This is no time for triumphalism, because we are still in an economic crisis and we still have deep social divisions that must be dealt with. But we have to absorb, as a country, as a NATION, that first and foremost, AMERICA IS CHANGING -- something I have been preaching for my entire life. We cannot fight demographics by ignoring women, Latinos, blacks, young people, and gay people who gave their lives for our country. Second, the Republican model for the economy doesn't work: it is being tried at huge cost in England (two years), Italy (three years), Spain (four years) and Greece (five years) -- cutting government just doesn't work -- we need to spend more now to grow the economy and our middle class. The message needs to be clear: Don't pull back the government when there is so much pain. Third, beyond the clear economics, we should make it impossible to BUY an election in America: Citizens United must be overturned. America is greater than that. You can't buy great democracies. That message should resonate all around the world. Shame on those who try. I will make it my work for the next four years (and beyond) to encourage the president and the Congress to overturn Citizen's United, the law that has hijacked our democracy.
The president has fought back the lobbyists and special interests for the past four years with little or no help from his colleagues in Washington. He is well aware that all of the laws that disenfranchise the poor and middle class are created by special interests who pay legislators to exploit and profit off the people. It is time that we stand with the president, forge a real bipartisan coalition, and create an America that is truly for the people.
This country's politicians should not be bought and sold, and the president proved that one man can stand against this. I particularly love the line in his stump speech, "kids don't have lobbyists, so I'm standing up for them." America is changing, the middle class and poor need support, and every politician who is not ready for this change should wake today and realize that minorities will wait in line into the early hours of the morning to vote them out of office. Forward, we go.