Obama wins, becomes first black American president

Less than an hour after sealing his hold on the White House, Obama and his wife, Michelle, stepped onto the stage holding the hands of their two daughters at a massive victory rally in Chicago's Grant Park.

"If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a place where all things are possible; who still wonders if the dream of our founders is alive in our time; who still questions the power of our democracy, tonight is your answer," the new president said.

He spoke warmly of McCain, the 72-year-old Arizona senator who was his rival in the longest and most costly presidential campaign in American history.

After McCain called Obama to concede victory, he spoke graciously of Obama at an outdoor rally in Arizona, commending the president-elect on his victory and emphasizing that he understood its special importance to African-Americans.

"The American people have spoken, and spoken clearly," McCain told disappointed supporters in Arizona, many who booed and growled as he called for the nation to unify behind the victor and his running mate, Joe Biden.

Obama, a 47-year-old Illinois senator and son of a white mother from Kansas and an African father from Kenya, mined a deep vein of national discontent, promising Americans hope and change throughout a nearly flawless 21-month campaign for the White House.

Obama stepped through a door opened 145 years ago when Abraham Lincoln, a fellow Illinois politician, issued the Emancipation Proclamation that freed African-Americans from enslavement in the rebellious South in the midst of a wrenching civil war.

The powerful orator lays claim to the White House on Jan. 20, only 43 years after the country enacted a law that banned the disenfranchisement of blacks in many Southern states where poll taxes and literacy tests were common at the time.

Cautioning Americans that the nation's problems were manifest, Obama said: "The road ahead will be long. Our climb will be steep. We may not get there in one year or even one term, but America I have never been more hopeful than I am tonight that we will get there. I promise you we as a people will get there."

Obama heaped praise on his political strategists who crafted a campaign that took him deep into Republican territory and produced victory in the most important toss-up states, including Florida and Ohio.

The unstoppable Obama political engine turned the Internet into a money machine as volunteers and paid staff nationwide expanded voter rolls to record numbers.

The Obama campaign was so flush that it was able to spend roughly $240 million on television and radio ads through the middle of last month. His extraordinary fundraising capabilities vanquished primary rival Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, who had been seen as the party's inevitable nominee.

After Obama's victory Clinton called her former rival to promise her full support and congratulated Americans for making him the 44th U.S. president.

"In quiet, solitary acts of citizenship, American voters gave voice to their hopes and their values, voted for change, and refused to be invisible any longer," she said in a statement.

1|2|Next Page>>

SharePrintEmail

Write a Comment

Enter your comments - 3000 characters max

Type in image code

Submit

 Receive China Post promos Respond to this email