Obama HQ Grand Opening
Posted by Jeff Pruitt - 3/29/08 @ 7:01 pm - Filed Under 2008 National Elections, Featured
The Obama Fort Wayne headquarters officially opened this morning at 10am. Mayor Tom Henry was present and gave a brief speech (shown below) before yielding to the keynote speaker, former mayor Graham Richard. Richard’s speech (also shown below) got the crowd fired up and left no doubt that he was supporting Barack Obama. It was quite an event with over 200 people present, and I don’t think the campaign team expected that kind of turnout as part of the event was scheduled to be inside their headquarters but there just wasn’t enough room. However they quickly improvised and moved everything outside onto the street.
I will give the local Obama team credit as they appear to be organized and energized. Right after the opening they had a sign-up session for a massive voter registration drive being conducted today and through the April 7 deadline. The only traditional media I saw were a couple of WANE tv guys. Perhaps the media didn’t know that Mayor Henry was going to be there or that former mayor Richard was going to give the opening speech - I didn’t realize it until this morning. I did get a good chuckle when the Indiana News Center van pulled up at 11:30 after most of the crowd was already gone.
(FYI, Roger McNett of OurDems has a local page for both the Clinton and Obama campaigns. He’s going to update them regularly with all the latest news, events, etc)
Here is Mayor Henry’s introductory speech - notice he’s in his element here and appears much more comfortable speaking at an event like this than he does at larger events.
And here is the keynote speech from former mayor Graham Richard
Now a few photos of the event
Decorated windows at Obama HQ
Graham Richard Speaking with Karen Goldner
Graham Richard with Freta Okorie
Christopher Farrell, NE Indiana Regional Director for the Obama campaign, riles up the crowd
Farrell introduces Mayor Henry
Obama campaign prepares for massive voter registration drive
Wayne Township trustee Rick Stevenson
Fort Wayne Public Information Officer Rachel Blakeman
Obama volunteers reporting for duty
(Featured panorama photo from Scott Spaulding of DFWB)
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7 Responses to “Obama HQ Grand Opening”
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Jeff - Awesome job! I’m re-posting the Richard video with a link back here.
Awesome Jeff,
Welfare for everybody, free government cheese, and if you make more than X amount of dollars we will tax you and redistribute your earned income so everybody’s happy. Don’t worry, about your education, your savings, your personal intergrity. We’ve got it takin’ care off.
Stay Smart, do not make more money than any one else, or you can’t pass go.
Bobett,
That’s a little over the top. I could be wrong here but I don’t Obama has proposed any initiative that would raise your overall tax burden…
I’m left wondering what exactly Marie Antoinette, er I mean Bobette, contributes to our economy. Not much, I suspect. But, then again, I’m just a dumb truck driver. Right, Bobette?
John you do a great job! A nice person you are. Even though I don’t know you in person, you have given me pause and just maybe I have been harsh with words. I’ll be the first to say sorry and declare a truce.
I’m a little frusterated coming from a grandmother that had a inter/intrastate small trucking company that deliverd parts to Detriot
and the steel mills east of Chicago from the late 50’s till deregulation in late 70’s. Nothing wrong with being a truck driver, owner operator, or owning your own business.
What matters most is independence in society from government. Yes I am all for freedom and no I do not get a nickle from our socialism goverment.
It’s called redistribution of income in our ever changing economy.
Obama is all about redistribution of weatlh.
His plan is to make sure America is united by taxing us to death. So where is his step by step plan as a president?
We will pay for all our International security..
we are on top of it. Just wait as soon as whoever gets in office there will be an attack.
Home ownership, education, food, reform on pork, Social Security Reform, Tax Reform, Nafta Reform. Shucks he will have clout to win every person in the House, Senate and Congress. Well, If you are for Obama: no experience required. I do not think he will win.
Speaking of truck drivers if anyone in the business is aware of empty dump trucks, tankers or anything capable of transporting about 350 tons of silica making an empty trip(s) back from the Cleveland area let me know. There would be some redistribution of wealth… and sand…