I've watched Obama's stump speech plenty of times in the last few weeks, seeing the energy that's building around him all over the country. But standing in the kitchen a few minutes ago, reheating last night's pizza, I realized that there was something different about tonight's speech in Madison.
Barack Obama crossed a line tonight.
He's no longer running for the Democratic nomination for president. He's running for president, period - and even John McCain knows it, with the addition of his lines about "platitudes" to his speech tonight. (And what a hell of a contrast between the tens of thousands of people of all ages and colors at the Obama rally and the little crowd of old white people, including the exhumed corpse of John Warner, in suits behind McCain a few minutes later!)
John McCain ended his speech poking fun at Obama's "fired up and ready to go" line. But he looked tired out and ready to go...to bed.
Before tonight, I wasn't sure Obama was the real deal. Watching the energy and excitement that greeted Obama's stump line about "George W. Bush isn't running in this election" changed that. The contrast between Obama and McCain is the best thing the Democratic Party can hope for right now, because it presents such a stark contrast.
I never really believed in my heart that Al Gore could beat Bush (even if he did!), or that John Kerry could close the deal. I wasn't convinced that Hillary Clinton could do it, either - or, much as I admire and respect John Edwards, that he was the right person to make it happen this year. Each of them, in their own way, was or is just a little tone-deaf when it comes to selling our causes and our beliefs to that great mass of "low-information" voters who will push this race one way or another this fall.
This is different. Obama understands how to sell the message. The energy is on our side now. It's a long way from here to November, or even to Denver this summer, but the cast is now in place.
I'm fired up. I'm ready to go.
Edit: Holy crap! First time on the rec list! Thanks...but now let's all put on "My Friends: The Best of John McCain, vol. I," get some sleep and get fired up for the long haul to November! It won't be easy...but...
Yes we can!