Obama's Girl?

Rachel and I went to an Barack Obama rally last night in Coralville. It was going to be a family event since it was originally planned for ST Morrison Park, but the weather changed that plan. We were conveniently enough in the tornado shelter ballroom at the Marriot Hotel as the tornado sirens announced the presence of a twister or two. There were very few seats and they were far away from the action, so we stood a few people back from the protective barrier around the stage. Rachel couldn't see anything unless I held her up. She drew pictures and read books while while we waited an hour for the man to arrive. It was a very long wait for a six year old, but she did really well. She was excited to get some Barack signs. She knew the sign was red, white and blue because of the colors of our flag, but I had to explain the rising-sun-new-day imagery to her.



The main thing she remembered from his speech is his phrase "It's time to turn the page". People were chanting "turn the page" at the rally and it stuck in her head. the best part of the night was at the end, when I held her up and she reached out her hand hoping he'd shake it and he did. He really had to work hard to reach her as she was three people back from the barrier. He had a great expression on his face - an "I am going to shake your hand, you cute kid" look. Here's a picture from the event:



That isn't Rachel's hand (it's too big), but that does give you a good idea of how hard he had to work to reach her.

I am very close to supporting Barack Obama for president. Hearing Ted Sorensen, who was an advisor to President John F. Kennedy, compare Barack to Kennedy was very persuasive. He said that while Kennedy wasn't thought to be very experienced, he did have good judgment which he demonstrated during the Cuban Missle Crisis. Barack, said Sorensen, has that same quality. I found an article Sorenson wrote comparing Barack and Kennedy. It's worth a read.

Rachel, however, isn't sold on Barack yet. She still likes the girl who's running for president.