Stumps, caucuses, delegates and a reporter

I may have been bitten by the political reporting bug. I go back and forth on what I believe would be the ideal type or reporting for me. Religion and politics are my two favorite contenders. And I love it when they go hand in hand simply because it makes for great stories.

Yesterday was my first experience covering a national political race. Sort of.

In the morning, I attended the Barrack Obama rally in downtown Dallas. I didn't cover it for the newspaper, since downtown is not in my coverage area. But I went just to see what all the fuss is about. That man is quite the speaker. Eloquent, he never faltered, he never stuttered. And he never said much of anything concrete.

I like Obama, really I do. But I don't need to like someone for them to be President. I need to agree with their methodology for getting our country back on track. Why is it that the Democrats are always trying to re-elect Kennedy? And why do they tout Kennedy's integrity? Didn't the guy cheat on his wife? Former Dallas Mayor Ron Kirk compared Obama to John F. Kennedy, which I found slightly eery since the rally took place mere steps from Dealy Plaza.

In the evening, I covered the Mike Huckabee rally in Plano. Huckabee spoke to a crowd of more than 1,000 people in Plano, a conservative stronghold in the Metroplex.

The crowd was so incredibly different from the crowd at the Obama rally earlier in the day that comparing them is like matching apples to oranges. Obama's supporters were mostly black and Hispanic. There were a lot of young people, college students. Huckabee hosted hundreds of families, women, children, old, young. Families. The middle class. There was no swaying to Motown in the bleachers.

And I got to ask a question.

The rally began at 7:30, but I arrived 30 minutes early, just in time for a short press conference. The conference was held in a small room attached to a larger room where the actual rally was held. I sat with maybe a dozen other local media members in the middle of the back row. There were only two rows of chairs. As the other reporters began firing off their questions, I suddenly came up with what I thought was a brilliant question with a local focus. The press conference was nearing its end when I started raising my hand and saying, "Governor, Governor!' and waving with the others, though I suspect I was not quite as brash as some of the other reporters who spoke out of turn and asked ludicrous questions such as, "How do you feel about John McCain?"

A campaign manager type person finally said it was time to wrap things up, and Huckabee looked at us and said, "Let's take one more question from someone local." At this point, I had my hand in the air and had said "Governor!" a couple times, patiently waiting my turn.

Huckabee looked at me and said kindly, "Are you local?" "Yes, I'm local," I said. And then I asked him my question: "As recently as a few weeks ago, campaign contributions in the Dallas area were largely directed toward Guiliani and Romney. How do you court those voters now that those candidates are no longer in the race?"

I really liked his answer. He talked about how his campaign has spent a dime for the dollar that the other candidates spent, that his supporters are grass roots folks with passion for their convictions who are supporting him with their votes. He basically said votes are more important than money. And he certainly indicated that the race isn't over, despite the substantial lead John McCain has over him in the primaries thus far. Of course, he added that if I knew anyone who would like to write a large check, his campaign address is Box 2008 in Little Rock. He's clever like a preacher.

After the press conference (if you can call it that), the rally began. There was standing room only in the event room packed with hundreds of people. I managed to secure a spot on the media platform at the back of the room, so I could see the stage when the "I Like Mike" signs weren't raised. Huckabee spoke with the tenacity and backbone of a Southern Baptist minister, and explained how he would get rid of the IRS, create a Veteran's Bill of Rights and securing the Texas border.

It was a good night. I didn't feel like I was at a rock concert. Huckabee told a joke that went on for far too long. He wasn't perfect and polished like Obama, but he seemed genuine, trustworthy. And, best of all, I got the last question, and it was a good one. So, I'm proud of myself. And I just might enjoy this political reporting thing.