Yale on the Trail

By Thomas Kaplan
DENVER, 4:20 p.m. — Is the Democratic party unified? The Clinton camp says so.
Terry McAuliffe, the campaign chair for Senator Hillary Clinton LAW ‘73, stood outside a luxury box in the Pepsi Center on Wednesday night, smiling for photographs and shaking hands with supporters, the weight of the long campaign seemingly dissolved.
“We’re all […]

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By Thomas Kaplan
DENVER, 6:15 p.m. — Former U.S. President Bill Clinton LAW ’73 will speak here in about an hour, and, as with last night, all the attention is on his speech. We’ll be in the Pepsi Center to bring it live to you.
7:26 p.m. | “America must always be a place called hope,” […]

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My stellar view from my seat inside the Pepsi Center made blogging about Tuesday’s speeches a real treat.
By Thomas Kaplan
DENVER — Welcome to day two of the Democratic National Convention.  We are live from the Pepsi Center, where Senator Hillary Clinton LAW ‘73 will address delegates — and a national television audience — at approximately […]

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Dan Schneider (left), a Clinton delegate from California, tried to convince other delegates to rally behind Senator Barack Obama.
By Thomas Kaplan
DENVER, 2:32 p.m. — With pundits bloviating about the so-called split in the Democratic Party, Dan Schneider was mad as hell, and he wasn’t going to take it anymore.
During a question-and-answer session during the Democratic […]

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By Alexandra Schwartz ‘09
When I was little, my mother gave me a book called “You Can Be Anything!” It had a charming gimmick: Two glossy cardboard cutouts of smiling children — one boy, one girl — were attached to the cover and could be inserted into specially made slots on each page. On the first […]

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NEW HAVEN, Conn. 4:25 p.m. — Although most undergraduates have yet to return from winter break, Yale’s campus is already buzzing with campaign organizing in the run-up to what some have called “super-duper Tuesday” on Feb. 5, when 24 states are scheduled to hold their primary elections.
Hundreds of Connecticut supporters, grassroots organizers and campaign officials […]

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JERSEY CITY, N.J., 3:20 p.m — The scene here in Jersey City, where Barack Obama is set to kick off his national tour in half an hour, is extraordinary.
Nearly 300 reporters are waiting on line, trying to push their way inside. At least a dozen live-feed satellite trucks from all the major networks line the […]

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GERMANTOWN, T.N., 11:13 a.m. — Hillary Clinton is struggling to lock in the votes of a demographic that American may have once thought was a given — women, especially the younger ones.
CNN reported this morning that in their latest New Hampshire polls, Clinton trails Barack Obama by two percentage points among women in the state.
Why […]

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The fourth in a series of spin room interviews following this weekend’s debates.
MANCHESTER, N.H., 1:55 a.m. — A few months ago, Hillary Clinton LAW ‘73 was the “inevitable” candidate.
Not anymore. And that puts Mark Penn, her chief strategist, in a precarious position.
But fret not, Penn says. Speaking to reporters this weekend, he offered […]

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The third in a series of spin room interviews following this weekend’s debates.

MANCHESTER, N.H. 1:40 a.m. — John Edwards may seem like the third wheel in the Democratic showdown between Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton LAW ‘73. But even so, that’s no reason to give up, says his wife, Elizabeth.
“John is in this race […]

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MANCHESTER, N.H., 9:25 p.m. — Senator Hillary Clinton LAW ‘73 is in trouble. Can she save her candidacy with this massive rally this evening? We’ll see. Our live blog is below.
10:45 p.m. | About half the crowd is still here, and the music is still blaring. Check back later tonight for […]

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MANCHESTER, N.H., 9:16 p.m. — At Senator Barack Obama’s rally at the Palace Theater yesterday, I recalled how the Secret Service ordered me to allow their bomb-sniffing dog to inspect my digital camera for fear that it might be something I could disassemble and fashion into a Howitzer. Convenient or not, everyone’s camera, bag, […]

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MANCHESTER, N.H., 9:00 p.m. — The scene from the rally:
We’re inside a hangar-type building that is actually a large sports facility, called the Executive Health and Sports Center, that looks as though it can be retrofitted for a number of indoor sports. Tonight, though, it is the setting of what could be a task […]

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MANCHESTER, N.H., 8:42 p.m. — Senator Hillary Clinton LAW ‘73 may be down, but she is not out. Tonight, she and former President Bill Clinton LAW ‘73 will appear at a massive rally to make one last case to New Hampshire voters, and we will be posting live from the rally.
A full half hour […]

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Updated at 6:35 p.m.
STRATHAM, N.H., 11:05 a.m. — Mitt Romney spoke at the local Timberland factory this morning, and guess what? He wants to become president to — wait for it — “bring change”!
In a 20-minute speech, Romney talked about “change” a total of 20 times, challenging Senator Hillary Clinton LAW ‘73 and Senator […]

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