Live Blog Of Obama Rally In Madison, Wisconsin (February 12, 2007)

Today (02/12/08), Barack Obama is having a rally in Madison, Wisconsin. Doors opened at 6:15 CST and Obama is scheduled to speak at 8:15 CST (just in time to opine on the results of the primaries in Virginia, Maryland and Washington, D.C.).

5:55: Walking up to the Kohl center, where the event will take place.

6:15: All settled in. Unlike other events that I’ve been to, getting through security here was relatively painless (outside of the surly doorman). About 1/6 of the venue is filled, but judging from the long line outside, I don’t think they’ll have much trouble filling this place up.

6:17: The crowd cheers after they see the CNN projection that Obama will win Virginia. I cheer because their cheers temporarily drown out the ska band that’s playing.

6:28: The band is now singing “Signed, Sealed, Delivered, I’m Yours.” Somewhere, Stevie Wonder weeps.

6:40: This place really filled up fast. It’s more than halfway filled already. What are these people going to do for an hour?

6:59: The good news: the band has stopped playing. The bad news: Wolf Blitzer on a jumbotron. The crowd cheers every time someone mentions Obama’s name (it doesn’t matter what the context is).

7:24: The venue’s now full. They’ve been playing some ‘get to know Barack’ videos for the past 15 minutes - one biographical, one about his judgment on the Iraq war and one featuring Michelle Obama talking about Barack’s “good old Midwestern values” and herself.

7:31: The crowd does the wave for a few minutes.

7:35: A new video. This one starts with a brief discussion of the civil rights movement and the role that young people played in bring about change in that arena. Then, turns to Obama’s call for youth to get involved in this campaign and a “behind the scenes” look at some of his young volunteers. Now, the video turns to the Iraq war. The message: it’s cool to volunteer for Obama, so go do it.

7:47: CNN just flashed the latest delegate tally (Obama: 1170, Clinton 1168) and the crowd goes wild.

7:48: I overhear some jackass in the press corps says to a friend of his, “Hillary must be saying to herself, ‘I stayed with him all those years for this’”

7:49: The program starts. A student from Wisconsin talks about why Obama connects to youth. He also tells the crowd not to believe “the rumors” and that students (including out of state students) can register to vote the day of the primary and he encouraged all of them to do so. He neglects of course to remind people that if they’ve already voted in their home state, they aren’t allowed to vote in Wisconsin too.

8:12: “Aint no stopping us now” is blaring on the speakers. And based upon Obama’s massive margin of victory in Virgina displayed on the screen, the crowd probably believes this.

8:19: David Axelrod, right here, right next to me…

8:20: Video montage on jumbotron of some famous singers and actors doing their rendition of Obama’s “yes we can” speech.

8:31: Wisconsin Governor Jim Doyle takes to the stage. His microphone is not working, but he fixed it himself pretty quickly. Doyle announces that Obama has won the Maryland and the crowd goes absolutely wild.

8:34: Doyle is very excited about the prospects of a “leader that will bring us together” and not divide us. He encourages everyone to get out and help Obama as best as possible.

8:40: Obama takes the stage after a very enthusiastic crowd loudly received him. Obama thanks some local leaders, including mentioning the fact that Madison’s mayor endorsed him today. Now, the speech…

8:42: Obama announces the fact that he’s won Virgnia, Maryland and DC, finishes by saying that the movement will not stop until there is change in D.C.

8:43: Acknowledges that there is a long way to go before change can be achieved. States that the cynics cannot claim that hope is false, because he’s now won all over the country.

8:45: States that this is what change looks like, from the bottom up. He certainly has a point. His campaign so effective because it is a bottom up campaign. Goes on to say “We cannot play the same Washington game, with the same Washington players and somehow hope for a different result.” Aside from being a very effective, subtle criticism of his rival, Hillary Clinton, I wonder about this statement. Won’t most congressmen and senators still be the same regardless of who gets elected president in 2008?

8:48: Talks about ending the war, but more importantly ending the mindset that got us into war. This is why Obama is so very effective, because he appeals to notions that are larger than simple politics.

8:50: Obama begins talking about McCain. Notes his service, the audience claps. References McCain’s statement that we could be in Iraq another 100 years, and says that it’s reason alone for McCain not to get 4 years in the White House.

8:54: Obama talks about restoring the American Dream.  To support this, he refers to tax cuts for the working class and elderly.  Of course, this came just a few minutes after he blasted McCain for supporting Bush’s tax cuts because they focused on the rich and constituted irresponsible spending because we couldn’t afford them.

8:56: Talks about his 4,000 tax credit for education.  The crowd goes wild when he says that students won’t get it for free, they’ll have to do some type of community service - like joining the foreign service, peace corps or volunteering in a local homeless shelter.

8:57: I can see some 9/11 truth people being escorted out of the arena.  Apparently, they made it to the front row.

8:59: Obama begins discussing, what I shall refer to as “the politics of hope.”  Teases those that refer to him as a “hope mongerer.”  Discusses that hes not naive, says he realizes how hard it’s going to be.

9:03: Says, what better place to start this cause of ‘yes we can’ than in Wisconsin where the progressive movement was born 100 years ago.  I guess, Obama is not aware of the fact that the Republican Party was born in Wisconsin too.

9:05: ‘Yes we can, Yes we can, Yes we can’

9:06: And we’re done.

It was pretty much his standard stump speech with a few local tweaks.