BY MIKE FAHER
The Tribune-Democrat
April 15, 2008 11:34 pm
—
Former first daughter Chelsea Clinton stopped in Johnstown on Tuesday, hoping to rally support for her mother’s presidential campaign.
Only a week before Pennsylvania’s critical primary, Clinton had a message for an early afternoon crowd in Central Park.
“I hope that you’ll all vote on April 22, and I hope you’ll all vote for my mom,” Clinton said.
On a statewide, three-day bus tour to support Hillary Rodham Clinton’s campaign, the younger Clinton’s entourage included actor Sean Astin of “The Lord of the Rings” and “Rudy” fame.
Clinton, 28, took questions from the Johnstown crowd and offered detailed explanations of her mother’s policies.
Speaking from the park gazebo’s front steps, Clinton led off by talking about her mother’s health-care plan, which advocates say will provide universal coverage as well as cost savings.
Clinton noted that, as first lady in the 1990s, Hillary Clinton’s proposals to reform health care failed.
“My mom didn’t give up on trying to expand health care,” Clinton said. “She just went about it in a different way.”
Other topics included oil companies, college costs, public transportation and environmental preservation.
Responding to a question about gun control, Clinton said her mother supports background checks and the Brady bill.
But she added that Hillary Clinton would “empower local communities” to act as they saw fit on further gun-control measures.
“What you need to do here in Johnstown is different than what my mother thinks we need to do in New York City,” Chelsea Clinton said.
She also discussed Hillary Clinton’s proposal to make college grants and loans more accessible while lessening the debt burden on graduates.
That plan, along with other Clinton policies, strikes a chord with Pitt-Johnstown sophomore Josh Smith. The political science major has been knocking on doors and making calls for the campaign.
“The fact that’s she’s experienced is one of the most important things for me,” Smith said as he waited for Chelsea Clinton’s arrival Tuesday.
Health care is an important issue for Geistown resident Gloria Pipon, who held a Clinton sign as she sat on a bench near the park’s gazebo.
Pipon said Chelsea Clinton’s appearances could help the campaign connect with younger voters.
“The young people are more interested in this election than they have been in a long time,” she said.
Chelsea Clinton’s speech included several jabs at President Bush but no references to Democratic contender Barack Obama.
Obama’s Tuesday schedule included a stop in Washington County, where he talked with veterans. He pledged to provide more help for those who have served in the military.
“I will have no greater calling than standing by those who have answered our country’s call,” Obama said in a statement issued by his campaign.
Also Tuesday, Obama received an endorsement from state Auditor General Jack Wagner.
Before Chelsea Clinton’s Johnstown speech, city Mayor Tom Trigona announced that he was one of 100 mayors from across Pennsylvania to endorse Hillary Clinton.
Also included on that list are the mayors of Northern Cambria and Gallitzin boroughs.
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