This evening I had a chance to see Barack and Michelle Obama along with Oprah Winfrey in Cedar Rapids. Click here for photos from the event. It took me about an hour to drive from Iowa City to Cedar Rapids because the roads were 100% covered with ice. Despite the cold weather (-10 degrees Celsius / 14 degrees Fahrenheit) and hazardous road conditions, about 10,000 people showed up for the event. Click here for audio from the event (13.6 MB WAV file, 58 minutes). As I’m able, I’ll continue transcribing some excerpts and highlights from the event.

This evening Oprah Winfrey stated:

1. ❖ This is stepping out of the box for me. I've never taken this kind of risk before, nor felt compelled to stand up and speak out before because there wasn't anybody to stand up and speak out for.
   

2. ❖With all of our many races and colors, and religions and languages, we have one government, we have one country, we have one president, and because we only get to choose one president, I came out here tonight to tell you I believe that choice should be Barack Obama.
   

3. ❖I believe Barack Obama will bring Statesmanship to the White house.
   

4. ❖I'm not here to try to tell you what to think. I'm here to ask you to think seriously about Barack Obama.
   

5. ❖What we need is a leader who shows us how to hope again.
   

6. ❖You hear a lot on my show about living your best life, and one of the reasons why Barack Obama’s candidacy resonates so purely with me is because I see that he sees the potential in all of us.
   

7. ❖We need to seize this moment of opportunity and support a man who, as the Bible says, loves mercy and does justice. ... The time is now. You may not have four more years. You may not have tomorrow. You must seize this moment now.
   

Oprah concluded by sharing the story of Jane Pitman, who would go from community to community and hold up children looking at them and asking the question, “Are you the one?” Referring to the video about Jane Pitman, Oprah said:

1. ❖We are waiting on the one. You remember the scene in the doorway where she is holding the baby in her arms and she looks at him and says ‘Are you the one? Are you the one?’ Well, it was so many years ago I watched that movie, but I think I found the answer to Jane Pitman’s question. It’s a question that this whole nation is asking. Is he the one? Is he the one? Cedar Rapids, I know he’s the one.
   

At that moment (20 minutes into the audio), the entire stadium of over 10,000 people began shouting and cheering and would not be quieted. The song City of Blinding Lights by U2 began playing and Barack Obama entered the stadium. [iTunes link to song]

One of the reasons I have been supporting Barack Obama for the past five years is because he is someone who has bi-partisan respect and support. Mike Huckabee, a front-runner conservative evangelical Christian Republican presidential candidate, was interviewed on the Daily Show with Jon Stewart. When asked who he respected among the Democratic candidates, Huckabee mentioned only one name: Barack Obama. When George W. Bush was asked to say something derogatory about Barack Obama, Bush replied that he couldn’t because that would be like saying something disrespectful about the Pope.

Earlier this year, on Earth Day, I attended an Obama event in Iowa City that also had about 10,000 people in attendance (click here for video). Even in good weather, other candidates have a difficult time drawing crowds of several hundred people.

Earlier today, Barack, Michelle, and Oprah made a stop in Des Moines, where over 20,000 people gathered to hear their message of hope. Video clips from that event are below. The first two clips are from news coverage. The last three clips are in order and include the full  30 minute message that was delivered.

I had a good time at the Cedar Rapids event and was glad I went. Unfortunately, since I didn’t arrive an hour early, parking wasn’t readily available so I had to have my car parked using the valet parking service. So, I ended up keeping my backpack with me rather than leaving it in the car. This resulted in having a detail of two to three secret service agents following me around the entire evening. I felt bad having distracted them from more important things.