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Posted: October 25, 2007 8:03 PM
Obama Scores Endorsement From Massachusetts Gov. Patrick
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Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., received the endorsement of Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick Tuesday evening at a large rally on Boston Common.

In an interview with the Boston Globe, Patrick told reporter Scott Helman that “this election is not just about who we want. It’s about who we are. I want a president who understands that. I want Barack Obama.”

And Globe columnist Joan Vennochi notes that Patrick, while fond of Sen. Hillary Clinton of New York, has always been an admirer of Obama’s.

“Endorsing Hillary Clinton was never an option, according to those close to Patrick,” Vennochi writes. “His loyalties were always with Obama. After all, Obama endorsed Patrick for governor when he was still considered a long shot for the Democratic gubernatorial nomination. The two also share Chicago roots and a common path to success via Harvard law degrees. Beyond that, they share common campaign themes - a message of hope and less partisan politics.”

On Wednesday, Obama canceled an event in Rochester, N.H., to return to Washington for Senate votes. He did, however, appear at a meet the candidate event in Dover that afternoon.

Also Wednesday, Obama released a statement on the California wildfires.

“I have asked my supporters in California to take time out from campaigning this weekend to assist the relief efforts, and I’m encouraging all Americans to take action to help those in need,” he said.

Obama this week also released two new radio spots in South Carolina and Iowa. The South Carolina ad, “Defining Moment,” features Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr., son of Rev. Jesse Jackson. The Iowa spot has a message from Duffy Lyon, the sculptor of the Iowa butter cow.

Obama is facing criticism from some gay rights activists for including the gospel singer Donnie McClurkin in a concert planned for Sunday in South Carolina. McClurkin has previously made statements that homosexuality is a choice. The Obama campaign announced it had invited an openly gay minister to appear at the event, but Katharine Q. Seelye of the New York Times writes that the invitation may not be enough.

“The controversy reflects the competing interests of two important constituencies of the Democratic Party, with gay activists complaining that Mr. Obama is seeking the support of black evangelicals at their expense,” she writes. “The gospel tour, which begins Friday with other singers, is part of a broader effort by the Obama campaign to win over black evangelicals.”

While Obama deals with this controversy over gay rights, his campaign reemphasized his commitment to prosecuting civil rights violations this week.

In a Tuesday e-mail to supporters, campaign manager David Plouffe called for the firing of John Tanner, the Justice Department official charged with overseeing voting rights and a supporter of controversial voter ID laws.

“John Tanner and others like him have been appointed to positions of power in the Bush administration with the specific intent of limiting participation in ways that benefit the Republican Party,” Plouffe writes. “It’s time to turn the page on that kind of politics.”

Obama got some discouraging words on Thursday’s Washington Post op-ed page. Columnist David Broder examines why some Obama supporters are becoming demoralized.

“The steady drumbeat of polls showing Clinton with more support than all the other Democrats combined — and twice as much as Obama — is taking a toll,” he writes. “In their private moments, [Obama fans] wonder whether even Obama, gifted as he is, can pull off this feat.”

Obama’s wife, Michelle, also made news this week. She participated in a forum with several of other candidate spouses Tuesday in Long Beach, Calif.

“Obama said she thought that the campaign had been a great learning experience for her daughters, ages 6 and 9, but that she tried to be home each night to read to them,” writes James Rainey of the Los Angeles Times. “The girls will win one other concession, she said: “They were like, ‘You’re running for president, we are getting a dog.’ “”

Obama is scheduled to campaign for her husband in Iowa on Friday. Barack Obama does not have any public events scheduled until a rally Friday in Columbus, Ohio. Over the weekend, he is slated to appear at several events in Iowa.