Government
Sunday, November 2, 2008
Obama and Springsteen share a Cleveland stage
WKSU's M.L. Schultze reports
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Obama and Springsteen share a Cleveland stage
Stumping in Cleveland days before an election is nothing new for Bruce Springsteen. He was here for John Kerry in 2004, and returned Sunday night to warm up the crowd outside the Cleveland Convention Center for Barack Obama. The difference this time, he said, is that Obama was going to win.
"From the beginning, there's been something in Senator Obama that's called upon our better angels. I suspect it's because he's had a life where he's had to so often call upon his better angels. And we're gonna need all the angels we can get on the hard road ahead," Springsteen said, before bringing the Democratic candidate for president to the stage.
Most of Obama's speech echoed the themes he's pushed all year.
"The change we need won't come from government alone. It'll come from each of us, doing our part in our own lives, in our own communities" he said.
He also commented on the endorsement John McCain received over the weekend from Vice President Dick Cheney.
"Dick Cheney is out there on the campaign trail because he'd be delighted to pass the baton to John McCain. Actually, it's not a baton. It's a shovel because he's been digging a deep hole for us and he'd like to pass it on."
But Obama also talked about unifying the nation.
"I'm tired of being divided, the same old political games that pit us against each other and make us afraid of each other. Despite what our opponents claim, there are no real or fake parts of this country. There's no city or town that's more pro-America than anywhere else."
The rally was expected to draw nearly 80,000 people.
