WASHINGTON _ Hillary Clinton never took the stage on election night at the Javits Center in New York, where she planned to declare its giant glass ceiling had been symbolically shattered. Instead, hours later she stood solemnly alongside Bill Clinton and running mate Tim Kaine at a nearby hotel, where she privately conceded the election.
On Wednesday morning, she offered some words of inspiration to the millions who supported her.
"I congratulated Donald Trump and offered to work with him," Clinton said. "I hope he will be a successful president for all Americans."
Clinton expressed pride in the campaign she ran but acknowledged the difficulty of the moment.
"I know how disappointed you feel, because I feel it to," she said. "This is painful, and it will be for a long time. ... We have seen our nation is more divided than we thought.
"We must accept this result and look to the future. Donald Trump is going to be our president. We owe him an open mind and the chance to lead."
In a ballroom filled with campaign staffers, donors and close friends, she rallied her supporters not to despair, calling on them to fight for the constitutional values "we respect and cherish," including freedom of expression and freedom of religion. The comments came following a divisive race that was overshadowed by Trump's incendiary comments about women, Mexican immigrants and Muslims.
"We believe the American dream is big enough for everyone," Clinton said. "For people of all races and religions, for men and women, for immigrants, for LGBT people and people with disabilities. For everyone. Our responsibility as citizens is to keep doing our part to build that better, stronger, fairer America."
"This loss hurts," Clinton said. "But please, never stop believing that fighting for what's right is worth it."
She also had a message directed at female supporters. "Nothing has made me prouder than to be your champion," Clinton said. "I know we have still not shattered that highest and hardest glass ceiling. But someday someone will."
"To all the little girls who are watching this," Clinton said, "never doubt that you are valuable and powerful and deserving of every chance and opportunity in the world to pursue and achieve your own dreams."
