One Nation draws 100-thousand on the National Mall in Washington DC

Activists gather near the Lincoln Memorial in the nation's capital to participate in the 'One Nation Working Together.'

story by Wall Street Journal
written by Danny Yadron

WASHINGTON—Union workers, civil-rights leaders and war protesters who have helped put Democrats in Congress and the White House tried to recapture the energy of recent elections Saturday on the National Mall, part of an effort to garner support before November's midterm elections.

The "One Nation Working Together" rally drew thousands to the Lincoln Memorial in what organizers described as a nonpartisan push for jobs, public education and justice. But the march took on a decidedly partisan tone—a sort of response to the conservative broadcaster Glenn Beck's rally last month, which was also at the Lincoln Memorial.

Republicans appear poised to ride a wave of public anger at Washington in the November elections, with strategists in both parties predicting that the GOP will emerge with a strengthened hand in Congress. While Republican voters say they are eager to cast ballots, Democrats have struggled to generate excitement among their party's base, according to many public-opinion polls.

"They say we're apathetic, we're not energized," the Rev. Al Sharpton told the crowd. "In four weeks we're going to have to take the midterm exams. We've got to go home and hit the pavement."

The U.S. park police didn't release crowd numbers, in keeping with the agency's policy. The event permit called for 100,000 people, and rally sponsors paid for Washington's public transportation system to open early Saturday morning. As of 1 p.m. the crowd had filled, but not packed, much of the National Mall.

Sponsors included labor unions and groups devoted to civil rights, gay rights and environmental protection, including the AFL-CIO, the NAACP and the Sierra Club. Organizers said there were more than 400 endorsing organizations.

The program featured star TV actors, urban poets and a gospel choir backed by four-piece funk band. Rep. Luis Gutierrez (D., Ill.) addressed the crowd and demanded an overhaul of immigration laws. It was one of several causes that those present said had been ignored by the White House and congressional leadership.

Gregory Adams, a 60-year-old social worker from Beacon, N.Y., rode a bus to the rally with members of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, a public-employees union. He said his area is predominantly Democratic, but the problem this year is getting left-leaning voters to vote.

"It's going to be harder this year," Mr. Adams said. "The Democrats are allowing Republicans to bully them."

Angel Espinoza, 21 years old, from Washington, D.C., said he has been disappointed by the administration's lack of action on gay marriage. "It seems like it's just been filed away," he said.

But speakers said that if Democrats kept control of Congress for another two years, fortunes could change for the party's more liberal members. Ed Schultz, a host on MSNBC, blamed the inaction on the 41 Senate Republicans.

"They want to see Obama fail. We cannot let that happen," said Mr. Schultz, acknowledging that liberals "have not gotten everything we wanted in the first two years."

Richard Salley, 70 years old, a part-time school bus driver from Oswego, N.Y., attended Mr. Beck's rally five weeks ago but said he wanted to check out "the other side." A Beck supporter, he said he remained unpersuaded by the speakers Saturday.