Palpable excitement

Here's an article from the local section of yesterday's Times regarding the excitement in blue states regarding tomorrow's election.

In the heart of Blue America, along with judging the candidates’ positions on taxes, the war and health care, there’s almost a palpable yearning for a president who, for once, seems like us.

I have this feeling too, even though I'm out here in red country. (The Eagle yesterday said that 20% of Kansas who identify themselves as "liberal" are voting for McCain. That's how you can identify a Kansas liberal, I guess.) In part this means someone urban, polished, and sophisticated, who doesn't speak in code words designed for the True Believers. In part, it means someone who is intellectually capable, and isn't afraid to show it:

“I like the way he presents himself, his self-confidence, his intelligence, his poise,” he said of Mr. Obama. “Unfortunately, what’s gone on in the country is this kind of bashing of intellectuals, bashing of people who have educational credentials, as if there’s something wrong with that, that it’s not valuable. There’s the appeal of Sarah Palin, that she’s just a hockey mom, just a Joe Schmo, and that’s what we need. I don’t know where we got that idea.”

Clinton was a good-ish president, especially compared to what came after, but he wasn't "like us" in the way that Obama is. That was still when Democrats thought they had to be more like Republicans to stand a chance. Thank goodness that's over.

This will be my seventh presidential election. I have voted for the Democrat each and every time, but this is the first time where I actually feel that the candidate is my candidate, that he understands what the country needs, that he isn't motivated by personal demons, and that he holds similar values to mine. I don't know what's going to happen, but it is a pleasure, for once, to vote for someone, and not against someone else.