Yes We Did!!

When I created this site in the days following the Nomination of Barack Obama as the first African American candidate for the Presidency, and Sarah Palin as the Republican Vice Presidential candidate I was filled with a sense of fear, and urgency, at not letting the politics of fear and division continue. My family's support for Obama over the last several months has taken the form of several phone calls, dozens of email conversations, over 100 blog posts, more than $15,000 raised, and several thousand tears shed since the words "President-elect Barack Obama" flashed across my screen on Tuesday night.

I kept my four-year old son up to watch Obama's speech. Four years ago, as I bemoaned the fact that the Democrats' only argument for electing Kerry seemed to be "not Bush," I named my son Martin, in part in tribute to my mother's father, and in part in tribute to the many Martins who have stood up for what was right when it was not easy. I hoped that over the long haul, his name would remind him of a battle worth waging, and I never dreamed that one of the key battlegrounds of the fight for justice would be won so early in his young life. My six month-old daughter will never know a world in which women are not considered serious contenders for the highest offices.

This space has been a powerful cathartic for me, and has invited many of you into the conversation--more than 100 of you checked in on election day. The purpose of this site is now fulfilled, though.

Nevertheless, there is much work to be done, and a new conversation to be had about how to govern in a world mired in economic contraction and political confrontation. A few weeks ago I told you I was launching a sister site to keep the conversation going after the election. I hope you will join me there to explore how to forge a new kind of conversation about the issues that matter to us as we move ahead. While I have a progressive bent to my policy positions, I believe more strongly than ever that any future forged must be forged together.

Please join me to continue the conversation at middlegroundmatters.blogspot.com. May the conversation continue.

There Once Was a Man Named Obama...

The Washington Post ran a post-election Limerick contest yesterday. Here are some of the best:

pinkfire:
The Republican menu lacked drama,
So they served up a hot hockey mama.
But red meat on high heels
Is an unhealthy meal,
So, no thanks, I’ll be having Obama!

garyt23:
In the land of red, white and blue,
Rode a man who was black/white and new,
People questioned his range
When he named his horse "Change,"
But that steed drove him straight, drove him true.

Runner-Up

bgraham1:
This limerick is written by Palin,
And I'm just gonna ignore your liberal media "gotcha" rules and requirements
About rhyming, which is also
A socialist agenda
So too and also in my experience
As a mayor of the buckets of job creation
I can see Russia from my house

Winner

busstopboxer:
McCain's new best friend, Joe the Plumber
Is having his Indian Summer
He soon hopes to be
On a country CD
And probably driving a Hummer

Proud America

Bob Cesca writes about a moving episode from the recent biopic on John Adams and its' significance today:

...the Adamses, who were vocal opponents of slavery... walk below the familiar triangular peak of the north portico and through the front doors [of the White House under construction]-- the first presidential couple to occupy that historic building. As they step through the mud in what appears to be silent horror, they're taken aback by numerous slaves toiling all around. Painting and plastering the walls. Sweeping the floors. Moving furniture.

"The negroes will see to your trunks," a white foreman offers to "help" with the presidential luggage, and then barks at a slave, "Here! You boy!"

The scene culminates with Abigail Adams, played by Laura Linney, shouting with indignation, "Half-fed slaves building our nation's capital?!"

Not only was this scene a powerful cinematic illustration of the contradictions and ironies of America's founding liberties, but it also set the stage for an event you and I will be fortunate enough to witness just 76 days from right now.

Today, President Bush, of all people, described the forthcoming Inauguration Day and, perhaps inadvertently, presented the ultimate historical bookend to that scene from John Adams when he remarked, "It will be a stirring sight to watch President Obama, his wife, Michelle, and their beautiful girls step through the doors of the White House."

Indeed it will, sir. After eight years of awfulness, George W. Bush actually managed to say something that touched me in a way that didn't precipitate, you know, me breaking something. Damn you, Mr. President, you magnificent bastard...

The Whole Speech

For anyone who missed the whole thing live...

The Face of Change