I and, sadly, most or all of us have experienced loss. There's an immediate impact of deep sadness and then for a while after that wears off, you have intermediate periods. You may be going about your regular business when you're overcome by grief. It could be that you hear or see something that reminds you and sets something off. It could just be a random attack. Anybody who has experienced this knows what I'm talking about.
Right now, I feel the exact opposite.
When 11:00 EST hit last night and California's 55 electoral votes propelled then-Senator Obama over the 270-vote threshold, I was dumbstruck. Silent and emotional as I watched the celebration in various places throughout the country. It had actually happened. The joy in the room was palpable. But today was even more emotional, in ways. Little things set me off. A co-worker who told me two months ago that Obama would never win, but then came around, gave me a hug. I watched video of Colin Powell tearing up. Someone, just in conversation, used the term "President-Elect". At one point, I was just sitting in my car and almost teared up for no reason. I was in Prince William County in three of the last four days. I spent as much time working for Barack on Tuesday as I got sleep on Monday and Tuesday nights combined. Surely, there are thousands of people who worked much harder than I did, but the point is that we did this. It's an amazing feeling.
You can see the elation and the sense of accomplishment all over the place. People talked excitedly today about every aspect of their experience voting and watching the returns. Maybe -- probably -- this feeling will wear off, but I feel like some remnant will be with us forever. Even Facebook was rife with status updates about Obama and hope for our country. Almost all of it was great to read.
We've heard a lot of ugly stuff in the past few weeks of the campaign leading into Election Day. One thing pisses me off more than anything else. I could shrug off "palling around with terrorists." I could brush that "socialist" garbage right off my shoulders. What kills me is something I saw a number of Obama supporters post.
"Yes, we did!"
Way to miss the boat! That statement implies that everything we've been working towards culminated in our victory last night. In reality, last night was the end of the beginning. The only thing that Obama's election accomplished on night one was instant repair of America's reputation abroad. The spread of hope throughout the world, which you can read about in any number of articles on-line today. This is what I referred to when I discussed my "Kasparov Test". Aside from that impact, which admittedly is a huge one, nothing else from the last eight years changed. Nothing.
If you think anything ended last night, you don't get it. "Yes, we can" was not the answer to a question about winning an election. The question is about enacting real change and bringing America out of the darkness. It's why "Yes, we can" was a continuing theme in the acceptance speech. Nothing is over or close to over yet. Doesn't mean we can't celebrate, just means we need to be ready to keep going at 12:01 PM on January 20.
Until then? I'll let that joy wash over me one more time.
President Barack Hussein Obama, Jr. God damn, that sounds good.
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
Here We Go...
10:57: Before we close the night out... Roy's line of the night: "They'll announce that Barack has won and come back to find Matthews and Olbermann making out."
10:00: Full disclosure: It's starting to hit me. I just had to stop and catch myself from breaking into tears.
9:28: NBC calls Ohio for Obama. I'll hold off until 270... Suffice to say that I called my mom and she was sobbing.
8:27: Obama at 101. 169 to go. A great point on DailyKos: We should always remember that Vermont was the first state to give its electoral votes to an African-American presidential candidate. History.
8:02: Oh, damn... MSNBC comes on and calls PA immediately upon closing.
7:56: Still mostly a holding pattern. We'll see what comes up.
7:22: Also, my friend Roy is here so you may hear from him during the night. A cast of other guest stars may drop in from time to time as well.
7:20: By the way, here's the media consumption. MSNBC will be the network of choice with CNN during commercials, Comedy Central later on, and Fox News if/when the election gets called for Obama. Schadenfreude, baby! On the web, it's FiveThirtyEight, Daily Kos, and Pollster. We'll also be checking in on Andrew Sullivan and Marc Ambiner throughout the night. Possible also Red State and Free Republic to read the crying about the future of the world.
7:14: Just got home from a lot of canvassing in Virginia and a three-hour drive through traffic. Here's one thing I know: Woodbridge is Obama country. The enthusiasm was ridiculous with random people we crossed in the neighborhoods. If Prince William County is one of the battleground-iest counties of one of the battleground-iest states of the election, I'm feeling pretty good. Pretty, pretty good.
10:00: Full disclosure: It's starting to hit me. I just had to stop and catch myself from breaking into tears.
9:28: NBC calls Ohio for Obama. I'll hold off until 270... Suffice to say that I called my mom and she was sobbing.
8:27: Obama at 101. 169 to go. A great point on DailyKos: We should always remember that Vermont was the first state to give its electoral votes to an African-American presidential candidate. History.
8:02: Oh, damn... MSNBC comes on and calls PA immediately upon closing.
7:56: Still mostly a holding pattern. We'll see what comes up.
7:22: Also, my friend Roy is here so you may hear from him during the night. A cast of other guest stars may drop in from time to time as well.
