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Limited Clinton Edition May 16, 2016

OUR COUNTRY SHOULD WORK LIKE COMMUNITY COLLEGES

By Thomas Feliciano, Managing Editor

Former President Bill Clinton greets audience members

The election season is almost drawing to its

climax. Still, two of the most important primaries in

the race for the Democratic nomination are

upcoming. California and New Jersey will vote on

June 7 to determine the close race between Senator

Bernie Sanders and Secretary of State, Hillary

Clinton.

The campaign trail brought former President

Bill Clinton to the state of NJ on Friday, May 13. He

was scheduled to appear at Passaic County

Community College's gymnasium at 12:00 p.m. Mr.

Clinton arrived a little before 12:45, but his speech

was preceded by several important people in Hillary's

race for the White House.

First to the podium was PCCC student,

Mohamed Abdelghany. A resident of Clifton,

Abdelghany told the story about how he was focused

on athletics throughout his high school career at

Clifton High School. This came to a crashing halt

when he tore his ACL and was unable to continue his

pursuit of a sporting scholarship.

His journey changed paths, with a focus on

academics that lead him to PCCC, where Abdelghany

obtained a 4.0 GPA and was steadfast in his drive to

better himself. He mentioned that it was no

coincidence that former President Clinton was born

in Hope, Arkansas, as he provided hope to the country

when they needed it the most.

Next to

the

podium

was

Senator

Nellie

Pou,

who

serves

the New

Jersey

Senate from the 35th District, and has since 2012. She

spoke about Paterson as “the most diverse city in the

most diverse state in the most diverse country.”

Senator Pou made no qualms about who she supports

in the upcoming NJ Primary with the assertive claim,

“I'm with her. Part of her backing of Hillary revolves

around her promise to “keep immigrant families

intact.” She also claimed that Hillary “fights for us.”

Senator Pou claimed that the “future of our great

nation depends on” the NJ Primary on June 7. She

“Community Colleges are

inclusive…”

- Former President, Bill Clinton

said there has “never been a more important election

in history.” Senator Pou closed her speech with the

claim that Hillary will be the “People's President.”

Up next was

Chair John

Currie of the

New Jersey

Democratic

State

Committee. He

claimed that NJ

is “truly Clinton

Country.” He urged supporters that if they want to

continue President Barack Obama's legacy, then

voting for Hillary is their only option. He said that the

“next President and first female President” will look

out for the Middle Class. He also said that Hillary has

the “best qualifications” to be the next Leader of the

Free World.

Chairman Currie's speech wrapped up around

12:20 p.m. After some delay, he retook the podium to

inform the

audience that

former

President

Clinton was

delayed due to

a traffic

accident.

Music played

in the

meantime, until Congressman Bill Pascrell took the

stage for the introductory remarks.

Congressman Pascrell of NJ's 9th District

opened with the claim that Hillary would “break

barriers” as the next President. He said that the

Republican Candidate (Donald Trump) “strokes the

flames of bigotry and hatred.”

“Rather than building walls, Hillary Clinton is

focused on bringing everyone to the table,”

Congressman Pascrell said. He continued with, “It's

hard to overstate how dangerous Donald Trump's

policies would be.”

One such policy, defaulting on our National

Debt, is something that Congressman Pascrell

warned that even the most hard-line conservative

economists are against. He said, “We pay our debts

as Americans.”

Congressman Pascrell finished his speech

with the claim that it “could be New Jersey that

determines the difference on June 7.” He finished his

speech to much acclaim, before introducing the 42nd

President of the United States, William Jefferson

Clinton.

Former President Clinton's address lasted

nearly 45 minutes. The highlight of his speech was

that “Our country would work better if it worked like

community colleges.” This is because they are all

inclusive, turn nobody away, are incredibly

affordable, and give the most opportunities to

anybody who comes seeking them.

Former President Clinton remarked that in his

earlier discussion with our very own esteemed Dr.

Steve Rose, PCCC's President told former President

Clinton that he was the first of America's leaders to

mention

community

colleges in his

speeches.

President

Clinton then

moved on the the

story of the

Chobani Yogurt

company. He said that its founder, a Turkish

immigrant named Hamdi Ulukaya, set the standard

for what American business should represent.

PCCC President Dr. Steve Rose, center, circulates

gymnasium prior to speech

The company founded in 2005 and officially

opened its doors in 2007. As of 2016, Chobani is

worth billions. Ulukaya not only made himself rich,

but also the company's 2000 employees. Before going

public later this year, Ulukaya distributed a portion of

the company to everybody who works at Chobani.

The total adds up to 10 percent of the company, or [at

least] $150,000 per employee.

This is the foundation of selflessness and

giving back to one's employees that former President

Clinton would like to see emulated again and again.

The next portion of his speech was a reaction

to Senator Sanders' proposal for tuition-free public

colleges and universities. Although former President

Clinton said the idea sounded noble in premise, he

disagreed with the notion that would potentially put

many institutes of higher education out of business.

He asserted that those who can afford tuition

should pay, while those who can't should have every

opportunity to attend. This included expanding the

Pell Grant program and increasing student loan

forgiveness. The goal laid out by the Clinton

Campaign is to make “everybody eligible for debt-

free college.”

