Former senator campaigns for Obama at Franklin
In an event to support Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama, former U.S. Sen. Birch Bayh, D-Ind., addressed an audience of 40 at Franklin College on Tuesday. Ditching the podium and shedding his suit jacket, the three-term senator and father of current U.S. Sen. Evan Bayh, D-Ind., spoke for nearly an hour in the Johnson Center for Fine Arts’ Henderson Conference Room. Rousing the crowd to continue working on Obama’s behalf by volunteering, spreading word to friends or simply voting, the 80-year-old said he was first elected to the U.S. Senate by an average of two votes per precinct in Indiana. That, he said, is why volunteer efforts matter, and why every vote matters. "Elections at all levels are decided by small numbers, so don’t let anyone tell you your vote doesn’t make a difference," said Bayh. The elder Bayh spoke at length about why he believed Obama is the right choice come Election Day. Hitting on issues including the war in Iraq, the economy and the power of the executive branch, Bayh called the upcoming election one of the most important elections of most of the audience members’ lifetimes. "Some people said it doesn’t make a difference [who wins]," Bayh said. "Anyone who says it doesn’t make a difference about the issues involving this campaign must have been in a dark cave." Bayh devoted most of his time to answering questions from the audience. "If you seem to think I’m being a little too severe in my comments here, perhaps I am, but I’d like to think it’s based on the truth," he said. Though he was there to support Obama, Bayh challenged audience members to make an educated choice. "Don’t let somebody else decide what your future is going to be," he said. Nels Ackerson, the Democratic challenger running for the U.S. House in Indiana’s Fourth District, spoke after Bayh. Ackerson worked for Bayh when the former Indiana senator chaired a Senate subcommittee that dealt with constitutional amendments. Ackerson said he’s seen greater interest from young voters in this election than ever before. Ackerson said it’s that group of voters that will really win or lose depending on this election. "It’s the youth of the country who will be paying the price and bearing the burdens for the bad mistakes that have been made, and will continued to be made if we don’t change," he said. The appearance was sponsored by The Franklin and TheFranklinOnline.com. The campus newspaper has invited surrogates of Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain to campus as well.
