Did you think last summer that Barack Obama was gonna be so close to winning the Dem nomination?

[Colobo]

Remember last summer? The 25%+ national leads Clinton had? The leads in almost every state? The shaky debate performances by Obama? The doubts about if he could withstand the Clinton machine and, eventually, Republicans? The doubts about him being able, or not, to deliver punches as well as take them?

Today, a week from Super Tuesday- Barack Obama is a political juggernaut on his own right, standing toe to toe against Bill and Hillary Clinton, going 2-2 with them, and whooping them in SC with a 28% lead win.

I know many people didn't think then this was going to happen. I know this, because even though I was a supporter then, I really didn't believe he would actually be so close to winning this.

Barack Obama, win or lose, has paid his dues, and has shown he's here to stay for years to come.

[skipos]

1. Hell no. The Clintons will do anything to win

no matter how unethical. It is pretty hard to overcome that kind of machine.

I thought Edwards would be doing better though.

[JI7]

2. no, i was surprised by how well he did in Iowa

even if he won i never expected it to be by that much. and he has been coming close in the states he didn't win also.

[Scriptor Ignotus]

3. I thought it was improbable, but not impossible

I still do, for the record. But it is amazing to see how far he's come since my first donation so long ago.

[Tatiana]

4. Hell no. I thought for sure Edwards would be second.

This has been an exciting and awesome surprise.

[kevsand]

5. Yes.

But then, I've seen this show before. I was on the losing side against Obama in his senate primary race, as a county coordinator for Dan Hynes in the winter of 2003-04. I saw then up close and personal what Obama can do, and the effect he has on people once they've been exposed to him. I knew in the fall of 2006 that, if he decided to run, he would be our next president.

[Proud2BAmurkin]

6. Anyone who pays attention knows races get close. I thought he'd be doing better.

[DJ13]

7. Im not really surprised

Despite the early spin that Clinton was inevitable, I knew that her negatives were high enough that Obama had a good chance of beating her, provided he didnt make any serious mistakes.

While I considered Edwards as a possible strong challenger, the electorate is rarely kind to a candidate that tries running two cycles in a row, so he's actually doing about what I expected.

[Kermit77]

9. I am very surprised

I thought we would be having a Hillary cornanation. I am so glad that Barack is in the lead now.

[sandnsea]

8. I still can't figure out the resistence

He's exactly what people have been saying they want and here he is, and he's handsome and funny to boot. I didn't think beating the Clintons would be easy, but I also didn't think people would vote on silly stuff like crying or the boys being mean. In some ways I'm shocked we're here, in other ways I'm shocked that he's having to fight so hard for the nomination.

[Proud2BAmurkin]

10. I was for him for a couple of days but then figured out it was marshmallow fluff

and he's not any more liberal than the other ones so I went with experience.

[LittleBlue]

11. HELL NO! I only dream of the day when "Hussein" is chanted at political rallies

and parents use his namesake for their kids. That kind of hope can't be found anywhere else.

[Up2Late]

12. No, because he's NOT "... close to winning the Dem nomination...!" Give it a rest!

He's still only in the 1% of the delegates range, this isn't even CLOSE to being over, GIVE-IT-A-REST!

And I don't want you hear your excuses when he loses 3 out of 4 contests Feb. 5th.

So PLEASE, GIVE IT A REST! (A.K.A. STFU).:mad:

[Name removed]

14. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Bluebear]

15. "GFY" - another positive meesage of HOPE and CHANGE and a NEW TONE!!!

:silly:

[hogwyld]

17. I generally agree, but in a nicer way

There are a lot of states and delegates out there. Not counting the superdelegates, each one needs about 1700 or so. this is a marathon, not a sprint. Everyone is entitled to their own opinions.

[Nailzberg]

13. Yes, I did. But I was very familiar with him from Springfield.

I know how easily he can bring a full room of people, each with their own individual point of view, to a consensus.

