Sullivan "stumps" for fellow senator

By Robert Amaefule

Barack Obama was the lone Democratic candidate who had a non-student speaker represent him in Tuesday’s nights Democratic mock election event.

State Sen. John Sullivan took the liberty of speaking on behalf of the Obama team here at Western. During his speech, he explained how he had the personal experience of working with the Obama for two years in the state’s capitol.

“I received the privilege of working with Obama for two years, and I watch how he worked to increase the educational funding for early childhood, K-12 education and higher education. I observed him fight to bring the people together and fight for a better education because he knows you get more bang for your buck when you invest in education for the kids of tomorrow,” Sullivan said.

The senator also mentioned his opinion on what Obama’s greatest asset was after watching him speak to the public. “His greatest quality when speaking is his phenomenal eye contact and his great listening skills because he knows that one must listen in order to learn, and that concept is something that is really lacking in Washington.”

Obama’s representatives put in much effort in arranging for the arrival of the state senator. According to his supporters, the party was unsure if Sullivan would be able to attend the event.

“We didn’t even know that he was coming until yesterday night and were really happy that he came. We felt that he added much leverage and credibility to the message we tried to present.”

Amaefule is a student in Dr. Lisa Barr’s Reporting I class.