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| | YES, WE CAN! YES, WE DID!
 
::happy sigh:: Sorry for the hiatus, boys and girls. Since November 4, 11:00pm, PST, I've been in a state of utter euphoria. I've voted in every single election since 1998. The 2000 and 2004 elections left me utterly demoralized and disappointed with my party. I was elated in 2006 – after 12 years, the Democratic Party finally, finally hard a (slim) majority in Congress. For the past two years, I was frustrated with Speaker Pelosi and the rest of the leadership's apparent inability (or unwillingness) to hit President Bush hard, the way he deserves. Where were the hearings on war profiteering on the part of Enron and KBR? Where was the insistence that we pull troops out of Iraq? The first order of business was to wring their collective hands over a non-binding resolution in regards to the Iraq war that did NOTHING. But I understood what the leadership was trying to do. It was a one-seat majority in the Senate and a 12-seat majority in the House — to say nothing of the large contingent of Yellow- and Blue Dog Democrats that helped make up our majority.
Tuesday night, though … I was stunned at how well the Democratic Party did. Not just winning the Presidency, but expanding our majority hold on Congress with far greater numbers than anyone dared think was possible. As far as Obama's win, well … who would have thought that Virginia – the bastion of the Old Confederacy, would not only go "blue" for the first time since 1964, but would vote for a black man? Who would have thought other states … considered deep red bastions, untouchable by Democrats, would follow suit? Indiana, North Carolina – a state that didn't even vote for Bill Clinton in '92 or '96, and not just one but two swing states (Ohio and Florida) would be called for Obama early in the evening? I had my hopes about those two states; to be sure. But for them to go so overwhelmingly for Barack Obama so as for those states to be called within a few hours after the polls closed? No. I dared not hope that much. And yet … it happened. As of last night, only one state's electoral votes are yet to be determined. Missouri's. Honestly, I'm surprised. In the past eight years, it's gone pretty red. My prediction is, for what it's worth, that McCain will come out on top in Missouri. It'll be close, but … With 364 electoral votes going to Obama and 163 to McCain (with the Show Me State's 11 electoral votes still up for grabs), Obama won more than twice as many electoral votes than McCain. That's seriously gotta burn. I'm still grinning up a storm knowing that our 44th President of the United States is a man called Barack Hussein Obama.
Lets talk about Election Day. Thanks to progress and the Help America Vote Act, things improved dramatically since the chaos of the 2000 election. Many states made it easier to vote absentee, or even vote earlier than the First Tuesday after the First Monday in November. But even so, we saw the highest turnout of voters in almost 100 years, numbers we haven't seen since the ratification of Amendment XIX of the Constitution of the United States, granting suffrage to women. Surprisingly, there were no widespread problems. No allegations of voter suppression, no widespread reports of technical glitches in electronic voting machines, no shady poll workers turning away voters because of the color of their skin. We saw news reports of voters lining up around the block, on Election Day and during early-voting periods. People waited up to two, three, some even four hours in line just to cast their ballot in this historic election. Is this a turning point? Will Election Day in 2012 be the same way? Or will we Americans return to the apathy we've become accustomed to, resulting in the low electoral turnout we've seen in years past? Only time will tell. But let me just say, "Yes we can" will be our unofficial motto for the next four years. Yes, we can keep turnout high. Yes, we can have an electorate who is passionate about this country not just during the election cycle, but during the other three years and eight months. Yes, we can! ¡Sí, se puede!
