Hope, not fear

We were eating dinner last night in Idaho. Fox News was on. The people next to us were talking about the VP pick, and about Obama.

Then, I heard one woman say something something abhorrent about Obama and Senator Clinton.

In a way, it solidified for me the work that needs to be done in the weeks ahead. As Obama himself said in a video I still never get tired of, the road ahead will be long. No one said this wasn't an uphill climb.

But I'm hopeful that America will judge him fairly, based on his ideas. That he'll be evaluated on the content of his character.

The Obama sub-caucus chair asked me to take on a duty on the floor--to make sure that we have coverage at all times, for all votes, by making sure that all the alternates get seated according to a regular plan. At first, my reaction was a little bit of, "Aww, darn it. That means I have to work even harder!" But, of course, I agreed. I want to do my part, in any way that I can. I've tried to do what I can to make the experience fair for the delegates, and we have to have coverage for Obama at all times. It was a no-brainer in the end.

Sometimes, even as an Obama supporter, I fear that people like the woman last night are too far gone to even given Obama a chance.

But then I force myself to feel hopeful. To see Obama being sworn in to office. To see a cogent policy for our wars abroad (something that these folks obviously also want to see, based on their donation pattern).

At the end of the overheard conversation, the woman made it sound like she had to convince her daughter not to vote for Obama. I can't tell you how happy that made me.

Yes, we can.