Some Obama Supporters Swoon at Gallery Bar

"Before Obama stepped into the picture, I was for Hillary. And I still love her.” That was Stephanie Mollison, a thirtysomething brunette who works in the fashion industry. She was one of about 100 Barack Obama supporters at an event last week at Gallery Bar on Orchard Street. She learned about the get-together, as did most of the other attendees, through the campaign Web site. Asked why she switched candidates, Ms. Mollison said that she simply “connected” with Mr. Obama. Mohan Siva, a 24-year-old systems analyst from Connecticut, said that he made his choice based on substantive differences between Mr. Obama and Hillary Clinton. “You know, with Barack, what I see as his big differentiating factor is, one, he’s very grassroots-oriented,” he said. “So Hillary has better money-making capabilities than Barack. So that’s one. And, two, his perspective on the war—from the beginning, Barack’s been: ‘It’s not a smart war, it’s a dumb war.’ And even to this day, he’s still pushing: ‘Let’s get them out of Iraq. It’s not the right war. It’s not the right direction.’ Hillary—Hillary is a little more prudent in that area.” Michelle Leffert, a 27-year-old senior at SUNY New Paltz, said she “fell in love” with Mr. Obama after seeing him on CNN. For her, it was an easy choice. “I guess the reason why I like Barack Obama is that he’s not in it for power, and to me, she’s in it for power,” she said. “She’s power-hungry.” Wasn’t she even a little bit excited about the possibility of the first woman President? “Not at all,” Ms. Leffert said, adding: “She doesn’t do it for me.”