Obama arrived in Salem at around 1:45 p.m.

Congressman Earl Blumenauer gave a lively introduction reminding Oregonians that this is the first year since 1968 that Oregon's primary will make a difference. He called for Oregonians to help put the nomination to rest.

Obama, though incapable of pronouncing Blumenauer's name, praised him, saying that he is a man who should be put in charge of something. He then launched into the speech part of his presentation. He began by addressing the question of why he is running for president now, rather than later in life. He quoted Martin Luther King Jr. and said that he has been running for the past 15 months because of the "fierce urgency of now."
Obama outlined his plan to make change "from the bottom up," citing healthcare, energy independence and Washington's special interest groups as key places to start.

Audiences reacted positively to most everything the senator said, but the biggest reaction was perhaps when he spoke of changing the "culture" of Washington D.C.

The next part of the meeting was a Q & A session with the audience. Obama commented that he would choose questioners boy-girl-boy-girl so as not to show any bias.

The first question came from a man who proclaimed himself colorblind because of Obama's influence and asked him to speak on that topic. Obama responded by mentioning recent upsets over his former pastor's comments but pointing out that this was a chance to address issues of race so we can move past them. The next question was about his past and Obama shared that he started out doing grassroots work and came into politics "through the back door."

Perhaps the most memorable question was a woman asking what sets his agenda apart from Senator Clinton's. He acknowledged that on many domestic issues their stances are similar, but he pointed out that she is caught up in politics and
Washington's "conventional thinking."

Obama ended the session by saying that he is reminded every day that he is not a perfect man and he wouldn't promise to be a perfect president.

But he did promise a few other things:

"I will always tell you what I think. I will always tell you where I stand. I will be honest with you about the challenges we face as a country. I will listen to you -- even when we disagree. And most importantly I will spend every day thinking about how to make your lives a little better."

Oregon for Obama will soon open an office in Salem. Their Web site is Oregon.BarackObama.com.