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In the perennial battle between bankers and zealots for the heart and soul of the Republican Party, the WaPo's Kathleen Parker comes out against the latter:

"[T]he evangelical, right-wing, oogedy-boogedy branch of the GOP is what ails the erstwhile conservative party and will continue to afflict and marginalize its constituents if reckoning doesn't soon cometh."

I can understand the problem in general -- I just don't see how it applies specifically to the election just passed.

I mean, as far as I can tell, the McCain campaign really started to tank when the economy hit the skids. That would tend to fall on the bankers' side of the ledger.

[h/t Steve Benen]

I hope every adult in this country points their kids to Senator Kennedy as one of the most positive examples we have of one man's commitment to the public good.

Forget all the cheap cynicism you hear all over the place -- it's being mouthed by a bunch of blockheads. This guy, Senator Kennedy, has come back practically from his deathbed to make sure everyone in this country has access to health care.

He's an example for us all.

Banners draped the lamp-posts all around Chicago's City Hall. The fine print read: "Paid for by the Richard M. Daley Campaign Committee".

What's wrong with this picture?

On Election Day 2008, this was the front page of the Tribune's knockoff tabloid called the 'RedEye'. It sported the none-too-original headline 'It's in Your Hands' with five hands in front of an American flag, each hand showing one of the following issues:

• Iraq
• Economy
• Vote
• Health Care
• Abortion

My question is, what does it say about this tabloid, that 'Abortion' makes it into its Top Five? This would be before -- oh, I dunno -- 'Education' or the 'Environment', just to take two things off the top of my head.

What kind of values are these?

I was in Berlin when the Wall came down and in New York during 9/11. One event was exceedingly good; the other was atrociously bad. I think I now have a third one that appears to be affecting me in a significant way, this one again on the good side -- namely, the election of Barack Obama as President of the United States.

That moment, just at the stoke of 10pm, when people started counting down from 10 to 0 and Wolf Blitzer of CNN, as if on queue, announcing that according to projections, Obama had won the race and finally the crowd in Grant Park erupting into euphoria -- that moment will always stay with me.

These are special times. What more could we wish for than an individual with such an ability to inspire us -- the true test of leadership -- who comes from our own state and city? It's not every day that a presidential victory bash features the tune "Sweet Home Chicago".

Favorite part of his speech:

And to all those who have wondered if America’s beacon still burns as bright – tonight we proved once more that the true strength of our nation comes not from our the might of our arms or the scale of our wealth, but from the enduring power of our ideals: democracy, liberty, opportunity, and unyielding hope.

Final Day: Election Day is really one of those days when I want to be at home in Chicago; that would be the case even if there weren't going to be a huge rally in Grant Park.

For that reason, I headed out of Cincinnati before noon. By then, the polls were open and volunteers could be found handing out literature and giving directions.

The headline from the Cincinnati Enquirer says it all:

"History is in Your Hands"

Below is a list of earlier diaries from my days in Cincinnati.

• Ohio Diary: Day 1
• Ohio Diary: Day 2
• Ohio Diary: Day 3
• Ohio Diary: Day 4
• Ohio Diary: Day 5

I made it early to the District Office on Madison intent on spending the day canvassing.

This was the last day before the election. With only a day to go, the work typically consists of 'lit drops' -- i.e. going from door to door just leaving reminders, usually in the form of 'door-hangers' about the election.

We went again to Brown County. The Obama Campaign in Ohio was making a big push to get as many votes as possible in the traditionally Republican areas outside of Cincinnati. Everybody was sent out.

I got an extra hour of coveted sleep thanks to the end of daylight savings time. The Calendar says 'November 4' but it's been more springlike than anything else.

I decided to stay local today, signing up for one of the neighborhood canvasses via BarackObama.com.

The Canvass was being run out of a field office in Cincinnati's 'Uptown' in a building that had just been opened a day or two earlier. When I got there, one of the Campaign Workers, Scott, was trying to get a few winks of much needed sleep on the porch of the place.

Dear Sarah,

Please, keep the clothes! We don't care about them. Just go back to Alaska and leave us alone.

Sincerely,

LEO

Long day. We had a group of people from Lexington Kentucky plus a local who was canvassing for the first time. It was an energetic bunch.

We were sent out to Brown County, to a township about 50 miles outside of Cincinnati. I met later with an official from one of the union locals and he stressed how important it was to have people out there canvassing for Obama. "Usually," he said, 'it's only the GOP."