7:20: By the way, here's the media consumption. MSNBC will be the network of choice with CNN during commercials, Comedy Central later on, and Fox News if/when the election gets called for Obama. Schadenfreude, baby! On the web, it's FiveThirtyEight, Daily Kos, and Pollster. We'll also be checking in on Andrew Sullivan and Marc Ambiner throughout the night. Possible also Red State and Free Republic to read the crying about the future of the world.
7:14: Just got home from a lot of canvassing in Virginia and a three-hour drive through traffic. Here's one thing I know: Woodbridge is Obama country. The enthusiasm was ridiculous with random people we crossed in the neighborhoods. If Prince William County is one of the battleground-iest counties of one of the battleground-iest states of the election, I'm feeling pretty good. Pretty, pretty good.
One
I am Barack Obama.
It's true that I see some of myself in him. He's an intellectual who tends to not want to deal with people, although his wife pushes him to be more social. He's unflappable in a crisis and uses that demeanor to consult with the right people and come up with a solution. More than those qualities, however, I have invested money, time, and emotion into his candidacy. I feel like there's a piece of me in his run for the White House. I also put more faith in him than I have ever put in any other politician. I believe in him, to the very center of my soul.
Okay, I know you might laugh at that. You might be cynical and say that no politician is worth that kind of trust and praise. You might wonder how so many people could be duped by a guy with next to no experience at the national level. You might even be scared because you think that so many Americans -- and truly people throughout the world -- are in for major disappointment when we find out the guy can't actually walk on water. The joke might be that Obama followers are in a very, very large cult.
I could almost see what you would be talking about for a second tonight. 80,000 of my friends and I drove through heavy traffic to fill up the Prince William County Fairgrounds in Manassas for the last rally of an historic general election campaign. It was among the largest crowds I have ever seen and we all came decked out with shirts and buttons and hats to celebrate one man. Well, it would seem like that on the surface at least. People danced and cheered and welled up with emotion. I can see how it might be a frightening scene for someone who, as they might say, hadn't "drunk the kool-aid." You might see all of your very rational concerns about an Obama presidency embodied right there.
You would be wrong.
Believe it or not, it's never really been about the man, Barack Obama. It's been about eight years of darkness in our nation. An election that half the country thought was stolen. An attack on American soil to which the response was a gratuitous war and the restriction of freedoms. An executive branch that has used the Constitution as a speed bump on the way to destroying our national pride and reputation with torture and domestic spying. A city destroyed by a national disaster as the government took their time in response. An economy collapsing under the weight of a president telling his people that they should overcome their fears by consumption, no matter whether or not they can afford it. A people growing to first distrust, then hate, their elected officials and to feel ashamed of their nation. Eight years and the people were ready for something, anything.
In steps the embodiment of change. We were blown away by his 2004 speech, preaching unity in a time of division. We were intrigued by his background and hopeful that maybe there was a chance that we could see the ultimate act of integration. He chose to run and he began to inspire the people; first, Iowa and then more and more other states as the people got to know him better.
We needed to break free from the inactivity of a national depression and we found our escape hatch. In the end, it's not just that people felt like John McCain was "more of the same". We felt that Hillary Clinton was more of the same, as well. We needed something entirely new and different to break free from our morass. Obama said the right words to feed that need for action. He recognized the unorganized beginnings of a movement and, like the good community organizer that he is, he organized us. He set us on the path to freedom and we love him for it. Love him. Gallup says that no presidential candidate has ever had a higher favorable rating since they started asking that question. NBC said that around 86% of Obama's supporters are "very positive" about him. We know about the enthusiasm. This isn't just some guy with a silver tongue who was able to get people to like him. This is a man who became the conduit through which a group of people found a way to come together and strike back en masse against their oppressors. This is why you see so many people active in the campaign, why the campaign offices are packed every night to the point where they have to ask people to make calls from home. We believe in Barack Obama because he has allowed us to believe in ourselves.
We are the ones we've been waiting for. We are the change that we seek.
We are Barack Obama.
It's true that I see some of myself in him. He's an intellectual who tends to not want to deal with people, although his wife pushes him to be more social. He's unflappable in a crisis and uses that demeanor to consult with the right people and come up with a solution. More than those qualities, however, I have invested money, time, and emotion into his candidacy. I feel like there's a piece of me in his run for the White House. I also put more faith in him than I have ever put in any other politician. I believe in him, to the very center of my soul.
Okay, I know you might laugh at that. You might be cynical and say that no politician is worth that kind of trust and praise. You might wonder how so many people could be duped by a guy with next to no experience at the national level. You might even be scared because you think that so many Americans -- and truly people throughout the world -- are in for major disappointment when we find out the guy can't actually walk on water. The joke might be that Obama followers are in a very, very large cult.
