Keeping America's Promise in Columbus! That's what Barack Obama was doing this morning.
(Please accept my apologies for photo quality throughout the diary. A really, really tall guy was standing in front of me, so I just had to hold up and click. If you are particularly sensitive to motion sickness, you may want to take some Dramamine before you follow me over the fold).
It was a pretty crappy morning in Columbus--snow on top of icy roads, lots of school delays and closings, and it was freaking cold! But I bundled up, pulled on my boots & dog park coat, and headed out to brave the elements for Obama.
Richard Cordray, State Treasurer, got things started by issuing his endorsement of Obama. He is a quiet, thoughtful man, who said that he had brought his 9 year old twins with him, and hoped that Obama would be their president, starting next year, until they graduated from high school. Kind of amazing to think of an 8 year term like that, isn't it?
The crowd got really fired up when Eddie George took the stage!
George isn't just any old OSU former Heisman winner--he's terribly smart, a successful businessman, and was a natural on the stage.
Mayor Coleman introduced Obama with enthusiasm:
Now, Obama was late today--about an hour and a half late, but by the time he walked on stage, no one seemed to care.
As you no doubt read in Paleo's excellent diary, Obama stood up to McCain's pitiful attempt at belittling this morning in Columbus:
John McCain may like to say that he wants to follow Osama bin Laden to the gates of Hell. But so far all he's done is follow George Bush into a misguided war in Iraq that's cost us thousands of lives and billions of dollars ...
That rebuttal got the thousands of people there pretty fired up. But there were some other points--some of which would surprise the pundits--that got this Ohio crowd on their feet and loud. People were very responsive to his plans for health care and for the economy--neither of which were surprising. But people were even more responsive when he said he would close Guantanamo, restore habeas corpus, and end torture and rendition. We were on our feet when Obama said he didn't want children's or teachers' success measured by a test, and that all children deserved science, music, art, poetry, and civics. These are things that we all want for our kids.
By the way, there were a ton of kids there today. I mean a ton. And young. Probably some of that because schools were delayed and out, but I think many of them would have been there. People know history is being made. It was a great way to spend the day--being called to help make our country better, surrounded with optimistic and passionate people, and getting ready to take Ohio on March 4th!
Obama '08!