In less than 24 hours, polling captains across the nation will take to the field carrying the Obama standard. This is our time. We have laid our plans carefully, but these plans will not survive contact with the enemy. It will be up to our captains, our eyes and ears on the ground, to adapt, improvise, and do everything in our power to deliver victory. So I say to you, leave it all on the field! Expect to wring every last ounce of will out of yourselves, stand your ground, and deliver us this day! Now is the time to show the steel in your spines, and the love in your heart!
Captains in south St. Louis County, like Captains across the nation, will have a very long day ahead of them. At the polling place at 5:30 AM, and there until it closes. No relief. It all rests on you.
You will be tired, you will be uncomfortable, you will be hungry. Remember why you are doing this - because there are people who are tired every day. Because of the sick who never know comfort. Because of the hungry who need our help. Stand for one day of adversity for those who stand everyday against a world that has discarded them.
Your patience will be tested. This will be your greatest challenge. It would almost be easier to meet the enemy in true battle; where your passions can be unleashed in full. You must excercise discipline. You must always have a smile on your face. You must keep every voter in line - Obama or McCain - because we will win this honorably or not at all. You are the last face of the Obama campaign the voter will ever see before the decision is recorded. Represent your candidate, your party, and yourself well. Keep your temper in check. You never know if your actions will sway a voter in the final moments.
Pass your time by providing good information to the campaign. Count how many people are in line, mark the twentieth one, and time how long it takes them to leave the polling place. Do this all day. By four in the afternoon, you will know exactly how fast the line is moving, and can provide valuable intelligence to the central campaign, who can call in comfort teams for the final hours of the election.
Above all, stand your ground. This is what we have been working for, this is what we've been waiting for, this is your moment! Keep your spirits up, and deliver victory! ON THESE SHIELDS!