Caroline Kennedy hitting campaign trail for Obama in Florida

Caroline Kennedy is returning to the campaign trail for President Obama this week, helping mark the anniversary of the passage of healthcare reform legislation.

Kennedy is scheduled to headline the opening of the latest Obama campaign field office in the battleground state of Florida on Thursday, and host an event as part of the campaign’s outreach to female voters.

Kennedy, the daughter of President John F. Kennedy, offered Obama a key endorsement in the 2008 Democratic primary, along with her uncle, the late Sen. Edward Kennedy. The events this week will be her first for the reelection effort in her role as a national co-chairman.

She is to speak on behalf of the issue the former Massachusetts senator long championed in Congress, and “remind Floridians of the president’s leadership” on healthcare reform, according to the campaign.

It was two years ago today that the House of Representatives passed Obama’s landmark healthcare reform measure. There are no plans for the president himself to mark the milestone -- he’s traveling out West today to speak about energy. But the campaign is, using local events such as the one Kennedy is attending to continue mobilizing supporters and reaching out to voters.

Kennedy’s campaign foray also comes as Democrats are placing special emphasis on female voters. The Democratic National Committee released a Web video Wednesday to highlight what it calls GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney’s “extreme positions on women’s health.” It features Romney’s recent comment in a television interview that he would “get rid” of Planned Parenthood.

Vice President Joe Biden is also heading to Florida later this week for the second in a series of campaign speeches meant to frame the general-election choice for voters in the fall.

michael.memoli@latimes.com
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Caroline Kennedy hitting campaign trail for Obama in Florida