Obama sizing up Abe's old digs
Will announce in Springfield, but where?
The Old State Capitol in Springfield is where Abraham Lincoln launched his 1858 U.S. Senate campaign with his now famous speech declaring "a house divided against itself cannot stand."
Two years later, Lincoln used rooms in the building as headquarters for his presidential campaign. And the day Obama has chosen to announce his plans -- Feb. 10 -- is just two days before Lincoln's birthday.
Unfortunately, space inside the reconstructed Greek Revival-style building in downtown Springfield is limited.
"Anything larger than a few hundred people would need to be held outside any of our historic buildings," said David Blanchette, spokesman for the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency.
And Feb. 10 could be a tad cold. Springfield's average highs for the date typically hover in the mid-30s. The record low was 13 degrees below zero.
"What if it's five below?" asked one Democratic strategist. "What will it look like if everyone is huddled together like they are at a Green Bay Packers game? Will that look good? . . . You want visuals of people who are happy."
Obama spokesman Robert Gibbs said an exact location for the announcement has not been "finalized," but it will definitely be in Springfield because that's where Obama served as a state legislator and Lincoln launched his political career.
"Obviously, were it not for the presence of someone like Lincoln, we would not even be talking about Barack Obama running for president," Gibbs said.
Apparently out is the two-year-old Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum. No political events are allowed there.
"That's our policy," said Jill Burwitz, spokeswoman for the facility.
Also not under consideration is Lincoln's Springfield home. Political events can be held on the grounds outside, although no one has used it to kick off a candidacy since it became part of the National Park Service in 1971, said James A. Sanders, superintendent of the national historic site.
"It's certainly possible," Sanders said.
But sources said the Lincoln Home was never discussed.
"You just couldn't put enough people in front of the Lincoln Home," said the Democratic strategist, requesting anonymity. "And knowing Barack, he's going to want a crowd there. He's not going to want 300 people. He's going to want 3,000 people."
The Prairie Capital Convention Center can hold more than 9,000 people. It's where the state's last four governors have held their inaugurals. Sangamon Auditorium seats 2,018, although the Illinois Symphony Orchestra is scheduled to play there that night.
Neither facility offers much historic significance, but either would provide warmth and easier crowd control.
Gibbs would only say that the weather will likely figure into the senator's plans.
"Obviously, Mother Nature will have more to say about that than we will," Gibbs said. "If [Obama] could control the weather, he'd probably already be president."
