Behind the Headlines

By Charles Slat
Sen. Barack Obama’s campaign stop in Monroe was unique not only because of the venue — a barbeque behind the Plumbers & Pipe Fitters union hall — but because of the Democratic heavy hitters it drew.
During his speech in Detroit earlier in the day, Sen. Obama dropped a lot of Michigan names, including that of U.S. Rep. John D. Dingell who, he said, “had to be in Monroe.”
That’s because Rep. Dingell was serving as a warm-up man in advance of Sen. Obama’s visit here. But others who chose to show up in Monroe were Gov. Jennifer Granholm, Sens. Carl Levin and Debbie Stabenow, Rep. John Conyers, Rep. Marcy Kaptur of Toledo and others.
My guess is that until Rep. Dingell, and later Sen. Obama, acknowledged the dignitaries in attendance, not all the barbeque attendees knew who they were picnicking with.
By the way, those hoping to crash the party without snaring one of the tickets that were distributed in advance might not have had a lot of luck. Detroit Ave., where the union hall is located, was shut down to all but authorized traffic and ticketholders. The picnic area also was cordoned off and secured by police.