They are some of New England's biggest names in business - titans of venture capital, banking, biotechnology, advertising, even yogurt. And aside from a love of commerce, they have this in common: They are backing the presidential bid of Senator Barack Obama of Illinois.
Nearly 80 area business leaders will host a forum at the University of Massachusetts Club in Boston next week to demonstrate the support Obama has in the business community. Bold-faced names, according to an invitation obtained by the Globe, include Jack Connors, chairman emeritus of the advertising firm Hill Holliday; Cleve Killingsworth, chief executive officer of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Massachusetts; and Chad Gifford, a former chairman of Bank of America.
With the primaries approaching, Obama is struggling to keep pace with Senator Hillary Clinton of New York, who leads in most polls. But Obama contends he can win in part by attracting independents and Republicans - including business figures who are disillusioned with the GOP but unwilling to support any other Democrat. Next week's event is meant to send a message to voters in New Hampshire and elsewhere: If business is confident that Obama has the experience and vision to be president, they can be confident, too.
"Hopefully what people who see this group of business leaders together will say is, 'Here's a bunch of experienced folks who've been around, and this gives me a little bit of permission to think again about this,' " said Gary Hirshberg, event cochairman and president and chief executive officer of Stonyfield Farm, a New Hampshire yogurt company.
Obama's supporters in the business world, some of whom are new to presidential politics, say what appeals to them is his candor and his caring about what the country needs. "As a businessman, it's great to be successful in business, but it would be much more enjoyable to be successful in a country that's successful," Connors said yesterday. "And I think he really relates to that."
Clinton also has considerable support in the New England business community. Steve Grossman, who leads her regional fund-raising operation, said business leaders appreciate Clinton's smart policy prescriptions, such as her healthcare plan, to "enhance our competitiveness as a country."
"That's exactly the kind of common-sense solution that businesspeople want to see," Grossman said.
Obama had raised $2.8 million in Massachusetts through Sept. 30, edging Clinton, who raised $2.1 million, for the top spot among Democratic candidates, according to reports filed with the Federal Election Commission. Republican Mitt Romney, a former governor of Massachusetts, has raised more than both of them, however, pulling in $3.6 million in the Bay State.
To show the influence of his supporters, Obama's campaign manager, David Plouffe, is coming to Boston for the Oct. 24 forum , which is expected to draw about 150 people. One of Obama's top economic advisers, Austan Goolsbee, a University of Chicago economist, will lead an economic policy discussion. Other well-known figures on the host committee include Josh Boger, chief executive of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc.; Dan Nova, managing partner at Highland Capital Partners; and Peter Meade, a civic activist and Blue Cross executive.
"Not only as citizens, but as businesspeople with investments and companies to run, they see that Washington is broken, and I think they appreciate the fact that it's going to take more than a change in political party to fix it," said Alan Solomont, who leads Obama's fund-raising in New England and helped plan the event.
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2007/10/17/in_ne_big_names_in_business_to_show_support_for_obama/
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