McCaskill endorses Obama

By Mary Daly

Published Jan. 29, 2008

With stumping season in full swing, Columbia will play host to multiple speeches endorsing various presidential candidates.

U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., voiced her support for Democratic presidential hopeful U.S. Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., in Memorial Union on Friday.

McCaskill, one of Missouri’s top Democrats, commented on the difficulty of her decision. For a long time, the senator refrained from supporting a candidate to preserve relationships with her Senate coworkers.

“I’m very proud of my party,” McCaskill said. “We have two leading contenders for president that reflect our party very well.”

The senator decided to endorse Obama not only for his policies, but also for his bold and considerate work ethic.

“He is respected in the Senate because he doesn’t see someone as a bad guy,” McCaskill said. “He sees them as someone who somewhere has something we can agree on.”

McCaskill also claimed that Obama’s minimal experience working in the Senate would not affect his ability to lead the country.

“I don’t think being in the Senate for another 5,000 votes makes you even more prepared to be the kind of leader you have to be as president of the United States,” she said.

This endorsement could potentially give a huge boost to Obama’s campaign in Missouri, as well as help the Illinois senator garner more female voters.

“Everyone likes Sen. McCaskill in Missouri and having a strong woman supporter like that could really help Obama,” sophomore Catherine Schneider said.

McCaskill commented on how much of America’s youth is attracted by Obama’s campaign.

“Young people are coming out in droves because they’ve found something they can believe in,” McCaskill said.

Mizzou for Obama Director Glenn Rehn voiced his excitement to have McCaskill endorse Obama.

“We’re really happy to have the highest ranking Democratic official in Missouri support our candidate,” Rehn said. “I think the state of Missouri will make a big difference in this election.”

Obama has already gathered the support of some high-ranking officials in Missouri, including Rep. William Lacy Clay, D-St. Louis, and Rep. Russ Carnahan, D-Mo., as well as St. Louis County Executive Charlie Dooley.

Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., has also rallied the support of officials in Missouri, including St. Louis Mayor Francis Slay, former House Majority Leader Dick Gephardt and former Govs. Warren Hearnes and Bob Holden.

Clinton’s daughter, Chelsea, spoke on campus Monday morning, and other candidates have been traveling throughout Missouri in the past few weeks.

It is unclear whether these endorsements will amount to anything in Missouri’s primary on Feb. 5, but McCaskill and the others plan on doing all they can to support their candidate.

“He’s someone who will do it a different way,” McCaskill said. “He’s the change this country needs and I’m proud to say he is my friend.”