Why This "Hillary Holdout" Is Backing Barack

On June 7th, my heart was broken. The candidate of my lifetime and my dear friend Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton suspended her historic Presidential campaign.

Over the past two months I have become the poster-child, in the press, for the so-called Hillary holdouts; Hillary Clinton supporters who were angry and frustrated with the way she was treated in the primary and post-primary and weren't ready for unity. I was frustrated at the incredible amount of misogyny in our political process and in our media. And I was embarrassed that my party, and its leadership, never came to her defense when she faced a barrage of attacks based on her gender.

I still bear some wounds, but I've thought long and hard about the issues I support and that I believe in and Hillary has led me to understand that Senator McCain supports little of what I champion.

The turning point for me was the Democratic Convention in Denver this week. I saw how Hillary was treated by the Obama campaign and his supporters and I saw how President Clinton was greeted as a hero in our party and our country.

This was not an easy decision, not because I dislike Senator Obama or think he's not a good public servant, but because I so strongly believed that Hillary was the stronger candidate.

I will never forget about Hillary and will continue to honor and support her -- Hillary's grace and commitment will always guide me and my convictions. Her campaign was a turning point in my life and in my activism. And after working many months on her campaign, there was no doubt in my mind that Hillary would provide the leadership that we needed in these daunting times.

After eighteen months and 18 million voters, she is so much more defined, known and respected by voters across America and opinion leaders of the world. People have seen how brilliant, compassionate and dedicated she is to her country and I think we can all agree that she came into her own during this campaign. But part of losing is looking back and using your mistakes as lessons. We must never allow misogynistic attacks in the media or in our political process ever again. In May of 2008 I co-founded WomenCount (www.womencount.org), a political action committee dedicated at that time to encouraging Hillary to stay in the race and not bow out under pressure. Now we have turned WomenCount into a 527/PAC dedicated to battling the gender bias in our media and political process. I like to think of it as a Moveon.org for Women. And its most important work will serve to protect women like Michelle Obama, Cindy McCain, and Hillary Clinton from misogynistic attacks. I know that Hillary's most important work is yet to come and I know with a President Obama, her dream of Universal Health Care for all Americans will come true. Senator Obama has done the right thing; he has honored her and her policies in the way they deserve to be honored. Do I wish she were at least Vice-President? Absolutely, but that's water under the bridge. We live in dark times and we need the kind of leadership that can take on our problems head-on and I know Senators Obama and Biden will do just that. So I hope everyone will join me and Hillary in saying, NO WAY, NO HOW, NO MCCAIN.

For more Huffington Post coverage of the Democratic National Convention, visit our Politics @ the DNC page, our Democratic Convention Big News Page, and our HuffPost bloggers' Twitter feed, live from Denver.

Comments

[calidem08]

And Susie,

Here's one more thing.

Co-Workers: Obama Inflated His Resume
http://sweetness-light.com/archive/did-obama-turn-down-a-wall-street-career

- Obama's View of Himself : In one of his "Memoirs", says he worked for a Consulting House.
- Co-worker's Opinion : He did not work for a Consulting House but in a small firm that published newsletters on international business.

- Obama's View of Himself : He says he wrote about "Interest Rate Swaps".
- Co-worker's Opinion : What Barack means here is that he got copy from a correspondent who didn’t understand interest rate swaps, and he was trying to make sense out of it.

- Obama's View of Himself : The company promoted me to the position of financial writer. I had my own office, my own secretary; money in the bank. Sometimes, coming out of an interview with Japanese financiers or German bond traders, I would catch my reflection in the elevator doors—see myself in a suit and tie, a briefcase in my hand
- Co-Worker's Opinion : If Barack was promoted, his new job responsibilities were more of the same - rewriting other people’s copy. As far as I know, he always had a small office, and the idea that he had a secretary is laughable. Only the company president had a secretary. Barack never left the office, never wore a tie, and had neither reason nor opportunity to interview Japanese financiers or German bond traders.

[sandrarita]

Susie Buell: What a wonderful article and a beautiful tribute to Hillary. I am coming to admire and respect her more every day.

I must ask Hillary supporters that may vote for McCain because of Palin to think twice about what you would be doing. If you put a bag over Palin's head, and just looked at her policies and how she would affect our country, you will see why I implore all Democrats to stick together and vote Obama into the White House. The Obama/Biden ticket is what we have whatever your feelings about the Obama - Hillary primary. What we are voting for are Democratic idealogy vs. the Republican idealogy represented by Bush, Cheney, McCain and Palin. Of all elections, this one will count in terms of the direction our country is heading. If you can rise above your disappointment and support Obama, then in 2012 we can decide whether to replace him with HIllary if she still wants it. I cannot imagine the alternative under a McCain/Palin ticket. Please keep your eyes on the issues this year. For your children, for your country and for our planet.

[calidem08]

Susie,

I was very disappointed that Hillary lost to Obama. I was behind Hillary 100% and believe she would have been a great president.

But despite what Hillary says about asking everyone to "vote for Obama", I will choose instead to read in between the lines and come to my own conclusion that Hillary, after all, may not be 100% behind Obama.

As a Democrat, Hillary can't possibly tell everyone to not vote for Obama, now can she?

But as a woman, I would like to think that I can empathize with her and my friends and I are of the opinion that deeep down, Hillary, wouldn't mind if the McCain-Palin team beat Obama.

