Chelsea Clinton in Westerville: ‘Let’s get to work, and let’s win Ohio’

Abby Vesoulis
Thu, 15 Sep 2016 22:51:08 +0000
Campus, Local, National, News, Politics, Chelsea Clinton, chelsea clinton columbus, chelsea clinton ohio, hillary clinton, Hillary Clinton Columbus, Hillary Clinton Ohio, Students for Trump

Chelsea Clinton campaigns for her mother, Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton, in Westerville on Sept. 15. Credit: Abby Vesoulis | Lantern Reporter

With a mere 54 days until the presidential election, Hillary Clinton’s campaign celebrated the opening of its 54th Ohio field office with a visit from the Democratic candidate’s daughter, Chelsea Clinton.

Clinton visited Columbus- and Dayton-area field-office locations Thursday afternoon to thank those campaigning on behalf of her mother, and to remind the volunteers of what she says is at stake in this election.

“We need to send a strong message that love trumps hate,” she said. “That can’t be a slogan this election season – it has to be an active engagement, every single day.”

A RealClearPolitics average of polls has Republican candidate Donald Trump leading Ohio by one percentage point. A Suffolk University poll of 500 likely voters, released Thursday, shows Trump leading with 3 percentage points, with the poll’s margin of error listed at 4.4 percentage points.

Chelsea Clinton, who had her first child in 2014, discussed how her first election cycle as a mother is impacting her perspective on politics.

“This election feels so intensely personal to me, because I knew whomever we elect will profoundly shape the country, the world and the future that my children and their generation grow up in,” Clinton said.

Citing her mother’s plans for taking on rising costs of college, Clinton condemned the GOP candidate’s platform on the subject.

“Unlike her opponent, she actually has plans for higher education and affordability,” she said.

Ohio State’s chapter of Students for Trump did not immediately return requests for comment.

Clinton also echoed her mother’s plans to make degrees more accessible.

“People should not be limited by their zip code, or their family income or their ability to pursue their dreams,” she said.

Clinton told a story about how her mother was only able to pursue law school because of access to student loans. Following completion of her law degree, Hillary Clinton had a grace period in paying her loans back for as long as she was doing public-interest work, such as her stint as staff attorney for the Children’s Defense Fund.

Issues such as climate change, universal access to pre-kindergarten, and gun violence were also discussed at the event.

“I think every issue I care most about is at stake,” Clinton said. “Whether it is about how best to protect our communities from gun violence – something we were tragically reminded of last night here in Ohio as something we all have a stake in solving.”

Clinton ended her speech with a call to action for those in attendance.

“Let’s get to work, and let’s win Ohio,” she concluded.