Obama in Sioux City - Impressive

On April 1, Senator Obama spoke at Mt. Zion Baptist church in the morning, and then went to the Sanford Center for an unadvertised “private” lunch with supporters and potential supporters. My wife and son and I were invited a few days before, and got there at Noon. We were a few minutes early and chatted with many friends, including Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller. I got to know Miller on his visits to Sioux City, and when we were both delegates to the '96 Democratic convention in Chicago. He was in Sioux City to support Obama's candidacy, and was pushing hard for me to commit to the Obama campaign.

George Boykin announced that we were to have lunch (catered by Hy-Vee - and nicer than Hy-Vee’s usual fare) and that Senator Obama would be there after we were done. When Obama arrived around 1:00, he spoke for a couple of minutes and promised to go around the room and shake hands with each of the 100+ persons and talk to them. He did exactly that, and took time with each person. Lots of photos, lots of books signed. When I was chatting with him, Tom Miller came up and put his arm around my shoulder and told Obama that I wasn't on board just yet, but that I was a "big fish" that he had to land. (What?! ??) Obama was gracious and moved on, talking to my son and my wife.

Before we left, we were given "red tickets" to the Morningside College event - nicer seats close-up. The place filled up quickly and I don't think there were more than a few empty seats. Allee Gymnasium was exactly the right size for this event. City Councilman Jim Rixner started the program on time at 3:00 welcoming everyone on behalf of the City, and introduced the introducers. Senator Obama came out to a standing ovation, and spoke for about 10 minutes and then opened it up to questions. He took un-screened questions for about an hour - covered a lot of territory, and covered it with grace and aplomb. He is clearly in his element doing town hall forums - not flashy or arrogant - just relaxed and fully in charge. We were deeply impressed with just about everything he had to say, and especially impressed with the way he handled himself.

When he finished, he shook hands for a while and we moved on. Many excited and happy people were pushing to get up to the rope line to have a chance to shake his hand or get a close-up photo.

I have been extremely impressed with Obama’s book, “The Audacity of Hope,” and seeing him in person has strengthened my already high opinion of him. Obama is one of my “top two” candidates for president, but I am not ready to commit to his campaign at this point. Sunday’s visit left me content that if Obama is the eventual Democratic nominee, we will be in very good hands.