| Jun. 9th, 2008 09:05 am With Clinton Out: Obama for President We got up early Saturday - well, I got up early; Earl's always up at that time - to make our way down town to witness a historic event: Senator Clinton's concession and overwhelming endorsement of Barack Obama.
The crowd, a moment before Senator Clinton enters
The speech brought to an end a historic campaign that showed a woman could be successful in a run for the White House. The speech she gave was perfect, hitting all the right notes. It was a full-throated endorsement of Senator Obama - exactly what it needed to be; touching and sincere in its graciousness and gratitude.
A particularly effective part:We cannot let this moment slip away. We have come too far and accomplished too much.
Now the journey ahead will not be easy. Some will say we can't do it. That it's too hard. That we're just not up to the task. But for as long as America has existed, it has been the American way to reject "can't do" claims, and to choose instead to stretch the boundaries of the possible through hard work, determination, and a pioneering spirit.
It is this belief, this optimism, that Senator Obama and I share, and that has inspired so many millions of our supporters to make their voices heard.
So today, I am standing with Senator Obama to say: Yes we can. I was a Clinton supporter for reasons that I've explained before; but today, today it is all about supporting, as forcefully I can, Barack Obama.
At the speech, from the 3rd floor
Senator Clinton is right - we are now presented with a rare moment in American history; a moment where dramatic change is possible because the nation has veered far off course. We can lay blame - and boy have I, with I'm sure a majority of the 800 entries I've written on this blog since 2002 - but such potential turning points as this are about looking forward, not back. They are about what is possible; not what has happened. They are about turning positive; not about the negative. These moments of change are presented to us because of the bad; but they allow us to look skyward and realize the good that can come. Through the dispair, these possible turning points bring hope for a better tomorrow.
These moments, and the hope of that better tomorrow, require today - as they did throughout the 20th century - a Democratic president because these times play to the strength, to the vision, to the very core of what it is to be a liberal, to be a Democrat. And those are the values that both Senator Clinton and Senator Obama have fought for.
We will be a better America when all Americans have health coverage. We will be a better America when we aren't fighting unnecessary wars. We will be a better America when the veterans fighting any war in our name gets the medical treatment and educational opportunities they deserve. We will be a better America when science and medicine are allowed to flourish rather than take a back seat to those who don't understand the separation of church and state. We will be a better America when we have chosen to finally end the rhetoric and end our addiction to not just foreign oil but all oil. We will be a better America when we listen to and join the international community rather than spur it at every opportunity. We will be a better America when our government serves the people, not spy on them. We will be a better America when we understand freedom at home is at least as important as trying to spread freedom abroad.
These are the values and the convictions both candidates shared. I'm grateful - as many are - that Senator Clinton ran. Her run and campaign made Senator Obama a better, tougher candidate (yet no less optimistic).
We will be a better America when Barack Obama is president.
Senator Clinton endorses Senator ObamaCurrent Mood:  optimistic
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