Kerry endorses Obama; it's seen as slap to Edwards

BY MARTIN C. EVANS | martin.evans@newsday.com

January 11, 2008

CHARLESTON, S.C. - Embracing Barack Obama as his choice for president at a college rally here, Massachusetts Sen. John Kerry said the freshman senator from Illinois offered America a unique opportunity to move beyond racial and political divisions and to unite behind common goals.

"Barack Obama can be, will be and should be the next president," Kerry told the crowd of about 4,000 people, who listened from an outdoor courtyard shaded by live oak and Spanish moss at the College of Charleston.

"Who better than Barack Obama to turn a new page in American politics, so that Democrats, Independents and Republicans alike can look to the leadership that unites to find common ground?"

The endorsement, which had been agreed upon weeks ago but leaked from Kerry's inner circle only hours before the rally, is expected to help Obama with fundraising. It is also likely to draw the support of elected official "superdelegates," who will have an automatic vote at the Democratic National Convention this summer.

The endorsement is widely viewed as a slap at former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards, who was Kerry's 2004 running mate. The pair were considered a bad match by many observers, including some who felt Edwards never subordinated his own political ambitions to the Kerry campaign.

Following Kerry's 18-minute introduction, Obama bounded onto the stage and, under the canopy of trees, hugged his endorser warmly, then thanked him for his service in Vietnam and his support of his campaign.

The appearance marks the first time since the party selection process began Jan. 3 that Obama has campaigned in a state with a significant black population.

That made particularly significant the appearance of Charleston Mayor Joe Riley, a white politician who has won re-election in this largely black city since 1975. Riley said Obama's election "will remind the world that this is someone who was elected not because of the color of his skin, but because of the content of his character."

Obama spoke for about 20 minutes, then met privately with about 30 local religious leaders.

Pastor Kay Colleton, of Manna Life Center in Charleston, said enthusiasm for Obama's campaign is building among South Carolina's black residents, who made up 49 percent of the voter turnout in the state's 2004 Democratic primary.

"I believe the pastors who were there left feeling empowered," Colleton said. "We felt part of a divine movement."