Yesterday, Americans across the nation voiced their opinion about the state of our Union and the direction we should be headed in record numbers.  In a competition where one candidate is a true American Hero, and the other candidate is a posterboy for the American Dream, there really are no losers.  Although my heart breaks that I will not get to witness a McCain presidency, and I am deeply saddened to see someone so deserving of the presidency be pushed aside, I am also proud of America for overcoming some of the racial and social barriers that have limited and divided our country for far too many years. 

So now is the time to swallow hard, then take one step forward.  We must leave this long, hard-fought battle behind us and approach tomorrow with the loyalty and support that our presidency deserves.  I refuse to repeat the sins of elections past with the snotty, divisive, and contemptuous bitterness that only serves to further fracture our already splintered society.  So, I face tomorrow with a quiet resolve that, although John McCain was my candidate, Barack Obama is my president, and I will do everything I can to make the next four years a success, for all of America - the red and the blue.

I encourage all of you to get involved with your respective parties, and reach out to your state and national representatives to communicate what matters most to you.  We are not required to merely choose from two parties that loosely represent our values - we are obligated to communicate those values so that they may help our government work better.  Democracy means more than casting a vote every couple of years - it means shaping our government to represent the values of its people. And that responsibility, my friends, sits squarely on the shoulders of each and every one of us.