As the crowd of veterans, students and families chanted his name, John Kerry descended the bleacher stairs wearing a toothy grin and a Boston Red Sox cap.
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Marking his ninth visit to Ohio in three weeks, Kerry campaigned at the University of Toledo yesterday morning. There, he was introduced by a barrage of local democrats. Robin Weirauch, Senator Eric Fingerhut, Toledo Mayor Jack Ford, Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur and former Senator John Glenn all took the stage to support the man that they want to become the next president of the United States.
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In an attempt to get the vote, Mayor Ford took his time on stage to literally call on his constituents to go to the polls. He asked everyone in the audience to take out their cell phones — and turn them on.
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‘#34;Call anyone you know,’#34; he said, ‘#34;and remind them to vote on Nov. 2.’#34; And at 9 a.m., the mayor and approximately 2,500 people called a friend or family member and encouraged them to vote — for John Kerry.
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As U2’#39;s ‘#34;Beautiful Day’#34; filled the arena, Kerry/Edwards signs waved and shook in the audience excitedly.
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‘#34;You gotta give me a couple of minutes to feel great, because it’#39;s been 86 years,’#34; he said about the Red Sox’#39;s World Series win, less than 24-hours before.
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‘#34;About a year ago when things weren’#39;t going too well in my campaign, somebody called a radio talk show and they said, ‘#39;John Kerry won’#39;t be president until the Red Sox win the World Series,’#39;’#34; he said with a grin.
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Reiterating stances made during the debates, Kerry called for a smarter, tougher and more strategic war on terror.
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‘#34;You got to have common sense,’#34; he said. ‘#34;You’#39;ve got to know who the terrorists are, where they are what they are planning and we’#39;ve got to get them before they get us.
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In order to do that, you’#39;ve got to have the best intelligence in the world…you’#39;ve got to have the best cooperation with every country on this planet. I will build that intelligence network. I will bring those allies back to the table because I know what you know. I know that the United States of America is strongest and our troops are the best protected and the American tax payers is the most relieved of the burden of carrying the war when we build legitimate alliances, not when we go at it alone.’#34;
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In an effort to bring his sentiments home Kerry detailed the crises that he believes Ohio citizens are facing pending the election.
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Over one million Ohioans are without healthcare, he said, and 114,000 have lost their coverage over the last four years.
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‘#34;We need a president who understands healthcare isn’#39;t just for the wealthy and the elected and connected, it’#39;s a right for all Americans.’#34;
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The loss of jobs in Ohio has been the most pressing issue for residents. Appealing to those in the audience who will be looking for jobs post-graduation and those actively searching, Kerry announced that he is committed to bringing jobs home.
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‘#34;We are going to be the country that creates the highest paying jobs, helps kids go to college, gets more people graduating in science and technology,’#34; he said. ‘#34;We are going to [break] the frontier of the future and we are not going to sit down and watch other countries beat us to the punch.’#34;
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Education major at UT, Heather Davis, hopes that Kerry’#39;s proposals will provide help her and other college students.
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‘#34;Hopefully, it will mean more money for students and more opportunities,’#34; she said.
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Jobs are what everybody needs, agreed Laurence Bibbs, a student at Owens Community College said.
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‘#34;He’#39;s actually running for the issues — more jobs and a better economy,’#34; he said.
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To further propel the U.S. towards new horizons, Kerry predicted that by the year 2020, 20 percent of American electricity will be produced by alternative and renewable sources.
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‘#34;I want America’#39;s health, environmental future to be decided by American ingenuity,’#34; he said.
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This ingenuity is what will make the most difference come election day.
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This election is not about me or John Edwards, he said, but it is about our nation, about our lives.
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‘#34;Everthing that you care about, everthing that matters to you is on the ballot — and I want you to stand up and fight,’#34; he said.
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