Final preparations made for Obama's Q-C visit

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By Linda Cook | Monday, August 25, 2008 2:05 AM CDT | () comments

U.S. Sen. Barack Obama’s staff and local Quad-Citians worked late Sunday in preparation for Obama’s speech today at the Mississippi Valley Fairgrounds on Locust Street.

“Iowa is clearly a special place for Sen. Obama, and we are excited he will be in Davenport (today) for a One Nation Town Hall,” said Obama spokeswoman Jenni Lee. “We are inviting Iowans, including undecided voters from across the political spectrum, to listen to Sen. Obama speak about his plans to bring Democrats, Republicans and Independents together to bring about the change our country needs.”

The invitation-only event also will be open to news media in addition to the invited guests.

Obama, who will appear without his vice presidential running mate U.S. Sen. Joe Biden, D-Delaware, will make the stop at the Mississippi Valley Fairgrounds. He also will stop in Wisconsin, Missouri and Montana before he goes to Denver to accept the Democratic party’s nomination for president on Thursday.

Obama’s visit to the Quad-Cities so close to his convention speech could be seen as a thank you to local residents who have supported him from earlier in his career, one Moline-based political consultant said.

“It’s great for the Quad-Cities to be on the front end of such an historic week in politics,” said Porter McNeil, a Moline-based political consultant who worked on Tom Vilsack’s presidential bid. “It indicates the enormous importance of the state of Iowa and its impact in what will very likely be a very close race.

“It’s a wonderful way for supporters to recharge his batteries as he makes his way to Denver,” McNeil said.

McNeil is finalizing plans for a trip to Denver, where he is not a delegate this time. He had a vote at the 2004 Democratic National Convention in Boston, where Obama’s speech launched the Illinois junior senator into the national

spotlight.

Now Obama’s backers hope today’s speech will help undecided voters join Obama’s camp.

“We have volunteers on the phone every night reaching out to Iowans, signing up supporters and identifying those still making up their minds,” Lee said. “This event allows some of those undecided Iowans to hear directly from Sen. Obama in an intimate setting.

“We’ve gotten a great response from Iowans about the selection of Sen. Biden as a running mate,” Lee said. “Iowans in Davenport and across the state are energized and ready to help put Sen. Obama in the White House this November.”

Bob Fox, fairgrounds general manager, said the event will be held near the Starlight Ballroom on the grass near the trees.

“This is a basic major set-up in front of the grounds,” Fox said this evening. “They’re setting up a lot of staging and chairs. It looks like a mini-concert except for tables and chairs for the media. It’s right by the garden area here, and it’s actually beautiful.

“We’re glad to have them, and glad they picked the fairgrounds,” Fox said.

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(563) 383-2450 or newsroom@qctimes.com.

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