IDforObama

Barack just sent out this email...

Dear Friend -

I am so lucky to be married to the woman who delivered that speech last night.

Michelle was electrifying, inspiring, and absolutely magnificent. I get a lot of credit for the speech I gave at the 2004 convention -- but I think she may have me beat.

You have to see it to believe it.

And make sure to forward this email to your friends and family -- they'll want to see it too.



http://my.barackobama.com/michelle

You really don't want to miss this.

And I'm not just saying that because she's my wife -- I truly believe it was the best speech of the campaign so far.

Barack

Friend --

I have some important news that I want to make official.

I've chosen Joe Biden to be my running mate.

Joe and I will appear for the first time as running mates this afternoon in Springfield, Illinois -- the same place this campaign began more than 19 months ago.

I'm excited about hitting the campaign trail with Joe, but the two of us can't do this alone. We need your help to keep building this movement for change.

Please let Joe know that you're glad he's part of our team. Share your personal welcome note and we'll make sure he gets it:

http://my.barackobama.com/welcomejoe

Thanks for your support,

Barack


P.S. -- Make sure to turn on your TV at 2:00 p.m. Central Time to join us or watch online at http://www.BarackObama.com.

Barack was in Orlando, Florida this afternoon to address the National Urban League Annual Conference.

He told conference goers about his time spent as a community organizer in Chicago, his economic plans for this country, and how each person can make a difference in this election. Barack said...

As some of you know, after college, I moved to Chicago and went to work for a group of churches to help families that had been devastated when the local steel plants closed down.  I knew change in those communities wouldn't come easily – but I also knew it wouldn't come at all if we didn't start bringing people together.  So I reached out to community leaders, and we worked together to set up job training to get people back to work and afterschool programs to keep kids safe, and to help people stand up to their government when it wasn't standing up for them.  

That work taught me a fundamental truth that has guided me to this day: that change doesn't come from the top down, it comes from the bottom up.  Change happens when you teach a child to read, or get a worker a job, or help an entrepreneur set up shop.  It happens when you send a young person to college or help a family keep their home. That's the kind of change all of you are making every single day.   

Because you know that civil rights and equal treatment under the law are necessary, but not sufficient, to seize America's promise – as Dr. King once said, "the inseparable twin of racial justice is economic justice."   

You know that you can't take that seat at the front of the bus if you can't afford the bus fare.  You can't live in an integrated neighborhood if you can't afford the house.  And it doesn't mean a whole lot to sit down at that lunch counter if you can't afford the lunch.  

Here are some pictures from the event...

Read Barack's full remarks, as prepared for delivery...