Stars Shine on Democrats

Franklin Pierce students and faculty packed into the Cheshire community room last Monday to hear from celebrity supporters, including Kal Penn and Sarah Leigh Becker, on the importance of the student vote and why they should vote democrat this election.

The event, organized by the College Democrats, was organized to encourage students to get out and vote on Tuesday. Sean Doyle, president of the College Democrats, began the event by emphasizing the importance of the student vote in these elections.

Kal Penn, who appears on the popular television show House and the Harold and Kumar movies, has admired Barack Obama ever since he watched the speech he made at the 2004 Democratic National Convention. Even though his first impression of Obama was a "skinny guy with a funny name and big ears," he was moved by the speech and its focus on uniting America during a time of political division. He is a registered independent and was not active in politics before he started supporting Obama.

The actor believes that the environment is a big issue among students and said that Bush/McCain policies were not helping the issue. He supports Barack Obama for his work on the environment and his work with workers who had been laid-off from their jobs. He believes his experience in working with communities qualifies him for the position of president.

Penn also went into detail on the issues America faces through the experiences of young people he has met. He told the audience how a friend of his in Houston, Texas was offered $90,000 by a corporation to drive a truck in Iraq. Penn was frustrated that his friend, who wanted to go on to higher education, had to "choose between being in a war zone or minimum wage." He hears stories like these from many students and "wishes they were more isolated, but they are not."

He also talked about the powerful influence the youth vote can have on an election. He used Facebook as an example, which is now worth six billion dollars. He told students that if they have the power to make Facebook six billion dollars by sitting in front of a computer, imagine the power they can have on the elections. "The simple act of voting could make a huge difference," said Penn.

Penn claims that the polls "don't mean anything" because college students are not factored in them. That is because they only use cell phones. He encouraged students to vote regardless of what the polls in the news outlets told them.

In an interview after the event, Penn said that he was "mesmerized" by the the view of our school and appreciated the warm welcome he received here. "Everybody was engaged for the right reasons," said Penn.

Rachel Leigh Cook, star of 1999 romantic comedy She's All That, also spoke in support of the democratic candidates. She explained how this is an exciting and crucial time for Americans and an important time to make college more affordable. She also spoke of Shaheen's accomplishments in areas such as abortion and gay marriage. "I'm going to friend her on Facebook," said Cook.

Molly Shaheen, daughter of U.S. Senate Candidate Jeanne Shaheen, has been campaigning for her mother's election. She would like to see Barack Obama elected, but thinks it is important for him to have other democrats behind him. "Barack Obama is the captain and he needs his team," said Shaheen.

Posters, water bottles, and other campaign goodies were handed out at the event. There were even sheets with driving directions to the nearest place for students to vote and a list of democrats to vote for on the ticket. After the event, the group headed towards Keene, NH to speak to students at Keene State College.