So when Hillary Clinton declared “I will be making no decisions tonight,” it was all that they needed. A young African-American, clenching her fist, went “Yes! Yes!”
It was 9.30pm outside a side entrance of Baruch College in New York City. Dozens of Clinton supporters stood waiting; hundreds more were inside to see her on the final night of the primary season.
Those who did not get to go into the building made do with what they had. One guy brought along a small radio for the 'live' broadcast of Clinton’s speech. Many gathered around, listening to the Democratic presidential contender who was supposed to quit the race then.
But, that night, there was no sweet surrender, and the language of defeat was lost on the Clinton loyalists.
“It’s not over. We still have the convention,” someone said, ever hopeful, referring to the Democratic national convention in August when the party officially anoints its presidential nominee.
Other supporters like businesswoman Becky Lechner, 29, were more pragmatic. “It’s time to move on. She has to give it up sooner or later.”
(For the record, Clinton is bowing out, telling supporters in an email on Thursday: “I will be speaking on Saturday about how together we can rally the party behind Senator Obama.”)
No one bothered a man who wore an Obama T-shirt, carrying a sign: “Drop out now”. Another fellow held a placard saying: “Hillary, there’s no ‘I’ in Democrat”. (Clinton critics felt that her presidential bid was all about her, never about the party.)
But when a TV crew approached to interview the Obama supporters, the Clinton side quickly rushed over, holding up “Hillary for president” posters to make known their stand.
Both camps were shooed away by the police. “Sorry folks, this is a public space but we have to ask you to leave for security purposes,” one officer said.
For good measure, a passer-by shouted for John McCain, the Republican’s 71-year-old nominee whose campaign last month released 1,173 pages of medical records of the past eight years to prove his good health.
Bottomline: Send him to the White House, not the old folks’ home.
America is divided, that’s for sure.
WomenCount PAC, a political action committee set up by a group of women last month, put up full-page newspaper advertisements on May 20 when there were five more primaries to go. They were upset about calls for the New York senator to drop out.
“We want Hillary to stay in this race until every vote is cast, every vote is counted,” the group said, making clear that the candidate did not authorise the advertisement.
The California-based women stood “united in our unwavering support” for Clinton “as this indefatigable woman speaks with our voice. She carries our hopes, dreams and aspirations with her”.
But for now, Barack Obama has etched his name in history as the first black presidential nominee.
Those who smelled Clinton’s defeat weeks ago have been giving Obama royal attention.
In one article two weeks ago, the usually serious The New York Times covered him the way celebrity magazines write about Hollywood stars.
The newspaper made two charts, listing out Obama’s favourite things. He likes roasted almonds, pistachios, Nicorette, broccoli and spinach. Dislikes: Mayonnaise, asparagus and soft drinks.
No details are too minute. His blood pressure was 90/60 last year, his pulse 60 beats a minute and no cholesterol problem. In short, he is fit to run the country.
Clinton’s refusal to concede on Tuesday prompted a multitude of comments and criticisms.
“It reminded me of a song by Jennifer Hudson in Dreamgirls' And I am telling you, I’m not going,” said comedienne Joy Behar during a morning talkshow.
As much as Clinton is a divisive figure, the crowd outside Baruch College was a diverse lot. Male, female, white, black, Hispanic.
Incidentally, there are about 46 million Hispanics in the United States, a number which is expected to triple come 2050.
“They are about 14% of the population now,” said Susan Minushkin, deputy director of the Pew Hispanic Centre. These minority groups, mainly from Mexico, are projected to grow into the majority of the American population within five decades.
Most of them leaned towards the Democratic Party, she told foreign journalists in a briefing on The 2008 Elections and the Hispanic Vote. They favoured Clinton over Obama two to one.
So, as of right now, American history is being written as the face of the country alters.
