Adam Hogue

2/17/16

As the temperature dropped into the 30s on the night of February 11, the line of people waiting outside Whitehaven High School’s gymnasium doors grew longer, growing to over 300 as it stretched across the front of the school and down the sidewalk along Elvis Presley Boulevard.

The crowd had assembled to welcome former President Bill Clinton as he made a campaign stop in the Memphis area touting support for his wife Hillary, who is vying for the Democratic Party nominee for the 2016 presidential election.

“It was a once in a lifetime opportunity to see him speak,” said Mid-South resident Syed Ali Jaffery, 25.

Jaffery waited in line outside of the gymnasium with his father and younger sister for 40 minutes to get a glimpse at the former leader of the free world.

The evening began with the Whitehaven High school band performing in front of the crowd of the over 600, many waving Hillary campaign signs and banners. U.S. Reps. Steve Cohen, D-Memphis, introduced Clinton to the cheering crowd as they took their places on a stage with a large Tennessee state flag serving as the backdrop.

Clinton touched on several topics that resonated with the audience including creating more jobs and making college more affordable for low-income families. He also tipped his hat to the Black Lives Matter campaign noting that “we are sick of seeing kids shot in the street,” as he touched on the issues that plague Memphis, specifically its violent crime rate and high unemployment rate.

Lower healthcare co-payments and the need to improve the economy were also prevalent topics of his speech. However, Clinton acknowledged the job that President Barack Obama has done while serving in office.

“The president has done a better job than he has gotten credit for,” Clinton said of Obama.

Clinton said that some of the major goals of the Hilary campaign include voting rights protection and raising the minimum wage, saying that there is no reason why anyone working 40 hours a week cannot afford a comfortable life.

“Hillary has said to me in private what she is now beginning to say in public,” Clinton said of his wife. “’I only decided to do this and take all this grief that Republicans always lay on me because I do not think you should have to be the daughter or granddaughter of a president or former secretary of state to claim the American dream.’”

The Nevada primaries will be the next challenge for Hillary Clinton as she looks for a victory after losing New Hampshire to Bernie Sanders. Bill Clinton touted his wife’s ability to “get the job done.” He advocated his wife as someone who could be “a president who knows how to stand her ground and how to seek common ground.”

“In my opinion you need to know why somebody’s running,” Clinton said to the crowd. “She’s running to give every young person, every middle-aged person who’s lost a job and facing a dead end, and every child, without regard to income, the chance to live the American dream.”

Jaffery considered Clinton’s visit to Memphis to be successful.

“Most people seemed receptive to his ideas,” Jaffery said.

The Tennessee primary is scheduled for March 1. Early voting began Feb. 10 and goes until Feb. 23.