Update: Ryan has the transcript of Obama’s incredible speech here.
Tonight, millions of Americans– indeed, millions of people throughout the world– are celebrating the victory of Senator Barack Obama.
He has become the first African-American in the history of our country to secure the nomination of a major political party.
This is, in fact, a historic day. His nomination not only speaks to the capacity of this country to look beyond race in determining who is most capable to lead, it’s also an indication of a forthcoming referendum for real and profound change.
To my Republican friends, you can obsess over your premature polling data all you want to, but Louisiana is going to be incredibly competitive, no matter who McSame chooses as his Vice President.
Louisiana has the second highest per capita population of African-Americans in the country, and this is an important and historic election, likely to dramatically affect voter turn-out. In Louisiana, there are significantly more registered Democrats than registered Republicans. Mitch Landrieu actually received more votes in his race for Lieutenant Governor than Bobby Jindal did in his race for Governor, and both races, for all intents and purposes, were not competitive.
There’s a reason McCain chose New Orleans as a staging ground to “distance himself from President Bush.”
If there is any place in the nation that represents the real need for change- both political and ideological- on the federal level, it is Louisiana. If there is any place in the nation that illustrates the failures of the Bush administration– the cold, calculated distance, a dumbfounded President gazing unsympathetically from the window of Air Force One– it is Louisiana.
Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and the Carolinas can dramatically change the electoral math.
(Later: Why Barack Obama Can Win Louisiana)
CenLamar 
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