Coach Boone was in the audience today and he got a huge ovation both times he was mentioned, first by Tim Kaine and later by Barack Obama.  As I understand it, football coaches in the South are like rabbis in the shtetls of 19th century Eastern Europe.  They are venerated above all others in the community.  Famous football coaches who overcome issues of race to win state championships are like the Baal Shem Tov.</mixed and possibly sacrilegious metaphor>  I'm not sure if Coach Boone has endorsed, but just having him in the front row is a huge boon (sorry) to Barack Obama in Northern Virginia.

The school itself is beautiful and a testament to what a robust local property tax base can do for a school system.  As I was herded through it along with the other media present, I noticed a series of culinary arts classrooms.  I'm guessing they're a step up from the home ec facilities at my old high school.  The gymnasium where the rally took place rivaled those of most small colleges and I was surprised that Senator Obama didn't talk about what an incredible facility it was.  T.C. Williams High School definitely fits my definition of schools as cathedrals.  It would have been nice to hear him talk about how we could use a whole lot more schools like it.

3.  What do you do with a problem like John McCain?

For me, the most interesting dynamic of the speech was how Obama engaged the all but certain GOP nominee, Senator John McCain.

Obama has a line he uses in his stump speech, where he says something to the effect of "I wish I could take all the credit for the enthusiasm around this campaign, but part of it is that next year George Bush and Dick Cheney won't be on the ballot.  Next year will mark the end of the era of Scooter Libby justice and Brownie incompetence and Rovian politics of division."  But he contradicts himself when he goes on to talk about John McCain as an enthusiastic supporter of the president and his politics.  Obama needs to resolve the rhetorical conflict and do it soon.  I hope he'll join Think Progress and many others in making it clear that a McCain presidency would be a third term for George Bush.

Senator Obama wasn't the only person in the room today coming to terms with nominee McCain.  If you've watched cable news in the last decade, you can't help but notice the media's love of John "Maverick" McCain and rank and file Democrats are dealing with the man and the media construct around him.  Of course, all of us owe John McCain a debt of gratitude for his heroic service, and I was proud to join the crowd in loud applause when Obama talked about McCain's service.  But I was also impressed with the way the crowd booed the specifics of his platform, which Pat Buchanan described as "less jobs, more wars."  This is a group that is going to push back hard against the idea that John McCain is some kind of middle-of-the-road independent who would represent a break from George Bush conservatism.

4.  New groups of American voters are going to be very active in this campaign

The makeup of the crowd was diverse, even by the Democratic party standards.  Northern Virginia is a real melting pot, with a large Hispanic population, as well as many Asian Americans and recent immigrants from Africa.  It was great to see so many members of those communities at the rally today. Particularly noticeable were the large number of people of South Asian descent, a group often under-represented in electoral politics, Bobby Jindal aside.

Barack Obama's personal narrative helps him connect with this group.  A man from the Ivory Coast asked a question about Africa and working with its leaders.  Obama began his answer with a laundry list: micro finance, trade deals, anti-corruption programs, etc.  But he really hit his stride when he talked about his own background.  Obama argued convincingly that with a grandmother who lives in a village in Kenya and his childhood experience living in Indonesia, he knows not only the leaders of countries around the world, but the people, too.

There's another much sadder reason why new Americans are turning out for political events like this one.  It's impossible to avoid speculating that many in immigrant communities of all stripes are reacting to the high-profile anti-immigrant strategy adopted by the GOP.  If John McCain intends to continue to march in lock step with Tom Tancredo, he'll need to change his vote projections for the millions of legal immigrants who work hard and don't like being demonized in order to pander to a small, but vocal minority.

If you haven't been to an Obama rally - and this way my first - I highly recommend going.  The energy is awesome, even if you're not a part of the movement.  And as a Democrat who would be proud to vote for Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton next November, I was pleased to see the audience be respectful when Senator Clinton was mentioned.  That gives me hope for a unified party no matter who the nominee is.

One more observation from today, the biggest applause line in Senator Obama's speech was about defending the Constitution: "If you are ready for change, you will have a President who taught the Constitution, believes the Constitution, and will obey the Constitution of the United States of America."  Democrats are awesome, aren't they?

Were you at T.C. Williams today or at another recent event for either candidate?  Share your reactions in the comments section.