Clark wraps 'True Grits' tour of South
Plus: Another endorsement for Dean; Edwards in the workplace
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Wesley Clark answers a question from a veteran at the VFW Post 3433 in Summerville, South Carolina.
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SUMMERVILLE, South Carolina (AP) -- Wesley Clark told South Carolina veterans that he wants to eliminate long waits at veterans' hospitals and do away with a law that prevents them from collecting disability and retirement benefits at the same time.
Clark made the pitch as he stopped at a Veterans of Foreign Wars post, wrapping up his two-day "True Grits Tour" of the South on the last day of 2003.
During the last presidential campaign, Sen. John McCain of Arizona stopped at the same spot near Charleston as he sought the GOP presidential nomination in this veteran-rich state. South Carolina holds its Democratic presidential primary February 3, a week after the New Hampshire primary. (CNN.com's interactive Election Calendar)
Jerry Hall, 67, asked Clark to emphasize veterans in his campaign ads -- putting more muscle and commitment behind the words.
Clark wouldn't commit to a stronger veterans' message in campaign ads that already play up his 30-year military career. "It seems to me my ads basically are doing that. They are showing me as a veteran," Clark said later, pointing out that he has a veterans' issue coordinator and a veterans' council.
The retired general urged the crowd of about 70 supporters and veterans "to go out and help me." Clark wanted the crowd to go to talk to their friends to win him support "because I will help veterans."
"I don't have as many friends as you can reach through those campaign ads," Hall said. "Unless you get out there and be a front-runner on this, somebody else is going to pick this up."
No matter what Democrat gets the nomination, they will have their hands full in South Carolina against President Bush, said Navy retiree Leonard Martinoli.
"They love George Bush -- they love the family," Martinoli said, referring to people in South Carolina's coastal region. Veterans aren't necessarily willing to fire Bush, said Martinoli, adding: "They don't think he's the worst guy in the world."
Stark endorses Dean
Rep. Pete Stark, D-California, has endorsed Howard Dean in his bid for the Democratic presidential nomination, the Dean campaign announced Wednesday.
Stark's endorsement gives the former Vermont Governor his 29th congressional endorsement and his seventh from the California delegation. Among those congressional endorsements is one senator, Democrat Patrick Leahy of Vermont.
Stark, a 30-year veteran of Congress, is the senior Democrat on the Joint Economic Committee.
Earlier this week, Dean got some strong words of support from another congressman, Rep. John Conyers, the Michigan Democrat who is the dean of the Congressional Black Caucus. Conyers made clear in a follow-up e-mail that he's reserving a formal endorsement until sometime right before the Michigan caucuses -- set for February 7. (CNN.com's interactive Election Calendar)
"As I have previously stated, it is clear to me that the governor, if nominated, would be a very strong candidate against George W. Bush. As I also have stated in the past, I do not plan to formally endorse a candidate for president until shortly before the Michigan caucuses."
Conyers said he "has no doubt ... that Howard Dean has run the best and strongest campaign among the Democratic candidates."
Edwards in the workplace
Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards announced a plan Wednesday to decrease workplace deaths and injuries by strengthening laws and hiring more people to enforce those laws.
Edwards, a North Carolina senator, said he wants to require the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to prosecute more cases, strengthen the punishment for worker deaths and protect whistle-blowers who point out problems with worker safety.
He said he would appoint a workers' advocate as head of OSHA, improve information available to injured workers and their families and require OSHA to be more responsive to the concerns of workers.
Workers should be given more protection on problems like ergonomic injuries, chemical reactions and injuries in nursing homes, he said.
Copyright 2004 The
Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
