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Democrats in Asheville surprised by Obama
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Published: October 5, 2008
ASHEVILLE - Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama made a surprise visit yesterday to a political dinner in Asheville, praising party candidates all the way down the November ballot.
Obama arrived in North Carolina's mountains to spend a couple of days preparing for Tuesday night's debate in Tennessee against Republican presidential nominee John McCain. He will have a public event today in Asheville.
Yesterday's annual Vance-Aycock dinner featured a number of Democratic speakers, including U.S. Senate candidate Kay Hagan and governor candidate Bev Perdue. Although Obama was not on the schedule, he became the de facto keynote speaker for the night during a surprise arrival that thrilled attendees.
"I heard there were a bunch of people here who decided to turn North Carolina blue," Obama said. "I hope you don't mind me crashing the party."
His brief speech touched on only a few policy issues and mostly focused on galvanizing the 700 party faithful in the room. He declared that he hasn't visited a prettier state than North Carolina, and he implored them to seek victory across the state.
"We can win at the top of the ballot in North Carolina, and we can win at the bottom of the ballot in North Carolina," Obama said.
North Carolina may represent Obama's boldest effort. It's a state President Bush won by 12 points in 2004, and the state hasn't voted for a Democrat for president in more than 30 years.
Though Obama has consistently campaigned in the state, McCain hasn't visited since the May primary. His running mate, Sarah Palin, will have a rally in Greenville on Tuesday.
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