Phillips: Allen can be like Muskie, Mitchell

Gwethalyn Phillips, a delegate for Barack Obama, said she was reminded of why she got into politics when she saw Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) address the Democratic National Convention last night.

“I remember when John Kennedy decided to put us on the moon, and challenged Americans to do that,” Phillips said. “Ted Kennedy brought a lot of that back to us last night.”

Of Michelle Obama’s speech, Phillips said that she was “so human, and so incredible.”

Phillips got into politics during the 1960s women’s movement and protesting the Vietnam War.

In 1976, Phillips was an alternate to the Democratic National Convention. She has been involved in the Democratic Party and going to conventions ever since.

When asked about the U.S. Senate race, Phillips said she believes U.S. Rep. Tom Allen (D-Portland) will beat incumbent Sen. Susan Collins (R-Bangor.)

She likened Allen to Edmund Muskie, a former senator who ran for President in 1972, and George Mitchell, a former U.S. Senate Majority Leader.

“He (Allen) is so capable of being a senator we will remember for decades to come,” Phillips said.