EXETER, N.H. — More than 6 inches of snow didn’t stop a few hundred people from seeing Bernie Sanders on Friday at the historic brick Town Hall here, which has echoed with the political rhetoric of many, from Abraham Lincoln to Marco Rubio.
The roads were slick Friday morning, with three lanes on Interstate 95 shrinking to one. Sanders still made good time, ushered around in a black SUV filled with Secret Service agents.
One agent searching bags at the Town Hall confirmed that Sanders was running on schedule, adding that the candidate’s SUV “probably had a plow on the front.”
As soft flakes fell onto Sanders fans outside who didn’t get in, Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield amped up the crowd inside.
“For over 30 years, Bernie has been dedicated to fighting for the average American,” Greenfield said, holding a “Bernie” sign.
Then Cohen came in, proudly declaring that Sanders was the only presidential candidate who has inspired an ice cream flavor.
He added that Sanders is also the only candidate who “has even made Hillary Clinton want to be a progressive.”
When Sanders came up he thanked the duo for “making a wonderful product that makes us all a little bit too heavy.” He then assessed the room, seeming happy with the strong numbers amid the bad weather.
“What momentum is,” Sanders then said, “is that in the midst of a snowstorm, we can’t get all the people into the room.”
He launched into the normal stump speech, railing against pharmaceutical companies and Wall Street campaign donors. He called for campaign finance reform, touted his congressional history and talked about the viability of his political revolution, citing polling.
In a classic political primary move, Sanders also asked for rival Hillary Clinton’s pledge not to cut Social Security benefits.
“It’s imperative that we increase and expand benefits for senior citizens and disabled veterans on Social Security by lifting the cap on taxable income,” Sanders said.
While Clinton has been generally supportive of enhancing Social Security benefits, especially for vulnerable Americans, she clarified her remarks — and made the pledge — after Sanders’ challenge.
Just a few days into the Secret Service’s protection of Sanders, security was tight in Exeter. High-level staffers now have pins denoting their security clearance, and agents cordon off roads as Sanders enters and exits rallies.
Advisers said Sanders isn’t too fond of having the security detail.
Sanders does sound appreciative of the New England history and beauty present in the Granite State town halls and opera houses he has been visiting.
A plaque outside the Exeter Town Hall states that Amos Tuck, a founder of the Republican Party, is from here. Abraham Lincoln sent his son Robert to Phillips Exeter Academy and spoke at the Town Hall in the spring of 1860.
In his remarks, Sanders invoked the famed president’s historic speech at Gettysburg, saying “this really is a campaign of the people, by the people and for the people.”
Team Sanders scheduled a Friday afternoon endorsement event in Exeter featuring Ben Jealous, the youngest-ever president of the NAACP, who served from 2008 to 2013.
But the snow was hitting hard in the early afternoon, and Jealous experienced travel delays; the endorsement event was canceled.
“Bernie Sanders has the courage to confront the institutionalized bias that stains our nation,” Jealous said in a statement Friday. “Bernie Sanders is the type of leader we can trust to fight for the future of all our nation’s children as if they were his very own.”
A few hours later, in Manchester, Sanders made a big speech in the Verizon Wireless Arena at the McIntyre Shaheen 100 Club Celebration. It felt like a sports event, with vocal Clinton and Sanders fans sitting on separate sides of the arena.
An estimated 6,000 revved-up Democrats filled about half of the arena for speeches by party leaders, their platforms highlighted on a giant TV screen.
Voters clapped and screamed for their favorite candidates, and some booed when controversial Democratic National Committee Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz spoke.
During her remarks, one guy with a glowing “Bernie” sign even yelled “You suck!”
Before the event, volunteers handed out T-shirts, buttons and stickers touting local, state and national candidates. Beer and hotdogs were for sale, and VIPs willing to drop $1,000 were treated to steak, wine and good seats.
Two of the Vermont VIPs were Ben & Jerry, who were mobbed by Bernie fans for selfies and quick conversation before Sanders spoke.
At one point, a Clinton volunteer became annoyed by the crowd, which was blocking a merchandise table for the former secretary of state.
“You have been blocking our table for long enough,” the Clinton supporter told the ice cream magnates, asking them to leave.
Sanders spoke before Clinton, rattling off his progressive platform as people on his side of the arena screamed and rang cow bells.
In his speech, Sanders mentioned his work on provisions in the Affordable Care Act he drafted to fund community health centers in states like New Hampshire. He also said his work on a military health care bill was “of particular benefit to the veterans of the state of New Hampshire.”
During her turn to speak, Clinton asserted that while polls showed her down, she was not ready to give up on a primary victory.
“I’m going to compete for every vote here,” Clinton said. “I’ll answer every question. I’ll work my heart out to earn your support.”
Saturday morning was quiet and peaceful. Sunshine lit the snow-laden spruce trees surrounding Franklin Pierce University in Rindge, where Sanders held his one rally of the day.
While he spoke, Clinton supporters papered cars outside with PolitiFact sheets calling attention to a recent Sanders ad that implied the Vermont senator had netted the endorsements of the Valley News and the Nashua Telegraph, which is not the case.
Inside, a pumped-up crowd of Sanders die-hards seemed unlikely to be swayed by the fliers waiting outside for them at their cars.
While Sanders had a frantic tour of Iowa in the days leading up to the Iowa caucuses, his campaign has scheduled far fewer events so far in New Hampshire, where the primary is Tuesday.
Besides his one scheduled event Saturday, Sanders attended a small canvass event in Manchester in the morning and ate pancakes and New Hampshire maple syrup at the Peterborough Diner with his wife.
The relaxed schedule could indicate he feels confident of a win here, or that he is hoping to recharge his batteries before tough battles in South Carolina and Nevada.
Regardless of the reason, his “sister state,” as the Vermont senator often calls it, doesn’t appear to need much more convincing.
One of the Sanders fans at Franklin Pierce University who didn’t need convincing was Howard “Cowboy” Wooldridge, a retired police detective who now lobbies in Washington, D.C., against the federal prohibition on marijuana.
Wooldridge was wearing a white cowboy hat and a jacket proclaiming: “Cops say legalize pot.”
His belt buckle, emblazoned with the words “Long Rider,” was given to Wooldridge after he rode his horse across America, from Savannah, Georgia, to the coast of Oregon.
He said he did the journey “the hard way, which is just you, the horse and a tent.”
Wooldridge said many police officers are against legalization because of money and emotions.
“You give my profession $9 billion a year to chase a green plant, that’s a lot of good overtime and job security,” he said.
He credited Sanders with pushing Clinton to the left on medical marijuana and said he was confident politicians would embrace legalization by 2018.
Asked if a two-year window was too optimistic, Wooldridge said it was realistic, adding that he had been working on Capitol Hill since 2005 to sway legislators in both parties.
The cowboy’s faith that shifting public opinion on pot would win over legislators felt Sanders-esque. But Wooldridge also seemed fatigued after a long stretch of dogged campaigning on the issue.
“I’m tired. I’m 64. I’m worn out,” Wooldridge said. “I’m going to see it through, and then I’m going to go back to Texas and ride my horse every day.”
