YOUR WEEKEND: Civil rights activist Rep. John Lewis to speak Sunday

Regardless who wins the presidency in November, John Lewis, Democratic representative of Georgia, will have a friend in the White House come January, it seems. The civil rights hero who represents an Atlanta district in Congress is close friends with both Sens. Barack Obama, D.-Ill., and John McCain, R-Ariz.

Being a loyal Democrat, Lewis is supporting Obama, and he will be in Las Vegas July 27 for a 1 p.m. Obama campaign rally at the headquarters of Nevada Partners, 710 W. Lake Mead Blvd. in North Las Vegas. The public is welcome to attend the rally for free.

In the partisan climate of Washington these days, some members of Congress have few or no friends on the other side of the aisle, but Lewis is an exception. McCain’s admiration for Lewis runs so deep that he devoted an entire chapter of his 2004 book “Why Courage Matters” to the former Freedom Rider, whom McCain referred to in his book as “one of Dr. (Martin Luther) King’s bravest disciples.”