By and large, just because Hillary says "vote for Obama" does not mean she really means it from her heart.And, from one woman empathizing with another, I can totally understand her predicament. As mentioned earlier, how could she possibly tell others not to vote for Obama as a Democrat?

Therefore, my female friends and I have decided to back the McCain-Palin team instead.

Moreover, Obama's repetitive talk about "change" is getting too mechanical and predictable.

His definition of "change" is vague, to say the least. He also has virtually no track record to prove that he has the ability to be a *significant* agent of change for others (besides trying to promote his own career).

[fairnbalancedcalifornia]

palin must fail because of her political positions not her gender.... we must insure she does not gain political office because her political leanings hurt women's freedoms. i don't care that she has 5 kids and a grandbaby on the way, i don't care that she's young and inexperienced - I don't care she's a woman - what I care about is that her politics will encroach on our liberty. Her political opinions are frightening and dangerous.

[cct1984]

Let's be honest, Hillary lost the nomination because the Democrat party is the party of identity politics. Race was the cause de' jour this year, so the black guy was picked over the white women...you can only have one mascot at a time don't you know. Woman will have to get back in line and wait their turn; of course, there are other mascots still waiting their turn too: gays, Hispanic, etc... As for universal healthcare, at least as envisioned by Hillary, it will be DOA once the taxpayers see the bill.

[Mojane]

Now, the deeper wisdom you've gained regarding the misogynism in this country, buttressed by the media, can be brought to bear on the racism and bigotry that will come roiling to the surface with even more force than the misogynism Hillary experienced.

[appleknocker]

Her "dream of Universal Health Care for all Americans" is really the guarantee of Perpetual Profits for Insurance Companies.

[researcher]

a privitized universal health care system will bankrupt the country as medicare is doing now.

must have gov universal health care as we did with education

or a two tier system for those that want to pay for a private care

a privitized army has turned us into imperialists

the only industrized country with health care for all says it best about capitalism

about profits not people

[goodgravy]

it just wasn't her time. i'd rather have her on the supreme court for 20 years than in the white house for 8.

[gypsy508]

Funny. I didn't vote for her because her dream of universal health care is nothing more than a dream of profit for insurance companies.

[GunnyJ]

This PUMA thing is slightly tainted. What do I mean? Simple. To start, we all know that women rule the world. Women may not be always in the direct limelight, but who raises children, influences them and in tradintionally domestic households makes the "real" decisions.......... Yes, that's right.....­...WOMEN!! Even McC's father was not close to him. Who was his influence and beacon of light?, his mother, a woman.
My point, let's put all of this in perspective. Hillary would have won if her campaign planned past Feb 5th. Was Hillary the stronger candidate......yes. Obama won because he made max use of the rules and process, Hillary did not.
Obama is the candidate we need to elect if we really want change. If your feelings are hurt I'm sorry, but use your head and do the right thing.

[jazzman]

Welcome aboard. We are the Democratic Party and Hillalry, Bill, and Obama all belong to it. The policies promoted by all three are almost identical and at the end of the day it's what we can do for the American people and the country that counts not the 'star' quality of the person at the top.

Who knows, we may see Hillary don the black robe and ascend the stairs of the Supreme Court or we may her playing a major role in shepherding universal health care through Congress. What we do know is that with Obama as President she has a real chance to see what she believes in actualized and so do all women who care deeply about womens issues. Not so with McCain and Palin.

[Scarllatti]

Welcome Home Sussie. I am so glad you took the lead from Hillary Clinton to come home. As an ardent independent Obama supporter, I am THRILLED by your action.
We all wish the Democrats well and do not wish to see your party upon which we base our hopes for the redemption of America to be disunited. I just wish also that those folks in PUMA should come to terms with reality and support their party (i.e, if they are ever Democrats in the first place).
Sussie, have you ever given the thought that Hillary will be 67/68 years-old by the 2nd term of an Obama/Biden administration and that the dream of having a women (Democrat) in the White House can still be fulfilled?(I don't think Joe Bidden will run for POTUS since he may be too old for the office then).
I admire your courage to realize what is at stake in this election and your wish to unite the Democratic party.
As an independent, I want the Democrats to realize that there are those of us outside the party that are looking up to the party to deliver for the masses. Democrats, PLEASE DO NOT DISAPPOINT US.

[Phineus]

Maybe if Obama loses Hilary will pick him as her VP in 2012..

[bruna25]

To all of those Hillary supporters, Hillary lost not because Obama was "mean" to her, but because she employed the likes of Mark Penn and his cronies to run her campaign. Hillary didn't utilize the services of very capable women who would have run her campaign with a much more critical eye on the prize. Now McCain has selected a woman to sway your allegiance from the Democratic party.... Who does McCain think he's manipulating? McCain expects women to vote against their own best interest (Sarah is against a woman’s right to choose). Poor John, if he had chosen a more seasoned Republican such as Olympia Snowe, or Christie Todd Whitman, perhaps he would have more success.

[rationalthought1]

I felt so much pride in Hillary when I saw her speech at the convention and how people responded to her. The truth is, Hillary HAS come into her own over these past arduous months. Now the Republicans are trying to divide us so they can keep control of the country. I think this long primary has actually strengthened the Dems and Obama. I know Hillary's issues (our issues) will be carried on by Senator Obama, not by this token female candidate McCain is trying to manipulate us with. Lets take back the country Dems!