Monday October 18, 2010 year: 130 No. 136 the student voice of
The Ohio State University
www.thelantern.com
thelantern
Help from the White House Two weeks before election, Obamas visit to save Dems in peril
RICK SCHANZ Campus editor schanz.5@osu.edu With Democrats across the state trailing their Republican rivals as Election Day nears, President Barack Obama visited the Oval Sunday night attempting to spark the same passion in voters that helped land him in the Oval ofÿce. The 2008 promise of change caused students — Sunday’s targeted audience and some of his most enthusiastic supporters — to support Obama. In a voice that became increasingly hoarse during a 27-minute speech, he said change happens “inch by inch, and believe me it’s not easy.” “This was never about putting a president in the White House, this is about a movement of change that lasts a long time,” Obama said. An estimated crowd of 35,000 attended the rally, according to OSU Police Chief Paul Denton. The crowd became more eager to hear Obama as Democratic speakers — Columbus Mayor Michael B. Coleman, former Sen. John Glenn, Rep. Mary Jo Kilroy, Lt. Gov. Lee Fisher and Gov. Ted Strickland — aimed to inspire students to vote for their party in 16 days. “The world’s watching you tonight,” Fisher said. “You can’t win
Ohio without winning central Ohio. And you can’t win central Ohio without winning Ohio State University.” As the night wore on, chants of “O-H-I-O keep Ohio blue” and “yes we can” accompanied thousands of “Moving America Forward” signs. At 8:05 p.m., Obama took the stage with the ÿrst lady to the U2 song, “Where the Streets Have No Name,” as ˜ ash bulbs erupted. After three ‘O-H’ and ‘I-Os’ and condolences about the OSU football team’s loss to Wisconsin Saturday, the president launched into his push for Democrats. Obama’s visit might be able to help fellow Democrats, as his job approval ratings have averaged 26 points higher than Congress’ approval ratings, according to Gallup polls. That’s better than four out of the last ÿve presidents, according to pollsters. “The biggest mistake is going back to the policies that created all this hurt in the ÿrst place,” Obama said. “I’ve been explaining to a lot of people around the country, it’s as if (Republicans) drove America’s car into a ditch. “Even though we didn’t drive it into the ditch, it is still our responsibility to get that car out of the ditch, and so we pushed and we pushed. And every once in a while we’d look up. And up on the road, you’d see a Republican
continued as Obama on 3A
Photo illustration by ANDY GOTTESMAN / Lantern photographer
ANDY GOTTESMAN / Lantern photographer
Wisconsin running back John Clay completes a 12-yard run into the end zone to put the Badgers up 14-0 early in the game Saturday.
No. 1 no more ZACK MEISEL Sports editor meisel.14@osu.edu One loss in college football can tarnish a team’s entire season. Six days after being crowned the No. 1 team in the nation, the Ohio State Buckeyes fell ˜ at at Wisconsin, losing 31-18 in a hostile environment Saturday at Camp Randall Stadium in Madison, Wis. Wisconsin jumped out to a 21-0 lead early in the second quarter. The Buckeyes clawed back to within 21-18, but it was too little, too late. Freshman running back James White scored a 12-yard touchdown to seal the Wisconsin victory. The end result of the Badger
beatdown is apparent in more than the OSU loss column. OSU slid to No. 11 in the Associated Press Top 25 poll, one spot below the Badgers. In the ÿrst BCS standings, released Sunday night, the Buckeyes are ranked No. 10. Quarterback Terrelle Pryor’s Heisman trophy candidacy appears to be over as well. Pryor threw for just 156 yards, completing only 14 of his 28 pass attempts. OSU’s reign as the ÿve-time defending conference champion is also in jeopardy. Michigan State (7-0, 3-0) now stands alone as the Big Ten’s sole undefeated team.
