by Leora Falk
D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty endorsed Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) this afternoon, urging the crowd of supporters who gathered in the heat to watch the outdoor press conference, to cheer loudly for the "next president of the United States."
Fenty, who joins other big-city mayors such as Chicago's Richard Daley and Newark, N.J's Cory Booker in endorsing the Senator, said that Obama was the only candidate to approach him about an endorsement. Several members of D.C.'s city council have also endorsed Obama. Fenty will serve as the chair of the D.C. campaign.
"We believe that a new era of hope is upon us, not only for D.C. but for the whole nation," Fenty said. "Today I am proud, and with great excitement, to formally endorse Barack Obama for President of the Unites States."
Both Obama and Fenty said that Obama would make full voting representation for Washington D.C. a priority if Obama were elected president. "Folks in D.C. still don't have a voice in our national government. That's wrong. That isn't what democracy is about. It's gone on for far too long," Obama said. He also touched on housing, education, health care and teased his urban poverty plan which he is officially announcing tomorrow.
When asked why he was still trailing Sen. Hillary Clinton in the polls despite higher fundraising numbers, Obama noted that polls have shown that 99 percent of voters recognize Clinton's name. "The other one percent, I don't know who they are, where they've been," he quipped, adding that he was confident that he would gain more supporters as his name became more widely known. "To know me is to love me," he said smiling.
The Clinton campaign announced a "Mayors council" today with more than 100 mayors and former mayors expressing their support for her.
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Comments
Support by the mayor of D.C. Be still my heart. What a surprise! Stop the presses. That's really bound to win over all of America. With that kind of support and his wife's vote, Obama will have at least three.
Posted by: Truckee | July 17, 2007 8:22 PM
Evidently the Repubs don't like any of their candidates when 23% say "None of the Above". And then the same old response-- Attack Senator Obama because people actually "believe" him. The neo-cons are never going to get anywhere until they start realizing that the American people are not stupid. The public doesn't belive the same old "stay the course, give us more time, be patient" crap that's coming out of the White House. Instead of searching desperately for a candidate that appeals to the Christian Coalition, I would think they would look for someone that people could actually "Believe". The voters in the Republican party are starting to finally figure this out. These 21 Republican Senators want to get re-elected and know their seats are vulnerable. They have to distance themselves from the Bush Cheney Pentagon and they know it. These Old Dead Politics are just not working for you guys anymore. With the blatant tactics of the Bush administration, a public back-lash is to be expected.
Posted by: Mrs. Jesus | July 18, 2007 3:17 AM