Machen, again shooting from the hip, went public with his endorsement of John McCain for President. Considered a potentially damaging move, the Alligator responds:
While it may not have been as glamorous or as influential as Oprah Winfrey's endorsement of Sen. Barack Obama - and certainly didn't receive as much media attention - UF President Bernie Machen's unusual public announcement that he would endorse Sen. John McCain for president this week did raise more than a few questions across campus.
Though Machen adamantly maintains that his endorsement of the Republican senator is completely separate from his duties as university president, we can't imagine why he would want to make such a public gesture unless it was to capitalize on his notoriety as a university leader.
If this election truly is such a personal matter to him, why did he agree to publicly endorse the senator only after a representative from the McCain campaign approached him?
Why didn't Machen just endorse McCain months ago when he first announced his candidacy?
Not only was this public endorsement made shortly before Florida's primaries completely inappropriate for someone in Machen's position. We also aren't accepting the flimsy explanation that this announcement was merely a reflection of Machen's personal opinion.
It was a blatant gesture to influence public opinion as a state leader...
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