Lawrence residents welcome different direction for nation

It was a Democratic party Thursday night, as more than 200 supporters of Sen. John Kerry gathered at Abe & Jake’s Landing to watch him spell out his vision for America as the Democratic presidential nominee.

State Rep. Paul Davis, one of the hosts of the “watch party,” said the guests included plenty of newcomers to electoral activism.

“I’ve been coming to Democratic Party events for 15 years,” he said. “I can’t say how many new faces are here tonight. I think it’s symbolic of a lot of people who aren’t normally involved in politics, who are excited about John Kerry and John Edwards.”

As if on cue, a woman walked up to Davis as he was speaking those words.

“I’ve never been to a Democratic Party event before,” she said, before slipping back into the crowd.

There were plenty of politicos on hand as well, including State Rep. Barbara Ballard, district attorney candidate Charles Branson, state Senate candidate Marci Francisco and Douglas County Commission Chairman Charles Jones.

The event wasn’t without glitches. Gov. Kathleen Sebelius called shortly after 8 p.m. to speak to the crowd by speakerphone, but technical problems put a stop to her talk before it began.

Although the Kerry-Edwards campaign reportedly ordered this week’s speakers at the Democratic National Convention to refrain from attacks on President Bush, the biggest rounds of applause at Abe & Jake’s came when Kerry himself took shots at Atty. Gen. John Ashcroft and Vice President Dick Cheney.

Lisa Rasor, who attended the event with her girlfriend, said she feared what would happen to gay rights if Kerry lost in November.

Kerry supporters cheer on the Democratic presidential candidate during the party's national convention. At front from left are Jason Davis, Sara Davis, Jed Davis and Julie Gottschall. More than 200 people attended the watch party Thursday at Abe & Jake's Landing.

“God knows we don’t want another four years of Bush,” Rasor said.

Abe & Jake’s wasn’t the only spot for watching Kerry’s speech. At Dean Shutt and Margaret Doty’s home on Barker Street, about 15 people showed up, most finding out about the event from the Kerry Web site or Moveon.org.

“I just wanted to be around other people who think like me,” said Kiyan Sharifian, who recently moved to Lawrence from Salt Lake City.

That like-mindedness included a near-universal opposition to Bush.

“It’s not so much that I disagree with Bush’s policies, which I do, but it’s more about the outstanding level of incompetency this administration has shown on every level,” Shutt said. “They haven’t done anything right.”

Back at Abe & Jake’s, however, Ballard said Democrats weren’t just anti-Bush; they were pro-Kerry. And she liked how Kerry sounded notes of empathy for America’s poor and downtrodden — with a message that “hope is on the way.”

“Most people want to know, ‘Do you understand what I’m going through?'” Ballard said. “That’s what people want their government to do, is help them.”