This train of thought comes from a couple of things
I have seen recently.
One was this video, Martha and Sara:
It is the story of a family whose daughter was born
deaf, where she would not be able to learn to speak without immediate
intervention. Things I never thought about were how they had to keep refitting
for hearing aids with a growing child, and even how soon you need to intervene
to allow for speech. Knowing that, I was not surprised that it was expensive.
They raised an accomplished and independent
daughter. Two things that helped them were the State Children's Health
Insurance program and legislation that required public schools to provide resources
for children with disabilities. Those were things that Hillary Clinton worked
for.
I had kind of forgotten about SCHIP, but yeah, it's
been in place long enough that children who have been provided for through the
program are grown.
If we think about Hillary Clinton's efforts toward
health care, it is easy to think of it as a failure. Congress turned it down.
That must have been pretty crushing, but she kept looking for other
possibilities. SCHIP is associated with Edward Kennedy and Orrin Hatch, because
they sponsored it, but Clinton was a part. There was a falling out over a cigarette tax amendment and
political maneuvering, but ultimately the program was created and it has done
good things.
This was the other thing:
There are not a lot of financial or political
rewards for focusing on children. They don't vote, and they don't have a lot of
money for making donations. They have parents and you might expect the parents
to care, but I know a lot of parents whose children have been insured through SCHIP that hate Hillary. The programs
are valuable, but the person working for the programs may not be valued.
That is the opposite of the pure revolutionary
fervor that so many people have found exciting this election cycle. It requires
patience. It requires making allies, even in the face of disagreement. It
requires facing failure, brushing yourself off, and trying again. Progress may
not come easily, but it can last longer when done carefully.
That is the woman I'm voting for. That is why.
I'm with her.
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