Today's and Tomorrow's 9/11 Events Will Test Obama Supporters' Ability To Hold Their Tongues

Politico reports that both Senator Obama and Senator McCain, along with a host of other dignitaries, are scheduled to appear at events to remember 9/11 in New York City today and tomorrow:

The two presidential candidates will call a truce in New York City on Thursday night for a conversation, on the seventh anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, about what their administrations would do to encourage public service.Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) and Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) are expected to shake hands onstage in between separate conversations co-moderated by Richard Stengel, managing editor of Time magazine, and Judy Woodruff, senior corresondent of PBS' "The NewsHour."

Several cable networks plan to cover the Nation of Service forum (8 p.m. Eastern), the centerpiece of a two-day ServiceNation Summit 2008, named for a non-profit group that encourages voluntary service and civic engagement. First Lady Laura Bush and Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) will appear on Friday, along with a long list of other political luminaries that includes New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg (I), California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) and Florida Gov. Charlie Crist (R).

However, in an ominous note, Politico adds that "[s]ome tickets to the forum have been given to Columbia University students who won a lottery, airing an unpredictable element to the event."

The Obama-Biden campaign had better hope that the Columbia students don't try to stage some sort of protest against McCain today or tomorrow. The two protesters at the RNC, before the largest television audience in history to watch a political convention, created a powerful image that the Obama-Biden ticket is supported by a bunch of leftist wackos who want to prevent Americans from hearing the McCain-Palin message. If the Columbia students who are at the events today and tomorrow -- many of whom, like the Columbia College Democrats discussed here and here, undoubtedly support Obama -- try a similar stunt, the impact on public opinion could be devastating for the Obama-Biden campaign.

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