up development of internal security forces.
Backstage, Clinton's aides and consultants frantically beat back anti-war candidate Jonathan Tasini's attempt to get the 10 delegate signatures needed to place his name on the ballot. A Tasini victory would have forced an embarrassing three-hour roll-call vote and tarnished a day intended to be a coronation for Clinton.
Tasini dropped his bid after delegates introduced a resolution denouncing the "error of going to war illegally."
Clinton, whose support of the Bush administration's war resolution prompted a backlash among anti-war groups, had no comment on the resolution, which passed after most delegates had already left.
Apart from condemning the invasion, the resolution echoed Clinton's recent statements on Iraq, calling for the "safe and orderly" withdrawal of U.S. troops once the country is stabilized.
Clinton seemed energized by the adulation. After watching the screening of an 18-minute campaign film, she turned to the crowd and jokingly said, "I was ... struck as I watched the film that I had the same hairdo for the longest period of my life."
Meanwhile, Republicans meeting on Long Island failed to unite behind a single candidate to challenge Clinton.
State Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno, could not shift enough of former Reagan aide K.T. McFarland's support to former Yonkers Mayor John Spencer.
Spencer won the endorsement, but McFarland earned enough support to force a primary. Spencer said that was not in the party's best interests. "I call on K.T. McFarland to join me in the real battle, and that is to unseat Hillary Clinton," Spencer said in his acceptance speech. McFarland appeared unlikely to oblige.
