Tuesday, March 30, 2004

March 28, 2004

Kucinich still hopes to influence Democrats

JOHN SOWELL

When coordinators for Democratic presidential candidate Dennis Kucinich first began looking for places for the Ohio congressman to speak in Oregon, Roseburg probably wasn't on the list.

That changed, however, after local Kucinich supporters spoke up and noted Roseburg's location on Interstate 5 between Eugene and Medford, both places likely for speeches to be scheduled.

While others lobbied for cities along the coast and farther inland, the campaign decided sticking to the I-5 corridor made the most sense for arranging the most stops in the least amount of time. Roseburg was one of seven cities chosen.

Kucinich will speak and answer questions from the audience during an appearance tonight at the Douglas County Library. He will begin speaking at 7 p.m.

"We're pretty excited," said Karma Clarke-Jung of Winston.

Clarke-Jung hadn't been involved in a political campaign before, but she became energized by Kucinich's views against the war in Iraq and on other issues. She became involved in a group of Kucinich supporters that began meeting regularly last fall. Kucinich said he would turn Iraq over to the United Nations and bring troops home within 90 days. He supports universal health care and would pull out of free trade agreements with other countries. He also wants to stop logging, mining and grazing on public lands.

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