Sunday, March 16, 2008

Axelrod: A "Major" Reason Wright Didn't Speak At Obama's Announcement Was...It Was Too Cold   [Byron York]

Top Obama adviser David Axelrod just told reporters that the weather was one of the reasons Rev. Jeremiah Wright did not speak at Obama's presidential candidacy announcement last year in Springfield, Illinois. When asked on a conference call why Wright did not speak, as had been planned, Axelrod said, "Part of what happened was that it was seven degrees in Springfield that day, and we truncated the program, and that was certainly a major part of the motivation there."

When a reporter followed up, asking, "So you're saying that Rev. Wright did not speak because it was too cold?" Axelrod broadened his answer. "That was part of the decision," he said. "There was no doubt that there was controversy surrounding him, and we didn't want to make him a target and a distraction on a day when Sen. Obama was going to announce his candidacy."

03/16 01:33 PMShare