I could almost see what you would be talking about for a second tonight. 80,000 of my friends and I drove through heavy traffic to fill up the Prince William County Fairgrounds in Manassas for the last rally of an historic general election campaign. It was among the largest crowds I have ever seen and we all came decked out with shirts and buttons and hats to celebrate one man. Well, it would seem like that on the surface at least. People danced and cheered and welled up with emotion. I can see how it might be a frightening scene for someone who, as they might say, hadn't "drunk the kool-aid." You might see all of your very rational concerns about an Obama presidency embodied right there.
You would be wrong.
Believe it or not, it's never really been about the man, Barack Obama. It's been about eight years of darkness in our nation. An election that half the country thought was stolen. An attack on American soil to which the response was a gratuitous war and the restriction of freedoms. An executive branch that has used the Constitution as a speed bump on the way to destroying our national pride and reputation with torture and domestic spying. A city destroyed by a national disaster as the government took their time in response. An economy collapsing under the weight of a president telling his people that they should overcome their fears by consumption, no matter whether or not they can afford it. A people growing to first distrust, then hate, their elected officials and to feel ashamed of their nation. Eight years and the people were ready for something, anything.
In steps the embodiment of change. We were blown away by his 2004 speech, preaching unity in a time of division. We were intrigued by his background and hopeful that maybe there was a chance that we could see the ultimate act of integration. He chose to run and he began to inspire the people; first, Iowa and then more and more other states as the people got to know him better.
We needed to break free from the inactivity of a national depression and we found our escape hatch. In the end, it's not just that people felt like John McCain was "more of the same". We felt that Hillary Clinton was more of the same, as well. We needed something entirely new and different to break free from our morass. Obama said the right words to feed that need for action. He recognized the unorganized beginnings of a movement and, like the good community organizer that he is, he organized us. He set us on the path to freedom and we love him for it. Love him. Gallup says that no presidential candidate has ever had a higher favorable rating since they started asking that question. NBC said that around 86% of Obama's supporters are "very positive" about him. We know about the enthusiasm. This isn't just some guy with a silver tongue who was able to get people to like him. This is a man who became the conduit through which a group of people found a way to come together and strike back en masse against their oppressors. This is why you see so many people active in the campaign, why the campaign offices are packed every night to the point where they have to ask people to make calls from home. We believe in Barack Obama because he has allowed us to believe in ourselves.
We are the ones we've been waiting for. We are the change that we seek.
We are Barack Obama.
Sunday, November 2, 2008
Two
I didn't decide to run for president to start a national crusade for the political reforms I believed in or to run a campaign as if it were some grand act of patriotism. In truth, I wanted to be president because it had become my ambition to be president. . . . In truth, I'd had the ambition for a long time. -- Senator John McCain, Worth the Fighting For
After John McCain's acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention, I wrote this essay to honor the Senator's stirring speech and his service to our country over the years. I wrote about how the Republican party had gotten away from him with the convention's ugliness, seen in the speeches of Rudy Giuliani and Sarah Palin. That was on September 4, less than a week after Governor Palin had been chosen as the nominee. Just over two months ago, but it seems so much longer! In these last two months, we've come a long way and we've learned an awful lot about the players in this campaign. The drama has been so tremendous that we may look back on the this race and see a great play that was acted out across all fifty states from January, 2007, through November 4, 2008. If so, I submit that you can fit the players into classic roles. Barack Obama is the mythic hero who sets off on what seemed originally like an impossible quest (although I'll write tomorrow about how I don't think that's particularly true). Sarah Palin is the trickster who defies the norms. Joe Biden is... well, he hasn't been all that interesting this year.
John McCain is, without a doubt, the tragic figure in all of this. His is the character that agonizes over decisions and ultimately makes the choices that doom him for eternity. It's a difficult place to be, certainly, while the hero is set upon the correct path and just needs to follow it through. Obama had it relatively easy with the political environment and a Democratic Party that was crushed after two close elections and prime for the picking by the right leader. It was John McCain who had to balance his ambition with his principles with the external environment with the self-image of his party. It was a juggling act where probably even Karl Rove would drop the balls. The tragedy comes in the aftermath -- could McCain juggle all of these things and retain the reputation that made him one of the most popular politicians in America?
Well, he wouldn't be the tragic figure if the answer was "yes," would he?
I don't think it's his campaigning that did it. We can get over what people say in the heat of the moment and still like them afterwards, be it Bob Dole or Al Gore. Plus, you can tell that he's not altogether comfortable with some of the nastier stuff. He made a face when he heard someone yell that his opponent was a terrorist. He corrected the crazy "Arab" lady. He left the really ugly stuff to his running mate and his, um, plumber (?). It's not his words during this campaign that will hurt his reputation on November 5 and beyond. It's the reputation itself.
