Public & Elected Figures

SENATORS

John Kerry, Massachusett US Senator, 2004 Pres. Candidate
"I believe that more than everyone else, Barack Obama can help our country turn the page and get America moving by uniting and ending the division that America faces. He has a superb talent, as all of you know, to communicate the best of our hopes and aspirations for American and the world.”(source)

Ted Kennedy, Massachusetts Senator
"It's time again for a new generation of leadership." (source)

Ben Nelson, Nevada Senator
Obama is the "prototype of what we need today." (source)

Patrick Leahy, US Senator, D Vermont
"We need a president who can reintroduce America to the world, and reintroduce America to ourselves." (source)

Tim Johnson, South Dakota Senator
"I'm supporting Senator Barack Obama in his race for the presidency because he is in a unique position to reach across party lines and unite our country," Johnson said in release from the Obama campaign. "The problem with Washington has become the increasingly partisan nature that produces more roadblocks than results. I believe Senator Obama is a candidate of change who will bridge the partisan divide and deliver progress for our nation." (source)

Phil Leventis, SC State Senator
“When the Senator was born, I was in high school and John Kennedy was president,” Leventis continued. “John Kennedy called us to do things larger than ourselves. I see in Senator Obama that same ability.” (source)

Kay Patterson, SC State Senator
“I believe Barack Obama is a man that can bring this country together, a man who can work across party lines and get America back on the right footing,” Patterson said “I believe he’ll change the image of America across the globe." (source)

Harris Woffard, Fmr. PA Senator
"I've waited a long time to feel about a public figure the way I felt about John Kennedy, Bobby Kennedy and Martin Luther King." (source)

Glenn Reese, SC State Senator
"A President Obama would be able to bring everyone to the table and stop all the bickering in Washington," Reese said. "Obama seems to have the total package." (source)

Bill Perkins, NY State Senator

Kasim Reed, Georgia State Senator

Bill Bradley, US Senator, NJ

Claire McCaskill, US Senator from Missouri

Gary Hart, Colorado Senator ( Twice Pres. Candidate)

Dick Durbin, US Senator of Illinois
(source)

Gil Cedillo, CA State Senator
(source)

Ned Lamont, US Senator, Connecticut

Mrs. Jean Carnahan, Fmr Senator of Missouri




REPRESENTATIVES

Barbara Lee, California Representative
"He embodies the hope and new direction that our country so desperately needs. As I've watched Senator Obama campaign for the presidency, I am convinced that he is a real agent of change; a man who can lead our nation in a new and positive direction." (source)

Paul Hodes, US Representative of NH
“Campaigning across New Hampshire this fall, people told me that they believe this country can be great again—but they know that we need a new kind of politics if we’re going to make progress on the issues that confront us around the world. In Barack Obama, we have a leader who will turn the page on our narrow-minded foreign policy, a leader who will end the war in Iraq and who realizes, just like JFK and Ronald Reagan did, that being a strong nation means having the strength to talk to our enemies.” (source)

Steve Rothman, Representative of New Jersey
"Barack Obama is the best candidate for President, with the strength and character to change our broken politics and restore America’s standing in the world. He will engage in the aggressive diplomacy necessary to hold countries that pose the greatest threats to our national security accountable." (source)

Earl Blumenauer, Orgeon State Representative
"Sen. Obama is demonstrating a unique ability not just to unite Democrats, not just to bring in the vast pool of independent voters that are ultimately going to play such a critical role, but I'm convinced based on what I have seen, what I've heard, what I know, that Sen. Obama can unite America,"
(source)


Gwen Moore, Representative of Wisconsin
(source)

Mike Burket, Idaho Rep.

Edgar Malepeai, Idaho Rep.

Nicole Lefavour, Idaho Rep.

Les Bock, Idaho Rep.

James Ruchti, Idaho Rep.

Bobby Rush, Illinois State Rep.

Emil Jones, Illinois State Rep.

