The day after Clinton won, I cut out that cartoon, and have kept it near me all these years. Presently it is attached to my computer hutch, and I look at it often, and it has always given me hope that one day again our nation would do me proud and elect another Democrat.
Many of you will remember the 1980, 84, and 88 presidential elections (the ones I was old enough to vote in.) And many of you remember what it felt like on that night in 1992 when Bill, Hillary, Al and Tipper walked out hand in hand as the newly elected Presidential team.
That night I went to our local Democratic celebration, there were hundreds of people there, celebrating the end to a very long string of defeats. Today, tonight, I pray, and have hope, that we will once again join together to celebrate a new beginning for our nation.
Coupled with this reminder of what "winning" feels like, is the horrific darkness of 1999. At that time I was working on a local campaign, and as the returns came in across the country it became increasingly clear that things were not going well for us.
I will never forget the mixed emotions of that night in 1999. My measure won, and our local democratic party took back a congressional seat from the Republicans, yet the loss of the White House just overwhelmed any joy from those other wins.
Today is filled with so much raw emotion, on so many levels. This election is so much more then just putting a Democrat in the White House, it is about hope, and the dream of millions. It is about the future of our children, the future of the world, it is the rejection of the politics of hate and prejudice and the embracing of an idealism that anyone can succeed in our nation.
Our history as a nation is wrought with injustice, yet our core beliefs drive us to right those injustices, sometimes taking decades or centuries, but always a slow progress towards that which binds us together as Americans.
These last eight years have hurt my heart and soul as an American, we have seen the politics of fear, the politics of lies, we have seen our nation hijacked by those who have soiled our reputation in the world.
And while we await the results, make no mistake, should "we" win, our work has just started. We are faced with challenges that have not been seen for decades, and we cannot let up because those who may be defeated today will, I assure you, be filled with a determination to thwart and stonewall any and all legislation, policies and direction. Winning today is but a first step, and we must, if we are to succeed, work as hard as we can to bring our nation together, and build a consensuses, reaching out to those who are reasonable on the other side.
Do not forget the words of "W" when he won in 2004. He exclaimed that he had a "mandate," and instead of working to build and bring our nation together he drove a wedge deeper into our nation. This is not the time of mandates, rather it is time where we can set a tone of working together, moving our nation forward, and showing America what true leadership is.
It is time to replace my yellowed cartoon, time to start anew. And so this, I pray, I hope, is the last day of viewing my cartoon, and tomorrow, tomorrow I will replace it with one that will inspire me and our nation for the next eight years.
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