Campaign volunteers are usually limited to stuffing envelopes and making phone calls, but the McCain-Palin campaign is giving volunteers a chance to get behind the wheel.
The College Republicans sent an e-mail to its members on Wednesday asking for volunteers to drive in Vice Presidential candidate Sarah Palin's motorcade this weekend - "if you are 21 years old or over, you can drive beside the next VP of the United Sates," the e-mail said.
Driving in the motorcade is "a rewarding experience" that gives volunteers "an up-close look at the campaign," said McCain-Palin spokesman Paul Lindsay in an e-mail.
Palin will not have any "scheduled campaign events in the Philadelphia area until the economic crisis is solved," according to Lindsay. However, the campaign has not said she would cancel her trip to the city.
Wharton senior and College Republicans board member Jeremy Keith drove in McCain's motorcade last weekend and got to meet the candidate.
"It was the first time I have been in a motorcade," said Keith, who described it as "fun experience" and "something I would do again."
In order to drive, Keith said, he submitted his name and the campaign did a background check on his driving record.
On the day he was in the motorcade, Keith and the other volunteers picked up cars the campaign had rented. When the volunteers met up with the campaign, they went through metal detectors and the rented cars were searched, Keith said.
The Secret Service gave the drivers a sheet telling them what to do. The instructions said drivers should not talk on cell phones, not listen to the radio, not let other cars get in front of them and not talk too much to the passengers, according to Keith.
Keith said he was able to talk briefly with the campaign staff members in his car, but "they were very busy."
Keith also got to talk to McCain, whose car is not driven by volunteers, "for about three seconds."
Zac Byer, College junior and College Republicans president, said the campaign had not asked the group for volunteers to drive the motorcade before the past few weeks, but since then, the campaign has been "in constant contact" with the group about Monday's rally in Media and Palin's visit to the Philadelphia area.
The College Republicans pick which members get to go based on who is the first to respond and who is available, Byer said.
Byer has yet to drive a candidate because of conflicts with his schedule.
Penn Democrats President and College junior Lauren Burdette said she didn't know if the Obama campaign uses volunteers to drive in motorcades.
The campaign has never asked the group to drive in one.
"There are enough Democrats in Philly who would want to drive them that they wouldn't need to ask us," she added.