Jesse Jackson Jr. Rep. Illinois

Rick Boucher,Representative of Virginia

Elijah Cummings, Representative Maryland

Patrick Kennedy, Rhode Island State Representative
(source)




CHAIRS, CONGRESS & OTHER

Jim Oberstar, Minnesota Congressman
"He has shown an ability to project a soaring image of a future for America, to lift the spirits of young people," (source)

Carol Shea-Porter, US Congresswoman NH
"I respect all of them," she said of the Democratic presidential candidates. "But watching him and listening to and watching how people respond to him, he is, and can really be, our future." Shea-Porter will serve as a national co-chairwoman of Obama's campaign. (source)

Betty McCollum, NM Congressman
"As you all know, every candidate in this race is experienced and experience in of itself is not enough. With that experience has to come good judgment, sound choices. I believe that Barack Obama will use his experience to use good choices and sound judgment." (source)

Dave Loebsack, IA Congressman
"After talking to a lot of folks, independents and even Republicans, at the grassroots level, I believe that with Barack Obama we can do better at transcending those bitter partisan differences that I think were intensified since 2001," said Loebsack. "And the American people are ready for that." (source)

Arthur Davis, Alabama US Congressman

Bennie Thompson, Mississipi Congressman

John Conyers, US Congressman, D Michigan

Hank Johnson, Georgia Congressman

Patrick Murphy, PA Congressman

Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller, and State Treasurer Michael Fitzgerald
"We believe that Senator Obama has the vision to meet the challenges America faces, and that his message of hope and unity will lead us to a new kind of politics where we are not defined by our divisions but united by our love of country."
(source)

Waring Howe, SC DNC Member, Attorney, Superdelegate from the Charlestown County.

Dick Harpootian, Fmr Chairman of SC Democratic Party

Wendy Jacquet, Idaho House Minority Leader

Ted Sorenson, JFK Advisor/ Speech Writer
“Obama: Right from the start.” (source)

Zbigniew Brzezinski, Fmr. Pres. Carter’s NSA
"Obama is clearly more effective and has the upper hand. He has a sense of what is historically relevant and what is needed from the United States in relationship to the world." (source)

Thomas Daschle, Fmr. Dem. House Majority Leader
Daschle said Obama has a "great capacity to unify our country and inspire a new generation of young Americans, just as I was inspired by the Kennedys and Martin Luther King when I was young." (source)




GOVERNORS

Jim Hodges, Fmr Governor of South Carolina
“Barack Obama has been bringing people together to create change all his life. He’s the right choice to turn the page on the divisive politics that have led to partisan gridlock and inaction." (source)

Rod Blagojevich, Illinois Governor

Janet Napolitano, Governor of Arizona

Deval Patrick, Governor of Massachusetts

Tony Knowles, Fmr Governor of Alaska

Tim Keane, Governor of Virginia
(source)

Ray Mabus, Fmr Governor of Mississipi

Jim Doyle, Wisconsin Governor
“Obama listens to competing points of view, but makes strong decisions," Doyle said. "He has campaigned like he will govern, by bringing people together and inspiring average Americans to participate in the political process so that we can take on the special interests and the great challenges we face.” (source)

Kathleen Sebelius, Kansas Governor
"I think he represents the kind of leader that we need for the future of the country," Sebelius told The Associated Press. "I think he brings the hope and optimism that we really need to restore our place in the world, as well as to bring this country together and really tackle the challenges that we have." (source)




MAYORS

Richard Daley, Mayor of Chicago
"Here you have not only an Illinoisan, but a Chicagoan who is a major contender for the highest office in the land. . . . When in our history have we ever had a favorite son this close to [the White House]? Why not get on board early?" (source)

Douglas Wilder, Mayor of Richmond VA
"Our country needs a leader who can unite and inspire our citizens, a leader who can see things with a fresh eye, and a leader who can move beyond the parochialisms of the past. We need a leader whom people want to rally around with the confidence that positive change is on the way,'' Wilder said in a statement. "Sen. Barack Obama brings forth all of these qualities. I am tremendously impressed with him." (source)

Adrien Fenty, Mayor of Washington DC
"We are the only capital of a democracy in the world without a vote in the national legislature," Fenty added. "Senator Obama has committed to empower those who have been locked out of our political process for far too long, and his commitment to helping Washington obtain full representation in Congress is particularly important to our residents." (source)

Bill Beck, Mayor of Durham, NC

Frank Cownie, Mayor of Des Moines, IA

Sheila Dixon, Mayor of Baltimore MD

Dave Bieter, Mayor of Boise, Idaho

Shirley Franklin, Mayor of Atlanta


Pop Culture Figures

Caroline Kennedy, Daughter of John F. Kennedy
"I have never had a president who inspired me the way people tell me that my father inspired them. But for the first time, I believe I have found the man who could be that president — not just for me, but for a new generation of Americans." (source)

