Obama thanks Illinois donors personally at reception - "This is not the end. This is the beginning."

[jefferson_dem]

Obama thanks Illinois donors personally at reception
by SusanG
Thu Dec 04, 2008 at 06:58:51 PM PST

John McCormick of the Chicago Tribune just filed a pool report--complete with a touching speech by Barack Obama--on a reception that the president-elect for his early supporters in Chicago and members of his finance committee. Reading this, you get a sudden stunning sense of just how far the man has come and what a journey it has been.

<SNIP>

Penny Pritzker, the chairwoman of his national finance committee, was also in the room, although did not speak while we were there. Aides said the crowd was a mixture of Illinois finance committee members and national finance committee members.

"I could not have asked for better leadership," Obama said of his finance committee leaders.

Obama said he wanted to do the small event because of the long friendships in the room.

"This is a gathering of friends, and we wanted to do it precisely because all of you are friends. You know in politics, often times you say folks are friends, when what you really mean is they supported you and sometimes only after it became apparent you were winning. In this case, it’s absolutely true."

Obama looked out onto the crowd and said he saw classmates, friends, co-workers, past bosses and some of his earliest political supporters, including Bettylu Saltzman.

"I’m almost speechless here, which I don’t usually get, because this is really a tapestry of our lives. You know, we workout out at the East Bank Club. We worked on education stuff together. We’ve rabble-roused together. We’ve played basketball together. We have golfed, not so well, together. We’ve sat on foundation boards together. And we’ve seen frustrations, but also seen some dreams come true together. And so, I just want you to know that all of you had more to do with us being successful than just raising money. You helped shape Michelle and myself. Many of you have been part of our children’s lives. Many of you have helped to support us, through thick and through thin. And so, I’m just very grateful to all of you. Now, we’ve got a lot of work to do, and I don’t want to sugar-coat the amount of work there is to be done."

"We didn’t just win, but we ran and won in the right way," Obama said.

"This is not goodbye," Obama said. "This is the start. This is not the end. This is the beginning."

<SNIP>

http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2008/12/4/21394/1172/733/669488

[Whisp]

1. o geeeze.

and he means it.

this is someone real special, isn't he?

[firedupdem]

2. That was nice....and he's right. There is so much work to do. n/t

[FrenchieCat]

3. Yes indeed-e!

"America, we cannot turn back. Not with so much work to be done. Not with so many children to educate, and so many veterans to care for. Not with an economy to fix and cities to rebuild and farms to save. Not with so many families to protect and so many lives to mend. America, we cannot turn back. We cannot walk alone. At this moment, in this election, we must pledge once more to march into the future. Let us keep that promise - that American promise - and in the words of Scripture hold firmly, without wavering, to the hope that we confess."- President Barack Obama, Convention Speech at Mile High Stadium.

[rvablue]

4. Kick

[Clio the Leo]

5. "We ran and won in the right way" love it......

... I said during some of the campaign's ugliest moments "I think he'd rather lose than win playing dirty."

Glad I was right.