Three weeks in advance of the important Feb. 5 presidential primary in 22 states including New Jersey, presidential candidate Barack Obama appeared at a rally on Wednesday at St. Peter’s College in Jersey City.
The Illinois senator’s second visit to Jersey City (the first a fund raiser in May 2007 at the Liberty House Restaurant in Liberty State Park) brought out at least 4,000 people to hear him spell out the message of optimism and change that has defined his campaign.
In his 40-minute speech, Obama also said that their support for him to become president is an immediate cause.
“It is something [Dr. Martin Luther King] called the ‘fierce urgency of now,’ ” Obama told the crowd. “We are at a defining moment in our history. Our nation is at war, our planet is in peril, and the freedom that so many generations fought for is being smothered away.”
Amid the atmosphere created by the event, there was sadness when former city councilman and long-time political organizer Bobby Jackson collapsed and died at the end of the rally, the result of a massive heart attack (see sidebar).Obama’s agenda
Obama’s speech spelled out an agenda that includes ending the war in Iraq, guaranteeing healthcare for children until they reach adulthood, and guaranteeing a college education.
Obama’s chief contenders for the Democratic nomination, New York Sen. Hillary Clinton and former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards, both did well in primaries in Iowa and New Hampshire last week.
Some have criticized Obama for only having had a few years in the government, and lacking foreign policy experience. But Obama’s supporters say he has not caved in to the pressures of politics, as Clinton has.
With this event, Obama and his organizers were kicking off their extensive campaign to bridge the gap in New Jersey, where Clinton has been holding a large lead in the polls.
New Jersey has 127 delegates for the 2008 Democratic Convention that will take place in Denver in August. The winner of the Feb. 5 caucus will get the majority of the delegates’ votes.
Feb. 5’s caucus is also known as Super Tuesday.
The person with the most votes at the August convention will be named the Democratic candidate for November’s presidential election. In a word, Obama-Rama
Before the event, thousands of people waited several hours, wrapped around the block enveloping St. Peter’s College.
One person involved in this side of “Obama-Rama” was Jersey City Corporation Counsel Bill Matsikoudis.
Matiskoudis said that the event took extensive efforts by the Obama team, people in Jersey City Mayor Jerramiah Healy’s administration, and Newark Mayor Cory Booker’s administration.
Healy and Booker are considered the two key politicians in New Jersey most visible in their support of Obama, and both were singled out by Obama at the beginning of his speech.
“Seeing all these people get to work to make this happen in such a short period of time – you felt like you were on an episode of ‘The Apprentice,’ ” Matsikoudis said.
Among those caught up in “Obama-Rama” was Patrick Kelly, a Hoboken resident originally from Connecticut who has taken time from work to be a part of Obama’s campaign. Kelly saw parallels to the late John F. Kennedy.
“We need a president again that is going to ask us to do for their country and for their communities,” Kelly said.
Local resident Kevin Armstrong was waiting with his friend Samuel. The latter held a copy of Obama’s 2006 bestseller, The Audacity of Hope.
“His running for president is a good move for this country,” Armstrong said. “The message he is putting out there is, it’s time for a change.” After Obama
After the speech, New York student Reema Hajazi said she even more enthused to lend her support to Obama after his presentation.
“I like it; it got me excited for him, and I think he is a better choice than Hillary Clinton,” Hajazi said.
Jersey City resident Yvonne Carpenter wasn’t quite swept up in “Obama-Rama” as seeing him left her more uncertain as to which presidential candidate would get her vote.
“It was either Hillary Clinton or Obama, and so I am coming out to see what he has to say before I make up my mind on who I want to vote for,” Carpenter said.
Eric-Anders Nilsson, a Jersey City resident and a long-time peace activist, said he will probably not vote for Obama, but grew to respect him after seeing him in person.
“I think he is a great guy, and he is on point on a lot of issues, but I do have a problem in that he voted on the funding of the [Iraq] war but says he is against it,” he said. Sidebar Political icon Bobby Jackson passes
Bobby Jackson was many things to many people – a political player and kingmaker, a newspaper publisher, a father, a husband, first African-American City Council president, and most of all, a friend – even when there were differences.
Long-time resident Jackson, 62, had just seen Barack Obama’s speech when he passed away on Wednesday. According to friends, he was a big Obama supporter and was working to get out the vote in Jersey City for Feb. 5.
He died of a heart attack in front of St. Peter’s College only minutes after the rally ended.
Jersey City Deputy Mayor Kabili Tayari cried over the loss last week. Tayari knew Jackson since 1973. He said while the political side of Jackson that may have offended people, he also remembered a dear friend who helped him during the passing of a loved one.
“In 1976, my mother died, and I remember Bobby coming to me and giving me a carte-blanche credit card and told me to use it for her funeral and any other expenses,” Tayari said. “He was a good friend and he will be missed.”
A graduate of Lincoln High School, Jackson and his long-time friend Joseph Cardwell were involved in the politics of the city and Hudson County for 30 years. They were also the publishers of the Urban Times News, an African-American newspaper in Jersey City that was often strident in its criticism of certain politicians in the city, and ardent in its support of others.
Jackson was an ally of former Mayor Glenn Cunningham, who himself died of a sudden heart attack nearly four years ago. Jackson played a critical role in the recent election of State Sen. Sandra Cunningham and State Assemblyman Anthony Chiapponne (see Assembly story). He also was part of a group that was helping forge to strong ties to Newark Mayor Cory Booker.
Hudson County Freeholder Jeffrey Dublin said Jackson was one of his father’s best friends and a mentor to him regarding the political landscape of Jersey City. He saw Jackson collapse in front of him.
“It’s devastating,” Dublin said. “We were talking all the time. He taught me so much and helped me in my career. He was like a second father.”
A wake for Jackson, 62, will be held from 2 to 4 p.m. Monday, Jan. 14 at Watson Mortuary Service, Jersey City, and from 6 to 8 p.m. at Mt. Olive Baptist Church, Jersey City.
A funeral service will be at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 15 at Mt. Olive.
He leaves behind his wife Gwen, and a son and daughter. – RK Ricardo Kaulessar can be reached at rkaulessar@hudsonreporter.com.