When Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry relocated a planned rally at the state Capitol this past September, he vowed to return to downtown Madison. He kept his promise Thursday, appearing with Bruce Springsteen and Dave Grohl in front of more than 80,000 attendants who flooded the blocks at West Washington Avenue and spilled out past the Capitol steps.
Kerry, likening his campaign to Springsteen's lyrics
o retreat baby, no surrender,"" said in five days Americans will have the choice to lead the United States in a better direction.
""America's reputation in the world is on the ballot in five days,"" he said.
Before Kerry took the stage, state Democrats including U.S. Rep. Tammy Baldwin, D-Madison, and U.S. Sen. Russ Feingold stressed Wisconsin's importance in the election.
Baldwin said by voting for Kerry, Wisconsin residents are sending a message to the rest of the world that ""in Wisconsin and in America, it is still OK to say, 'I have a dream.'""
During his speech, Kerry strongly criticized President Bush for failed policies regarding the war on terror, stressing it is imperative the United States build foreign allies in the war on terror.
""The United States of America is better off ... when we have a leader who understands that we're better off building strong alliances, bringing people together and not going it alone, not abandoning the world,"" he said.
The Bush administration tries to scare the American public by placing the blame of political miscues on everyone but themselves, Kerry said. He claimed Bush believes the buck stops everywhere but at the Oval Office.
""And we need a president who takes responsibility and who understands what being commander in chief is all about.""
Kerry also stressed Bush's shortcomings in domestic policy, highlighting the fact that Bush is the first president in 70 years under whom the number of available jobs has decreased.
""They all had recessions,"" he said, referring to the 11 presidents during that 70-year span. ""They all had a stock market dip. They had bigger wars. But they created jobs in America and so will I.""
Kerry also said he will promote renewable forms of energy, claiming by 2020, 20 percent of all electricity in the United States will come from alternative fuel sources.
Students filled balconies of houses on West Washington Avenue throughout the event. UW-Madison seniors Erin Prendergast and Vivian Intermont, who live on the street that became the stomping grounds of thousands of rally attendants, said they enjoyed the experience of having a political rally so close to campus.
The political rally came even closer to their residence, when they had the opportunity to invite Bruce Springsteen and his wife over for a beverage.
""We asked 'Do you want a beer?' and they said 'yeah,'"" Intermont said.
