Could the end of this race be in sight? I hear that Clinton's campaign is floundering in support and donations because of Obama's string of recent, decisive victories. For anyone who happens upon this post, try to think of something you can do within the next two weeks to add to Obama's momentum. Make a few calls, make a small donation, participate online. Anything. This election will be easier to win in the next two weeks than it will be after that. You can bet the Clinton campaign will find ways to change the rules mid-game, will cajole superdelegates, and will extort and suppress the media. Our voice must be loud. Our voice must be one. Let's go everyone!
I had decided early on that I would caucus for Barack Obama. As I left work on Tuesday, I called my dad who lives in Overland Park, Kansas. I live in Wichita. I told him I was going home to let the dog out and would then proceed to the caucus site. My dad told me he was looking forward to staying in and watching the returns. To say the least, this upset me. My dad is a supporter of Barack Obama but did not want to brave the weather. More importantly, he is a cancer survivor and the chemotherapy has left his legs extremely sensitive. It hurts him to stand for long periods of time.
I told him that he has always told me about how excited he was during RFK's presidential run. I told him that this campaign is the closest phenomenon to that experience he was ever likely to witness. I asked if he would rather watch the precincts come in one at a time or actually participate in the process. It worked. He said that he would go ahead and caucus for Obama. At the time, we were both under the impression that we would only be at the caucus site for an hour or two.
I arrived at Robinson Middle School at about 6:20 p.m. I knew that I had already waited too long to show up. In Kansas, you were to be counted as long as you were in line by 7:00. I thought my arrival time would be fine. How many democrats are there in Wichita, anyway. As I drove by the school, I noticed that there was nowhere to park for nearly half a mile. I parked and made my way to the school, getting showered by freezing rain.
It took about twenty minutes to get into the door and another hour plus just to sign in. I was finally able to get to the gymnasium at about 7:50. Once there, I met other Obama supporters and checked election returns on my Treo. I was disappointed about the loss of several large east-coast states, but I could not believe what I was seeing. It seemed like the entire crowd at the school was filling into the gymnasium. This suspicion was confirmed when a Kansas state representative informed us that at the time there were about 1,300 Obama supporters to Hillary's 250. I called my dad. He told me their final count had just taken place and it was about 1,400 to 300. I told others how the caucus in Overland Park was going similarly to ours.
Another individual addressed the crowd and asked how many of the participants were either first-time voters, or people who had changed parties to support Obama. About twenty percent of the packed gymnasium raised their hands. I was shocked. Our total came to approximately 1,600 to 400, in Obama's favor. I left for my car, which had been covered in several inches of snow since I'd parked it. It was nearly 10:00 p.m. As I carefully made my way home, I called my dad and told him our final count. He thanked me for convincing him to go to the caucus. He and I both thought the process was amazing and empowering. It was great to be in a room of similarly inspired people. My dad told me that he would donate $100.00 to Obama's campaign. I pledged another $50.00.
This really is something special, everyone. I hope we all continue to pledge our support, time, and talent. Together, we can.
