Excitement surrounds Obama's visit to Oakland
Candidate calls for ending war, solving problems at home
Carla Marinucci, Chronicle Political Writer
Sunday, March 18, 2007Illinois Sen. Barack Obama, appearing before an adoring crowd in Oakland, one of the state's largest African American communities, delivered a rousing call Saturday evening for an end to the Iraq war, saying "we can't continue this occupation" because America has got "business right here at home.''
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"I am proud of the fact that I opposed this war from the start, that I stood up in 2002 and said this is a bad idea, that this is going to cost us billions of dollars and thousands of lives,'' Obama told the audience, which wildly cheered his statements. Noting that he has sponsored a bill calling for drawing down troops beginning on May 1 of this year, the senator said that "we've got to send a signal to (the Iraqi government) that America's not going to be there forever."
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Obama also talked about the recent scandal over poor treatment of Iraq war veterans at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center ...With his voice rising in anger, he said the nation must ensure "that we treat them right ... that we're getting them the treatment they need,'' and that "they don't end up homeless because nobody's looking after them.''
"Don't stand next to a flag and say you believe in supporting the troops when you forget them when you come home,'' he yelled, as the crowd cheered.Obama's campaign speech -- delivered on a gloriously sunny day with the elegant backdrop of Oakland's historic City Hall -- drew an enormous crowd that snaked for blocks throughout the downtown and filled the plazas and streets nearby. And the mood had the feel of a community picnic, with merchants selling Obama T-shirts, rap musicians hawking their wares, and a wide range of supporters, from curious Democrats and loyal grassroots activists to families with children.
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