Ex-first lady signs copies of new book
By Amanda Harris
BLYTHEVILLE -- Hundreds gathered for the chance to see Hillary Rodham Clinton and gain her signature Saturday on a copy of the former first lady's latest book, "Living History."
New York's junior senator stopped at That Bookstore In Blytheville Saturday to sign copies of her new book and say hello to some old friends.
While a vocal group of protesters demonstrated a block away from the store, her fans gathered in droves on the steamy morning, fanning themselves to keep cool as a gentle breeze blew across the Main Street sidewalks.
Some of nearby store owners held sidewalk sales intended to entice Hillary supporters into their stores with air conditioning and bargains.
Many of Blytheville's police officers were located strategically around the 300 block of Main Street directing traffic and maintaining order. One officer could be seen lining a portion of the sidewalk with "caution" tape after a senior citizen tripped on a deteriorated street curb and fell. Through the crowd it appeared as though the woman was unconscious for a briefly.
Polly Bakker, a Conway resident who traveled to Blytheville to get a signed copy of the book for her 80-year-old mother, sang Hillary's praises as she waited patiently for her seconds-long visit with the 55-year-old lawmaker.
Bakker could be heard referring to Hillary as "the woman that should be queen."
Two Blytheville women, Christie Jackson, a loan officer at First National Bank, and Carl Rebstock, a loan assistant for the same financial institution, declared themselves fans of Hillary. As businesswomen the pair said they feel like Hillary helped pave the way for women in business.
When asked about the possibility of having another Clinton as president, Rebstock said, "I think she should do it. We need a change."
John Correnti, a friend of Hillary's from Blytheville and Charlotte, N.C., said he hasn't discarded the idea that Hillary will run for president.
"I think she'll run in 2008," he predicted.
Correnti explained that he previously held the title of chief executive officer for Nucor Corp., a steel manufacturer with two mills in Mississippi County.
"Bill was governor when we brought the steel mills to Arkansas," he commented. Correnti now has his own steel company.
"I have been a Bill Clinton and Hillary Clinton fans for a lifetime."
But not everyone that gathered on the busy Blytheville block were fans of the former first lady.
A group of protesters gathered about a block away from the bookstore wielding poster board-sized signs that read "Honk if you think Hillary should NEVER be president," "Hillary can't be trusted," "We believe Juanita," and "What really happened to Vince Foster (that chapter seems to be missing)."
One of the protesters, Susan Ferguson of Pine Bluff, traveled to Blytheville, put on a blue dress, knee pads and beret. She was accompanied by a Bill Clinton look-a-like protester, also from Pine Bluff, named Doug Merritt. He was wearing a Bill Clinton mask, T-shirt that read "I'm with stupid" and had a "mini-me" Bill Clinton figure attached to his anatomy with a cigar in his hand.
Other protesters -- Budge Rahe of Pine Bluff, Bobbie Warner of Little Rock and Madeline Steimle and Selma Lee, both of Carbondale, Ill. -- were not as dressed in creative costume, but were just as enthusiastic in their protest against Hillary.
But the protesters didn't stop more than 500 people from crowding into That Bookstore In Blytheville to chat briefly with the 55-year-old senator.
A rough estimate put 550-575 people through the bookstore's doors Saturday and about 1,200 copies of "Living History" signed, a bookstore employee said Saturday afternoon.