[Pirate Smile]

16. Yes. I did. I'm in Iowa and I knew the national leads didn't mean squat here.

I knew he had a huge opportunity to prove himself in Iowa. If he did prove himself, then he would win - and he did. :)

[Tulkas]

18. Yep, I started supporting him in Dec. '06 I knew he could do it

I still hope Richardson is his V.P.

That was the "dream ticket" I told my friends about over 13 months ago.

McCain would need to not be the Repug nominee for that to happen, but maybe. I can still hope.


I support both Obama and Richardson for reason other than their race.... but..... I would love to see the 2009 State Of The Union with Obama front and center, Richardson seated over his left shoulder and Pelosi seated over his right shoulder.

To me, that begins to look like America. Not three old white guys (btw I am a kinda old white guy).

[QC]

19. I remember when Lieberman and Gephardt were inevitable.

It's all well and good to be happy--you deserve to celebrate a bit--but it's not even February yet.

[rufus dog]

20. Hell Yes!

[LordJFT]

21. yes, i had the audacity to hope

[Drunken Irishman]

22. No.

I began as an undecided voter a year ago. I'll admit I liked both Obama and Clinton, for varying reasons. I think I leaned toward Obama, but wasn't quite sure if I wanted to support him. See, in December of 2002 someone told me about this little known candidate from Vermont named Howard Dean. I looked him up, heard his speeches, read where he stood on the issues and was instantly sold. Up until that point, I had supported Kerry, though his impending vote on Iraq really turned me off.

From late 2002, until early 2004, I worked my butt off for Howard Dean. I was with him when he polled at 3% and I was with him when he finally dropped out. No candidate moved me like he had and I was devastated when he lost. So when this election cycle rolled around, I anticipated I would find a candidate who would excite me much like Dean did in 2004. No luck, at first and I was very passive about the upcoming primary season. It wasn't that I didn't like Obama or Clinton, it was just I was exhausted from the last election cycle. It took me a good while before I became emotionally involved again, but by the time I started paying attention, Obama started giving me the same feeling Dean had given me 4 years prior.

I began supporting Obama in the summer and really didn't think he stood much of a chance. I thought Clinton was well on her way to the nomination, but I was not about to change candidates just to jump on the Clinton bandwagon. Then something began to change, I noticed Obama was becoming more and more competitive and quickly closed the gap in Iowa. Still, I had my doubts and it wasn't until the final week prior to Iowa -- where everyone had written Obama off -- that I started feeling really good about his chances. Maybe it was blind optimism, or just a hunch, but I was convinced he'd win. I remember even saying the final Des Moines Register poll would have him at the top, and it did. When Obama won Iowa, I really felt good and thought that maybe he had the nomination in the bag. Then came New Hampshire and my fears of what happened to Howard Dean began finding their way back to the front of my brain. Nevada didn't help matters, but I'm again regaining my optimism and I hope, no make that pray, he can come out of Super Tuesday the clear frontrunner.

But to think he'd be in this spot just a few months ago? Never.

[ShadowLiberal]

23. Nope, I thought he was doomed to fail early

I remember thinking ages ago that Obama was the guy who appeared to be a big threat to Clinton, but probably wouldn't be from not placing well enough in Iowa to get the boost he needs, and not being ahead in the polls in any state.

[BeyondGeography]

24. It helps to have been through this before

The HillCrowd poll-posted us to death back then, but polls that far out just don't matter. Hell, polls taken last week about Feb. 5 really don't mean much at all.

Like you, I always believed in the incredible qualities that Obama and his candidacy have to offer. I knew he would give us some thrills before it was over, but I expected to be hurt in the end. I feel like I'm playing with house money now, but I'm also feeling set up for the fall, and it will be extra bad now if it happens. The pain...once you feel that you never want to dance on someone's grave, no matter how badly they've behaved.

As for right now, I was too far down after Nevada and I'm guarding against being too far up now. It has been a long time since we've had a real primary contest like this, so the learning experience is starting to be totally communal. I have no freaking idea what's going to happen...I'm veeeeeeeeeeery cautiously optimistic.

[HughMoran]

25. no

But since the 2004 democratic convention I have been hoping he would run.