Susan Eisenhower, Grandaughterof Dwight D. Eisenhower
"The biggest barrier to rolling up our sleeves and preparing for a better future is our own apathy, fear or immobility. We have been living in a zero-sum political environment where all heads have been lowered to avert being lopped off by angry, noisy extremists. I am convinced that Barack Obama is the one presidential candidate today who can encourage ordinary Americans to stand straight again; he is a man who can salve our national wounds and both inspire and pursue genuine bipartisan cooperation. Just as important, Obama can assure the world and Americans that this great nation's impulses are still free, open, fair and broad-minded." (source)

Ethel Kennedy, Senator Robert Kennedy’s Widow

Rev. Jesse Jackson Sr. -Civil Rights Leader, Rainbow Coalition

Toni Morrison, Author
“In addition to keen intelligence, integrity and a rare authenticity, you exhibit something that has nothing to do with age, experience, race or gender and something I don’t see in other candidates. That something is a creative imagination which, coupled with brilliance, equals wisdom,” she wrote. (source)

Moveon.org
In a resounding vote, MoveOn.org Political Action's members nationwide voted to endorse Senator Barack Obama for the Democratic nomination for President. The group, with 3.2 million members nationwide and over 1.7 million members in Super Tuesday states, will immediately begin to mobilize on behalf of Senator Obama. The vote favored Senator Obama to Senator Clinton by 70.4% to 29.6%. (source)

Maria Shriver

George Clooney
"He possesses the one quality that you cannot teach and you can't learn. … He is a leader. He walks into a room and you want to follow him somewhere, anywhere. And … I've only seen that a couple of times in my life." (source)

Oprah Winfrey
“I think his sense of hope and optimism for this country and what is possible for the United States is the kind of thing that I would like to get behind."
(source)

Edward Norton
"It would be a privilege to support a guy like that," the actor said. "In my adult life there have been so few people in the political spectrum that I have really gotten excited about. I think he's got the goods." (source)

Will Smith
Clearly meaning that "third act" would be a run for the White House, Smith added, "There's absolutely going to be a third act and I believe [Obama] is going to be the hero." Not a bad endorsement from a guy who has made quite a career of playing heroes of all kinds the past few years. (source)

Sheila Johnson, Co-founder of BET, ex-wife to Bob Johnson (who;s supporting Hillary)

Gary Hirshberg, CEO of Stonyfield Farm

Kathleen Turner, Broadway and Film Star


Newspapers

San Francisco Chronicle, San Francisco CA
"Of all the candidates who talk about change, Barack Obama has made the case most forcefully and most convincingly. He gets our endorsement for the Democratic nomination." (source)

Austin Chronicle, Austin TX
"Like a veteran slugger on deck, Hillary Clinton has campaigned principally on the logic that it is her turn at bat. Democrats must resist the instinct to select the next in line and grab instead the best hitter on the bench. That is Barack Obama." (source)

NYpost, New York New York
"At least Obama has the ability to inspire. Again, we don't agree much with Obama on substantive issues. But many Democrats will. He should be their choice on Tuesday." (source)

The Rock Hill Herald, SC
"But the principle reason we endorse Obama in Saturday’s primary is because he appears to have the skills and the genuine desire to engender new hope, bring more people — especially younger voters — into the political process, bring the nation together and restore America’s image around the globe." (source)

Chicago Sun Times, IL
"We endorse him convinced that he could lead America in directions that the other Democrats could not." (source)

The Reno Gazette-Journal, NV

The Santa Barbara Independent, CA

The Sacramento-Bee, CA

Portsmouth Herald, NH

Boston Globe, Mass

Marshalltown-Republican Newspaper, ID

Las Vegas- Review Journal, NV

Nashua Telegraph, NH

Valley News, NH


Friends and Acquaintances

Professor Laurence H. Tribe ’62, who employed Obama as a research assistant when the senator was still a student, said that Obama had the potential to become one of the best presidents in United States history.
“We are dealing with someone who has a chance of being the greatest president since Franklin Roosevelt,” Tribe said.
He briefly paused, and then he added, “Well, maybe I could drop the Franklin Roosevelt part.” (source)