"The leader willing to put his weapons down"

by shamanic

An e-mailer tells Andrew Sullivan why Barack Obama is such a powerful force: "A large percentage of the Americans just don't buy the 51/49% narrative that has been shoved down our throat throughout the Bush/Clinton years. Everyone is 'shocked', except for the millions of voters who have simply been waiting for the leader willing to put his weapons down in the name of the common good."

This rings true for me. I just watched Obama's Jefferson-Jackson Day speech (that Sullivan kindly posted) and it struck me that Obama appeals to me not because of specific policy proposals (though I like his) or the laundry list of things he'd do as president (though I like that too), but because the vision of this country that he articulates so well over and over again is nearly identical to my own vision of this great nation.

He sees all of us as Americans and he sees that we are up to the task of confronting our challenges -- openly, together -- and that the things that divide us are far less important than the things that bind us as one people.

When you recognize us as one people, and when you call on us as one people, there's no longer any justification for arms. Whatever else happens in this election, Barack Obama has given us a glimpse of a greater America, and that's the America I believe in.