Pandemonium

I just got back from a jog on the Mall and around the White House, and it's crazy out there. Thousands of people—I'm guessing in the tens of thousands—are just walking around looking at the setup and buying lots of stuff. I don't think there's anything else going on, except for MSNBC's outdoor broadcast booth.

There's more energy in the air than yesterday when the Mall was full from the Lincoln Memorial to the Washington Monument for the concert. The trip was exhilarating—probably a combination of the chilly weather, the electric atmosphere, and the fact that I was wearing a t-shirt bearing the image of my favorite former President.

The sense I take away, and I could certainly be reading my expectations into this, is that African Americans are enjoying this moment when America really feels like their country—perhaps for the first time. No matter what policies shape the next four or eight years, I'm convinced that is a welcome and long-overdue hurdle we've crossed in American history.

One other observation has stuck out to me this weekend, but it deserves some photojournalism. Hopefully that'll happen tomorrow.

For what it's worth, there was also a little bit of pandamonium in town this weekend.