Chelsea Clinton

Chelsea Clinton made a campaign appearance last Sunday in Asheville on behalf of her mother, Sen. Hillary Clinton, who is seeking the Democratic nomination for the presidency.

Her visit followed close on the heels of those of her parents — Hillary spoke at the Thomas Wolfe Auditorium last Thursday night (see story on Page 1 for details of that appearance) and former president Bill Clinton stumped for his wife at Asheville High School a month ago.

In Asheville, the younger Clinton attended morning services at Central United Methodist Church downtown. Later, she fielded questions about Hillary’s positions on various political issues during an appearance at Cinebarre theater at Biltmore Square Mall.

“I’m so proud of both my parents, but nothing would make me more proud than for my mom to be my president,” she told a gathering of about 100 Hillary supporters — mostly middle-aged to older women — in the lobby at the Cinebarre.

“As a young voter and as a Democrat, I passionately believe my mother is the most progressive and the most prepared candidate on every issue that’s important to me.”

The venue was arranged on the spur of the moment last Saturday by Ashley Peterson, a Clinton volunteer, who called Terrell and Pamela Braley, the cinema’s owners, seeking permission to use their facility to host the younger Clinton. Peterson reportedly knew that the Braleys are Hillary backers.

Hillary Clinton is trailing Sen. Barack Obama in the polls in North Carolina, but is campaigning vigorously around the state with her husband and daughter, hoping to engineer an upset victory in the North Carolina primary next Tuesday.

Chelsea Clinton answered all of the questions asked by the audience, but she declined to answer questions from the news media. She spoke for 45 minutes, explaining her mother’s positions on issues such as the Iraq war, energy policy, climate change and immigration.

Earlier, the younger Clinton arrived with a few campaign members in a black sport-utility vehicle at CUMC five mintues before the service began. She and her entourage were greeted with applause by a dozen supporters upon stepping out of their vehicle to attend the service.

Her stop at CUMC was arranged by Eric Sapp, a consultant with Common Good Strategies, a Washington-based consulting firm working with the Democratic Party. His grandparents, Jeff and Lottie Sapp, are Asheville residents who attend the church.

During the service, Clinton sat with Steve and Leigh Noblitt in the third row of the nearly packed church. Steve Noblitt is the chairman of the staff parish at CUMC.

Following the service, Clinton, clad in a navy skirt, black heels and gray blazer, socialized with congregants on the church lawn for 30 minutes, reportedly staying to greet every person who stood in line.