I leave Mom & Dad's and drive to Pekin to see Barack Obama. This feels like democracy the way it ought to be, outdoors, in a park in a small town. There are handmade signs with directions by the ball fields. I start to tear up a little as I follow the signs-this is what I want to see considering the current political climate. I park and head to the pavilion. I find an open spot at a picnic table in the pavilion and ask the people there if it's OK. I take a seat and I hear that Amazing Grace is playing. I tear up again. Other ladies come and one sits right next to me. We chat about politics, and I try out my joke on her: "How did the 'Red States' get their name? Because of Republicans' economic policies." She politely chuckles. Someone is passing out Obama stickers, and I put one on and wear it all day (even at the farm). Obama is a lot like me, because he comes late. But that's to be expected, because he's going to dozens of small towns all over Illinois in this 5-day stretch. He arrives, and here are some highlights of his speech.
oWhen I first started, people said, 'He's worked hard, but he has no money, no organization, and besides, white people won't vote for a black guy, suburban people won't vote for a city guy.'
oI appreciate the drug companies…but why do the same drugs cost half as much in Canada?
oI'm not afraid to campaign against anyone, not even Ditka. I would have asked him, 'Why did the Bears win only one Super Bowl?'
oThere is one exception: the only person I'd be afraid to campaign against is my wife Michelle. She's tougher than me, she's smarter than me, and-clearly-better looking.
oI want people not to go broke when they get sick.
oThe government can't solve all our problems. Parents have to turn off the TV. If our kids were as good at math and science as they are at Playstation…
oAny one of us would pick up arms to defend our country. But when we send our military overseas, we'd better make sure it's the right war.
oI won't be able to fix all our problems. I won't be able to make all the jobs come back. I won't lie-anyone who tells you they could is lying.
oBush cannot take all the blame for the jobs, but he's not doing anything to address the tax breaks for companies that go overseas.
o[On the DNC keynote address] I was nervous, there were lots of TV cameras around. Michelle was nervous: what if I couldn't speak, what if I froze up and they had to carry me off the stage. But as I spoke I gained confidence, because my stories are your stories. I've talked to people all over this state, and you have told me your concerns. If I spoke well, my eloquence was because of your eloquence. My hope is because of your hope.
oI know that right now they're sharpening the knives. They can't beat me in an argument, so they'll tell lies about me and call me names. They'll say, "He's too liberal." But I've found that people want politicians to stop attacking each other, and start attacking problems.
oIt's important to be able to disagree without being disagreeable.
After the speech, everyone crowds in to get a handshake. I scope out the situation, go out the other side of the pavilion, and run around the outside of the crowd to the caution tape that was setup for him to get to his car. He takes his time with each person. When he comes to me, he gives me a full handshake and a shoulder pat. Previously, I had thought of a whole paragraph I was going to say to him, but then I thought, "He's not going to have time to listen to all this." So I had decided to edit it down to two words that really resonated with me. "Brother's keeper." I say this while he's shaking my hand and smiling and looking me straight in the eye. That's all I say, but he continues to look at me as if he's expecting me to say more. I'm amazed that he's actually taking this much time with me, and I don't have anything else on the top of my head, so I smile and give him a pat on the arm with my left hand. He says something like "I appreciate your support." His handshake is soft and gentle, and his demeanor is very personal and genuine, like he's a regular guy. I watch him move down the line one-by-one, and eventually he waves goodbye and gets into the car. I feel better about our country already; I got what I came here for.
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