last night, after the debate was finished. I watched the debate on CSPAN, viewing both the pre- and post debate feeds. Many people have noted that the Obamas lingered with the audience afterward, while John McCain left after a few minutes. What I saw was the very same people whom I thought had expressed reservations about Barack Obama when they asked their questions, now vying with each other for autographs and photos with the man and woman they expected to be the next President and First Lady. Everybody wanted a chance to shake hands with the next President, or the First Lady. If this was an audience of undecided voters at the start of the evening, by the end, they had made up their minds.
It was a remarkably emotional moment; for the first time it was clear that the comfort level had been reached, the barriers were down, and people could allow themselves to acknowledge the obvious. The Obamas were gracious and accomodating and (dare I say it?) regal in their response to the crowd. I was hugging myself and rocking back and forth in my living room, thinking of Lil Kim's lines from You Can't Win; "I'm the valedictorian, and you're in the audience - I got 199 votes; you got 199 notes." The debate was in Tennessee, right? I wouldn't put it out of reach for Obama to win that State.