Election just called for Obama by MsNBC (and that’s before Florida, Missouri, North Carolina and virginia have been called) with 284 electoral votes.
You may rejoice now.
Update [2008-11-5 0:30:5 by Steven D]: Just finished watching Obama’s speech. Tears in my eyes and not ashamed to admit it.
My neighboorhood here in West Harlem in Manhattan is going nuts! People out on the streets cheering and screaming, neighbors hanging out the windows, cars honking horns, it’s fantastic!!!
As well they should be. The only question now is how many electoral and popular votes he wins by.
Enjoy the moment. The hardest work is yet to come.
Wooooooooooooooooooooooo-hoooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!
Now, as you’ve said, the real work begins. I’m not religious, but ‘God help us all’; or, maybe, ‘Now is the time for all good people to come to the aid of their country’.
And almost an hour later, the hood is still cheering and raving! God Bless Us All.
Raise your glass (alcoholic or not) to President elect Obama.
Me, I’m, drinking Bushmill’s right now.
I’m on meds where I’m not supposed to consume alcohol, but I got out the Bushmills for this moment.
I can here people down the hill out in the streets of our sleepy little town here on the Pacific coast cheering “Obama! Obama!”
Feels good.
just tears here. i can’t even see the screen. i love you guys.
My daughter (13) is very, very happy.
And tired.
My daughter (14) cried with me. All her life she has known Bush and now she has hope.
Hugs to you and your girl. I am just so happy that they will remember this day.
Woohoo! Woohoo!
Thank you to everyone here who worked their asses off to help make this happen..my first drink it to all of you.
I think that includes everyone at the Frog Pond, don’t you?
That’s what I meant Stephen..probably not thinking that clearly right now.
America has won the referendum on racial attitudes.
VA and FL called for Obama.
We lift our glasses. Too emotional over here. Obama won in VT 65%
whohoooooo!!!!!
fireworks all over the neighbourhood.
a toast to all…..what a relief!!!
Don’t even know what to say. Just stunned and incredibly happy.
I can finally power-down my escape pod.
Proud. Proud. Proud.
Wide and High!
I’ll be putting mine out again after all these years of hiding it in the closet.. Love that song by the Dead!!
The images from Ebenezer Baptist Church opened my tear floodgates. I feel such a sense of relief right now and HOPE!
Time to figure out what to do with our lives for the next four years …
tomorrow! for now, let’s celebrate.
Of course! I’m celebrating his win and getting my life back from politics!!!!!
A huge thanks to you, Booman, and Steve D. and everyone else, for a job well done 🙂
A tip of the glass to you (before I spill it!)
woohoo!
Drewsky
THE FOUNDING FATHERS CAN NOW GO BACK TO SLEEP REST WELL YOUR AMAZING INSIGHT AND WISDOM ONCE AGAIN BRINGS HOPE TO A WORLD YOU COULD ONLY IMAGINE
I can’t stop crying.
Yes we did!
Now, how about that Senate?
I have to pinch myself. Oh my God, I have to pinch myself.
He did it. You did it. We did it.
The end of an error is near. The beginning of a new era dawns.
We are the road, and you can look back and look forward…
Florida…wow
Did Florida go for him,
Oh McCain is speaking now…
ha..that is what I meant diane..msnbc just called Florida for Obama….damn.
I’ve been crying on and off all day, reading diaries on DK and the stories, well you all know.
The most amazing thing is that the whole world is celebrating with us, it’s just unbelievable.
Just now Jessie Jackson with tears running down his face.
Now I hope that McCain does some mending fences.
Oh, how good it feels right now!
Colorado, Florida… they keep coming.
And here’s the concession speech!
Oh yeah – I got what I wanted for my birthday!
Couldn’t ask for more. Yippee!
And happy birthday!
Happy Birthday, Ask. What a present America has given to you!!!!!!
Love this!!!
Congratulations to you too, my friend!
Amazing isn’t it — if McCain had been half that graceful, eloquent and inspiring during the campaign, he could have won.
His exit music was from Hans Zimmer’s score to “Crimson Tide,” btw… about a submarine going under…
McCain is giving his speech:
America has spoken
We don’t love the booo’s from your crowd…
Awesome John, well done, so far…
…
My wife is crying she is so happy…so am I
brb
…
…
You and I have seen a great thing happen…
I love you all, take care, and plant a tree.
Drewsky
Did anyone even show Sarah before she was flown back into cold storage?
We did it, folks!
Tonight we rejoice, tomorrow we rest, and then we get back to work!
Hey, where are Booman and Cabin Girl, they sould be celerating with us.
Boo’s probably preparing a post-election post, what else?
We are. 🙂
What an amazing night for all of us.
I didn’t vote for him but I’ve just hung my flag outside my place for the first time in 2 years. I do have a deep sense that there might still be some hope for this country and I have a sense of pride again for the first time in a long, long time. I wish him well.
Hey super, hugs to you and I celebrate your flag placing a;ong with this wonderful new turn for America and the world..
