For this Obama supporter, it's been a bit frustrating watching the primary election from thousands of miles away. I laughed, I cried, I screamed at the TV and the insane (but, admittedly entertaining) media you guys have over there, I cheered whenever Obama won, consoled myself with the knowledge that he would bounce back whenever he lost and I even sat up late at night (or early morning) to watch his "A More Perfect Union" speech live.
Yet, it was all incredibly frustrating knowing that I couldn't really do anything to help him get elected. I couldn't volunteer, I couldn't donate and most importantly, I couldn't vote for him. As a 20 year old, I was incredibly jealous of all you American youngsters out there in the Obama T-shirts who seemed to be having a blast volunteering, phonebanking and getting voters registered because you finally had a candidate who motivated and inspired you to get out there and get involved. So, I could only really live vicariously through you, sadly.
Having said that, I just wanted to say, thank you! It's thanks to all of you, young, old and from all walks of life who worked hard that Barack Obama is the Democratic nominee for the President of the United States. That feels so good to say. Barack Obama is the Democratic nominee for the President of the United States!
I've known he could do it since I saw him speak at the 2004 Democratic convention, but I also knew that it would ultimately come down to how you, the voters, responded. As Obama always says, this isn't about just him, it's about you. As much as the media tried to make it about him and his pastor and his lapel pin (seriously?)and his patriotism and whatever other nonsense they came up with, you pushed back and said no. Not this time.
Watching Obama speak in St. Paul, in front of 18000 people, declaring himself the nominee was one of the best moments, if not the best of the campaign so far. I couldn't stop grinning like an idiot for hours. I wished I could've been there, but just watching that historic moment live on TV was amazing. Even though I wasn't really involved in any of it, I still felt a kinship with all those of you who were involved. I felt proud that your hard work paid off.
So, once again, thank you from someone who wishes she could say "we" did it. You did it. You got him this far. Now on to the general election.The thought of another Republican term frightens me here in Australia and I'm sure it frightens the rest of the world. I know that with what is one of the best political campaigns out there, with an incredible candidate and with the grassroots movement that has been built from the bottom up, the Democrats will wipe the floor with McShouldn'tEverMakeAnotherSpeech. It won't be easy, but neither was the primary, so keep working hard Democrats! I'm looking forward to being able to say President Barack Obama.