Warm Reaction to Clinton-Obama Ticket

By John Wray


BOSTON-- On the day of the Pennsylvania primary, which could go a long way toward determining the Democratic candidate for the general election, Boston University students reacted positively to the idea of a dual Democratic ticket.
Across the board, students said that while a ticket may not eliminate their trepidation about the other candidates, it would help to calm their fears. They also questioned whether it would be feasible.
Those who called themselves Democrats said that they would vote for any Democrat over McCain.
“I can’t really put my name behind a hyper-conservative campaign,” said Eric Brassard from Hollis, N.H. Brassard said that, while he would rather vote for Hillary, he would back Obama, despite his lack of political experience. “He can hold a room like nobody I’ve ever seen,” said Brassard.
Kelly Paice, a 21-year-old junior who is double-majoring in broadcast journalism and political science, said she was raised Republican but has some liberal leanings. She would vote for McCain over Hillary or Obama. While Paice said she dislikes Clinton, she had a lukewarm reaction to the idea of Obama as president.
While she would vote for McCain, she thought that Obama would be a better choice than Hillary. “I think he’d be able to bring a new direction to our country that I think a lot of people feel we need,” said Paice of Obama.
Macky Bastien, a 28-year-old banking and finance graduate student, said that she likes Obama for his “positive outlook.” When asked if she would still vote Democratic if Hillary got the ticket, Bastien paused before answering yes. But Bastien said that she would be happier if Obama were Clinton’s running mate.
Even non-U.S. citizens feel that they have a vested interest in the election results. Dan Levy, a journalism graduate student, is a citizen of Canada who was raised in Montreal. Levy said people are more politically engaged in the United States, and that each election brings drastically different viewpoints to the table. “What happens in the U.S. affects the rest of the world,” said Levy. Levy said that he would vote for Obama over Clinton, because Clinton has run a negative campaign.
At the same time, Levy said that he didn’t think that it was possible for them to even run on the same ticket. “It would almost be hypocritical at this point for her to invite him onto her ticket,” said Levy. “But,” said Levy. “I do think that would be a really strong ticket and I would certainly vote for it.”
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