Opinion

Hillary Clinton – Breaking Down Barriers And Bringing Us Together

Lanny Davis Former Special Counsel to President Bill Clinton
Font Size:

On Saturday night in South Carolina, after she had defeated Bernie Sanders by a margin of more than 47 points, winning in every county, white and black, Hillary Clinton gave a speech that she stated upfront was addressed to the nation. On Tuesday night, she won seven out of the 11 voting SuperTuesday states, most by double-digit margins, gaining at least 486 more delegates.

The most important reason for her political successes: Clinton’s simple message — true to herself and her many years in public service — has resonated with the population of voters that represents the diversity of our country.

She articulated the message clearly and concisely both on Saturday night in Columbia, S.C., and Tuesday night in Miami: “In America, when we stand together, there is no barrier too big to break … because together we can break down all the barriers holding our families and our country back.”

In an unmistakable reference to the divisive vitriol negativity about our country by GOP front-runner Donald Trump, she said: “Despite what you hear, we don’t need to make America great again. America has never stopped being great. But we do need to make America whole again. Instead of building walls, we need to be tearing down barriers. We need to show, by everything we do, that we really are in this together.”

Her presidential campaign, she said, was about building “ladders of opportunity and empowerment so every single American can have that chance to live up to his or her God-given potential.”

Clinton wants to bring us together, but she also identifies what changes must be made in the rigged economic system that benefits the few at the expense of many.

“Let there be no doubt in any boardroom or executive suite across this country: If you cheat your employees, exploit your customers, pollute our environment or rip off the taxpayers, we will hold you accountable. … It’s important that Wall Street never threaten Main Street again. No bank can be too big to fail and no executive too powerful to go to jail.”

Her focus is on what people care about most — jobs — and problem-solving to bring down the barriers that have thwarted broader economic and social justice.

“America isn’t a single-issue country,” she said. “We need more than a plan for the biggest banks. The middle class needs a raise. And we need more good jobs. Jobs that pay well and can’t be outsourced. Jobs that provide dignity and a path to a brighter future. … So let’s make new investments in manufacturing and small business, in scientific research, in clean energy — enough clean energy to power every home in America.”

She ended her speech on Saturday night by quoting one of her favorite scripture passages, from I Corinthians 13. “Love never fails. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.”

“These are words to live by, not only for ourselves, but also for our country,” the former first lady said. “I know it sometimes seems a little odd for someone running for president in these days, in this time, to say we need more love and kindness in America. But I’m telling you from the bottom of my heart we do. We do.

“There is no doubt in my mind that America’s best years can be ahead of us. We have got to believe that. We’ve got to work for that. We have to stand with each other. We have to hold each other up, lift each other up, move together into the future that we will make.”

So there it is: Clinton’s message, easy to understand. It’s a message of optimism for the future, of seeking common ground to “break down all the barriers holding our families and our country back,” a message seeking love and kindness in America, spoken from the heart.

This is the same Hillary Clinton I knew 46 years ago, the same person who drew friends in the audience from elementary school, even from kindergarten. This is the Hillary Clinton I am convinced will be elected as the next and first female president of the United States.

Lanny Davis served as special counsel to former President Clinton and is principal in the Washington, D.C. law firm of Lanny J. Davis & Associates, and Executive Vice President of the strategic communications firm, LEVICK. He is the author of a recently published book, Crisis Tales: Five Rules for Coping with Crises in Business, Politics, and Life (Threshold Editions/Simon and Schuster).

PREMIUM ARTICLE: Subscribe To Keep Reading

Sign up

By subscribing you agree to our Terms of Use

You're signed up!

Sign up

By subscribing you agree to our Terms of Use

You're signed up!
Sign up

By subscribing you agree to our Terms of Use

You're signed up!

Sign up

By subscribing you agree to our Terms of Use

You're signed up!
Sign up

By subscribing you agree to our Terms of Use

You're signed up!

Sign Up

By subscribing you agree to our Terms of Use

You're signed up!
Sign up

By subscribing you agree to our Terms of Use

You're signed up!
Sign up

By subscribing you agree to our Terms of Use

You're signed up!
BENEFITS READERS PASS PATRIOTS FOUNDERS
Daily and Breaking Newsletters
Daily Caller Shows
Ad Free Experience
Exclusive Articles
Custom Newsletters
Editor Daily Rundown
Behind The Scenes Coverage
Award Winning Documentaries
Patriot War Room
Patriot Live Chat
Exclusive Events
Gold Membership Card
Tucker Mug

What does Founders Club include?

Tucker Mug and Membership Card
Founders

Readers,

Instead of sucking up to the political and corporate powers that dominate America, The Daily Caller is fighting for you — our readers. We humbly ask you to consider joining us in this fight.

Now that millions of readers are rejecting the increasingly biased and even corrupt corporate media and joining us daily, there are powerful forces lined up to stop us: the old guard of the news media hopes to marginalize us; the big corporate ad agencies want to deprive us of revenue and put us out of business; senators threaten to have our reporters arrested for asking simple questions; the big tech platforms want to limit our ability to communicate with you; and the political party establishments feel threatened by our independence.

We don't complain -- we can't stand complainers -- but we do call it how we see it. We have a fight on our hands, and it's intense. We need your help to smash through the big tech, big media and big government blockade.

We're the insurgent outsiders for a reason: our deep-dive investigations hold the powerful to account. Our original videos undermine their narratives on a daily basis. Even our insistence on having fun infuriates them -- because we won’t bend the knee to political correctness.

One reason we stand apart is because we are not afraid to say we love America. We love her with every fiber of our being, and we think she's worth saving from today’s craziness.

Help us save her.

A second reason we stand out is the sheer number of honest responsible reporters we have helped train. We have trained so many solid reporters that they now hold prominent positions at publications across the political spectrum. Hear a rare reasonable voice at a place like CNN? There’s a good chance they were trained at Daily Caller. Same goes for the numerous Daily Caller alumni dominating the news coverage at outlets such as Fox News, Newsmax, Daily Wire and many others.

Simply put, America needs solid reporters fighting to tell the truth or we will never have honest elections or a fair system. We are working tirelessly to make that happen and we are making a difference.

Since 2010, The Daily Caller has grown immensely. We're in the halls of Congress. We're in the Oval Office. And we're in up to 20 million homes every single month. That's 20 million Americans like you who are impossible to ignore.

We can overcome the forces lined up against all of us. This is an important mission but we can’t do it unless you — the everyday Americans forgotten by the establishment — have our back.

Please consider becoming a Daily Caller Patriot today, and help us keep doing work that holds politicians, corporations and other leaders accountable. Help us thumb our noses at political correctness. Help us train a new generation of news reporters who will actually tell the truth. And help us remind Americans everywhere that there are millions of us who remain clear-eyed about our country's greatness.

In return for membership, Daily Caller Patriots will be able to read The Daily Caller without any of the ads that we have long used to support our mission. We know the ads drive you crazy. They drive us crazy too. But we need revenue to keep the fight going. If you join us, we will cut out the ads for you and put every Lincoln-headed cent we earn into amplifying our voice, training even more solid reporters, and giving you the ad-free experience and lightning fast website you deserve.

Patriots will also be eligible for Patriots Only content, newsletters, chats and live events with our reporters and editors. It's simple: welcome us into your lives, and we'll welcome you into ours.

We can save America together.

Become a Daily Caller Patriot today.

Signature

Neil Patel