Doyle endorses Obama, calls candidate a 'uniter'



"He is a person who has shown he can build coalitions and he can inspire people and he can bring more people into the political process, and I feel very strongly he can govern like he can campaign," Doyle said in a conference call with Obama campaign manager David Plouffe. Charles Franklin, a UW-Madison political science professor, said Doyle's endorsement is "a gamble." That's because it's still early in the nomination process and Clinton has a stronger national organization, deeper contact list and more political experience, he said. Wisconsin Governor Jim Doyle and his wife served as Peace Corps Volunteers in Tunisia in the 1960's.

Doyle endorses Obama, calls candidate a 'uniter'

Doyle endorses Obama, calls candidate a 'uniter'
Saying the country is in need of a "uniter," Gov. Jim Doyle today endorsed fellow Democrat Barack Obama's bid for the presidency.

The announcement came two days after Obama's convincing victory in the Iowa caucus and three days before New Hampshire's first-in-the-nation primary.

"He is a person who has shown he can build coalitions and he can inspire people and he can bring more people into the political process, and I feel very strongly he can govern like he can campaign," Doyle said in a conference call with Obama campaign manager David Plouffe.

Doyle said he had been considering endorsing Obama even before the Iowa caucus but withheld it because of loyalties to other Democratic candidates, including New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, with whom Doyle is close, and New York Sen. Hillary Clinton.

In making the endorsement, Doyle joined his sons Gus and Gabe, who have already endorsed Obama. Doyle said his sons have impressed on him what Obama means to younger people.

"They helped me understand how a younger person sees the world," Doyle said. "When a younger person looks at Barack they see the country moving into the future."

Charles Franklin, a UW-Madison political science professor, said Doyle's endorsement is "a gamble." That's because it's still early in the nomination process and Clinton has a stronger national organization, deeper contact list and more political experience, he said.

The endorsement will pay off big if Obama wins the nomination and the presidency but could hurt if another Democrat takes the White House, Franklin said.

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Headlines: January, 2008; RPCV Jim Doyle (Tunisia); Election2008 - Obama; Figures; Peace Corps Tunisia; Directory of Tunisia RPCVs; Messages and Announcements for Tunisia RPCVs; Politics; State Government; Wisconsin