Open house for Obama's local office; Carnahan endorses Allen; bottling plant to lay off about 80

Carnahan endorses Allen for 8th District

Eighth Congressional District challenger Joe Allen received a boost for his campaign this week when he announced that former U.S. senator Jean Carnahan has endorsed his election. Allen, a Democrat, is seeking the U.S. House seat held by six-term incumbent U.S. Rep. Jo Ann Emerson, R-Mo. Allen, a lawyer from Forsyth, Mo., announced the endorsement from Carnahan, a Democrat who held a U.S. Senate seat for two years before being defeated in a special election by former U.S. senator Jim Talent. "After meeting and getting to know Joe Allen, I believe he would be an excellent representative of the people in Southern Missouri. Joe was born and raised in the Eighth District and is a strong advocate for hard-working Americans who enjoy and want to preserve their way of life in rural America," Carnahan said in a release issued by Allen's campaign.

Open house to be held at Obama's local office

The Obama for President offices at 821-D Broadway in Cape Girardeau will hold an open house at 6 p.m. today to show off the new facility and to organize voter registration efforts. The open house will run from 6 to 7 p.m., when a door-to-door voter registration effort will begin. The presidential campaign of U.S. Sen. Barack Obama, the likely Democratic Party nominee, was the first to set up shop in Cape Girardeau and plans to keep an office open here through the election.

Bottling plant to lay off about 80 employees

SIKESTON, Mo. -- Around 80 employees at Cott Beverages Sikeston plant will lose their jobs in August, the Standard Democrat reported. David Bush, manager of the facility at 301 Larcel Drive, said Tuesday afternoon the cutbacks are a way to refocus the efforts of the company. It reflects a reorganization of all categories and all products through the entire organization, he said. Bush said one change at the Sikeston plant will be a drop in bottled water production, but that's being reallocated to other plants. Employees who will be laid off effective Aug. 22 have been notified, Bush said. According to a letter distributed to employees Monday from people manager Tim O'Shaughnessy, "those who work to Cott's reasonable satisfaction through then will have health benefits continued for three months."

-- From staff reports