Democrats count on Michelle Obama’s popularity LEAH WYNALEK Copy chief wynalek.2@osu.edu First lady Michelle Obama’s appearance at Sunday’s rally on The Oval might help save face for President Barack Obama and the Democrats, who are in danger of losing their legislative advantage in Congress entering midterm elections. The rally reunited Michelle with Barack for the ÿrst time since the 2008 presidential campaign, where their last duo appearance was also in Ohio. The visit Sunday targeted young, college voters who could boost Ohio’s Democratic ticket Nov. 2. Michelle talked at the rally for just more than seven minutes, introducing herself as a “selfdescribed mom-in-chief” whose ÿrst priority is her daughters’ health and happiness. “When I think about the issues facing our nation right now, I think about what that means for our girls and the world that we’re leaving for them and all of our children, whether we’re leaving something better,” Michelle said, “And that’s really how I look at things.” She stressed that her husband and Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland look at things that same way. Though her husband’s approval ratings have fallen — though not as low as Congress’ — Michelle remains popular with the public. She received a 65 percent approval rating in a CNN opinion research poll conducted early this month. In contrast, 45 percent of those polled in a separate CNN research poll about President Obama said they approved of his actions as president. “Michelle Obama is a very popular ÿgure with the public,” said Gerald Kosicki, an OSU communication professor who researches polling and public
opinion, in an e-mail to The Lantern. “She has not been beaten up by the savage political battles that have been waged over so many issues in the ÿrst 21 months of President Obama’s term.” Michelle’s short speech followed a series of opening introductions by Ohio Democrats, including Rep. Mary Jo Kilroy, Lt. Gov. Lee Fisher and Strickland, who all stressed the importance of young voter support for Democrats on Nov. 2. But the ÿrst lady’s speech brought a personal perspective to the campaign, Kosicki said. “She talked eloquently about the stakes of the upcoming elections in very personal terms — what these issues mean for her family and her daughters and their futures,” he said. Michelle highlighted her husband’s successes as president thus far, including health care legislation, education reform and compensation for military veterans. She said Barack doesn’t measure success by daily polls, “but by positive change that touches people’s lives.” The president and ÿrst lady’s matching attire — Michelle wore a printed baby-blue scarf that matched Barack’s light-blue dress shirt — reiterated Michelle’s support for her husband. “She and the president are a team,” said Julia Cooper, a lecturer in fashion and retail studies at OSU, “and by wearing similar blue colors, we know they are a united front.” Cooper said Michelle’s clothing selection for the rally, a simple black cardigan with a statement-piece scarf, echoed her introductory speech. “I think her dark, simple attire is understated and practical, just like her message,” Cooper said. “It is important that (it) is relatable, without pretense or display of wealth — her classic style, like her cardigan, tells us that she is more interested in being part of a family and community than being part of fashion
JOE PODELCO / Lantern photo editor
First lady Michelle Obama joined her husband in support of Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland and other Ohio Democrats at a rally Sunday on the Oval at Ohio State. week and naming her designers like a celebrity.” But Michelle has achieved celebrity status as a fashion icon, inspiring fashion websites such as Mrs-O.org and earning a place on Vanity Fair’s 2010
“International Best Dressed List.” Her dual role as a fashion icon and mother strengthens her positive
continued as Michelle on 3A
Prof: GOP win would mean cuts to taxes, education DYLAN TUSSEL Lantern reporter tussel.2@osu.edu President Barack Obama and the ÿrst lady highlighted Sunday’s rally on Ohio State’s Oval, but other Democratic politicians preceded the couple in an attempt to motivate voters before an election that experts say could return state and federal legislative control to Republicans. “Democrats could lose up to ÿve seats here in Ohio,” said Paul Beck, a political science professor at OSU. “If that happened, it of course would help the Republicans a lot.” Mayor Michael B. Coleman emphasized the need for as many people to vote in the Nov. 2 election as did in 2008 when Obama was elected president. “The marathon is not over,” he said, referencing both the Columbus Marathon he attended Sunday morning and the agenda Obama put into motion two years ago. “Let’s ÿnish what we started.” Other Democrats, including Gov. Ted Strickland
and former Sen. John Glenn, echoed Coleman’s statements to a crowd that university police estimated at 35,000 people. Beck said that although Democrats might face major congressional setbacks, the greatest threat is losing the governor’s seat. “The governor race has Michael B. Coleman a lot of implications of state funding of education,” he said. John Kasich, Republican gubernatorial candidate for Ohio, would continue tax cuts that were frozen under Strickland and he would have to offset the $8 billion budget deÿcit by reducing spending in certain areas, including education, Beck said. “K–12 and higher education are big budget items … if you take taxes off the table, you basically have to cut the budget — a total of $8 billion — out of state spending,” Beck said. “There’s just no other way.”
Rob Nichols, Kasich’s spokesman, said his boss thinks taxes are too high in Ohio and need to be cut. “We are happy to let the voters of Ohio decide who is right,” Nichols said. Lt. Gov. Lee Fisher called for clean energy, equal access to education, new jobs and living wages. He said Ohio Lee Fisher will pave the way for national change. “You can’t win America without winning Ohio,” he said. “You can’t win Ohio without winning central Ohio.” Beck said that as the two parties drift ideologically further apart, the rally Sunday probably was effective in mobilizing already-active Democrats. “The partisans who are there are among some of the most committed Democrats,” he said. “What it may do is encourage them to be even more active
than they’ve already been, and it’s all rippled among millions of voters.” But some who attended the rally felt that the Democratic speakers were too vague in describing their accomplishments. Some of the politicians “just kept talking about how it’s moving in the right direcPaul A. Beck tion,” Columbus resident Carrie Woodward said. “But they didn’t really give any speciÿcs.” Lauren Hallow and Jami Jurich contributed as reporters to this article.
1A