I am young. Because of that, many of my political memories center around Clinton's acrimonious relationship with Newt Gingrich and the Republicans in Congress followed by Bush's blatant disregard for a majority of the country. I have very, very rarely seen two parties work together for the good of the country.
Barack Obama spoke to me. He gave millions a vision of the future that we hadn't dared to think about for a long, long time. This was a vision of hope, unity, and actually putting country over politics.
It seems that it's not just Democrats that feel that way.
I got to my election party just after CNN reported that Barack Obama had crossed the 270 vote threshold. I was ecstatic. I gave my girlfriend and kiss and went to go find my best friend, a staunch conservative. He told me a few weeks ago that he was going to vote for Obama, but unfortunately upon stepping in the booth pulled the lever for McCain.
I found my best friend in the corner of the living room and said hi. He looked at the beaming smile on my face and said "I don't agree with the outcome, but this a GREAT night for America."
This is a theme that I've heard echoed with some rational and even irrational Republicans. Yesterday, I decided to take a look at RedState and a post from Mike Huckabee was on the front page. Huckabee Said:
...He was not my choice, but he will be my President and I will pray for him to lead this great nation with God's help and grace. He will face serious challenges to lead our country and he will need all Americans to give him a chance.
As disappointed as I am that we have lost the election, I can't help but feel that many courageous leaders of the civil rights movement look down from heaven tonight with a smile that the day has come when a man is elected without regard to his color. I salute President-elect Obama for his discipline and tenacity that has given our country the opportunity to witness this significant event.
Now the commenters weren't quite as kind, but I do appreciate Huckabee's comments and his statement calling for at least some semblance of unity.
Yesterday, The View did an election recap and Elizabeth Hasselbeck did something surprising, she did not attack the Democrats or Obama. Here is what she said, courtesy of CNN's Showbiz Tonight
<script></script><noscript>Embedded video from CNN Video</noscript>
For those who can't view video, here is a rough transcript:
(Talking about her daughter) She said, "He won, that's cool... who lost?"
And I looked down at her little face with those big cheeks and I said, 'You know what Grace, no one lost today. Seriously' And god knows I fought hard on the other side, but today is a victory for this country to have Barack Obama be our next President...
To see the people's he's been able to affect. The power that he has, you know? I will get in a long line of supporters because I wasn't the first, but I will jump in that line and support our President
Granted, there is a lot of bad spin going on, and this may just be lip service, but it gives me hope that we might see better days ahead of us.
What have your experiences been with Republican reaction?