After the remarks about student debt, an

individual from the crowd interrupted, asking former

President Clinton why he “put people in jail.” Some

of the crowd booed, but former President Clinton

cordially allowed the man to finish, before answering

in due kind.

He referenced the Crime Bill that he signed in

1994. He also admitted that, “We overdid sentencing

in the 90s; we need to reverse it.” The man left the

venue with chants of “Feel the Bern” to which several

students responded with chants of “Hillary.”

Former President Clinton showed poise in his

reaction to this unscheduled event. He said that

America is the least racist, sexist, homophobic, and

xenophobic we've ever been, but we have a problem

when two people with opposing views can't sit in the

same room with one another.

Almost on cue, another eruption from the

crowd rocked the venue. A woman asked former

President Clinton to help “release money for

elementary schools.” He responded with, “That's a

New Jersey problem.”

Former President Clinton then said that

Americans should “prove our country is a model for

the 21st Century.” He said that we need terror-hating,

peace-loving Muslim-Americans to join the fight

against extremism here at home.

Dr. Christine Redman-Waldeyer, English Dpt. Faculty

Advisor pictured with Thomas Feliciano, Managing

Editor, Visions

He proposed an allegory that saw a wall built

at the Mexican and Canadian border, as well as

around the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. He continued

by placing the United States Air Force in the sky at

all hours to monitor traffic going in and out. President

Clinton claimed that even with those measures in

place, Social Media would still infiltrate. The same

Social Media that prepared the terrorists of San

Bernardino to commit their heinous actions against

their countrymen.

CNN correspondent reporting in the press stands

Former President Clinton said America

should be concerned with “bridge building not wall

building.” He also said the country needs a politician

who has proven to get things done with policy and

also by working with Republicans. He promised that

his wife is the “most gifted changer America has ever

seen.”

At this, he left the stage to shake hands with

those in the crowd, kiss a few babies, and pose for

selfies. He left PCCC’s gymnasium a little after 2

p.m.

Bill Clinton Continues Legacy of

Appealing to Young Voters By Joseph M. Reiner, Staff Writer

Former President Bill Clinton’s surprise

speech on Friday, May 13th, at PCCC was officially

confirmed just a day earlier. Even with such short

notice, an undeniable feeling of celebrity status swept

through the air as attendees shuffled in and out of the

gymnasium where he spoke.

Betsy Marinace, Executive Director of Enrollment

Mgmt; Vice President Dr. Jacqueline Kineavy, and

Josephine Hernandez, Vice President for Passaic

Academic Center in attendance

Mr. Clinton touched upon wife Hillary

Rodham Clinton’s many accomplishments

throughout her career in politics and law making. His

words were crisp, confident, and beyond one or two

notable exceptions, met with roars of applause.

Beyond her endorsement, however, Bill Clinton is an

influential Democrat with a long history of being well

liked by the college community.

Mr. Clinton’s track record of action geared

toward the youth vote extends before many PCCC

students were even born. In fact, in a move that would

be seen as far less risky today, it was “MTV, the

music video channel that put Mr. Clinton on a

program titled ‘Choose or Lose: Facing the Future

with Bill Clinton’,”1 back in 1992.

PCCC Board of Trustees Chairman, Harvey J. Nutter

For 90 minutes, Mr. Clinton took challenging

personal questions from a mixed crowd of college

students. He connected to them with a grace and

swagger not seen in American politics since JFK.

Some political analysts believe his appearance on the

channel largely won over the crucial demographic in

the ’92 general election, the year he was first elected

president.

Fourteen years later, members of the press

and public officials anxiously joined PCCC staff and

students at the college’s Main Campus for the chance

to see Bill in the flesh. Mr. Clinton appeared dapper

and in high spirits, despite getting a dose of typical

tri-state traffic, “stuck behind a truck accident on the

Tappan Zee Bridge”2 during the overcast morning.

Eager supporters in the crowd

History Professors Martha A. Brozyna and Petar

Drakulich pictured with their children left to right,

Justine Brozyna-McNamara, age 10; Helena

Drakulich, 9 and Liam Brozyna-McNamara, age 9

greeted him with notably more enthusiasm than he’s

received at other college campuses on the HRC

campaign trail.

Senior Dean for Academic Affairs, Dr. Bassel Stassis

When he spoke of Hillary’s proposed

increases to tuition aid funding, the crowd met the

notion with universal agreement. After the speech,

as students pushed forward for a chance to shake

hands with the former president, one thing about the

Clinton camp became clear: Bill can still connect to

young people in a way that critics say his better half

has struggled with this past election cycle. Only

time can tell what these continued appeals to college

students will spell out for Hillary on November 8th.

Left to right - Michelle Baldino, Accountant; Sandy

Levit, Controller; Laura Perez, Counselor; Margo

Murray, Counselor

Citations:

1. Gwen Ifill. “THE 1992 CAMPAIGN: Youth Vote;

Clinton Goes Eye to Eye With MTV Generation.” The

New York Times. 06/07/1992. Retrieved 05/15/2016.

2. Annie Karni. “Bill Clinton’s rough day on the trail.”

Politico. 05/13/2016. Retrieved 05/15/2016.

In collaboration with

Editor-in-Chief, Kevin Leiva

and Faculty Advisor,

Dr. Christine Redman-Waldeyer