Hillary Rodham Clinton returned to Long Island after officially throwing her hat in the ring for Daniel Patrick Moynihan's United States Senate seat and spoke to a ballroom full of students and supporters at Adelphi University about her view of politics and why she has chosen to run. Clinton began by informing the crowd that she and Adelphi's current president Steve Isenberg attended law school together, and she joked that when she had heard her fellow alumnus was president of a university she had to come see for herself. She laughed, joking that his energy and "corny jokes" were still the same as she remembered from 30 years ago. She then reflected on her commencement speech from her college graduation ceremony and the quote she'd employed, "Politics is the art of making the impossible possible." This was the theme of her speech at Adelphi and she said the goal she has as a Senate candidate is to work to make what now seems impossible a reality for New Yorkers.

Nassau County has recently seen the unattainable become an actuality. In the November elections, the Republican stronghold fell to the Democrats in the Legislature. Municipalities like the Town of Hempstead, which had been Republicans only for almost a century, lost all three of the six seats up for election. Tom DiNapoli is now the Democratic chairman and is credited in large part with strengthening a once disorganized and unsuccessful party. His having introduced Clinton before her speech on possibilities was thus quite apropos.

Clinton joked that while she is older, blonder and more humble than she was when she delivered her commencement speech, she still believes in the theme of that discussion. In her political career and the seven years her husband has spent as president of the United States, she says she has seen what was once considered unfeasible be attained. She said that with passion, vision and will, this can continue to happen and is what she will work to do for New York if elected. With crime rates reduced around the nation, welfare reforms in place, and the expected budget surpluses, the nation is now enjoying the fruits of labors of those who believed in what was once considered fantasy. There is more to be done in this vein, she said.

Previously, US Senator Chuck Schumer from New York and Clinton together revealed plans for tax deductions on college education. At Adelphi Clinton added, "No student should be denied education because of money." While many students take out loans, receive scholarships and work while attending school, many seriously struggle or are never able to attend. Most college graduates today are burdened with paying off student loans and find it unattainable to start a life on their own. Clinton says they want to see a diploma in the hands of every young adult, as it has become a necessity in the job market of today.

Other causes she has vowed to "work [her] heart out" to champion include "strengthening families, bringing good jobs to every corner of New York, and healthcare." She added, "I may be new to the neighborhood, but I am not new to the concerns of New Yorkers." In Buffalo recently she laid out an economic plan which calls for more help for small business and more federal dollars to relieve the stress of high state, local and utility costs. She also noted the high cost of transportation, particularly on Long Island, and the need to use the information superhighway to help families work from home more and spend more time with the family. In speaking on small business concerns she reflected on her father whom she described as "a small-business man."

"In 1993/94 I had a few things to say about healthcare. We were not successful then," she noted, but said that from this experience she learned how and for what to fight in Washington. She referred to the Children's Health Insurance Plan as a success and said she will fight in the Senate for "a real Patient's Bill of Rights and to reform Medicare for prescription drug coverage." She echoed the sentiments expressed by Congresswoman Carolyn McCarthy (4th CD) and others who have fought for a Patient's Bill of Rights and help to bring prescription drug costs down so that Americans can obtain medication at fair prices. Clinton pointed to the fact that American pharmaceuticals are frequently sold in Canada and elsewhere for less than they are here to Americans. "The United States should not be paying the highest rates for prescription drugs," she said.

Other ideas she promised to bring to the Senate if elected include initiatives to attract teachers to the classrooms, funding to provide women more choice in how to care for their children, support for teen mothers, long-term care tax credits, tax credits for contributions for those who don't itemize, and working to study and help the environment.

Clinton noted that half the teachers in this state are over 50 and readying themselves for retirement. She hopes to create a program that would pay for the education of prospective teachers in exchange for their service of four years in under served urban and rural schools. She said programs like Troops to Teachers should serve as an example and inspire mid-career professionals to explore sharing their knowledge in the classroom.

"We need to do more to give mothers a real chance to stay home and real choices for quality daycare," she said. Acknowledging how hard today's jobs make it for people to balance time for family and work, she noted that more has to be done to find alternatives. She also said that government needs to fight harder to force parents to be financially responsible for their children by paying child support and to help those who are not ready for these responsibilities like teen mothers become good parents.

Clinton proposed that people caring for their adult parents or a disabled family member should be able to get a tax credit and those who give to charity should as well. She noted that presently taxpayers who do not itemize cannot deduct for contributions to their places of worship, local children's charities and youth programs, etc. These are just some of the ways she says she believes New York can ensure a "future for [itself] that is even better than its past."

From New York's role in the liberation of slaves recalled in the New York home of Harriet Tubman to the site of Women's Suffragist meetings and rallies here in New York, Clinton said she sees a long and rich history of making the impossible possible. "We have more blessings" here in America than in any other time or place, she said, but there are challenges ahead to find ways to do even better and while we "should be grateful" we should not be complacent. "This is why I want to be your US Senator," she said.

Opening the floor to questions, Clinton answered the inquiries of high school students from around the county and representatives from Adelphi University's campus paper. On the subjects of fine arts funding, after school programs for children and home economics she emphatically stated that she believes in "educating the whole child." She said that the world requires skills that cannot be met in only reaching for Regents scores, although she did emphasize that she fully supports New York's higher standards and hopes the nation will work to establish uniform standards for the country. She also noted that by enriching students' lives with art and music, society creates opportunities for students who learn best through different ways and those who may choose the arts as their path.

She said that she is always disappointed to see programs like theater and band cut from schools because of budget problems and noted that local taxes cannot be expected to support all of the programs needed. She said she has worked to bring more private dollars to schools through such programs as VH1's work to bring musical instruments to schools. She referred to her book, It Takes a Village and said that kids need something beyond being told to say no all the time and need something to which they can say yes.

Also, Clinton said that she does not want to see tax cuts for New York that would be fiscally irresponsible and wants the government to continue paying down the debt. She also said that Social Security must be maintained not only for the sake of seniors, but for the youth who would otherwise have to fund senior care for their parents or grandparents. Education, she explained, for every person would also ensure that the work force that would support those on Social Security would be better prepared and equipped for the job market. She noted that once there were four workers for every person on Social Security but now there are two. Clinton reported a friend of hers had once joked that she wanted to pick the two workers who would support her.

In answering a question about the future of the fishing industry in light of environmental factors that have begun to kill off fish in Long Island Sound in record numbers, Clinton opened the discussion to the broader environmental concerns facing Long Island. From the pollution of the drinking water in the aquifers to the breast cancer clusters, Clinton said money has to be invested for researching the cause of the problems and ways to eradicate them. As the world faces environmental issues like air and water pollution as well as overdevelopment, Long Island reflects these issues in its own ecological crisis.

Clinton concluded her comments by thanking the students for their questions, which she characterized as "so on target." She also said that in addition to bridging the digital divide, helping every child grow to be a responsible and educated citizen and human being, and going back to civilization's most basic lessons of how to work together as a society, America needs to work to make life more enjoyable and fulfilling. She quoted Rabbi Kushner who said, "No one at the end of life says, 'I wish I'd spent more time at the office.'" She noted that with every vote she made in the Senate she would think, "Will this vote help the children of New York? Will this vote strengthen families? What can we do so families can spend more time together?" She concluded, "What matters in life is what we spend our time on."