Like many other people, I've been taken up with the arguments pro & con on Obama's statement regarding the FISA bill (and also his statements about the 2 recent Supreme Court decisions).
One moment I'll be furious with him, the next I'll feel resigned, and the next I'll wonder if (and hope) he's doing some things behind the scenes on the FISA bill that we don't know about.
But I was just reminded of why I need to keep strongly supporting him, even though I will still express my dismay if he makes statements or takes stands I don't like.
A man just came to the door -- very friendly African man (from Ghana, not an African American!) collecting checks and signaures for Progressive Maryland. And he was proudly wearing an Obama button.
After I wrote my check for Progressive Maryland, I asked him about his support for Obama. He told me his family sends a check of $25 every month to the Obama campaign, that they can't really afford it, but they keep doing it because it's so important. This is not a man with a lot of money -- but his family somehow keeps this commitment to the candidate they support.
He is not a citizen, but his daughters and wife are. His daughters can't vote yet (they are 16 and 14) but they are tremendously excited about this election. They say to him (he laughed as he told me this) that now they know they can run for president.
And so in the midst of my angst about Obama's position on FISA, and whether I think capital punishment is appropriate for a child-rapist (given that I am strongly opposed to capital punishment, but I'm also a mother who would personally, and without remorse kill someone who attacked one of my children), I am reminded that Obama is not just a collection of views, and stands, and statements. He is also the symbol for hope and change for many many people who didn't believe in either until this campaign.
While I will never be a true believer in anyone (I'm originally from the show-me state of Missouri, and, as my very skeptical Missouri mother used to say, I have to see it to believe it!), I can appreciate what Obama's candidacy means to two teenagers with an African father; to my college daughter's girlfriend who is African-American; to my daughter herself who has never felt excited about a political candidate before; to my 65-year-old husband who says Obama reminds him of Kennedy; to my brother who has always refused to register as a Democrat in an area in which the primaries determine who will be elected; to my friend who does research for the federal government and is so so tired of being stifled and censored; to my colleagues at the child-advocacy organization for which I work.
I won't censor my criticism. I will keep talking and writing about the things I like and don't like about Obama's actions and statements. That's our job as American citizens and informed voters. But I will not lessen my support for him; I will not let my enthusiasm and excitement about this election be drained away; I will donate money and be out there volunteering, canvassing, talking with people, persuading people to vote for him