Finally, Sweet Home Alabama for McCain
Posted: Monday, April 21, 2008 5:45 PM by Mark Murray
From NBC/NJ's Carrie Dann and Adam Aigner-Treworgy
THOMASVILLE, AL -- If McCain was hoping to find Sweet Home Alabama on his first day of his "Time for Action" tour, the tiny city of Thomasville sure as heck wanted to be it.
Traveling off the traditional campaign path in rural Alabama today, McCain has visited sites that are a far cry from the typical battlegrounds of Republican politics. After speaking in front of the famed Edmund Pettus Bridge, he traveled to Gee's Bend, a brutally poor community long scarred by racial tensions. The Bend, isolated for decades by the spidery twists of the Alabama River, finally became more accessible with the institution of a reliable ferry -- which the senator rode today in recognition of its significance in healing the area's strife. He was accompanied by the Gee's Bend Quilters, a service organization of elderly black women who provided McCain with a constant soundtrack of soulful gospel vocals for most of his morning.
It's no secret that McCain's chances of building major bases of support in places like Selma and Gee's Bend are small; the senator acknowledged today that he is "aware that there will be many people who will not vote for me." Wilcox County, home to the famed river crossing, supported John Kerry in 2004 by a margin of almost 30 points. Although McCain was warmly embraced -- literally -- by the Gee's Bend Quilters, he looked a bit more comfortable during his stint piloting the ferry than he did clapping along with the women's knee-slapping hymnals.
But if Alabama didn't quite feel like home, McCain's reception in Thomasville -- population 4,569 -- might have offered the senator some southern comfort. Thomasville, located in the dramatically more Republican bastion of Clark County, AL, offered the GOP candidate a hero's welcome. When he rolled into the driveway of the town's elementary school, he was greeted by a zig-zagging line of 600 flag-waving, uniform-clad, gleefully cheering schoolchildren. The senator dutifully made the rounds to meet each child, as some warbled chants of McCain's name and "U-S-A!" At the neighboring high school, McCain was greeted by a massive American flag hoisted far above the school's entrance by two of Thomasville's fire trucks. The mayor of Thomasville, accompanied by a posse of other town notables, even made the drive to Selma last night to intercept the traveling press corps, bearing gifts of Thomasville schwag.
And at Alabama Southern Community College, where McCain delivered remarks this afternoon on American education reform, he was lauded by a questioner who commented that she was "glad we have a patriot running for president." (In his response, McCain pledged "to wage a respectful campaign.")
"Americans want change," he added, playing off the theme of his rivals' race as they wager their own last-minute battle royale in Pennsylvania. "They're tired of business as usual."