There’s a line from one of the Lord of the Rings movies at the death of one of evil leaders of the dark forces that says, “the filth of Sauron is washing away”. I am thinking of this now as the weight of 8 years of George Bush is beginning to fall from my consciousness and my shoulders. It has been such a burden on our minds and on our optimism, hasn’t it?
hugs to you, too
Yes you are so right, a weight has lifted and I think not just from us but from the world. Iam just watching the celebration in Kenya and CNN has shots from around the world. Can you imagine. I think this country has reached young adulthood finally, now let these next few years take us into full and mature adulthood.
So glad you are here tonight.
I can finally breathe again.
He did it.
How different would this ugly election have been if McCain had adopted the tone during the campaign that he had during his concession speech?
i have to say, McCain did Arizona proud tonight with that speech. The maverick peaked his head out again. Hopefully that tone continues as we move forward.
Agreed. Amazing what thugs his supporters are.
To every person of color who participates or reads this blog. Congratulations. This was a long long time in coming. The better man has won because of his merit. Serious debate prevails without penalty because of race. This is an amazing night.
Hey, his Mom was white. He’s my guy too. But, I know what you mean. Just wanted to make my point that he is uniquely enabled to bring us together.
I’m with you! I’m an old white guy but I think it means just a bit more to some of our brothers and sisters.
I have no words. I have a lot of tears. I’m still stressed out. I can’t believe this. But I do have one of my favorite songs.
A Brand New Day – The Wiz
When I was born, Harry Truman was president. But in all the time sincce then, the election of Barack Obama is the greatest political event I have ever witnessed in this country. Thanks so much, Booman for all your hard work, thanks Boofolks for all your great comments, and thanks America.
Obama is now about to speak at Grant Park.
I go back to Truman’s election, I was in 1st grade and that was before tv and I don’t know how exciting it was, sxcept it was a big upset and Truman’s train came through our town. I voted for Dewey in our school vote, Republican family you know, lol.
Current Obama 338 McCain 156
PRESIDENT ELECT BARACK OBAMA
Thank you all who worked so very hard for this. We’ll change the world.
ACORN, Mickey Mouse and all the Disney characters that constituted this beautiful ‘threat to the fabric of our democracy’.
Thanks guys – a job well done..
I still can’t believe this. Seriously, we won?!?!?
>PINCH!<
Just had a thought, Obama could probably be elected President of the world at this moment.
I think we have just seen the rise of a great leader just when we needed him, born in the perfect place and situation to lead to this day..
CNN says they are going nuts celebrating in Kenya.
This marks a change in Africa/America foreign relations. Instead of the American government being headed by the (at least culturally) descendant of slavers, it is headed by the son of an African.
North Carolina Republican Robin Hayes who said liberals hate America has been defeated.
Thank you!! Ding dong.
How about Bachman?
I hope you’ll indulge me in a few more words of celebration, slightly abridged, from a favorite poet of mine.
Grab your ticket and your suitcase, thunder’s rolling down these tracks.
You don’t know where you’re going, but you know you won’t turn back.
Darlin’ if you’re weary, lay your head upon my chest.
We’ll take what we can carry and we’ll leave the rest.
Big Wheels roll through fields where sunlight streams,
Meet me in a land of hope and dreams.
This train … Carries saints and sinners,
This train .. Carries losers and winners,
This Train … Carries whores and gamblers,
This Train … Carries lost souls.
On This Train … Dreams will not be thwarted,
On This Train … Faith will be rewarded.
This Train … Hear the steel wheels singin’,
This Train … Bells of freedom ring!!
Now This Train … Carries the broken-hearted,
This Train … Thieves and sweet souls departed.
This Train … Carries fools, carries kings!
This Train
All aboard !!!
– Bruce Springsteen
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d0MysVCA6V4&feature=related
McCain conceded.
I exhaled.
+1
We didn’t Frog March them all out, but damn, this will do, this will do just fine! I’m very proud of all of you at the Pond. Quite a night for the country and the rest of the world really. My wife has many cousins in Slovenia. They begged her to e-mail them as soon as she knew the outcome. She just finished a very joyful note to them about a half hour ago. It may be hard for us to comprehend, but Europe may be happier tonight than we are!! There is hope tonight that tomorrow may be a better day. I think I will drink to that and call it a night.
I see Oprah in audience crying, what a day it must be for her.
Though not religious, and actually quite tired, I’m listening to this:
From southside Chicago, and quite fitting for the occasion.
Did you hear that sound?
It was a worldwide sigh of relief… 🙂
Just browsed Huffington – they have a slideshow – one picture is Jesse Jackson in a crowd, his face stained with tears.
What a day.
Meanwhile, Dubya is quoted as saying “What an awesome night for you.” Frat boy to the end.
Puttin’ it behind & pushin’on!!
Just w00t!
I personally want to give each of you here at Booman Trib a very very big hug. We now can sleep good tonight. Tomorrow is a new day and we shall overcome the rest of the hard times to come before us. We now have someone who can speak the language and ppl will stop to listen and not laugh at him. He is surely one in a million…I now have faith and hope once again in my lifetime….We have to get behind him an do our best to support him and our new congress. I have faith that it will be a beter government….
WhoooooRAAAAAAAAAA!!!! Again hugs to you all my dearest friends…
I give each of you 10 “4’s” for your comment….
