Nearly 150 Democrats endured the pains of being stood up Wednesday as Republican vice president nominee Mike Pence pulled a last-minute detour, avoiding the warm “Democrat welcome” that awaited him in Durango.
“I’m out here to support the Democratic Party and give Pence a Democrat welcome to town,” said Alison Mulholland, her two dogs also forlorn with the anti-climatic event.
“But a polite one. This election has gotten so ugly. I just can’t believe they couldn’t find a better candidate. I hope we can move on once this election is over, and get back to being the people we normally are.”
As the line of supporters for Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump bottlenecked out into the parking lot of the La Plata County Fairgrounds, a devoted contingent of Hillary Clinton backers withstood the onslaught of car horns, shouting and the occasional middle finger while they stood along north Main Avenue.
“I’ve never seen it this divisive,” said Durango resident Carol Ruth, speaking of past elections. “I was a delegate for Obama in 2008, and that felt uplifting, even if people disagreed. This time, it feels like we’re fighting a darkness.”
While the Trump supporters filed into the fairgrounds, pumped up by the nostalgic Backstreet Boys hit “I Want It That Way,” Clinton advocates sounded off chants of “I’m with her” and “Love Trumps Hate.”
Rebekah Fetters, a Durango resident, held up a “Keep your hands and politics away from my (picture of a cat)” sign, a play on Trump’s lewd comments made while unknowingly mic’d on an “Access Hollywood” television program.
“I’m very surprised how many people I personally know that still support Trump,” Fetters said. “It’s sad and shocking.”
Chelsea Steck, holding up a “Grab him by the POLLS!” poster, also said she was disturbed by Trump’s comments, but she was more concerned over Pence’s stance on a number of issues involving women’s rights.
“I think he’s worse than Trump in terms of women’s rights in that he actually knows what he’s doing and can get things done,” Steck said.
As Pence took the stage, the line of Democrats filed closer to the entrance, where Durango Police informed the group that because Trump’s campaign rented the fairgrounds, it was within their rights to ask them to leave, but that if the group stood quietly, they would be allowed to stay on premise, which they did.
Mary Ruth Bowman and Karel Longand, both from Durango, decided to sit in their car to listen in on Pence’s speech.
“We wouldn’t make it long inside,” Longand said. “But we still want to hear what kind of crap he’s saying.”
After the event, many Democrats looked forward to Wednesday night’s third and final presidential debate.
“Of course I’m going to watch it,” Ruth said. “But I don’t know if you’d call it a debate or spectacle.”
jromeo@durangoherald.com
