MANCHESTER, N.H.
OPRAH WINFREY'S Sunday appearance here for Barack Obama was a compelling event, but will it have a lasting impact?
Endorsements serve several purposes: They can highlight a candidate's record and leadership, draw a crowd for the hopeful to address, win him or her media coverage, and help in recruiting political troops.
Oprah, whose star power also brought out large audiences in Iowa and South Carolina, was an obvious success in the last three categories. Because her high-profile endorsement invites comparison, I asked most of the campaigns for a list of some of their significant or interesting supporters.
Here's my subjective (and necessarily non-exhaustive) take on those endorsements.
Hillary Clinton counts Secretary of State Madeleine Albright in her camp and also has the nod of former NATO commander Wesley Clark. But here are five people who may ultimately prove more important to her: in Iowa, former governor Tom Vilsack; and in New Hampshire, First Lady Dr. Susan Lynch; former first husband Bill Shaheen, a savvy politico; Terie Norelli, the Democrats' first female speaker of the House; and Manchester state Senator Lou D'Allesandro.
In Iowa, Senator Joe Biden's campaign points to the 14 state lawmakers backing him, including the House majority leader and three assistant majority leaders. That third-best tally among solons suggests Biden has more potential in Iowa than polls predict.
John Edwards claims US Representative Bruce Braley, the only member of Iowa's congressional delegation to endorse as of this writing, plus solid labor support, including that of the SEIU state councils in both Iowa and New Hampshire.
Chris Dodd's campaign proudly notes the endorsement of the International Association of Fire Fighters, as well as the nod of the president pro-tempore of the Iowa state Senate.
I'd take Clinton's former Iowa governor over Edwards's first-term congressman. But having seen the work SEIU did for Howard Dean last time around, and the way the firefighters sustained John Kerry through the fall of 2004, I count both as real assets.
Bill Richardson has done well in getting former Chrysler CEO Lee Iacocca. And in New Hampshire, Portsmouth Mayor Steve Marchand counts as a solid Seacoast catch.
On the Republican side, John McCain has four former secretaries of state among his various national notables, but for my money his best endorsement is the handsome tribute Tom Kean, former chairman of the 9/11 commission, recently paid the senator for his national security work. So why isn't Kean in a McCain TV ad?
Fred Thompson's campaign heralds the endorsement of the National Right to Life committee. It also points to the strong support Thompson has among his home-state Republicans. I'd put his Tennessee tally in the only-to-be-expected category - even while noting that Mitt Romney doesn't fair so well by that metric.
Romney, however, claims 27 US House members, five US senators, and two governors. In New Hampshire, these are his big scores: US Senator Judd Gregg, who is pitching hard for his neighbor to the south, and Tom Rath, the well-respected Republican wise man.
Judging by his recent comments, Mike Huckabee (whom I didn't get a list from) apparently thinks the Lord is behind his surge in the polls. Call me a skeptic, but I suspect Huckabee will have to make do with the endorsement of action star Chuck Norris, whose support the campaign has put to witty use in its ads.
Rudy Giuliani has a smattering of celebs, 21 US House members, two US senators, and Texas Governor Rick Perry. Yet it's the endorsement of Christian Broadcasting Network founder Pat Robertson that has really surprised - proving once again that politics can make for exceedingly strange bedfellows.
Now back to Obama. The Illinois senator also counts important traditional endorsements, such as those of Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller, Des Moines Mayor Frank Cownie, and US Representative Paul Hodes of New Hampshire.
Still, Sunday's event with Oprah really stands out.
No one I talked to said Winfrey's nod would decide his or her vote, though you'd hardly expect that. But, having walked the long line waiting to enter the
With it, Obama has staked a powerful claim to final-month momentum.
Correction: In last Wednesday's column, I misspelled Bill Richardson's last name.
Scot Lehigh's e-mail address is lehigh@globe.com.
