The significance of Barack Obama’s nomination transcends partisanship — and buoys hopes for an America free of racial prejudice, discrimination, injustice and violence and truly limitless in opportunity and freedom, our editorial today argues.
Obama projected a compelling seriousness and sense of purpose in his acceptance speech Thursday night, laying out a view of the nation and the presidency that surely resonated for many Americans: “Our government should work for us, not against us. It should help us, not hurt us. It should ensure opportunity not just for those with the most money and influence, but for every American who’s willing to work. That’s the promise of America — the idea that we are responsible for ourselves, but that we also rise or fall as one nation; the fundamental belief that I am my brother’s keeper; I am my sister’s keeper.”
That said, Obama remains a long way from closing the deal with American voters. If he is to deny John McCain the White House and return the presidency to the Democrats after eight years of President Bush — if “eight is enough,” as he had the crowd chanting Thursday — he must still reassure people that he has the resume and judgment necessary to be president, and that his expansive agenda is realistic and fiscally responsible.
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