Nearly eight years ago, Hillary Rodham Clinton battled then-candidate Barack Obama — who was leading in delegate count — to the bitter end, as she watched what was thought to be her turn to become the first female president of the United States of America, fade with the ascent of a young, black Chicago senator, who had seemingly appeared from nowhere to ignite Americans young and old looking for something different following eight years of George W. Bush.
There were moments of tears during that campaign, and tension between the two teams. But following Mr. Obama’s eventual win of the nomination, Mrs. Clinton swallowed her pride, called for party unity, and later accepted Mr. Obama’s offer to become secretary of state.
Mrs. Clinton’s dream of becoming the first female U.S. president was not dead, then; only delayed as she strategized what would become four years of building on her reputation as a leader, and faced setbacks with the Benghazi attack that left Americans dead and a whirlwind scandal in great part blamed on her. But, like Mr. Obama noted during his speech on Wednesday, “she never quits.”
Her resilience has led to this moment: A glass ceiling being shattered as she accepted the Democratic nomination on Thursday, seizing the moment to chastise her Republican opponent Donald Trump, castigating Mr. Trump for what she called a divisive vision, while presenting herself as a leader who would unite America while taking on forces like the Islamic State, and working to uplift struggling Americans from economic crisis. Mrs. Clinton also took a strong stand against gun violence.
“Powerful forces are threatening to pull us apart, bonds of trust and respect are fraying,” said Mrs. Clinton. “And just as with our founders there are no guarantees. It truly is up to us. We have to decide whether we all will work together so we all can rise together.”
A world in upheaval with multiple terrorist acts claiming the lives of hundreds in recent months around the world, Mrs. Clinton said of Mr. Trump, “He’s betting that the perils of today’s world will blind us to its unlimited promise. He wants us to fear the future and fear each other. Well, a great Democratic President, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, came up with the perfect rebuke to Trump more than 80 years ago, during a much more perilous time: ‘The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.’”
Mrs. Clinton employed a strategy to go hard against Mr. Trump and constantly drew comparisons throughout the night. But in the end — after laying out plans to continue the onward push towards a better America, and warning of dangers that lie ahead if Mr. Trump were to be elected president — the former first lady basked in the history that had been made last night, and how it would impact future generations.
“Standing here as my mother’s daughter, and my daughter’s mother, I’m so happy this day has come,” she said. “Happy for grandmothers and little girls and everyone in between. Happy for boys and men, too — because when any barrier falls in America, for anyone, it clears the way for everyone. When there are no ceilings, the sky’s the limit.
“So let’s keep going,” Mrs. Clinton added, “until every one of the 161 million women and girls across America has the opportunity she deserves.”
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