A shout went up from a line of people curled around the Ellicott Square Building Sunday afternoon as John Kerry drove by, waving, in a black Chevy Suburban, escorted by police vehicles.
And when he walked into the glassy atrium of the downtown Buffalo office building, Kerry was greeted by over 500 Western New Yorkers chanting, "Kerry! Kerry! Kerry!"
Hours after an important debate and two days before the Super Tuesday primaries, Kerry - a clear front-runner in New York state, and the leading candidate for the Democratic nomination - held an hour-long town hall meeting on the issues of jobs and the economy.
"I came here to mark with you the beginning of the end of the Bush presidency," said Kerry.
Kerry's event was the second major candidate appearance in Buffalo, following John Edwards's rally on Feb. 20.
While Edwards held his event in an intimate community center in the Black Rock section of Buffalo, Kerry greeted the city in a huge downtown building guarded by the throngs of media, staffers and security detail that accompany the front-runner.
Rep. Louise Slaughter (D-N.Y.) introduced Kerry to the audience, calling him the "greatest candidate I ever saw." Slaughter told the audience, which was chanting Kerry's name, that Kerry was the candidate that economically depressed Western New York needs.
"Up here in Western New York, we know what we need," Slaughter said. "We need jobs for people to get back to work."
When asked by an audience participant how the federal government could assist Western New York, Kerry outlined his plans for economic recovery.
Kerry said he plans to alter the tax code to eliminate areas that allow companies to use off shore accounts to avoid taxes, enforce North American Free Trade Agreement side agreements that protect labor and the environment, make energy more affordable and create jobs.
Kerry was quick to qualify his statements about free trade by noting he voted for NAFTA. Fellow candidate Senator John Edwards is trying to distinguish himself from front running Kerry by campaigning on his opposition to NAFTA.
"I believe in fair trade," Kerry said. "But we deserve a president who understands that if you give the American worker a fair playing field to compete on, there is no one in the world he can't compete with."
Kerry mentioned his plan to repeal the Bush tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans several times. Kerry said he plans to use this money to not only to bolster the economy, but also help fund education and create a federal fund to provide for affordable health care.
"I'm a Democrat who believes in creating jobs," Kerry said. Kerry cited the need to create jobs that pay well in an economy that he hopes will be run for people and products instead of one full of perks for corporations.
Kerry attacked Bush's stance on the economy, saying that his plan included ideas that Bush has never said before. Instead, Kerry argued that Bush harped on his tax cut plan while the country lost 3 million jobs.
John Kerry's daughter Vanessa, currently a third-year medical student, spoke to an overflow crowd at the Pearl Street Grill on behalf of her father.
Vanessa Kerry outlined the Kerry campaign's plan for affordable higher education, including a "Service for College" plan, which would allow students to serve in a variety of community service positions in exchange for four paid years of education at a state college.
"Everyone deserves the opportunity to go to school but also to graduate without the equivalent of a mortgage (in debt)," Vanessa Kerry said.
Military service was another campaign theme drawn out by a long lost service member who served with Kerry in Vietnam in attendance. After graduation from Yale University, Kerry served in the Navy as a Swift boat officer in Vietnam. According to the campaign Web site, he earned a Silver Star, a Bronze Star and three Purple Hearts for his service.
Slaughter, the representative who introduced Kerry, contrasted his record in Vietnam with recent charges that have appeared in the media that Bush did not fulfill his military service during that period.
"He is an extraordinary war hero," Slaughter said. "Do you think he's going to take any crap from a man who didn't show up in Alabama?"
Justin Martin, president of UB's College Democrats, said he was impressed by Kerry's interaction with the crowd and what Kerry had to say.
"I thought the speech that Sen. Kerry gave today was excellent," Martin said.
Ten states go to the polls on Tuesday for a total of 1151 delegates. Kerry is currently the top contender with 754 delegates.
His nearest opponent is John Edwards, who has 220. Just over 2,100 delegates are needed to win the nomination.
"We're going to crisscross this country together," Kerry said. "We're going to prove by November that the only person in the United States of America that deserves to be laid off is George W. Bush."
Photo: Meredith Forrest Kulwicki
