Obama Stays on Message Despite Plane Incident
(ST LOUIS) Despite a mechanical glitch on his campaign plane that caused Barack Obama and the traveling press corps to be diverted to St. Louis, Obama made every effort to stay on message today and talk about the economy. The scheduled campaign stop in Charlotte, North Carolina was canceled, however Obama called into the 200 person event to explain what happened.
Speaking from a conference room at a nearby airport hotel in St. Louis, Obama said, "I'm so sorry that I'm not down there, we had a little glitch on our plane. It was nothing to worry about although it gave the press some exciting things to write about."
Obama then veered off into an almost ten minute version of his campaign stump, telling the North Carolina audience that his economic plan will jumpstart the economy.
"If you are satisfied with the way things are going now, then you should vote for John McCain, if you think that we need a fundamental change and we have to grow this economy and grow this economy from the bottom up so that ordinary Americans can achieve their American dream, that we are building a better future for our kids then we've got a clear choice in this election and we've got to seize it."
The campaign is now working furiously to set up a press conference so that Obama can deliver the remarks prepared for the Charlotte event. The Missouri Republican Party is coordinating a conference call to respond to the unofficial visit to the state.
Earlier today, upon landing in St. Louis, Obama brushed off the plane incident and said it was "just a lot of excitement." He jokingly waved at the cameras on the plane and said, "We're doing ok!" and later added, "Just thought we'd spice things up a little bit today."
The National Transportation Safety Board is now investigating the incident.