Years of Poems and Spirits

I always think of myself as growing up in the D.C. area. It is fair to say that I lived my “formative” years there. Therefore it is extremely gratifying to hear that D.C., Maryland and Virginia delivered a resounding victory for Obama. Not only the margin was significant but the sentiment was across-the-board.

Recently, I caucused for Obama in WA too. As much as I was moved by the scenes I encountered here, a concurring result from Virginia means so much more.

One of my first close encounters with American politics was the 1994 election where Chuck Robb narrowly beat Oliver North in the Senate race in Virginia. All things considered, that outcome felt like the last stand in Alamo. Afterall, Virginians had all the reasons to follow the sentiment of the nation. Yet they stood their ground and denied a felon’s claim. I might have viewed American politics differently had Virginians chosen to go with the trend.