What an amazing ride!

Did Ned lose, well yes and no.

Lamont lost the senate race to a person who had to run to the Republicans in order to save his political career (technically, Ned beating Joe two times among Democrats..that should tell you something). Now, contrary to anything that came out of Lieberman's mouth last night, Ned Lamont ran one of the most honest, inspiriting campaigns in the history of Connecticut, if not the nation. On the other hand, when people have a chance to really go back and really take a hard look at everything that really happened (which includes the hours of video which bloggers never posted online), it will be obvious to everyone which candidate pulled every dirty trick in the book to get elected. Trust me, the people who were there know the true story (including what Lieberman's 387,000 in petty cash was actually used for).

I'm proud to know Ned and I'm so thankful I picked up a camcorder and videotaped his second public appearence in New Haven on that cold day in January. The words he spoke on that fateful day forver changed my life and armed with only a video camera and a belief that Lamont symbolized change, I traveled across the state during those early days and did all I could to bring attention to his campaign. In time, I and other bloggers such as the great Spazeboy and CTBob ushed in the concept of videoblogging and documented Ned's rise from the "Lamont who" candidate, to the person who shocked the nation by beating a three-term candidate on a hot day in August .

Lamont made it FINALLY okay for Democrats to put the Iraq war on the political agenda without being called unpatriotic or un-American. It was because of Lamont's spirit and drive that a record amount of people registered Democrat in Connectiut and voted in the state primary. It was also Lamont's spirit which drove us to spend endless hours following him across the state and putting our lives on hold for a cause we truly believed in, a need for a change in direction in Iraq and in this nation.

Here's what Lamont campaign manager Tom Swan had to say last night about the man that shocked the world.

Lamont's drive and love for the Democratic Party had a ripple effect assisting in HUGE victories for Democrats on a state nd national level. Nationally, we now have a House majority and possible a Senate majority which means the Democrats can finally set the agenda and bring a sense of check and balance to the government (somehing that has been lacking in the last 6 years).

On a state level, the Democrats gained several State Rep and Senate seats (although, I'm truly going to miss Bill Finch :-) and Chris Murphy was able to give Nancy Johnson her long overdue pink slip (BTW: Murphy beat Johnson on EVERY VOTING MACHINE IN DANBURY). On the other hand, Lieberman's campaign probably caused Diane Farrell and possibly Joe Courtney (2CD will have a probably have a recount) their victories which looked like a no-brainer prior to the primary. I only hope the Democrats at State Central remember all that Lamont did for this state and the Party (while remembering what Jim Amann DID NOT do for the Party) as we move forward.

In my area of Danbury, Democrats had HUGE victories as well thanks in large part to a amazing ground game at Democratic Headquarters as well as the spirit Ned Lamont brought to the area with his theme of change. Democrat Joe Taborsak crushed Gregg Seabury in the 109th while Pauline Basso didn't get over 1,000 votes against her battle Bob Godfrey (a man who ran the most honest positve campaign I've ever seen). Bernie Gallo put up a great fight knocking on every door in his district and working tirelessly day after day and although the chips were against him, he has nothing to be ashamed of at all. Jason Bartlett's victory was the last one to be called on electon night and ended a tremendous day for the Democrats in Danbury and sets the stage for the mayoral race next year.

I have plenty of video footage to share with everyone from last night and throughout the day and tomorrow, I'll share those memories but for now, it's time to slow thing down a bit and get back to my normal life. I have a wife who is ready to have her husband back and my first child will be on the scene shortly.

Now, don't worry, I'm not going anywhere. There is much work to be done as we have elections in 2007 as well as the BIG one in 2008.

Ned Lamont's campaign and the blogosphere forever changed the way political will be viewed. Average people getting involved in politics via a videocamera, digital camera, and a computer changed everything and over the next year, the CT Bloggers will help teach a whole new generation of progressive bloggers what we've learned over the last 10 months.

Trust me, People-Power Media (PPM) is just getting started but for now, I'm going back to bed.

Thank you Ned Lamont for making me feel proud to be a Democrat again!

SIDENOTE: Big fat thank you to the Danbury News-Times for linking my blog to their website. Hopefully, I was able to show the people of Danbury the amazing potential of PPM. Please come back often to Hat City Blog as I'll bring you a different side of Danbury which is rarely seen. Although unapologetically progressive, I always try to bring common sense to common issues people in Danbury face on a daily basis.

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