Clinton Moves On From S.C. Loss
NASHVILLE, TENN. -- Just a few hours after the polls closed in South Carolina, Hillary Clinton was already campaigning in Tennessee, a February 5th battleground state. Clinton suffered a huge loss in South Carolina this evening and she told the crowd of 3,500 people at Tennessee State University that she congratulated Barack Obama for his victory, but indicated she's clearly ready to put this loss behind her.
"Now the eyes of the country are turning to Tennessee." Clinton said adding, "there is no place I would rather be than Nashville!"
But her tone has changed in recent weeks as she heads into Super Tuesday. Early on, Clinton said the Democratic nomination would be wrapped up by February 5th. Now, with the race growing tighter, that is clearly no longer be the case.
"I've always said this contest is going to go for a long time," said Clinton.
The mood inside the gymnasium was electric - as if there was no huge South Carolina loss - as people applauded at all the right moments during Clinton's standard stump speech. There was a touching moment during the question and answer period, when Theryn Bond, a student at the university, asked Clinton how she was coping with the loss.
"What I would like to know is how you've handled the results of South Carolina and how you think they will affect your momentum?" Bond asked, already in tears.
Before Clinton could answer the crowd cheered for Bond.
Clinton said she is "very proud to have competed there. It was a close contest going into it. I have congratulated Senator Obama. We have each one several of these contests in these early months." Clinton added that she is "excited about competing here and competing everywhere, that's why I came to Nashville."
On the short flight from South Carolina to Nashville, Clinton aides told reporters that they never expected to win in South Carolina. They continue to shift the focus to the delegate race and away from the numbers of wins and losses, perhaps because she's expected to make a strong showing in large Feb. 5 states such as California, New Jersey and New York.