USA! USA! USA!
What a speech! A new puppy in the whitehouse too! It just gets better and better. Goodnight everyone. We win!
I apologize for being a nattering nabob of negativity.
I can’t believe that I’m not still lost in the widerness of the last 28 years.
The talking heads are saying that Obama will have to give up raising taxes on dividends and capital gains and he’ll have to keep the present economic team to placate Wall Street. We’ll see, but I don’t think Obama is either Reid or Pelosi. I think they are in for a surprise.
Right now, just enjoy the fact that Obama won and they lost.
Going forward–say on Thursday–remember that these folks know so much about so little. They will try to BS and bluff for advantage, but they’ve been so wrong about so much. They thought he could be punked–NOT!
There will be fights, to be sure, but this is not a Clinton third term and it is certainly not a Bush third term.
But my thoughts on that are for later. I just need to savor this some more.
Right! When we hear his Cabinet picks, we will know.
Oh! I had forgotten what it feels like to feel such joy and hope! It’s beyond wonderful.
I’m in a hotel in Cleveland. I heard cars honking horns out on the steet. Sweet.
Great job everyone!
In Missouri. Still waiting … It’s a squeaker. 95.9% of the vote in and Obama trails by .5%
kinda makes me wonder after Nixon won with 58% percent of the vote:
http://www.kansascity.com/
But we our no longer the key to winning a Presidential Election.
McCain won Clay County. He’s ahead in Jackson county. I’m not feeling good. On the other hand, I think the missing precincts in St. Louis County are Obama precincts. But 6% is a lot to make up with not much left.
We’re down to a 413 vote difference. Christian county is still not completely in – deep south. Doesn’t seem likely, but looking at the surrounding counties it’s possible McCain’s margin could drop. I’m not sure I can bring myself to wait up much longer to see if we’re red or blue.
It looks like this is going to come down to provisional ballots. So. No sense waiting further.
.
George Bush still doesn’t get it, the responsibility of being commander-in-chief. The US presidency transcends personal satisfaction, you are in a position to serve the people, not swell in the armor of power.
Bush spokeswoman Dana Perino said the president told Obama: “You are about to go on one of the great journeys of life. Congratulations and go enjoy yourself.”
"But I will not let myself be reduced to silence."Typical narcissistic comment from a classic textbook narcissist – it’s all about MEEEEEEEEE!
I know. What a jerk. But we will celebrate the end of an error on 1/20/2009.
In fact, Bush can pack it up and leave now, as far as I’m concerned.
Now, when we cross the pond, we can hold our heads high.
I hope to see you at the inauguration! I promised myself that i would be there if he won. Already have lodging set up, now am going to hunt for good airfare. Definitely won’t be missing that moment
Manee – might see you there myself – we’re booked to be in the US at the time but I don’t know if other commitments allow us to get to Washington for the 20th.
it would be a huuuuuge honor to meet you! crossing my fingers that you can swing a visit to DC
Really. And you know that I will be there and I will party all week. It’s gonna be off the chain! My parents have already made their “reservations” with us!
If you want to come to town, make your plans NOW. Prices were being hiked up as of LAST WEEK–before the election. Consider a vacation rental or staying at the airport hotels around BWI and take the train into Union Station.(The hotels around National airport? Expensive.)
Can we come too? 🙂
Oh my goodness, of course. Now space may be a bit tight in the house because Mom and Dad will be there (and I don’t know if relatives are counting on accommodations) but we’ll make something work! Stay tuned.
BTW, sorry I didn’t get a chance to comment more directly yesterday. Lots of things going on at once, including doing campaign work while dealing with sick parents/grandparent. I’m psyched but we still have a lot of caregiving issues with which we have to deal.
i have a friend across the way in Virginia that is letting me crash on her couch, so I’m good to go on that end. I’ve already put the word out to my family that if they feel the need to give me anything for christmas, cash would suffice for airfare and alcohol-related expenses =)
да мы можем! 🙂
Pax
.
Yes, we can / Да, мы можем!
Back to Wasilla, betcha I won’t hear from you again.
"But I will not let myself be reduced to silence."Betcha we will. She and her minions started gearing up for 2012 well before this campaign was over. She’ll be back, I promise you. Like the proverbial bad penny, she’s gonna keep appearing again and again. You betcha.
I think you better go read the Newsweek-McCain campaign hatchet job on little Sally Palin before you worry too much about that.
There have been a few tears in a few eyes here in Australia’s capital today, too. TVs were on in many offices on my floor of a government department as we tracked the mounting results, and I gathered everyone within hearing of my yells for Obama’s speech.
I’m going home to get together with our American-Australian neighbours and some other friends, and open the bubbly.
I so wish that Barack Obama’s grandmother had lived to see this.
Well done to all of you who have fought so hard for the last eight years. Tomorrow, together, where might we not go…
It is just 44 years since the Civil Rights and Voting Rights acts were passed by the Johnson administration. We lost the south, but what we gained in the long run can be measured by yesterday’s victory, an African American attaining the presidency.
Still no totals from the state of NC but, my county is deep blue. I’m beyond happy, past joy and into serenity.