BlogHer - The Election of Our Lifetime - Comments

Early Voting

BookLady Alison — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 12:36:58 -0600

Your message must have got across. I voted the Friday before election day and had a one hour wait. In my area reports were that the polls were very quiet on Tuesday. Congratulations! There is much work ahead but I feel energized by our new President Elect and his Vice President.

BookLady Alison

Read the story of my first ever time to vote.

Thank you for writing this Dr. Biden!

sognatrice — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 04:12:09 -0500

After such a long campaign season, it's so important that voters continue to be reminded how incredibly important it is to *get out and vote* no matter what the polls say. My absentee ballot was mailed to PA weeks ago, but I'm still talking to family and friends in the States to encourage them to get to the polls on November 4.

Queen of Spain makes an excellent point about your teaching through all of this, Dr. Biden--brava! And FWIW, I hear that Senator Biden is also continuing his commitment to teach a Constitutional Law class at Widener School of Law during the campaign as well :)

---

Michelle Fabio, Esq.

Bleeding Espresso

About.com Guide to Law School

Italy Magazine Guarda! Columnist

Obama/Biden '08

MJ2007 — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 21:44:35 -0500

Thank you, Dr. Biden. I also believe that this is the most important election of our lifetime. I (and so many others) am tired of the politics as usual which has been so apparent by the negative campaign that is being conducted by the McCain/Palin camp. The Obama/Biden ticket represents the change we need. I have been doing all that I can to get the word out.

Obama/Biden '08!!!

Community Colleges - Thank You For Mentioning Folks

Gena Haskett — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 19:22:17 -0500

that actually attend community colleges. I was one of those students that had to drop out because I couldn't afford university. I worked for a few years and truly understood that without and education or advanced job skills the future was bleak.

Many of my CC peers are working day jobs and raising families in addition to their studies. I'll put our grit and determination against any disrespecting Ivy leager any day of the week.

I started back via community colleges and I am saving up to pay for college/university. There are many of us willing to help build a new American outlook and restore our infrastructures. We are in class because we believe in our future and the future of the country as it could be.

I look forward to fair and accessible education reform policies that allows returning adults to retrain for new careers in the new economies to come.

Not asking for a hand out or a free ride; just would like to see a way to help all citizen who want it to advance and prosper with education or training opportunities.

Gena - Out On The Stoop

Thank You, Dr. Biden!!

NatMoney — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 14:21:47 -0500

I'm a recent college grad and my mother is a librarian so academics and the public school system is in my blood. We have been so inspired by Sen. Obama's campaign annd after Sen. Biden dropped out of the race, I was crossing my fingers for him to get the VP nod. Both men are going to bring about the much-needed change our country is hungry for. Thank you for continuing to inspire young minds.

OBAMA 08!!!

-Nat

Community Colleges

Maria Niles — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 13:30:30 -0500

Thank you, Dr. Biden, for sharing the difficulties some students have with paying for even relatively low cost community colleges. When I taught at a state university I had students who faced similar challenges and I think it is crucial we find a way to better support college education for those who want it. I look forward to you and your husband coming to Washington to help create positive change for our nation's future.

BlogHer Contributing Editor
PopConsumer
Beyond Help

I'm with Queen of Spain:

The Word Cellar — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 13:06:45 -0500

I'm mentally and emotionally exhausted from just following the campaign! It definitely is a pivotal moment in our history. But if you can teach and campaign, I can find some more time for an additional volunteer shift.

Jennifer McGuiggan

The Word Cellar ~ purveyor of fine writing and editing
http://www.thewordcellar.blogspot.com

I can't believe you're still teaching through all this chaos

Erin Kotecki Vest — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 12:18:45 -0500

This campaign has been so long and grueling (at least that's how it feels for me, and I'm just covering it) I am in awe you still teach every week AND hit the trail.

Amazing .

Politics & News Contributing Editor
Queen of Spain

The Election of Our Lifetime

Dr Jill Biden — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 10:08:14 -0500

It is hard to believe that the election is just a week away.

The energy out there is remarkable. I just got back from Florida where we held “Early Vote for Change” events across the state to spread the word about voting early - close to one million people have already voted in the state.

But I see this energy everywhere I go – in Missouri, Iowa, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, you name it. People are voting early and men and women who have never been involved in politics are getting involved.

It is difficult to remember a time when there was so much enthusiasm around an election. It makes sense. This is the most important election of my lifetime but I can tell you, Joe’s mother who is 91 years old says this is the most important election of her lifetime.

It is clear people know we need change but they also believe that if Barack Obama and Joe Biden get elected, we will actually be able to change America.

Every day in my classroom, I see how high the stakes are. I’ve been an educator for 27 years. Teaching is my life’s work, my passion. I’m still teaching four days a week at a community college in Delaware.

My students are my heroes. Most of them already have jobs, but they’re going to school in hopes of getting better jobs. And some of them already have kids. More than ever before, I see how Bush’s failed policies have made things harder for them.

A few weeks ago, when I asked one of my students where his homework was, he told me he could not buy the book he needed because he had not hit payday yet. I have students who cannot drive back to campus for extra help because they can’t afford the gas to make the trip. One of my students is dropping out of school because his father has been diagnosed with cancer, and I recently got a call from his aunt. She asked me if there were any scholarships, any other means available, to help him pay for tuition and stay in school. He is not the only student I know who will not be back next semester because there is no money for tuition.

There is nothing more heart-breaking than seeing a student who wants to learn leave school because he or she does not have the money to pay for it. That should not happen in America.

It is not just my students who are having trouble. Everywhere I go I hear stories from people who have been negatively affected by the last eight years - single moms having difficulty managing during this tumultuous economic period, teachers struggling to provide their students with the attention they deserve, seniors being forced to choose between paying for medication and the electric bill.

Barack and Joe will help my students and the many people I have met on the campaign trail. They will strengthen the economy, create jobs and get women equal pay for equal work. They will make health care affordable and accessible. They will improve our education system and make sure that men and women who want to go to college will be able to do so. And they will implement an energy policy that decreases our dependence on foreign oil.

They will also end the war in Iraq responsibly and bring our troops home. I have heard so many stories from people who have family members fighting in the war. This is an issue that has always been important to me, but it is on my mind even more now that our son Beau, who is in the Delaware Army National Guard, has been deployed. Every morning I wake up and pray that he will come home safely.

If you want to change America, please join us. This election is too important to sit on the sidelines. We need you to canvass, make phone calls, be a poll watcher. We need you to convince anyone you know who is still undecided.

To learn about how to vote, go to www.voteforchange.com. And if you are not yet involved in the campaign, go to www.barackobama.com to learn about how to do so in your community.

Electing Barack Obama and Joe Biden the next President and Vice President of the United States will be a victory for all of us.