Let's also talk about Congress, starting with the Senate. Libby Dole of was sent back home after just one term as Senator of NC. Nobody, but nobody would have thought it possible this time last year. Why did North Carolinians boot her out? The simple answer is because she was never "home." Most of her time was spent in Washington, DC; only to return home when she needed her constituents to vote for another six-year term as Senator. Democratic former governor of Virginia Mark Warner is now the new senator of the Old Dominion. As of last night, the junior senator from Oregon, Gordon Smith, is out of a job, replaced by Jeff Merkley. Tom and Mark Udall have been elected to represent New Mexico and Colorado, respectively, in the Senate. Yes, they're related; first cousins, if I remember correctly. In Minnesota, Al Franken and Republican incumbent Norm Coleman are still slugging it out to decide who'll represent the North Star State for the next six years. It looks like neither current Senator Saxby Chambliss (R) or Jim Martin (D) have the necessary votes needed to avoid a runoff election in Georgia. A Democrat coming within a hairsbreadth of winning a statewide election in the Georgia? Did anyone prior to Tuesday night think that possible? Speaking for myself, I hope Chambliss loses. I still haven't forgotten (nor will I ever forgive him for) that absolutely reprehensible ad he ran against then-Senator Max Cleland in order to get elected … comparing Cleland with two other men: Osama bin Laden and Saddam Hussein. It was so over the top that even other Republicans and conservatives like John McCain and Zell Miller condemned the ad. But it worked; and Cleland, a man who went to Vietnam and got two legs and his left arm blown off while he was in-country, was branded a traitor and booted out of the Senate by the good people of Georgia. Now, the House. Tuesday night, the Democrats picked up eighteen seats to further pad the majority. This doesn't mean that only Republicans lost, of course. Of the seventeen incumbents who ran for reelection and were defeated, four were Democrats. So while it was win-some-lose-some for both parties (as Election Day should be), the Dems came out on top. Yeeeeeha! As of last night, the tally in the Senate is 57 Democrats and 40 Republicans, with three races still undecided. As I discussed above, Georgia's race will go to a runoff election, in accordance to state law. Minnesota probably won't be determined at least until next week. And surprisingly (and disappointingly), Alaska's race is still too close to call. As for the House, 264 seats are on the Democratic side of the chamber and 163 seats are Republican. Eight seats are still too close to call – two are in Louisiana (the 2nd and 4th Congressional Districts), as Tuesday's election was a "jungle primary" in that state (don't ask me to explain how that works, the Bayou State does things oddly), and the actual election between the top two finishers will be held on December 6; the other six seats that are still too close to call are California 4th, Virginia 5th, Alaska At-Large, Washington 8th, Ohio 15th, and Maryland 1st.
Okay, enough celebrating (or mourning) Tuesday's results. Lets talk about the road ahead. In the aftermath of Obama's victory, I watched both McCain's concession speech and Obama's victory speech. And I gotta say, boys and girls, McCain's speech was excellent. Frankly, that is the John McCain I respected eight years ago (and to a lesser extent four years ago). I don't know what led him to run a campaign so unlike who he really is, but I just hope he learned a lesson – don't sacrifice who you really are in order to please your base. He'll need to take that lesson to heart when he faces a tough reelection fight in 2010. Now, Obama's speech. Four years ago, I was in tears because of John Kerry's trouncing at the polls. Tuesday night, I was also in tears, but for a different reason. I won't quote his entire speech, but please bear with me as I share several excerpts. I'll provide a link to the entire speech at the end so you can see the victory as I did.I just received a very gracious call from Senator McCain. He fought long and hard in this campaign, and hes fought even longer and harder for the country he loves. He has endured sacrifices for America that most of us cannot begin to imagine, and we are better off for the service rendered by this brave and selfless leader. I congratulate him and Governor Palin for all they have achieved, and I look forward to working with them to renew this nations promise in the months ahead. See what he did here? In the aftermath of his victory, he congratulated Sen. McCain for his service to this country – past, present, and future. And it's important to note that when Obama mentioned John McCain, the crowd, hundreds of thousands strong, cheered. In contrast, when John McCain mentioned Barack Obama and congratulated him for a hard-fought victory, the crowd at his celebration in Pheonix booed. Lets move on to the second part:I would not be standing here tonight without the unyielding support of my best friend for the last sixteen years, the rock of our family and the love of my life, our nations next First Lady, Michelle Obama. Sasha and Malia, I love you both so much, and you have earned the new puppy thats coming with us to the White House. And while shes no longer with us, I know my grandmother is watching, along with the family that made me who I am. I miss them tonight, and know that my debt to them is beyond measure. I was in tears at this point. I know how hard it must have been for Barack Obama to deal with the loss of one of the women who raised him, but be forced to push on and ensure victory. And I agree with him that Obama's grandmother is somewhere above, smiling and laughing, sharing in our victory with Martin Luther King, Rosa Parks, John and Bobby Kennedy, and Abraham Lincoln. Next:It was built by working men and women who dug into what little savings they had to give five dollars and ten dollars and twenty dollars to this cause. It grew strength from the young people who rejected the myth of their generations apathy; who left their homes and their families for jobs that offered little pay and less sleep; from the not-so-young people who braved the bitter cold and scorching heat to knock on the doors of perfect strangers; from the millions of Americans who volunteered, and organized, and proved that more than two centuries later, a government of the people, by the people and for the people has not perished from this Earth. This is your victory. Indeed it is. And I was cheering right along with the crowd on CNN.I know you didnt do this just to win an election and I know you didnt do it for me. You did it because you understand the enormity of the task that lies ahead. For even as we celebrate tonight, we know the challenges that tomorrow will bring are the greatest of our lifetime - two wars, a planet in peril, the worst financial crisis in a century. Even as we stand here tonight, we know there are brave Americans waking up in the deserts of Iraq and the mountains of Afghanistan to risk their lives for us. There are mothers and fathers who will lie awake after their children fall asleep and wonder how theyll make the mortgage, or pay their doctors bills, or save enough for college. There is new energy to harness and new jobs to be created; new schools to build and threats to meet and alliances to repair.