Any politician is expected to attack, but John McCain has always prided himself publicly on not being just any politician. He's supposed to be the guy that has moderates and independents in his back pocket. Instead, he needed to win over his party's base in a culture war-Karl Rove world. So his ambition won out over his principles and he allowed William Kristol and the Neo-Con All-Stars to win over the base by picking Sarah Palin. The rest is (very ugly) history.
Can we blame McCain for going along with the Palin pick? After the deal was done, can we blame him for being enthusiastic, even blindly so? He wanted to win the race. He couldn't legitimize the cacophony of criticism. The race got away from him, his advisors painted certain pictures for him of what was going on in the country; it was a train he couldn't slow down.
The tragedy is that he continued to call himself a maverick, which of course means he isn't actually one. It didn't help when his running mate started calling him "the maverick" and it just became a joke. He continued to insist that he works across the aisle, but he couldn't get the House Republicans to sign off on TARP. He talked about "country first" and what that meant for national security, but the Palin pick made that a joke as well. He used to be an angry, old man that people saw as a major asset to the Senate. Now he's just an angry, old man that people feel sorry for.
John McCain is, and will always be known as, a great American. We honor his service to our country. We just don't particularly like him anymore.
Three
- What I'm Watching/Listening To/
- The Countdown sketch on tonight's SNL was an absolute tour de force by Ben Affleck. Of course, only three people got the joke (who the heck knows who Richard Wolffe is?), but it's worth watching if you're an Olbermann fan. Apparently Olbermann crashed the rehearsal and loved it.
- McCain was very funny. He has a great sense of humor and timing, much better than Obama.
- So endeth the pop culture commentary for the next three days (I'm eschewing the NFL for tonight -- you all know I like the Titans, Giants, and Redskins). Tomorrow will be a follow-up to my RNC essay on John McCain. Monday, I'll attend the final Obama rally, in Northern Virginia, and I'll write my official endorsement. Tuesday, probably a live blog.
- Random Thoughts/Links:
- The Manassas HQ is run out of a house or someone's office that looks like a house. After checking in there, they send you to one of five staging areas in volunteers' homes. There, you get your canvassing packet. The HQ began shifts at 10AM. As of 10:30, they had 213 volunteers. We saw two other Obama teams while we were driving the five minutes to our assigned area. How many McCain teams? I honestly haven't seen one all year, much less today, and I spent the last two Saturdays in working-class neighborhoods in Pennsylvania and Virginia.
- I like staying up to see the clock on the cable box go from 1:59 to 1:00. There's something delightfully paradoxical about it.
- Election Prediction:
- Okay, here are my picks. I don't feel like showing my work, but suffice to say that it's fairly conservative and I'm relying on early voting numbers (though again, being conservative, such as with GA).
- McCain: AL, AK, AR, AZ, GA, ID, IN, KS, KY, LA, MO, MS, MT, ND, NE, OK, SC, SD, TN, TX, UT, WV, WY (23 States)
- Obama: CA, CO, CT, DC, DE, FL, HI, IA, IL, MA, MD, ME, MI, MN, NC, NH, NJ, NM, NV, NY, OH, OR, PA, RI, VA, VT, WA, WI (27 States and DC)
- Total McCain Electoral Votes: 185
- Total Obama Electoral Votes: 353
- Most Likely To Change Either Way (in order by likelihood): GA, MO, IN, MT, ND
Saturday, November 1, 2008
Four
- What I'm Watching/Listening To/
- The scary movie we chose for tonight was the first Final Destination film. I'm a fan. The first fifteen minutes or so are intense and while the death scenes aren't as unbelievable and fun as in the later movies in the series, you still get some good gore.
- On Sci-Fi tonight, Ghost Hunters ran a seven-hour live show at a haunted Civil War battlefield. Because it's a lot of fun to watch seven hours of people pretending that something scary is just about to happen.
- Where does Don Draper fall on the scale of current bad-ass TV characters? Maybe fourth, behind Jack Bauer, Greg House, and Ben Linus?
- Random Thoughts/Links:
- Via Wonkette, The Onion put this fake news story in their book. In 1999. Weird.
- Deep Thought: If October 31 happens on a Friday, is it okay, as a Jew, to refer to it as "Challah-ween"?
- Three hours of door-to-door in Manassas tomorrow. I've actually stopped selling Obama to people I know (I mean, what does it matter at this point) and I'm on to convincing friends and family to call people they know in California and ask them to vote no on Prop 8. For the long-term future of the country, Prop 8 being defeated is way more important than 60 seats.
- Daily Rant:
- Look, if the porch light is dark, stop knocking, okay? You don't go bang on the doors at Best Buy when their sign is turned off. I'm sorry that I can't get you one extra Jolly Rancher.
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