Obama, appearing on stage with his wife for the first time since the day after the Democratic National Convention, spoke from a lectern just yards from his original Iowa campaign headquarters.

 

He even told the unabridged version of the origin of his ubiquitous "fired up, ready to go" chant that originated at a small meeting in Greenwood, S.C., in 2008. The story, which Obama told at length at the last rally of his 2008 campaign, has become a staple of Obama 2012 events, but only on video.

 

This night was a return to the optimistic and idealistic Obama, who went through a 29-minute speech without a single mention of or allusion to GOP rival Mitt Romney. The moment moved him to tears, a few of which descended from his left eye.

 

And if Obama was a man reminiscing, he was also mindful of the newly exclamatory campaign slogan that has marked his campaign this summer. For a night, forward meant for just one more day until the election returns in a few key battleground states are known.

 

"Tomorrow, tomorrow, Iowa, tomorrow from the granite of New Hampshire to the Rockies of Colorado, from the coastlines of Florida to Virginia's rolling hills, from the valleys of Ohio to these Iowa fields we will keep America moving forward," he said.

 

"I've come back to Iowa one more time to ask for your vote," he said. "I came back to ask you to help us finish what we started. Because this is where our movement for change began, right here. Right here. Right behind these bleachers is the building that was home to our Iowa headquarters in 2008."

 

To a crowd of 20,000, he unearthed the "Yes, we can" theme from four years ago and spoke of the idealistic young people who powered his first run for president.

 

 

Source: Politico | Reid J. Epstein