The road ahead will be long. Our climb will be steep. We may not get there in one year or even one term, but America - I have never been more hopeful than I am tonight that we will get there. I promise you - we as a people will get there.
There will be setbacks and false starts. There are many who wont agree with every decision or policy I make as President, and we know that government cant solve every problem. But I will always be honest with you about the challenges we face. I will listen to you, especially when we disagree. And above all, I will ask you join in the work of remaking this nation the only way its been done in America for two-hundred and twenty-one years - block by block, brick by brick, calloused hand by calloused hand. This section absolutely floored me. It's one thing to make promises on the campaign trail, to say that the country would be better off in charge with him in charge … all politicians running for President do that … but to admit that maybe things won't be so smoothly as we hope. I was stunned and in a good way. America, we have come so far. We have seen so much. But there is so much more to do. So tonight, let us ask ourselves - if our children should live to see the next century; if my daughters should be so lucky to live as long as Ann Nixon Cooper, what change will they see? What progress will we have made?
This is our chance to answer that call. This is our moment. This is our time - to put our people back to work and open doors of opportunity for our kids; to restore prosperity and promote the cause of peace; to reclaim the American Dream and reaffirm that fundamental truth - that out of many, we are one; that while we breathe, we hope, and where we are met with cynicism, and doubt, and those who tell us that we cant, we will respond with that timeless creed that sums up the spirit of a people:
Yes We Can. Thank you, God bless you, and may God Bless the United States of America. By this point, I was weeping openly. No cheers or clapping along with the crowd at Grant Park, only tears and sobbing in utter and complete happiness and pride in our future President. I'm saying it once more. I haven't felt this good about being an American in a very long time. I'm stunned, moved to tears, and I'm really looking forward to the future. God bless America, indeed. What's particularly cool is it was given on the anniversary of the 1968 Democratic National Convention. That night, forty years ago, the crowd was in tears because of the gas canisters thrown by the National Guard and the Chicago Police. Tuesday night, the crowd was in tears because of our 44th President of the United States; Barack Hussein Obama.
Barack Obama's oratory at Grant Park in Chicago reminded me of just why I was an Obama supporter from the very beginning. Every time he speaks, he blows away the expectations game and raises the bar to even greater heights. I fully expect his inauguration address in 10 weeks to be discussed for years, nay, decades to come. It'll be compared to John F. Kennedy, Martin Luther King, Abraham Lincoln, and yes, even Ronald Reagan.
I seriously recommend each and every one of you experience the Election Night victory speech as it was delivered that night in Chicago. The best way to experience the speech isn't looking up the text on CNN. It's to watch it on the New York Times website. They've got it set up so you'll see video of the speech on the left, and you can follow along with the transcript on the right-hand side of your screen. It's almost as good as captions. Enjoy.
Barack Obama's Victory Speech — The New York Times | | | Posted 11/7/2008 8:41 AM - 128 Views - 4 eProps - 5 comments
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While the Republican party is in chaos, I'm going to let you know, Micah, that as just as much as the democrats have highlighted McCain's faults for his links to Bushie boy, We're going to be WATCHING your Obama. Starting with his first speech he gave the night he won.
Yes, Boys and Girls, The nation knows Hillary had won the nomination,but choose to yield to Obama. (the count was never completed at the convention you know).
Right now, Micah, we're watching your Obama closely, just as much as you did to McCain. When the elections of 2012 season hits, Obama will be just ONE TERM. ONE TERM. When it's over, never in our lives will a man like Obama ever step foot again in the hallowed halls of the White House, of which now some are saying it should be called "Grey House".
Enjoy your time, Micah. you got 4 years. But should one act of terrorism happen, your boy isn't going to be popular for long. (and people wonder why in Clinton's time that he didn't get Osama Bin Laden sooner despite the 8 years?).
The four years have already started on Nov 4. you got till 2012 elections.