"If I were in a third-world country today, the face of America I'd want to see is the face of possibility, the face of the Peace Corps, the face of an America with hope, ideas and heart," said Kerry wife at rally. "That's who Americans are."
Kerry fires up partisan crowd at rally
By Cynthia Yeung
April 19, 2004
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Nearly 100 Penn students faced the cameras center stage at a presidential campaign rally for Mass. Sen. John Kerry at the Pennsylvania Convention Center Friday evening.
With Outkast's Hey Ya playing in the background, Kerry -- flanked by his wife Teresa Heinz Kerry and Gov. Ed Rendell -- was greeted with wild applause from the highly Democratic crowd.
"UPenn was asked to go up [on stage] and so we went up," said College Democrats Political Outreach Chairman Dan De Rosa, who coordinated the mobilization of students for the rally.
"I am a die-hard Kerry supporter," said De Rosa, a College sophomore who arrived nearly two hours before Kerry was scheduled to appear. "He really speaks to our interests."
Mayor John Street was conspicuously absent from the rally. Street and Rendell are feuding over an incident earlier this year related to the Philadelphia Parking Authority. Rendell sided with Republican House Speaker John Perzel (R-Phila.) and allowed the PPA to remain under state control against Street's objections.
In an apparent bid to portray Heinz Kerry as a future first lady, Kerry -- presumed to be the Democratic nominee come June -- first ceded the stage to his wife.
Heinz Kerry, whose late husband was a U.S. senator from Pennsylvania, described herself as "Pennsylvania to the core" and said that Americans have a lot to offer the rest of the world.
Kerry jokes with Penn students, mostly Penn Democrats members, after his speech.
"If I were in a third-world country today, the face of America I'd want to see is the face of possibility, the face of the Peace Corps, the face of an America with hope, ideas and heart," she said. "That's who Americans are."
Kerry took the stage with anti-Bush rhetoric.
"If you show a little brotherly love, we're going to send George Bush back to Texas," Kerry said, drawing cheers from the crowd. "I kept hearing George Bush [being] referred to as 43, and I finally learned what it meant -- his approval rating."
Kerry spoke of the importance of education and entrepreneurship to combat various environmental issues and to reduce American reliance on foreign oil imports.
"We've got an administration that's of oil, by oil, for oil," Kerry said. "I will put in place the principle that no young American in uniform should ever be held hostage to America's dependence on oil from the Middle East."
Fiscal discipline, civil liberties, the existence of a "separate and unequal education system" in light of the 50th anniversary of Brown vs. Board of Education, and rising tuition and health care costs were also a part of Kerry's stump speech.
"Every family's health care [is] as important as any politician in Washington, D.C.," Kerry said, adding that the health care coverage politicians receive should be held up as the "gold standard" for all.
Although many rally attendees were not always Kerry supporters, many have joined the campaign since the effective end of the primary season.
"I was with Dean in the beginning but, being a realist, I'll of course vote for Kerry," 2003 Engineering graduate Josh Skaroff said. "I'm just happy to see so many involved Penn students here during Spring Fling."
