The stop was not on the official campaign itinerary. But as John Edwards's motorcade rolled by a lighted-up football stadium here on drizzly recent evening, he called an audible.
Pulling up to a service gate, the convoy stopped, and Edwards jumped out in front of dozens of curious onlookers, walked briskly into the stadium and took a microphone.
"When I heard about this event going on, I just had to come out here," he told thousands of onlookers who had come to watch a marching-band competition between historically black colleges and now suddenly were in the middle of a political rally.
The Democratic vice presidential nominee kept his remarks brief; it was raining, and a band was waiting. Edwards pumped his fist and then ran toward the bleachers, where he jogged down the sideline, slapping hands with the crowd.
Then he left. Following his beefy Secret Service men like lead blockers, Edwards hustled back to his black sport-utility vehicle, which zoomed past a column of gold-and-maroon-costumed drummers and trumpeters.
Why Edwards "had to come out here" was left unexplained. He did not watch even a minute of the performances. But the symbolism was clear: The stop was a quick and easy way to get face time with a large number of African Americans in his home state, where his campaign faces an uphill climb. [...]
| Continue David Nakamura's Washington Post article "A Strategic Detour for Edwards"
posted in articles on August 30, 2004 7:57 PM | t (0)
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