Field Trips and More Canvassing

Today was another fascinating day of internship. We started by taking a field trip to New Hampshire’s capital city, Concord. Our first stop was the New Hampshire State Library, where a cordial and knowledgeable gentleman named Michael Chaney gave us an overview of the state’s presidential primary history and then led us over to the Historical Society building. There we toured an exhibition titled New Hampshire: A Proven Primary Tradition which featured some notable items from primaries of the past. It was a very interesting and informative experience.

Next we met Ray Buckley, chair of the New Hampshire Democratic Party. Mr. Buckley shared his knowledge of the party, the primary, and the issues facing the state today. The discussion was very interesting, as Mr. Buckley was able to share his insight as a campaign worker, an elected representative, and a party executive. Our next stop was at the state’s GOP headquarters, although that meeting was not nearly as engaging. The Republican chair generally stuck to his party’s talking points, and did not offer as much useful information as the Democratic chair.

After a fun day in Concord, we headed back to Nashua to Hillary’s campaign office. The staff had rented a 12-passenger van and offered it to the five of us from USF to use for canvassing. Because I am over 21 (just barely, of course!) and have experience driving all types of vehicles, I was selected as our driver for the day. Our group was joined by an interesting young woman named Elvia, a student from the University of New Hampshire. We set out canvassing the neighborhoods of Nashua and spent nearly seven hours in the field.

When our campaign work was over, we got a ride back to the hotel from a woman named Kate, who works directly for Senator Clinton. Kate shared an anecdote with us about her boss, something that seems to typify my opinion of Hillary; Kate told us that yesterday was her birthday and that Senator Clinton took time out of her busy campaign schedule in Iowa to call Kate and personally wish her a happy birthday. I have always believed that Hillary is a warm and caring person, and this just proves my point. I know that I have picked the right person to support in 2008!