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0 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? e-edition | subscribe | newsletter | deals Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » NEWS NOW Community gathers to mourn slain Seaside officer ... Work expected to begin by summer on Highway 62 bypass ... Josephine County man arrested on drug, child neglect charges ... Community gathers to mourn slain Seaside officer ... Work expected to begin by summer on Highway 62 bypass ... Josephine County man arrested on drug, child neglect charges ... POLITICAL BLOG On the campaign trail: Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump in New Hampshire Comment By Peter Sage MailTribune.com By Peter Sage Posted Sep. 22, 2015 at 12:01 AM By Peter Sage Posted Sep. 22, 2015 at 12:01 AM » Social News Editor's Note: Former Jackson County Commissioner Peter Sage is in New Hampshire through Sept. 30 observing presidential candidates on the stump. He offered the following insights from two very different events. Thursday, Sept. 17 The Trump rally There was no place to park within an hour before the event. The high school band was playing football game-type songs, intermixed with America the Beautiful. The room seated about 2,500. The crowd was white (but so was the Hillary event, this being New Hampshire.) The event had some 2,500 people jammed into a high school gym. It was raucous and hot and airless in the over-capacity space. Trump said the things in the same way he does in his multiple town hall events. I had a chance to talk to two TV reporters at the end of the event, making the point that the important thing that happened at the event was the non-answer to the Obama-Muslim question. Neither reporter seemed to think that was an interesting observation, although by the time I got back to the motel at 9:30 p.m. the cable news networks had picked up that as the main story. The only insight I would add is that there is a good reason why Trump may not have perceived the question as one he needed to address McCain-style. It is that the raucous crowd did not give any hints of being surprised or offended by the question. No one shouted “idiot” or “sit down” and no one booed or hissed. The general crowd noise, audible in the tape, stayed the same as before and after. Donald Trump is very attuned to the crowd, engaging it constantly. The proverbial cue of what did not happen, the dog in the night that did not bark, is not that Trump failed to do a McCain. It was that the crowd he was speaking to, both in that stuffy hot gymnasium and in the wider public among Trump supporters, were not particularly disturbed by the question. The crowd was the silent dog. The crowd was not surprised to hear someone say in a disgusted tone that Obama is a Muslim and is not actually an American. The Hillary event Seniors coming in early. The venue is a former church, now a Boys and Girls club. Basketball hoops have been pushed to the side. A 72-year-old activist Democrat who was helping make sure the 20 reserved seats up front were saved for the correct dignitaries, said she hoped the event would be well-attended. Seats were set up for about 225 people. TV cameras are set up on small risers in the back. Volunteers are passing around water bottles. Then 80 minutes of discussion of drug treatment policy. Hillary Clinton listened attentively while the Vermont governor spoke about treatment policy for the new avalanche of heroin and prescription opioid addiction, then a police chief talking of community policing success, then a woman who runs a treatment organization, then a clean and sober person in recovery, then a field officer doing interventions, then two grieving mothers, then a teacher who spoke to income inequality. Hillary spoke for about 11 minutes of the 80. Hillary appeared to listen attentively and she spoke with compassion and sensitivity about the problem and the victims of addiction. She denounced no one. She spoke of practical solutions and partnerships. If serious policy is what the public wants to hear about, then Hillary will be our next president. To follow Sage in New Hampshire, see peterwsage.blogspot.com . By Peter Sage MailTribune.com By Peter Sage Posted Sep. 22, 2015 at 12:01 AM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Southern Oregon Directory Featured Businesses Loading... 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