A post from The Root's Down From the Tower blog:

To: Marc Lamont Hill

Marc,

I may need you to bring me a cup of tea. I am feeling pretty beat up this morning. I know you are not an Obama supporter, but you may have to give a little help to your girl because last night was hard to take.

I did not think Obama would win Pennsylvania, but something about having to sit up late and watch another HRC "victory" speech put me over the edge. Maybe it's because friends from as far away as Seattle and Texas came this weekend to volunteer in PA and stopped by my place in NJ on Sunday afternoon. We had a little dinner and made Veronica Chambers' famous "Barack Pie" as a sign of solidarity with our candidate. For dessert we allowed ourselves to whisper to one another, "What if…I know he can't, but what if?"

All day Tuesday I fielded calls from press and relatives. "Can he win it?" they asked. Responsibly I answered, "No, I don't think so. Too much of the old PA machine behind the Clintons, too many race scandals this month, too big a gap to overcome." But secretly I kept thinking, what if…

"What if" is central to my support for Obama. What if black people could lead a winning coalition? What if working class white folks could see past race? What if we could change our politics and trust our government? What if we could responsibly get out of Iraq? What if Obama turned out to be a great President? What if we could wake up and still feel that we were dreaming?

Last night I exchanged emails all night with friends. Some said Barack must fight harder, dirtier and meaner. Some sent optimistic notes about how good it looks in North Carolina and Indiana. Some just sent "??" or "☹" or "here we go again."

I was in with the last group. I realized that there are some days when I have no analysis, no witty comeback and no cute story. Some days it is just hard to lose. So Marc, will you bring me a cup of tea?

Melissa

Melissa Harris-Lacewell is Associate Professor of Politics and African American Studies at Princeton University.