Caroline Kennedy talks politics
BOONVILLE, Ind. — Although she comes from a political family, Caroline Kennedy is not known for her politics.
"People are somewhat surprised sometimes to see me out here, and I'm sometimes surprised myself because I haven't been that involved in political campaigns," she said Wednesday to a group of more than 300 people at the Warrick 4-H Center in Boonville. "But I do believe this is the most important election since I was a child. I just turned 50, and I figured if I'm going to get out there, now is the time."
JASON CLARK / Courier & Press Michelle Obama poses with supporters as she appeared at a campaign event for her husband, Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama, Wednesday at the Warrick County 4-H Center in Boonville, Ind.
Kennedy was in Boonville with Michelle Obama, the wife of presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama, D.Ill., who is locked in tight race with Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York in Tuesday's Indiana Democratic primary.
Now an author, Kennedy is the only surviving child of former president John F. Kennedy and the late Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis.
She told the crowd it's been a gift for her to grow up in America, and she believes Obama will continue to bring this country together.
"The values that I was given and raised with are the values that I want to pass on to my generation and the kind of America that I want to work as hard as I can to create, and there's one candidate who speaks to that kind of patriotism, the sense of hope and fairness, who's spent his life bringing us together, not tearing us apart, and that candidate is Barack Obama."
Kennedy said all of her life people have told her that her father changed their lives, and that people want to be inspired.
"I think fortunately we have that chance right now," she said. "Sen. Obama is offering that same kind of leadership, and the generation that was inspired by my father and Obama will transform this country. I know that this is another time that this generation will be inspired ... this campaign is going to put that into action and we're going to transform this country once again."
Kennedy told the crowd that she remembers the night her uncle, Bobby Kennedy, won the Indiana primary in the spring of 1968.
"It was such a happy night in the life of our family," she said. "I'm so happy to be here again, and I know that next Tuesday will be another happy night."
Jill Cici, 52, attended Wednesday's event with her 78-year-old mother, Jane Spradley. Both women said they have already voted early for Barack Obama, but they still wanted to hear and see Kennedy and Michelle Obama.
Cici said she first heard Barack Obama on "Meet the Press" shortly before the 2004 presidential convention.
"It was so clear that he had all the qualities to deal with the challenges of what's happening now," she said. "Then as he progressed and people talked about his experience, we're seeing him get experience before our eyes. All these things are being tossed at him and he's handling them with grace and with intelligence."
Cici said there's never been a candidate that has gotten her attention or passion like Obama.
"I think he speaks for himself, and I'm thrilled that the community is involved," she said. "For the first time somebody (is running for president) who cares and reflects what all of us value, not just a tiny little group. I think it gives a lot of hope to folks who don't feel like they have the chance."
Kennedy's appearance on Barack Obama's behalf, Cici said, is "that blending of what her father tried to do and what Barack's going to be able to do ... it's pretty amazing."
Michelle Obama also addressed the crowd, telling it why her husband is best suited to be the next president.
With Indiana's primary just days away, the state plays an important role — not just on Tuesday, but also in the long run of the election, she said.
Caroline Kennedy, the daughter of President John F. Kennedy, campaigned with Michelle Obama in Boonville, Ind.
In an interview with the Courier & Press after her address, Michelle Obama said every state has counted in the primary, and Indiana will be no different.
"That's the way we've approached this entire race," she said. "When you are the confirmed underdog, as Barack has been throughout this race, every vote, every state, matters, and we've taken everything seriously."
By the time the democratic process is over, "everyone in every state" will have had a chance to look at the candidates up close and personal, she said.
"I think that will play to our advantage when it come s to the general (election). We will have to come right back around to these states and Indiana is going to be critical in the general," she said. "I've been to Evansville three times already, so I'm not going to be a newcomer when it comes to the general election, and I think that's a good thing. People will have a sense of who we are and what our story is.
"It feels like a family affair. Barack can be in this state and then get home in time to tuck the girls into bed. I can do the same thing. So I feel very much like being here in Indiana is like being very close to home. My hope is that the values that we share as Midwesterners, what we've learned as Illinois residents, that same Hoosier spirit, it reminds me of the same thing. So I'm hoping that gives us some level of comfort and familiarity with this state."
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