1. A rescue dog in the White House. No puppy mill pooch for the Obama girls; they'll be getting a dog who needs saving, one who might have been neglected or abused. Firsthand, they will be learning about the importance of "other," just as their father has.
2. A Clinton in the Cabinet. While I always supported Hillary in her bid for the presidency and I thought I would have loved an Obama-Clinton White House, I see now that the next best thing for her is not Vice President but Secretary of State. She'll be fantastic.
3. A strong woman by the President's side. No offense to Laura Bush, who was a lovely first lady, but she did nothing to further women's rights or to represent any interests other than her own and her family's. We haven't had a strong first lady since Hillary and now we will have Michelle - smart, charming, and tough.
4. A man who truly represents our country in the number one hot seat in the world. We are a diverse and complex nation; we require a diverse and complex president. Barack Obama cannot possibly be all things to all people and he will certainly suffer in comparison to all the idealistic images many of us have of him - but he is the first step forward for our country in a long, long time. For the past eight years, we have been moving backward: culturally, socially, internationally. Electing Barack Obama is the first smart thing we have done as a nation and we have to keep pushing forward behind him.
