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MANCHESTER, NEW HAMPSHIRE — First lady Michelle Obama on Thursday passionately encouraged a crowd in New Hampshire to vote for Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton not just because of policy and experience, but because her opponent, Republican Donald Trump, has disregarded “basic human decency” at every turn during this election, Obama said.
An enthusiastic crowd of several hundred Clinton supporters greeted Obama Thursday afternoon with cheers and screams that rang throughout the Southern New Hampshire University gym. Obama used the time during the rally to make her case for why Trump is unfit to be president, saying the way he treats and talks about women is “something we can’t just ignore.”
“I cannot stop thinking about [the things Trump has said about women]. It has shaken me to the core in a way I couldn’t have predicted,” Obama said at the beginning of her speech. “As much as I would love nothing more than to pretend this isn’t happening, and to come out here and give my normal campaign speech … It would be dishonest and disingenuous of me to just move on to the next thing.”
She told attendees Trump’s behavior is not “normal;” it is “disgraceful” and “intolerable.”
“Now is the time, for all of us to stand up and say, ‘enough is enough,’” Obama said.
Even though America has a candidate entirely unfit to run, Obama said, citizens also have one of the most qualified and experienced candidates campaigning to become the first female president of the United States.
“Hillary has been a lawyer, a law professor, first lady of Arkansas, first lady of the United States, U.S. senator, secretary of state and she has been successful in every role, gaining more experience and exposure to the presidency than any candidate in our pipeline,” Obama said. “More than Barack. More than Bill. And yes, she happens to be a woman.”
Obama said not voting for Clinton on Nov. 8 would be a vote for her opponent — someone who Obama said doesn’t respect others, doesn’t help school children or families and doesn’t respect women’s bodies.
In her usual fashion, she declined to say Trump’s name throughout her entire speech.
“We cannot afford to stay home on Election Day. Because on November the 8th, we have power to show our children that America’s greatness comes from recognizing the innate dignity and worth of all our people,” Obama said. “We deserve a president … who can bring us together and bring out the very best in us. Hillary Clinton will be that president. The next 26 days, we need to do everything we can to help her and Tim Kaine win this election.”
After the rally, passionate Clinton supporters raved about Obama’s use of language to incite New Hampshire residents to get out and vote.
Olivia Kinhan, 17, of Concord, New Hampshire said she has been working on Clinton’s campaign for a while, but she was amazed when hearing Obama speak. Kinhan said she doesn’t regret missing school to come hear her.
“[Obama is] always an amazing speaker. I really liked how she focused on the recent comments Trump’s made,” Kinhan said. “Everything that she was saying just took the thoughts right out of my mind and she said it in a way I never could, [in a way] that was so true.”
While tapping on his “Love Trumps Hate” button, Stephen Laliberte, 57, said Clinton’s campaign is positive and brings people together, and Obama’s speech in New Hampshire will help motivate people to get out and vote for Clinton on Election Day.
“If we aren’t together we’re divided, and when we’re divided we fall,” Laliberte, a Manchester voter, said. “[Obama] just needs to speak her mind, and her mind is very open. She tells the truth, how it is. We are definitely going to win New Hampshire.”
A Manchester local, Kathleen Hoey, 54, said she was “touched by everything” Obama said during the rally, and believes Obama greatly adds to the Clinton-Kaine campaign.
“People believe [Obama]. People trust her and are moved by her. She is just of the premier spokespeople for Hillary Clinton, and is a woman,” Hoey said. “Most of all she talks about women and children, and that just resonates with many people. It’s not all about the policies, but the people too.”
