A Moment of Triumph, With a Little Disbelief

ST. PAUL, Minn., June 3 -- The music was the usual Obama rally fare -- Springsteen, "Shout," that ubiquitous "Only in America" tune by Brooks & Dunn. Supporters waved "Got Hope" signs. Campaign volunteers roamed with clipboards, signing up more volunteers.

But for the first time in six months, Sen. Barack Obama wasn't walking on stage to court support for another primary or caucus. He was here Tuesday night on a bigger mission, and the assembled sensed it.

"Tonight, we mark the end of one historic journey with the beginning of another," Obama (Ill.) told a crowd of 17,000 (15,000 more stood outside), as they stared at the man on the podium, who looked a little stunned himself. "Tonight, I can stand before you and say that I will be the Democratic nominee for the president of the United States."

Obama has filled his share of mega-sports arenas, but the Xcel Energy Center isn't any ordinary professional hockey rink. In early September, Sen. John McCain (Ariz.) will accept the Republican nomination at the same site, and Minnesota will be a key battleground in determining whether Obama's quest leads all the way to the White House.

Watching the first African American capture the Democratic nomination was a moment that Justin Flower, 22, wasn't going to miss. He and his girlfriend, Liz Engels, arrived six hours early to grab a prime spot on the arena floor. "I've heard he's a great speaker, but I had to see for myself," said Flower, a local political organizer from Minneapolis.

Thomas Teshite, 27, took a vacation day from his job as a St. Paul bus driver to savor Obama's victory firsthand. "I never followed politics," said Teshite, a native of Ethiopia. He stood in line for three hours and bought a T-shirt from an independent vendor that read "We still have the dream," picturing Obama alongside Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X and Nelson Mandela.

Obama campaign aides celebrated by bringing along their spouses and, for once, left their BlackBerrys holstered as the candidate spoke.

Before starting his prepared remarks, Obama thanked his campaign manager, David Plouffe, who stayed behind in Chicago to plot the campaign's general-election strategy. He also saluted his grandmother, too frail to leave her home in Hawaii, who helped to raise him. "Tonight is for her," Obama said.

The "Friends of Barack" contingent was especially large in St. Paul. It included Valerie Jarrett, a Windy City political veteran and close adviser; Chicago doctor Eric Whitaker; fellow basketball buff Martin Nesbitt; pal John Rogers; and prominent fundraisers Penny Pritzker and Jim Crown. Obama's daughters, Sasha and Malia, stayed home, but wife Michelle was a vivid presence in a fuchsia dress, giving her husband a hug and a thumbs-up before leaving him alone on stage.

As dramatic as the triumphant moment was, Obama staff members weren't sure as late as midday Tuesday that it would happen. Plenty of superdelegates had said they would back the senator, but aides did not know whether the skittish elected officials and party insiders would follow through.

"Honestly, that's why this campaign was so successful," said Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.), an early Obama supporter, sounding giddy in an interview Tuesday evening. "The people running it have never taken anything for granted. They always assume the worst."

Political adviser David Axelrod described Obama's mood as euphoric but realistic: "He never gets too high, and he never gets too low. When we have things to celebrate, he's happy, but he understands there are challenges ahead."

As for Axelrod, he looked a bit dazed. "I think that it's going to take a while for it to sink in," he said as the South Dakota and Montana returns rolled in, awarding Obama more than enough pledged delegates to clinch the nomination.

He continued: "We've been so engaged in this process day to day, it's almost surreal that we're at this moment. But I'm proud of him and proud of the country. It's an extraordinary night, and we're going to celebrate tonight, and then we're going to wake up tomorrow and start all over again."