Obamarama reaches Mellon Arena

‘ ‘ ‘ It was like waiting for a rock concert. ‘ ‘ ‘ A line of people of all ages stretched… ‘ ‘ ‘ It was like waiting for a rock concert. ‘ ‘ ‘ A line of people of all ages stretched nearly two blocks outside of Mellon Arena. Hawkers sold Obama T-shirts and buttons to the waiting crowd while the line progressed slowly into the Igloo. ‘ ‘ ‘ Danielle Collier, an out-of-work registered nurse, waited nearly four hours before moving into the stadium to see Sen. Barack Obama, the Democratic presidential nominee, speak. ‘ ‘ ‘ Tim DeVita, a junior at Woodland Hills High School and a Pittsburgh native, waited almost two hours. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘I just wanted to see him in person,’ he said. ‘ ‘ ‘ At around 5:30 p.m. yesterday, Obama took the stage before an almost-full Mellon Arena, surrounded by lights, media and supporters. ‘ ‘ ‘ One week remains until Election Day, and that was a point Obama drove home. Voters, Obama said, are ‘one week away from bringing change to America, one week away from politics that favors common sense over ideology.’ ‘ ‘ ‘ Obama used the phrase ‘one week’ 16 times during the course of his roughly one-hour-long speech. ‘ ‘ ‘ The majority of Obama’s speech, which was occasionally interrupted by chants of ‘Yes we can,’ and ‘O-ba-ma,’ focused on Sen. John McCain, highlighting issues dealing with the economy and reinforcing his support in the greater Pittsburgh area. ‘ ‘ ‘ The McCain Campaign, Obama said, appeals to the fears of the American people. Obama said that this will not unite the country when it needs a new direction, instead of ‘more of the same.’ ‘ ‘ ‘ Obama also said that the McCain campaign uses tactics that allow him to avoid talking about the economy. If McCain spoke on his views about the economy, Obama said, McCain would lose the race. Obama said McCain supported the deregulation of the economy, which contributed to the current economic turmoil. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘John McCain may be worried about losing an election,’ said Obama, ‘but I’m worried about Americans losing their jobs, their homes.’ ‘ ‘ ‘ Obama went on to say that he would not raise taxes on the U.S. middle class, and he would roll back President George W. Bush’s tax cuts for the wealthy. Obama said that McCain’s plan would give money to the same bankers who began the current economic crisis. ‘ ‘ ‘ Obama also justified his support for Congress’ $700 billion bailout plan by saying he thinks it will stop foreclosures. ‘ ‘ ‘ According to Obama, 760,000 jobs have been lost this year, and the trickle down theory of economics, which McCain supports, will not bring them back. Obama said he intends to expand public works projects in order to get those jobs back and rebuild the U.S. infrastructure. ‘ ‘ ‘ The Democratic nominee said that he intends to begin a program that will make college tuition affordable for students who enter civil or military service and would not be able to otherwise pay for secondary education, ‘no ifs, ands or buts.’ He did not mention what would pay for these programs. ‘ ‘ ‘ The Iraq war, Obama said, needs to end. Obama said that he intends to tell the Iraqi government to step up and take control of its own nation, in order to bring U.S. troops out of harm’s way. ‘ ‘ ‘ The Illinois senator emphasized national unity and avoided addressing the comments about Western Pennsylvania made by state Rep. John Murtha, D-Pa. ‘ ‘ ‘ Remington Markos, the president of the Fairmount State University young Democrats, said after the event that he wasn’t surprised Obama, the first black presidential nominee for a major party, didn’t mention the issue. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘I think the that the issue of race is over, the issue is done.’ said Markos. ‘He should have addressed it, but it’s not really needed.’