Ten years ago I retired back home to North Carolina after 40 years of working nationally in the fields of defense, energy, and law enforcement. During that time I worked directly with five U.S. presidents.

I greatly admire the three U.S. Senators McCain, Clinton, and Obama running for president. Any of the three would bring a vast improvement over the current administration which has tragically squandered the Cold War "peace dividend" in terms of our reputation, military, and economy.

Sen. John McCain has long been a hero of mine though not my choice as President. Sen. Hillary Clinton has had my financial support in running a courageous race, and I would strongly support her if she wins the Democratic Primary.

However, the time for watching from afar in places like Iowa, New Hampshire, Ohio, and Pennsylvania is over; and it is time to decide here in North Carolina this coming week.

I will therefore be voting and working for Sen. Barack Obama in both the primary and general elections to be our next president. I simply believe he offers a unique approach and the best hope for responsible change sorely needed at home and abroad. He is my new hero.

Robert P. Kennel
Holly Springs

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Change in Washington seems to always be on people's minds whether it's an election year or not. If you believe the polls, American citizens feel that Washington has turned its back on the average Joe, so much so that they give Congress a lower approval rating than they give George Bush. That should bother U.S. senators and representatives enough that they get off of their bums and do their jobs by passing legislation aimed at improving the lives of the American people. Some of our elected officials have done just that while others have not. By pulling up voting records, you can easily see who best represents the people and who doesn't.

So I looked up the voting records of Sens. Clinton and Obama over the past two years, and here's what I found. Obama has missed 40% of the Senate votes over the past two years including an SCHIP (State Children's Health Insurance Program) vote, and legislation aimed at cutting predatory student loan lending which should make a higher education more affordable.

Obama's health plan mandates health insurance for all American children while leaving adults to fend for themselves. Well, if he's so eager to provide health insurance for children, why did he miss that SCHIP vote? If a child's parent winds up with a chronic disease without benefit of insurance coverage, how will that impact the child? Hillary Clinton is the only candidate left in the race with a plan to make sure that every American has health insurance coverage mandating that the insurance industry cover pre-existing conditions and mental health issues. Clinton is also the only candidate to pledge research dollars to the fight against breast cancer, and she has fought to make sure that our returning soldiers with traumatic brain injuries get the treatment they need.

Since Obama hasn't voted for us, why should we vote for him? If we're serious about change, Clinton is our candidate.

Kim Murphy
Asheville

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On Tuesday North Carolina voters have an opportunity to deliver a message to opportunistic and destructive race hustlers among us in this country. They can be found in churches, on university campuses, and almost anywhere a few dollars can be made and some attention can be sparked.

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