Defining Moments

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John Foster from the Minnick campaign sent me an article called "10 moments that rattled race for Congress" (Bill Sali made the list).

In lieu of this morning's poll, please use the comments to list out which of those 10 moments most resonated with you, or pick your own on any Senate, House, or state/local race. OH! And why.

For me, it could be the implosion of Vito Fossella, which I've written about a lot on this site (use the tags, select "House"). Because I love a good scandal.

Or the fact that I got the opportunity to contend in the spring that the Alaska issue was: which came first, the election or the Stevens indictment? (I've been reading the Anchorage Daily News ever since, and am pleased to announce that there is now a Target store in Wassilla.)

But for me, it really is the Minnick race. (Again, check the "House" tag.) This race in IDAHO was brought to my attention back in July, when I was looking for interesting House races, and I received an e-mail from some guy in Idaho with an explanation of why this race was winnable. That is, how a Democrat named Walt Minnick could beat a Republican named Bill Sali, for the ID-01 House seat. That same guy got in his car a few days later, drove from Idaho to Chicago, got a job with the Obama campaign, and is now a field organizer in Virginia. (Hi Marshall - I'm thinking about you!)

Because the whole thing crystallized what is right and good about this election cycle.

1. When Obama said "hope" all those months ago, who believed it? Personally, I used to say "Hope is for suckers. Work harder." And now I wear dangling earrings with an Obama symbol above a "hope" charm. Because suddenly all things seem possible.

2. The 50 state strategy Howard Dean put forth 3 years ago is coming full circle, and as someone who believes in grass roots, I'm THRILLED!

3. If Walt wins, it proves that if you add together hope and grass roots, it's possible to change the world, one House district at a time.

And because of all this, last night I walked around the phone bank, looking at all the people making calls, the overwhelming majority of whom have never cared about politics before, asking if they'd help with my 2009 political grass roots project. The response, from 100% of them, was not "what is it?" but "count me in." (It launches a week from Monday, and yes, I'll be posting our progress here on DCW.)

So, win, lose or draw next Tuesday, what resonated with you?