As I watched highlights from the recent opening of the Obama Presidential Center, I couldn't help but remember the night I first heard then-Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) make his pitch to Iowa caucusgoers in 2008.
It was at that moment I understood something truly profound was happening. Obama was charting a new direction in presidential politics. I wanted to be aboard his ship.
Lucky for me, I had two chances to meet Obama before he was elected president. The first was in June 2007, when I spent 45 minutes introducing him to a gathering of 30 prominent Democrats in Orange County. The second was the month before he traveled to Denver to accept the Democratic Party's presidential nomination in 2008. That's when Obama stopped by the Balboa Bay Club for a major fundraiser.
When it was my turn to have my picture taken with him, he warmly greeted me by saying, "I remember you from last year." I was both thrilled and momentarily speechless.
After the photos were taken, I moved away from Obama's right shoulder, but not before turning back and saying to him, "Senator, we're all counting on you."
It was at that moment I understood something truly profound was happening. Obama was charting a new direction in presidential politics. I wanted to be aboard his ship.
Lucky for me, I had two chances to meet Obama before he was elected president. The first was in June 2007, when I spent 45 minutes introducing him to a gathering of 30 prominent Democrats in Orange County. The second was the month before he traveled to Denver to accept the Democratic Party's presidential nomination in 2008. That's when Obama stopped by the Balboa Bay Club for a major fundraiser.
When it was my turn to have my picture taken with him, he warmly greeted me by saying, "I remember you from last year." I was both thrilled and momentarily speechless.
After the photos were taken, I moved away from Obama's right shoulder, but not before turning back and saying to him, "Senator, we're all counting on you."
3 hours ago
