Hillary.
In some ways, I thought the video was even more powerful than her speech.
First, Chelsea's narration was so sincere and understated. It was so simple yet so powerful.
Second, it showed a side of Hillary that the media and her campaign did not always show - the hairstyles, the crowds, the fans, the history, the connection with voters. It was a historic and massive campaign in every sense.
Third, it was iconic. It reminded me of the reasons I was always drawn to Hillary in the first place. She is the Madonna of politics. A rock star.
As so many commentators - and she herself has pointed out - she has done far more for Barack Obama than any runner-up in history.
The best line of the speech for me:
My mother was born before women could vote. But in this election my daughter got to vote for her mother for president.
This is the story of America. Of women and men who defy the odds and never give up.
How do we give this country back to them?
By following the example of a brave New Yorker, a woman who risked her life to shepherd slaves along the Underground Railroad.
And on that path to freedom, Harriet Tubman had one piece of advice.
If you hear the dogs, keep going.
If you see the torches in the woods, keep going.
If they're shouting after you, keep going.
Don't ever stop. Keep going.
If you want a taste of freedom, keep going.
I respect and admire her to no ends.
Yet, in some ways, her speech also reminded me of why I have grown so wary of politics - especially 90's style Clinton politics. A style epitomized with the classic Clinton laundry list of issues and interest groups.
Bill Clinton perfected the laundry list. In fact, if you look back at his speeches, that is all they often were -a list of every issue, program, and minor policy.
I'm all for lists, but I'm more into vision these days (I've been working with an executive coach). What is the big picture? What role can we play? What are we really working towards?
Hillary did not have a vision at the beginning of her campaign. She was "in it to win it." There was nothing in it for me. It was a laundry list.
By the end of her campaign she had moved closer to a vision that embraced the historic nature of her candidacy and the change it would have brought to Washington, our world, and everyday life.
But it was too late. Barack had already filled the vacuum.
It is vision that attracted me to Obama in the first place - the hope that a new kind of politics could exist that was about something bigger than just a list of things that will probably never happen (they rarely do - I can only name a handful of meaningful laws that have been passed in the past 20 years). A politics that was about the future, fast, fresh, less scripted, more spontaneous, and more in sync with the world today.
Michelle inspired and moved me last night. I know Barack will on Thursday. And I am excited to no ends that he may be our next president. Phone bank next Tuesday and Thursday in my office.
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