CHICAGO (AP) - A triumphant President Barack
Obama heralded his re-election with a call to action early Wednesday,
telling Americans that their citizenship doesn't end with their vote and
declaring that the "best is yet to come."
Obama offered a call for
reconciliation after a divisive election, but he also defended the
freewheeling nature of politics and said big decisions "necessarily stir
up passions."
Obama says he wants to meet
with Republican rival Mitt Romney to discuss how they can work together
and said he was willing to work with leaders of both parties to tackle
upcoming challenges. Of his contest with Romney, he said they may have
"battled fiercely, but it's only because we love this country deeply."
Obama made clear he had an
agenda in mind, citing changes in the tax code, immigration and, as he
put it, an America "that isn't threatened by the destructive power of a
warming planet." More immediately, he and Congress need to negotiate a
new fiscal plan that avoids massive cuts in defense and other domestic
spending and sharp across-the-board tax increases. Obama has called for
tax increases on households earning more than $250,000; House Speaker
John Boehner has rejected any tax increases.
Hinting at fights to come,
he said politics and attacking problems inevitably stir controversy.
"That won't change after tonight and it shouldn't," he added. "These
arguments we have are a mark of our liberty."
The president rolled to a second term over Romney, winning more than 300 electoral votes.
"Tonight in this election,
you, the American people, reminded us that while our road has been hard
while our journey has been long we have picked ourselves up, we have
fought our way back and we know in our hearts that for the United States
of America, the best is yet to come," he told an ecstatic crowd in the
cavernous McCormick Place convention center on Chicago's lakefront.
Obama appeared about two
hours after he was declared the victor in his re-election bid and less
than an hour after Romney offered a cordial concession. The two men
spoke by phone and Romney, in his own speech to supporters, said he
prays "the president will be successful in guiding our nation."
Obama took the stage with
first lady Michelle Obama and daughters Sasha and Malia. When he
finished he was joined on stage by Vice President Joe Biden, whom Obama
called "America's happy warrior," and Biden's extended family. In his
remarks he paid special tribute to his campaign team and his volunteers
as the best "in the history of politics. The best. The best ever."
"Thank you for believing all the way through every hill, through every valley," he said. "You lifted me up the whole way."
Dozens of Obama and Biden
staffers gathered on the floor next to the stage for the speeches. Many
stood with their arms around each other, some wiping away tears, as the
president spoke.
As Obama was waving to the
crowd one last time, Biden and his family walked off stage. Then the
vice president peaked back around the blue curtains and gave a big wave
and a grin to the cameras.
Campaign manager Jim
Messina lingered on the floor long after the president left the stage,
hugging friends in the crowd and wiping away his own tears.
The president's team had
projected confidence for days, but nervously watched the election
returns roll in Tuesday night. Even as the race appeared to be turning
in Obama's direction, the staff was narrowly focused on Ohio, the
Midwest swing state where Obama and Romney competed fiercely.
Despite their outward cool,
Obama and his aides left nothing to chance. The president indulged his
superstitions by engaging in a traditional Election Day basketball game
with friends during the afternoon.
Obama's team won - his first victory of the day.
President Barack Obama speaks, as a tear streams down his face, at his final campaign stop on the evening before the 2012 presidential election, Monday, November 5, 2012, in Des Moines, Iowa. (AP)
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