Clinton Appointee Mabus Campaigning for Obama in Madison

KJAM and the Obama campaign offer details on an Obama campaign event coming up tomorrow right here in Madison. We still haven't landed Senator Obama himself (and come on, what could be more perfect than making his South Dakota victory speech at his campaign office at Hope Studios in Madison?).

Details: Former Mississippi Governor Ray Mabus (has a nice Southern ring to his name, doesn't he?) is coming to Madison to visit with us about agriculture, education, small-town economic development, and whatever else is on our minds. He'll be downtown at Common Grounds (right across from KJAM) for an hour starting at 12:15.

Mabus was an early supporter of Obama, signing on in April 2007 (back when someone else was the frontrunner). A glance at Mabus's Wikipedia bio suggests several reasons his advocacy for Obama is important:

1. Mabus is a small-town boy: his hometown, Ackerman, MS, is about the size of Volga, although Ackerman's median per capita income is about half that of Brookings's western suburb. So much for the argument that Obama can't connect with small-town America.
   
2. Mabus is a Navy veteran, having served on the cruiser USS Little Rock. So much for the argument that Obama doesn't have the experience to win the respect of the military.
3. Mabus was Governor of Mississippi from 1988 to 1992, same time Bill Clinton ran neighboring Arkansas. Mabus's successful executive experience apparently tells him Obama is the better choice for the most powerful executive office in the world.
4. Mabus served as U.S. Ambassador to Saudi Arabia (not exactly a Switzerland or Liechtenstein appointment) from 1994 to 1996. He was also a "vigorous supporter" of Bill Clinton's 1992 campaign. Mabus is thus another of a growing line of Clinton appointees who have made the tough choice to look beyond that past favor and support Obama as the best choice for President.

If you're still on the fence, Governor Mabus's visit to Common Grounds tomorrow will be a great chance to ask questions of a man who, on face, you might not expect to pick Obama over Clinton. And who knows: Mabus's visit might also be a chance for us to meet the next Vice-President of the United States!

---------------
Pure B.S. p.s.: By the way, Governor Mabus is also notable for appearing in Nostradamus's mumbo-jumbo about the end of the world. Google Mabus, and you'll get a nice collection of nuttiness about how voting for Obama the Antichrist. But don't worry -- everything in Nostradamus is anagrams and riddles. Even if it wasn't pure hokum, if Nostradamus had mentioned the name "Cory Heidelberger," you can bet he would have meant some gal named Yolanda.