Republicans Cross Over

By Jamie Hughes, AIJI Staff Writer

Republicans came out to support Senators Clinton and Obama Tuesday in Sioux Falls, S.D. Some Republicans have broadened their political horizons by campaigning and volunteering for the Democratic front-runners.

Jim Wainscoat, 67, re-registered three months ago to vote and volunteer for Clinton’s campaign.

I was a Republican for years, and I was hoping they’d come around and acknowledge issues like health care and education,” Wainscoat said. He said he thinks a woman could handle the job of commander-in-chief. He said if you lose it as commander-in-chief, nothing else matters. However, Wainscoat hasn’t always felt this way.

“When I was in Vietnam I was opposed to women [serving],” he said. Time served in the Washington, D.C., police force helped Wainscoat change his mind. He said when he was on duty, all the “bad guys” would humble down to a woman because they are afraid of women not having physical strength, making women more likely to use their weapons.

Although Wainscoat mentioned health care, he cited Iraq and education as some of the most pressing issues hitting America today. While serving on the police force in Washington, Wainscoat noticed that young people who were raised in poverty suffer. He said most of them don’t have a chance, except those working for the drug dealers with cash in pocket.

“The Thomas Edisons are out there and lost in the shuffle,” he said.

Wainscoat supported Clinton because she has a “warrior’s heart” and because women don’t make threats, they follow through, he said.

He also was cautionary to liken the Vietnam War to the present situation in Iraq. He said the Iraq is not like Vietnam.

“There comes a time you have to remove and support in other ways,” he said. “She won’t pull the rug out from under [the Iraqi people].”

After Obama secured the nomination on Tuesday, Wainscoat said he doesn’t think Obama will win in the general election because “everyone else has proved themselves” and he isn’t seasoned enough. Wainscoat said he would not volunteer for McCain because he “doesn’t need [the] help.”

Wainscoat spend most of his day Tuesday sitting outside the Barnes and Noble in Sioux Falls reading an issue of Newsweek with Obama on the cover. Wainscoat was joined by other Clinton campaigners. He said if Clinton were not to win the Democratic nomination, he would most likely vote for Republican Sen. John McCain (Ariz.) in the general election.

On the other side of the Democratic race is Terry Peters, 56, a volunteer for Obama’s campaign. Peters is a retired teacher from Sioux Falls.

Peters is still a registered Republican, but spent Tuesday, her first and only day to volunteer for Obama, making phone calls to citizens to make sure they knew where their polling location was, they had a way to get there and asking them who they had voted for if they had made it there.
Between McCain, Obama and Clinton, Peters said Obama seemed to be the best choice.

“[Obama] makes sense,” Peters said. “I like what he’s saying.”

Peters said the economy and gas prices are hitting the country, and herself, the hardest.

South Dakota teachers are among the lowest paid in the nation, and Peters said it was difficult to put her daughter through college on an educator’s salary.

“$17,000 a year was tough to come by but we made it through with no loans,” she said. Peter’s daughter, Emily recently graduated from the University of Minnesota, majoring in political science in psychology.

Emily is a registered Democrat who was campaigning with her mother.

Other than gas prices and the economy, Peters did not elaborate on other issues, but did say the senator’s endorsements by politicians like Ted Kennedy and John Edwards didn’t influence her. She said she doesn’t care who else is endorsing him.

“I think it’s wonderful if they want to support him,” Peters said.

She also said she doesn’t think there is any under the table or underhandedness going on in the Obama campaign. Peters said she carefully examined all Republican candidates and would have most likely vote for McCain if Obama had lost the primary race.

Terry and Emily both agreed they’d like to see Obama pick former Democratic Senator Tom Daschle (S.D.) as a running mate. They both intend to work on Obama’s campaign in the general election, although they’ll be in different states because Emily is moving to Missouri for a teaching job.

Emily said she was very proud of her mother because, to her knowledge, she had not participated in a campaign before.

“It was a really fun experience for us to be working on the campaign together,” Terry said.