Aug 29 2008
Obama’s BIG Speech
Yesterday marked a historic day in the United States. It was the first time an African American accepted the nomination of a major political party. It was also, coincidentally, the 45th anniversary of Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” speech.
The Democratic National Convention moved into Denver’s football stadium yesterday to accommodate the crowd expected for Barack Obama’s speech. More than 75,000 people jam packed the stadium for this historic night. It was a big risk to have the convention at the stadium, considering it is open and has no roof, but luckily for the Democrats, the weather was great.
In case you missed the speech, here is a quick recap. There was a 10 minute introductory video of Obama before he came to the podium. The video showed his family, a little bit of his background, and some work he had previously done. The video was touching as we see Obama as a real person and it definitely set the mood for the upcoming speech. Good job Democrats on that idea. Next, Obama walked up to the stage receiving a standing ovation for around 10 minutes (or at least it felt that long). Come on people, he hasn’t even started talking yet! Then the ‘BIG’ speech began. He confronted all the issues the Republicans have been criticizing him about: his lack of experience, his ‘soft’ demeanor, and even his celebrity status. He also did a good job in directly attacking John McCain and his viewpoints. He referenced McCain many times and gave us the feeling that electing McCain would be like giving George W. another term in office. He also stated specifics on what he wanted to do in office: lower taxes which would help the middle class, deal with insurance companies who would not provide coverage to those who are really sick, and a few other things. He also brought up, but stayed pretty neutral on, same sex marriages, gun control, and unwanted pregnancies.
Overall, he did a fantastic job. He showed that he was strong, would be a great President, and would be a great Commander in Chief. As we all know, he is a very eloquent speaker and he showed that yet again last night. The night ended with Obama’s family joining him on stage and fireworks lighting up the sky above.
The Republicans have their work cut out for them next week in Minnesota and we are anxious to see how they will respond. I wonder what tricks McCain has up his sleeve…and I am guessing that a football stadium is not one of them!
I think Obama did a great job last night connecting with people of various backgrounds. I definitely agree that change is warranted at this time for the US and that 8 is enough!!!
Obama seems to offer a fresh, innovative outlook on various topics, but most importantly, he seems to care about the average citizen. It was crazy to see spectators in the audience crying during different moments of Obama’s speech last night in Denver. People clearly do not just have a political connection with Obama, but they also have an emotional connection with him too.