Assault began with argument over Obama!

OSWEGO, New York - November 10, 2008 - Oswego police are continuing their investigation of a Sunday morning melee that left a Barack Obama supporter gravely injured and a soldier who fought in Afghanistan charged with his beating.   Angel Moreno, 19, of the Bronx, was listed in critical condition at University Hospital Monday.

The soldier, Pvt. Kevin T. Flanagan, from Manchester, N.H., was being held in the Oswego County jail. He is charged with third-degree assault, a misdemeanor.

Investigators are interviewing witnesses to the fight and other charges and arrests could be pending, said Oswego police Capt. James Comerford.

According to police, officers arrived at the Pizza Pub restaurant, 141 W. Bridge St., at 3:02 a.m. Sunday and found Moreno, 19, a junior at the State University College at Oswego, lying near a parked car.

Moreno was taken by ambulance to the college and was then flown by helicopter to University Hospital.

According to a witness in the restaurant, the fight began when patrons began arguing about Obama's presidential election.

About 12 people, including several soldiers, took the argument outside and the fight broke out, according to a restaurant waitress who declined to give her name.

"It was all over the new president," the waitress said.

Police said no weapons were involved in the fight.

Moreno, who is majoring in wellness management, is an Obama supporter according to his Facebook Web site, which features an Obama poster.

Flanagan joined the Army in January 2006 and arrived at Fort Drum that May. He is a fire support specialist with the 1-32 Infantry Battalion, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division. He was in Afghanistan from May 2006 to June 2007.

Army officials are aware of Flanagan's arrest, said Fort Drum's Julie Cupernall.

Any disciplinary action against Flanagan, such as a discharge, would not be taken until the charged he faces are resolved in civilian court, Cupernall said.