Watching from the cheap seats

The skies over La Antigua were lit up by rockets at 10pm local time, already Guy Fawkes morning back home in London, but over here it was the moment when the networks projected victory for Obama.

I'd been walking Jin and had aimed to get back by the 'top of the hour' but he'd decided to change our route spontaneously, and so I missed the announcement by some seven minutes in the end. It seems that the panel on CNN were only just recovering from a collective, choked silence. The first to speak referred emotionally to those who had kept faith with the Constitution even when it excluded them.

"Este fue una goleada," they observed over on TVe.

On the night it was the BBC who had the most impressive touch-screen technology - though Jeremy Vine could have done with some more practice with it - and the most lively studio guests, among them Simon Schama and Christopher Hitchens.

Around 10pm DC time Schama accused David Dimbleby of being a "wuss' for not calling it for Obama when the projections were already giving him 200 college votes (and Ohio). Dimbleby retorted that he couldn't be much of a historian if he goes about writing history before it happens!

And then, next to Schama, there was the undiplomatic presence of Dubya's former UN Ambassador John R. Bolton, who suggested the BBC should fire its reporter in Colorado and called another one "ignorant" to her face when she dared to suggest that the choice of Governor Palin had lost McCain the centre. (Simple maths shows she was probably right though- that the centre and the left together make up more than 50% of the country).

Bolton then pointedly noted that the BBC - and by implication all of us good for nothing limey election obsessives- "are guests here". Schama then bated him a bit more by stating that it appears that the Republican Party has been left with the old South and not much else.

Obama-Biden voters celebrating in New York and Florida spoke of the feeling of "closure" after the nightmare eight years ago. I loved the stock broker in Sarasota who said "I'd rather have a better country and a better world and pay some more taxes for that."

Back over on CNN Alex Castellanos admitted that the GOP had trashed its brand. That they certainly did, and their nation's brand as well. The new President-elect has an unprecedented opportunity to mend it.

Elizabeth Dole....epic fail.

Kenya has declared a national holiday.

Please to remember the 5th of November...