A View From Inside The Chamber: The Best Seat In The House

Mike Gonzalez / January 28, 2010

I knew the state of the American people was all right even before President Obama walked into the well of the House of Representatives to give what turned out to be an at time hectoring, at other times gloomy, State of the Union speech. You see, I was very fortunate to get a seat at the speech tonight. A rather good seat. And Providence struck again when John sat next to me a good 45 minutes before the event.

John is a veteran who made it to the U.S. Capitol from Walter Reed Hospital in Maryland. It was also his first time at such an occasion, and we chatted about our good fortune at this once in a life-time opportunity. I had noticed John amble in, his dignity intact but his leg not functioning well just yet (hopefully just yet). I had paid no attention at first, as I continued picking out worthies out of the crowd (“Hey, there’s Joe Biden!”) until he told me where he was living these days. Then I noticed the Purple Heart. “Which war?” I asked. “Afghanistan,” he answered simply.

He told me about how it happened, how sudden it had been, and how he’d never forget that day in Kandahar back in July. He told me the past six months had been a blur as the doctors continued working on him. I thanked him for his sacrifice, and for keeping our country free, and told him my children prayed for the soldiers and the whole country did. “Heck, no sacrifice,” he said. “I’d give a part of my leg again. I’d do it, no problem, for this,” he said, spreading his arms wide at the Congressmen below. “Democracy is worth keeping safe and the country is worth keeping safe. We know we’re fighting for democracy. We didn’t have to do this. We enlisted because we believe in our country.” (more…)