Published: April 26, 2008 06:29 pm            

Obama doesn’t disappoint

THE ISSUE:Barack Obama’s stop in Kokomo

OUR VIEW:He has a gift when it comes to public speaking.

It’s been 40 years since Indiana was truly in the spotlight during a national campaign.

It was 1968, and Robert Kennedy was campaigning against Eugene McCarthy to win the Democratic presidential nomination.

One of Kennedy’s campaign stops that year was in Kokomo.

The City of Firsts hasn’t garnered much attention from presidential candidates since.

Before Friday, the last presidential candidate to stop in Kokomo was Ronald Reagan in 1980.

That all changed Friday evening as Illinois Sen. Barack Obama held a town hall meeting at Memorial Gym in downtown Kokomo.

Approximately 2,900 people were on hand to witness the event.

Obama did not disappoint.

Regardless of your political beliefs, it’s hard to deny that Obama has a gift when it comes to public speaking.

From 6:20 p.m., when a voice over the loudspeaker announced “please welcome the next president of the United States, Barack Obama” to the minute Obama bid farewell at around 7:35 p.m., he easily held the crowd’s attention.

Whether Obama wins the Democrat nomination, or eventually becomes president, he has certainly left his mark on politics (and Kokomo) in 2008.

An impressively diverse crowd flocked to Memorial Gym Friday. The audience was equal parts black, white, young and old.

Obama wasted little time in addressing issues important to Kokomo.

“... Your city just passed 7 percent unemployment. You’re making $6,000 less on average than the typical American family. And you’ve lost 4,000 jobs since the start of the Bush administration,” Obama said of Kokomo.

“I’m running for president because of places like Kokomo, Indiana.”

This year, Indiana cities like Kokomo can make a difference. Obama knows it.

“There’s no challenge we can’t meet, no destiny we can’t fulfill,” he said during his speech. “The American people are ready for something new.”

Is he right?

That’s a question Hoosiers will play a large part in answering when we cast our primary ballots on May 6.

“So Indiana you have a decision to make ...” Obama said near the end of his speech. “... we can bring about a new America.”

Vote on May 6 and the choice is yours.

        

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