Hillary: Resolved to Create Momentum

In a latch ditch effort, Hillary Clinton is trying to generate momentum based upon the CNN debate at Austin, Texas. This effort is all centered around Hillary's closing argument in the debate. Consider the following momentum efforts:

Immediate Memo from Campaign
Almost immediately after the debate finished, I received the following email from the Clinton campaign. A similar email was also sent out to the media.

Dear John,

There was a remarkable moment in tonight's debate that we had to share with you. Watch it here:

http://www.hillaryclinton.com/tonight

Pass it on.

Sincerely,

Terry McAuliffe
Chairman, Hillary Clinton for President

Ad Buy
The Clinton camp is trying so hard to get this moment out, it purchased a major ad buy and made the "moment" into a television ad (view ad at YouTube.com--see my analysis at the end of this blog; I do not think highly of it). The text for the ad is below (via AP):

Hillary Rodham Clinton: "I was honored to be asked to speak at the opening of the Intrepid Center at Brooke Medical Center in San Antonio. And I remember sitting up there and watching them come in. Those who could walk were walking, those who had lost limbs were trying with great courage to get themselves in without the help of others.

"You know, the hits I've taken in life are nothing compared to what goes on every single day in the lives of people across our country. And I resolved, at a very young age, that I'd been blessed, and that I was called by my faith and by my upbringing to do what I could to give others the same opportunities and blessings that I took for granted. That's what gets me up in the morning, that's what motivates me in this campaign."

"I'm Hillary Clinton and I approved this message."

Letter from Bill Clinton Within 48 Hours
Within 48 hours, I received the following letter from Bill Clinton:

Dear John,

Thursday night in the debate, in one remarkable moment, we saw the kind of president Hillary is going to be -- the strong, compassionate, and brilliant woman who will make us proud as president.

Everyone in the upcoming primary states of Ohio, Texas, Rhode Island, and Vermont needs to see that moment. The campaign has put together a 60-second ad with the video, but we cannot run it without your immediate financial support. We need to raise $1.3 million in the next 24 hours to put this ad on the air.

Watch the ad and make a contribution to help us get it on the air.

We're just 10 days away from a monumental day of voting, one that will decide the outcome of this remarkable contest between two history-making campaigns. The Obama campaign realizes the stakes and is putting it all on the line with a massive advertising campaign.

We have to give Hillary the resources she needs to make this a fair fight -- including running the ad based on her amazing moment from Thursday night's debate. We need to raise $1.3 million to get this ad on the air and to match the Obama campaign's ad spending in Ohio, Texas, Rhode Island, and Vermont. We have to reach that goal in the next 24 hours.

Watch our new ad and contribute to help us get it on the air in Ohio, Texas, Rhode Island, and Vermont.

With your extraordinary help she will win. And knowing that you are there for her now, as you have been throughout this race, means more than you can possibly imagine.

We can do this together. Let's keep working.
Bill Clinton

This email sounds really desperate to me.

My Thoughts
The Clinton camp has done an excellent job getting the "moment" from the debate plaid out into the national media. Between memos, ads, and surrogates, the Clinton camp has made it almost impossible to ignore. When I read the litany of emails and news stories on the "moment" I was excited to see the ad. But, quite frankly, the ad was a total let down. It is uninspiring, poorly edited, and wanting.

I would say, however, that the entire and unedited clip of Hillary giving her closing remarks at the debate was much more inspiring and persuasive (view here at HillaryClinton.com). (Note: You can view Hillary and Barack's closing argument here at YouTube.com, although you will need to move to about 6 minutes into the video).