NASHUA, N.H. (AP) _ Caroline Kennedy, the daughter of former President John F. Kennedy, urged New Hampshire residents on Wednesday to support President Barack Obama in his re-election bid during a short campaign tour in the Granite State.
Kicking-off her two-day campaign, Kennedy stopped at the Obama campaign headquarters in Nashua on Wednesday evening to rally support for the Democrat.
Her trip comes just days after the president traveled to Oyster River High School in Durham to seek support for his re-election campaign against Republican Mitt Romney, the former governor of Massachusetts, who has a vacation home on New Hampshire's Lake Winnipesaukee.
In a crowded room adorned with Obama campaign posters, Kennedy spoke of the president's accomplishments in Washington, such as repealing “don't ask don't tell'' in the military, investing in clean energy and saving the American auto industry.
She also commended him for his work on education, an issue she championed for many years as the vice chairwoman of the Fund for Public Schools in New York City.
“That's why it drives me crazy when people say, `What has he done?''' said Kennedy, who now serves as honorary director for the fund.
She drew parallels between Obama and her late father, saying she believes the president has the power to inspire the country and that the country faces a crossroads as it did in 1960.
Kennedy told supporters that she believes Obama represents a vision of opportunity, fairness and a better future, while the “Republican vision, like Richard Nixon, would turn the clock back on so much of the social justice and economic problems.''
She said she believes Obama exemplifies the qualities of leadership her father wrote about in “Profiles of Courage,'' including “the courage to keep fighting for all Americans, no matter what special interests or personal attacks are used against them.''
One of Obama's early supporters in his first presidential campaign, Kennedy endorsed the then-U.S. senator as a Democratic candidate in a January 2008 New York Times op-ed piece.
Titled “A President Like My Father,'' Kennedy wrote that she believes Obama inspires people of all ages with a “sense of possibility.''
She was later appointed to lead Obama's vice presidential search committee.
“I really believe Barack Obama is fighting for the America that I believe in,'' Kennedy said, urging New Hampshire Democrats to make sure they are registered and ready to vote come November.
Karl Stamm, a registered Republican who traveled from Hudson to hear Kennedy speak, said he is also inspired by Obama.
“I have a lot of Republican friends and I've been trying to turn them around, I'm trying to get them to see the light,'' he said, adding that he is tired of what he sees as Republican tactics in Congress.
While he thought Kennedy did a good job to rally support, Stamm said he thought the president's Monday visit was more “inspiring.''
But, Nashua resident Jenn Craffey said, Kennedy's endorsement helped sway her to support Obama.
“I've always had a very strong feeling for President Kennedy and the good things he did for our country,'' she said. “His daughter is a wonderful person and I'm glad that she's supporting Obama.''
Kennedy next heads to the Puritan Conference Center in Manchester and Hart's Turkey Farm in Meredith.
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