Wow, what a night! My husband Bob, cousin Cindy and I were at the rally in Kissimmee Wednesday night and it was amazing. The crowd was so enthusiastic, energized and excited. Obama and Clinton were incredible!
I was amazed at the diverse crowd of the people there -- especially so late at night -- I expected it to be mostly the younger folk and Disney employees who live around Kissimmee and work in the hourly wage hospitality jobs. There were at least 35,000 people there and it was every demographic group you can imagine.
Talk about diversity! Black, white, Hispanic, Asian, men, women, gay, straight, young, old, middle aged, parents, teens, children, infants, couples, disabled, you name it and they were there. This huge crowd of diverse people from every walk of life and all over central Florida was congenial and the atmosphere was all together pleasant and friendly. The last time I was in a crowd that big, diverse and happy was New Year's Eve at Epcot and everyone was happy and jovial because they had been partying all day and the fireworks were awesome. This political rally was different obviously but just as happy! And just as electrifying even without the fireworks.
Getting there was half the fun. We weren't sure we would make it in time. Bob had to work until almost 9 p.m. and it was at least a 40 minute drive to the arena. We waited at least an hour in traffic once we got off the highway to get into the parking lot. By the time we got to the parking lot entrance security had blocked off the entrance and were directing people to park on the side of the road. We parked at least a mile up the road from the overflow parking areas which were at least another mile from the field where the stage was set up.
After we hiked in they opened up the overflow parking lots where there were still parking spaces available. We guessed security closed the parking entrances during the time period the Obama motorcade was arriving. It worked out for the best though as we had to hike a long way but had no trouble getting onto the road once we reached our vehicle whereas the parking lot was gridlock long after we were headed home. :-)
Hearing President Clinton and Senator Obama speak was obviously the highlight of the event. It was amazing! The crowd reaction was incredible. We were cheering and clapping and I know I wasn't the only with goosebumps and tears streaming down my face as we listened. There was so much hope and promise for the future in the words they spoke.
President Clinton said that it has been his experience that candidates for the presidency really want to accomplish everything they promise in their campaigns and they do everything they can to keep those promises. Clinton said he believes Barack Obama's goals are the best plan for this country. And that Obama will do everything he can to make those plans come true.
We couldn't really see the stage because we were pretty far back but we could hear every word (except when the cheering was really loud and drowned out the speaker) Organizers had a very large video screen to the left of the stage so we could see Bill Clinton and Barack Obama when they spoke.
Anyway, it was inspiring (and exhausting!) and I am so glad we were able to go. It felt like we were seeing history being made and just being a part of the crowd reminded me how lucky we are in this country. Just to be able to go to a gathering like that and hear Clinton and Obama live in person was amazing. To be surrounded by this huge cheering crowd and feel the positive power of all these people around me was energizing and emotional. I was not the only one with tears in my eyes and a lump in my throat.
I can only imagine what it must be like to be Barack Obama on that stage and feel all that energy and approval come rushing toward you. I hope he draws strength from that because I don't know how he can keep going at the pace he has set for himself and his campaign. I am not sure why anyone would want the job of President after what the last eight years have done to this country but I sure am glad that Obama wants the job. I think he is the right choice to fix the mess we are in.
He is smart, articulate, intelligent, energetic, caring, knowledgeable, creative and motivated. He really loves this country and the people of this country. He knows who we are and believes more in our similarities than our differences. I believe he will keep all of us first in his mind when he makes a decision that will affect us. I believe he will take us in the right direction internationally as well. I also believe he will seek out and surround himself with intelligent people to help him make decisions based on all the information available just as he has been doing. He will find ways to bring our economy back and create new jobs and move us into the future of renewable energy resources. I think he will continue to be thoughtful, steadfast and calm even in the face of great tension and turmoil. He looks and acts like a true leader -- even under pressure.
And I think he will do everything in his power to make sure we don't get into any more unavoidable wars and will get us out of Iraq as soon as it is safe and honorable to do so. I believe Obama will be able to do something real and positive and actually fix some of the problems we are struggling with right now. His way has the best chance. And I think he will be able to bring America's peope back together again so that we can achieve our common goals and once again pursue all that makes America great -- life, liberty, equality -- in the pursuit of happiness.
Obama/Biden have been our choice for months and now they have our vote. In fact we already voted at an early voting location Tuesday. We will be spending our free time over the next four days volunteering with the campaign and helping other people get to the polls. And watching to make sure there are no more dirty tricks in Florida to suppress the vote. We encourage everyone we know to do the same!
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