Bonfires, heat lamps, cider: Klobuchar warms snow-covered Minnesotans at outdoor rally
Sen. Amy Klobuchar’s presidential campaign announcement in Minneapolis Sunday could hardly have been more Minnesotan: It was 14 degrees and snowy, with visibility so low that rally-goers could hardly see the city’s skyline in the background, the Star Tribune reports.
But that didn’t keep supporters away from the Democrat’s presidential rally.
“We don’t let a little snow stop us,” Klobuchar told supporters as she opened up her speech. “We don’t let a little cold stop us.”
The crowd at Boom Island Park on the Mississippi River roared in response.
The Associated Press reported that the rally was “exuberant” and “festive,” with volunteers handing out American flags and hand warmers to bundled-up attendees. Bonfires and heat lamps in the park kept her supporters warm as they gathered before the speech — as did 100 gallons of hot cocoa and 100 more of apple cider, according to AP.
The weather hardly came as a surprise: Klobuchar advised supporters to “bundle up” in a video posted on Twitter last week inviting them to the rally.
Supporters were enthusiastic despite the temperatures.
“I think she’s a strong, caring person. She does a lot of good for our state already. I think she’d be good in the White House,” said Klobuchar supporter Angela Thompson, 44, according to the Star Tribune.
Blue and red signs reading “Amy for America” dotted the snow-covered crowd.
The 58-year-old three-term senator — who was easily re-elected in 2018 two years after Donald Trump came within 50,000 votes of Hillary Clinton in the state — has never lost an election, the Star Tribune reports.
Klobuchar joins a handful of other Democrats who have announced intentions to run for president, including four other women who currently serve in the Congress, the New York Times reports.
This story was originally published February 10, 2019 at 3:00 PM.
