So many people have asked me about what happened in Iowa and whether I suprised.  The answer to that question is simply, "No."

As many of you know, I ran against Barack Obama in the US Senate primary in Illinois in 2004.  As a result, I got to know this man who is now shattering the pundits' expectations.  I like to say he has the Big Three I's:  Intellect, Integrity and Instinct.  To see him larger than life on the verge of perhaps being President of the United States is, therefore, thrilling, but not a surprise at all to me.

What is surprising is how the media had covered this race as a done deal.  After all, the establishment had thrown all its weight behind Hillary Clinton--all the big labor endorsements, party insiders, etc.  How could someone like a Barack Obama not only win, but win with such a big margin in a state like Iowa? Add to the mix a Mike Huckabee --who had no money or organization on the ground in Iowa --what happened there?

I believe that people are so hungry for authenticity and so disappointed in the establishment on both sides of the aisle, that candidates who speak with conviction, from their hearts, and not pol-speak, are who they are looking for to lead this country.  Ordinary people can sniff this out, thank goodness, even through the media filters that often look only at quarterly financial filings as they cover a horserace.

Senator Obama often speaks of the fierce urgency of now.  He's right, of course.  In the next few years, our leaders will make decisions that will have impacts that last decades.  It's disappointing that Michigan voters will not have the chance to weigh in on which Democratic candidate can best lead us during these weighty times, but they will get a chance to decide who shall represent them in Congress.  With modern politics and all its machinery and money, it is so reassuring to know that ultimately the will of the people is what counts.

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