Clinton's Town Hall Meeting in Manassas, Virginia

In order to reach soccer moms and government workers in hopes of reaching those who may fondly remember the Bill Clinton years, Hillary Clinton visited Grace E. Metz middle school in Manassas, Virginia on February 10, 2008. Her platform was called "Solutions for America." There were well over 2000 people in attendance. Many stood in a very long line outside of the school in high blistering cold winds for over an hour just to get in to get a glimpse of Hillary. Though Hillary's voice was a bit hoarse the crowd was not disappointed with what she had to say.

She began with the good news that her campaign had raised $10 million since Tuesday. She spoke of wanting to have health care for everyone-- one of the major differences between Clinton and Obama. She also addressed the mortgage crisis, energy issues, the economy, stem-cell research, and of dramatically improving American education from pre-kindergarten through college.

Her speech was followed by a question and answer session with the audience, in which she addressed issues pertaining to a woman's right to choose, national security and how the United States will mend its relationships with countries in the rest of the world. Her main message today was that the advantages of voting for her as the democratic candidate in the primary on Tuesday over her opponent was definitively her health care plan, her experience and her ability to not only unite America but also to unite America with other countries once again.

Due to the high winds, Clinton's Roanoke appearance was canceled and within a short time after that announcement, Clinton's campaign staff announced that Hillary's current campaign manager, Patti Solis Doyle, would now be a senior advisor for the campaign and she was naming Maggie Williams as the new campaign manager, both are long time aides to Mrs. Clinton.

Meanwhile, Obama was holding a campaign event in nearby Alexandria, Virginia at T.C. Williams High School, most recently known for the movie, "The Clash of the Titans" with Denzel Washington. He related his campaign to the theme of the movie which was about the great changes that took place at that school. He emphasized change as the overall theme of his campaign. The 46-year-old Obama said that even though he is relatively young to be running for president that he is compelled to do so because of the "fierce urgency of now," borrowing a quote from Martin Luther King, Jr. He said that change was needed now more than ever and that this election would be a defining moment in history.

There were great turn outs for both campaign events in Virginia. The election of our next president will be not only quite interesting, but also a defining moment in history, as much as the events leading up to it. Never before have the leading presidential contenders included such a diverse group.