While support for presidential candidates varied, I have never been prouder to be a part of the blawgosphere based upon its reaction to the election of our 44th President, Barack Obama. 

The reaction has been uplifting, in the belief that regardless of who, and how strongly, one thought would make a better president, so many have put that aside and noted two critically important things:  That we have broken a barrier by electing a black man to be President, not because he is black but because we believe that he is the right man for the job, and that we will now go beyond partisanship to work together to overcome our nation’s problems.

Surveying the blawgosphere this morning has made my appreciate the good will and broad-mindedness of my brothers and sisters, regardless of our political views.  Consider David Giacalone at f/k/a, who succinctly writes, “for choosing hope over fear, unity over division, and our values over our resentments.”  And Dan Hull at What How About Client?, who voted for John McCain, states that “America is built to last.”

But the win for Obama, our first black commander-in-chief, is a great moment for the United States–that aggressive young country which could never square ideals with reality. Let time put my reservations about President-elect Obama to rest. Everybody won.

One of the most moving statements comes from Mark Draughn at WindyPundit, a libertarian through and through, who can still appreciate the good this vote brings:

Barack Obama is going to piss me off in all kinds of ways over the next four to eight years, but now, in this time of dreams between the election and the inauguration, I’m enjoying the fact that the United States of America is going to have a black president.

. . . we now know how the story of American racism ends: The racists get their asses kicked.

While such generosity of spirit was not universal, even Above the Law made space for this news, despite its lack of impact on associate layoffs and private personal encounters. 

The lawprofs reaction ranged from the exuberant, Marc John Randazza at The Legal Satyricon, to the reluctantly positive Ilya Somin and David Bernstein, and the gracious, Orin Kerr and Eugene Volokh at his Conspiracy.

The earlier arguments over who would be more willing and adept at reaching “across the aisle” are now past, and have shifted from the candidates to us, the citizens.  America has a new President.  Will we put aside the anger, sniping and nit-picking that has characterized politics and polarized Americans? 

If our goal is to overcome the problems facing our country, perhaps we can continue to debate policies and appointments as vigorously as before, but without the overtone of hatred and anger that permeated the discussions.  We will not, and should not, agree on everything, indeed most things.  But we can do far better in raising the tone of discourse.

Moving forward, there are a few things that we should all be able to agree upon.  Barack Obama is a smart, well-educated man of good will.  Barack Obama has inherited a nation with substantial problems for which there is no magic bullet.  Barack Obama will be compelled to make choices in his approach to curing our problems with which many will disagree, but choices must be made and there is no choice with which everyone can agree.  Whether or not you agree with the choices, Barack Obama will make his choices in what he believes to be the best interest of America.

The election is over.  The American public has spoken.  Let us hope that they have spoken well, and do what we can to contribute to the best outcome for everyone. 

And to my friends in the blawgosphere, regardless of your politics, thank you for seeing the positive and demonstrating that this is a place for the thoughtful and concerned.  The blawgosphere has done itself proud today.

Update:  And from my buddy, St. John’s Lawprof John Q. Barrett, steward of the Jackson List, this passage from FDR’s 1939 post election speech:

With the direct control of the free choosing of public servants by a free electorate, the Constitution has proved that this type of government cannot long remain in the hands of those who seek personal aggrandizement for selfish ends, whether they act as individuals, as classes or as groups.   It is therefore in the spirit of our system that our elections are positive in their mandate, rather than passive in their acquiescence.  Many other nations envy us the enthusiasm, the attacks, the wild over-statements, the falsehood intermingled gaily with the truth, that marks our general elections, because they are promptly followed by acquiescence in the result and a return to calmer waters as soon as the ballots are counted

Amen.