By Jane Smith

meadville tribune

ERIE — “It was just great. All I can say is I was floored,” said Samantha Staab.

The 20-year-old North Shenango Township resident had just met Bill Clinton at an invitation-only event Wednesday prior to the former president’s appearance at a public rally to support his wife’s bid for the Democratic nomination for president.

Staab was invited to the special event because she is on the Crawford County ballot as an alternate delegate for Hillary Clinton. If Clinton wins the Democratic primary in Pennsylvania on April 22, Staab expects to attend the Democratic National Convention in Denver, Colo. While alternate delegates attend the convention, they cast a vote only if other delegates aren’t present for the official vote.

She wasn’t the only Crawford County resident to meet with President Clinton. He met with two Democratic Party officials from the county Tuesday night and even won a vote for his wife by convincing one of the officials to drop his support for Barack Obama.

“He was very gracious,” Staab said. “He took time to shake the hands of everybody there,” she said, adding he was very down-to-earth and talked with everyone. “He was a lot taller than I thought.”

Asked what President Clinton addressed at the meeting that she particularly agreed with, she mentioned the No Child Left Behind Act, noting she agrees with him that No Child isn’t working and “needs to be addressed.”

Should Staab go to the national convention, it won’t be her first. She was there in 1996 at the age of 9 and was pictured holding a sign with a red heart reading Pennsylvania (heart) Hillary. She was with her mother, Valerie Kean-Staab, who was a delegate for Bill Clinton. The Staabs are believed to be the only Crawford County family to send two generations of delegates to a national convention.

Samantha met Hillary Clinton at that convention, but said she “was too young” and doesn’t remember her reaction.

As for being a delegate to the upcoming convention, Samantha believes it’s important for people to be involved.

Asked why Clinton is her choice instead of Obama, Samantha said, “I think she has the experience needed to be commander in chief. I think you can preach changes as much as you want, but she has the experience to make the changes.”

The Staab women were part of a group that met with President Clinton prior to a public rally at East High School and then joined the rally.

Meanwhile, Jean Jones of Meadville, who serves as vice chairman of the Crawford County Democratic Committee, was a guest at a private party attended by President Clinton on Tuesday night at a home in Youngstown, Ohio.

Jones said she received a phone call Monday night saying Clinton wanted to meet western Pennsylvanians to discuss strategy.

She too found him to be very cordial, noting he spoke with the group of 10 or 12 for about 30 minutes, talking with each one and answering questions before going to a fundraiser in another part of the private home.

“He talked to the group about how the new president is going to have to make 30 or 40 crucial decisions in 60 days,” she said, noting he said they would be tougher decisions than he had to make. President Clinton reminded the guests that “Hillary was in the White House at my side” during his presidency and is familiar with the policies and the issues.

Jones was joined at the event by her husband, Brad Wilson, who is treasurer of the Crawford County Democratic Committee. Wilson, who was a Barack Obama supporter, changed his mind after meeting Clinton.

“He convinced Brad to switch,” said Jones. “Just listening to him persuaded Brad to switch,” she said, noting that demonstrates President Clinton’s ability. “It was not just lofty rhetoric.”

Betty Wheeler of Erie, formerly of Meadville, was excited to be at the rally.

“I want to see Bill Clinton; I’m a good Democrat,” she said of why she was there. She noted she previously worked for Dick Ruhlman, former mayor of Meadville and former county commissioner.



Jane Smith can be reached at 724-6370 or by e-mail at jsmith@meadvilletribune.com.