Springsteen explains why he's supporting Obama

NEW YORK (AP) -- After vowing not to get involved in this year's presidential election, Bruce Springsteen is supporting Barack Obama again, saying he believes Obama is the best person to lead America.

The Boss posted a message on his website Wednesday night endorsing Obama's re-election, saying he had been "getting asked a lot about where I stand." Springsteen is making his debut on the 2012 campaign trail Thursday at events in Cleveland and Ames, Iowa, with former President Bill Clinton.

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Springsteen supported Obama in 2008. In his letter, he called Obama's four years in office "a really rough ride" because of the "economic chaos" from President George W. Bush's administration and "the extraordinary intensity of the opposition."

But the 63-year-old rock star said he's behind Obama because of the president's views on the rights of women and homosexuals, ending the war in Iraq and tracking down Osama bin Laden.

"Right now, there is a fight going on to help make this a fairer and more equitable nation. For me, President Obama is our best choice to get us and keep us moving in the right direction," he wrote.

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Springsteen said Obama, who is facing Republican rival Mitt Romney in November, needs increased support from Congress if America wants the next four years to be effective.

"He needs support in the Congress, where some sterling candidates, such as current Senator Sherrod Brown of Ohio, challenger Elizabeth Warren in Massachusetts, and so many others, are fighting to make their constructive voices heard," he wrote.

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The rock icon added that the division of wealth in the United States is a great issue and that Obama "is our best choice to begin to reverse this harmful development."