AP: Merkley gets strong support from Obama, Gore

Merkley gets strong support from Obama, Gore
Ryan Kost, The Associated Press
10/24/08

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Less than two weeks before voting ends in Oregon's U.S. Senate race, Democrat Jeff Merkley is pulling out the big guns: Barack Obama and Al Gore.

Merkley got two helpings of A-list support Friday when Obama cut an ad for the campaign — the only Senate campaign ad he's done this general election season — and Gore gave Merkley a full-throated endorsement at a Portland fundraiser.

Speaking to a crowd of nearly 1,000 at the Oregon Convention Center, Gore said that there had never been a time when so many things seemed to be going so wrong. Global warming, the faltering economy and Iraq were just a few he listed.

But, he told the audience, there is still a chance to turn it all around with some political will.

"Political will is a renewable resource," said the Nobel Peace Prize laureate and former vice president. "Renew it by electing Jeff Merkley."

Before Gore took to the stage, Gov. Ted Kulongoski led a string of Oregon's Democratic political leaders in praising both Gore and Merkley on their environmental records.

Gore won his Peace Prize for his work on global warming, and Merkley was credited with pushing through a number of environmental reforms during the 2007 legislative session, including an expanded bottle bill.

"It was nothing short of a minor legislative miracle," said U.S. Rep. Earl Blumenauer, D-Ore.

During his speech, Gore said that the nation needs a new direction, and that Obama would need a filibuster-proof Senate to make that new direction possible.

"This is a moment where we have a chance to put this new agenda forward decisively," Gore said. "It's up to you Oregon."

He praised Merkley, saying, "This guy's got guts. He's got smarts. He's got heart."

Merkley responded by saying that Gore's visit couldn't have come at a better time, not just because he is caught in a heated race with Republican incumbent Sen. Gordon Smith, but because Friday happened to be his birthday.

After the crowd sang a round of "Happy Birthday," Merkley told them he considered Gore's visit and Obama's commercial perfect gifts.

"Wasn't that amazing?" he asked about the 30-second TV spot, which the Merkley campaign had just released Friday afternoon.

In the ad, Obama looks squarely at the screen as he tells Oregon voters that they have a choice between the politics of the past or change.

"That change is Jeff Merkley," Obama says. "With Jeff Merkley in the U.S. Senate we can get our country back on track."

The Merkley campaign expects the spot will undercut some of Smith's recent ads.

Though the Democratic presidential nominee has endorsed Merkley, Smith has used Obama and other top Democrats in his ads to help promote his bipartisan image.

"It's important that Oregonians know who Barack is supporting," said Sahar Wali, a spokeswoman for Obama's Oregon campaign.

Wali said the campaign moved to get the ad out as soon as possible because many Oregon voters already have their mail ballots.

Oregon's elections are conducted entirely by mail and voters have an 18-day window in which to cast their ballots. About a tenth have done so.

The ad, funded by the Merkley campaign, is expected to run throughout Oregon, a state Obama is expected to carry handily.

Posted October 25, 2008
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