| | Published February 4th, 2009
| A Reporter's Journey in the Age of Obama: Mark Curtis
| | By Lee Borrowman | | |
One of the Bay Area's favorite newsmen, veteran political reporter and former KTVU anchor Mark Curtis, will be at the Lafayette Book Store, 3569 Mt. Diablo Blvd., on Sunday February 8thfrom 3:00-5:00 signing copies of his new book, "Age of Obama: A Reporter's Journey with Clinton, McCain and Obama in the Making of the President 2008."
Curtis, a Danville resident and occasional contributor to the Lamorinda Weekly, spent most of 2008 on the Presidential campaign trail working as a freelance reporter, blogger and political analyst. "It was an amazing journey; the political 'road trip'of a lifetime," he says.
The book, which was released on Inauguration Day, January 20, "chronicles my visits to over thirty states, as I followed the candidates from Iowa and New Hampshire in January; to the end of the primary campaign in South Dakota and Montana in June; then onto the conventions in Denver and St. Paul in late summer. It's not just the story of the candidates and campaigns, but the story of many average American voters I met and interviewed in bars, restaurants, shops, at political rallies and on Main St. in many towns across our great nation. It's the story of their hopes, dreams and aspirations for this election," explains Curtis.
The following is an excerpt from Chapter 8 - North Carolina:
The location was the "Lexington BBQ" out on U.S. Highway 64 west of Interstate 85.
Bill Clinton and supporters gathered there at 11:30 this morning. He shook hands and posed for pictures with about 200 people, all the while imploring them to go vote for Hillary in the North Carolina primary.
Then the ex-president headed in for lunch, and we knew this would be a long wait, no matter that he was scheduled to be in Winston-Salem at 1 p.m. Finally about 1:20, Mr. Clinton emerged from lunch, shook hands, and signed books for some people, then stopped to greet me. As he shook my hand, I inquired, "How was the barbecue Mr. President?" "It was unbelievable." he said, "The barbecue was good. The hush puppies were good," he added. "Anything else?" I asked. "If I had the ice cream, I'd need a nap," Clinton said. He walked a few steps further and - still waving to the crowd - got into his Secret Service van.
At first I wondered, "What was I thinking? This is the most critical election in 60 years, and I ask the ex-president and husband of one of the candidates about food? Then I thought, "Lighten up, Mark. Campaigns are supposed to be fun, too!
Curtis is currently working on his Doctorate in Educational Leadership at St. Mary's College in Moraga.
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Lamorinda Weekly, Moraga CA