Musings on the Rally

Well, probably the best and easiest way to describe the rally is to say that if you saw it on TV it was exactly what it looked like it was: a lot of people that were all very happy and just excited to be a part of the moment.

The picture above was taken by Joe right when Obama came out to speak. Obviously we were not very close, but that wasn't really the point. We spent the early part of the evening at Joe's friend's Ed's place (that's a lot of possesives in a row!) with my brother and his girlfriend Kari (who also went to the rally with us). He lives about 5 blocks from the rally location and we thought it would be a good place to eat dinner, watch the early returns, and relax before we got amped up to be amidst the throngs of people. As a result, we didn't leave for the rally till about 8:45. Since people had started lining up to get in first thing in the morning, it didn't seem to make much sense to get there 2 hours early just to end up about 200 feet closer and still not be able to see anything. While there were lines to get in, it wasn't nearly as bad as I was expecting. There were 2 separate security checkpoints, but it was only the first one that had a decent size line. That was where they were making sure that only people with tickets were getting past so once you got through that it really opened up. At the second one they scanned your ticket and checked your ID to make sure it was legit. Strangely enough, there were actually no metal detectors. I am thinking that they used them for the early crowd but then once it got jammed up they figured it wasn't as big of a security risk since everyone else would be pretty far back. That's just speculation on my part, though.

We got inside the actual rally at about 9:15 and just stood around and conversed with fellow supporters for about half an hour. At that point, since they'd already called Ohio and Pennsylvania for Obama it was just a question of when, not if, the victory would be official. They had CNN on the jumbotron and the sound system was more than adequate to keep everyone informed. Finally, at 9:58 they called Virginia for Obama and there was a huge cheer that went up from the crowd. Less than 2 minutes later, just as the California polls closed they made it official: Sen. Barack Obama was now President-elect Obama. For about 5 minutes you couldn't hear CNN anymore or, indeed, anything else other than 200,000 people screaming and yelling. When some semblance of calm was restored, the next thing I remember hearing was that McCain was about to speak and officially concede. I give John McCain all the credit in the world, because he gave one of the best concession speeches I've ever heard. While there were a smattering of boos, by and large most people cheered and applauded him (with the notable exception of when he talked about Palin). We weren't there to dance on the grave of our opponent, we were there to celebrate our victory.

After that the fervor died down for a little while, but you could feel the anticipation and the energy never left the crowd. Finally, after about another 30-45 minutes of waiting the moment arrived. As you would expect, the place erupted when he walked out but it actually died down fairly quickly. As excited as everyone still was, they were more interested in hearing him talk than they were in cheering at the moment. There was the feeling that this was going to be a speech that would still be played 30, 50, maybe 100 years from now. And he didn't disappoint. For any that missed it, I would encourage you to go to youtube or any of 1000 other places on the web to view or read a transcript of it. It was a synthesis of everything he has been saying for the past 2 years. I made a point to look around while he was talking, to try to freeze the image in my mind forever. The thing that struck me the most as I listened was being aware of how silent it was. There were 200,000 people all standing in the center of one the largest, busiest cities in the world and the only sound that could be heard was the voice of one man, speaking for millions and saying everything that we wanted to say. By the end, I don't think there was anyone there whose eyes didn't at least well up. Truly as unforgettable a moment as there can be.

Reflecting on it later, I was most impressed with how he was able to weave in the sense of celebration and rejoicing with a continuing call for action. As I said in my last post, this isn't really the end at all; it's just the beginning. And rather than summarize and expound upon what he said, in the end I really can't say it any better than he did himself:

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 can't 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 to 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.

What began twenty-one months ago in the depths of winter must not end on this autumn night. This victory alone is not the change we seek - it is only the chance for us to make that change. And that cannot happen if we go back to the way things were. It cannot happen without you.