JOGGERS ATTACK BUSH

[June 23rd, 2004] The morning clouds have broken, dispelling the threat of rain. I head over to Waterfront Park, where a clutch of joggers limbers up near the Burnside Bridge. On this Saturday morning, I have traded in my reporter's notepad for a tape recorder and a pair of running shoes. My mission: to infiltrate Run Against Bush, a grassroots organization dedicated to defeating George W. Bush in November by an unconventional method--putting one foot in front of the other.

Started in February by an impromptu group of Washington, D.C., political neophytes, Run Against Bush now boasts 4,000 members from all 50 states and has raised $100,000 through memberships ($20-$250, including a T-shirt), donations and sponsorships.

There are only three other runners in Portland this morning, but their T-shirts draw a lot of attention. Bystanders flash smiles and give us the thumbs-up as we puff our way across the Hawthorne Bridge on a three-mile run.

The runners seem equally split between politically minded joggers and fitness-minded activists. "I am opposed to [Bush's] policies on abortion, stem-cell research, the environment," says Dave Cook, a 55-year-old contract manager at Kaiser Permanente who brings up the rear, gliding along as we swing through the Eastbank Esplanade. "He's the person who said, 'I'm going to bring people back into politics,' but he's very much the type of a CEO of a large corporation that does not consult the public."

After half an hour, soaked in sweat, we make it back to the Burnside Bridge. Gregg Clampffer straggles in behind. His flat Nike sneakers and baggy shorts are a sharp contrast to the air-cushioned shoes and form-fitting gear of the other joggers, but the 29-year-old student at Wieden & Kennedy's advertising school isn't fazed. "I don't want my future children to be saddled with debt," Clampffer explains. "I want my parents to be able to afford medication...and I'd like to lose 20 pounds without cutting the carbs."