Yesterday
Hannah & I attended Senator Amy Klobuchar’s announcement that she is
running for President. Many people from Minnesota have run for President, but
it still felt like something special was happening yesterday in the Twin
Cities. As a pastor I welcome people of
all political opinions to participate at Chain of Lakes Church. As a father I
look for opportunities to make memories with Hannah. So after worship at Chain of Lakes the two of
us traversed the snowy roads of the Twin Cities to Boom Island Park.
I
wasn’t sure what to expect when I got there, but as I got closer it became
apparent that this would be an event. Parking was a “every person for
themselves situation.” We were running
late, so I quickly pulled into an alley and found a place to park. Hannah and I literally skipped quickly over the
snowy sidewalks under the snowy sky and arrived on time.
Snow
was a theme. And though the Klobuchar campaign wouldn’t have planned this
optic, it can’t hurt. Few people remember much about an opening announcement of
a Presidential campaign, but they do remember the place. I remember President Trump announced at Trump
Tower in New York City. I remember that President Obama announced on a very
cold day in Illinois. If people remember anything about yesterday’s event it is
that Senator Klobuchar announced her campaign in a light Minnesota snow storm.
It’s not a bad optic.
When
we arrived at Boom Island Park Hannah and I moved around so at least we could
see the speakers. I’m not good with
numbers, but I would guess that at close to a thousand people attended. The two of us finally found a spot to the
left of the podium about 50 yards away.
The
program then started. After a drumline
from a local high school, the mayors of Minneapolis, Duluth, and Moorhead
briefly spoke. Senator Tina Smith spoke; Lieutenant Governor Peggy Flanagan
spoke; Governor Tim Walz, wearing a lumberjack, red and black plaid and very
Minnesotan shirt, spoke.
And
finally Senator Klobuchar gave her speech. A video is on the Star Tribune web
site is here:
The
parts of her speech that touched me were her personal story. She talked about her grandfather
working on the Iron Ranger; how her mother was a schoolteacher and her dad was
a journalist. She shared a story of a Somali girl whose family was rudely
treated at a restaurant by a man who told them to go home. The young girl said
that she didn’t want to go to her home to eat dinner, but wanted to stay in the
restaurant. Senator Klobuchar shared some traditional Democratic policy positions,
but not too much. The time and debate on policy positions will come later.
When
the speech was over Hannah and I went over to the gaggle-line of well wishers. I
wanted Hannah to have an opportunity to shake Senator Klobuchar’s hand. We waited patiently and finally Hannah had
her chance for a hand shake. It was meaningful for her.
After
the speech President Trump and Senator Klobuchar engaged in a hilarious tweet
exchange about holding a speech in a snow storm and global warming.
When
the event was over Hannah and I trudged back through the snow to talk about
what we had just witnessed.
Who
knows if Senator Klobuchar will break through the log-jam of Democratic candidates
to become the nominee for the Democratic Party in July 2020? So much is going to happen in the next
seventeen months that it doesn’t even seem worth the time to speculate. The
city that will host the Democratic convention has not even been chosen.
What
I do know is Hannah and I have a memory. The two of us will probably not have
many opportunities to attend a speech of someone announcing a presidential run.
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