Obama Nation

We begin today after an extraordinary night of history-making events. The 44th President of the United States of America will be Barack Obama, who now must continue to guide his political machine to be all-inclusive in engineering the changes he promised to bring to the country.

The realities are that few of the proposals made in the heat of a contentious campaign can ever be met as-described…the process of governing will prove to be quite different from the process of galvanizing the electorate with rhetoric and oratory…and the mantle of responsibility to produce the changes promised now weighs heavy on the former junior Senator from Illinois.

I am proud that America once again has stepped out in front of the rest of the world in proving the power of Democracy, and demonstrating that our country continues to be the land of promise in which anything is possible—including the amazing path of Barack Obama from food stamps to leader of the free world.

I am proud of the grace and dignity with which Sen. John McCain conceded his loss in the Presidential race, and he showed his character and true colors in his congratulatory remarks. Even in defeat, McCain showed class.

I am hopeful that President-elect Obama will be able to forge a bond between Americans who now believe they are empowered to achieve their dreams…and those who might somehow still believe their dreams were dashed with last night’s Democratic shift of power.

We all have dreams, we all have expectations…but with those come responsibilities, and we are all beholden to one another make this next era of American history one that is as profitable as it is full of promise, and more productive than just politically expedient.

It’s going to be an interesting time to be an American. We’ve witnessed history in the making with the election of a black man to the highest office in the land…and now we must work and contribute to the legacy in the making that will belong to us all, as we show the rest of the world how we govern and grow in the next four years.