DAVENPORT, Iowa, Aug 3 (AFP) - Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry picked up endorsements from some 200 business leaders as he sought to boost his standing on economic issues.
Kerry unveiled the list during a campaign swing through Iowa, where he was holding an "economic summit" with business and labor leaders.
Among the executives with Kerry in Davenport were Peter Chernin, president and chief operating officer of News Corporation; Charles Gifford, chairman of Bank of America; and Charles Phillips, president of Oracle Corp.
"The Kerry-Edwards plan for America is exactly what is needed to jumpstart businesses and get America working again," Chernin said in a statement released by the Kerry campaign.
"It will lower healthcare costs and cut taxes on corporations and small businesses to strengthen our economy today and invest in education, science and innovation to help us stay competitive in the economy of tomorrow."
Other notable names included former Seagram chairman and current Warner Music chief executive Edgar Bronfman; Kirk Kerkorian, whose Tracinda Corp. controls MGM studios; Yahoo chief operating officer Daniel Rosensweig; Google CEO Eric Schmidt; Michael Lynton, chairman and CEO of Sony Pictures Entertainment; and Henry Schacht former chairman at Lucent Technologies.
Some predictable names were on the list, including Robert Rubin, a Citigroup executive and former treasury secretary for president Bill Clinton, and Harvey and Robert Weinstein, co-chairs of Miramax who personally backed the US released of Michael Moore's controversial documentary "Fahrenheit 911."
The Wall Street Journal reported that one of the Kerry backers, David Bonderman, founder and managing partner of investment firm Texas Pacific Group, supported George W. Bush for president in 2000 and earlier for Texas governor.