What now?

Congratulations to Sen. Barack Obama on his convincing victory tonight.
And congratulations to John Edwards who managed to best Sen. Clinton by a hair to clinch second.
And congratulations to all those who donated their time, energy and money to help whomever they felt would be the best candidate.

It's also been reported that 218,000 (and counting) Democrats attended the caucuses tonight, exceeding the 124,000 attendence in 2004 by a full 94,000 for a whopping 56% increase.

And of that, only 24% were non-Democratic voters (20% Dem, 4% independent), far lower than the 45% non-Democratic voters expectated.

Over 100,000 Republicans showed up, compared to 2000, the last competitive Republican caucus, which drew around 85,000 participants.

Overcrowding at many sites caused people to leave without participating, showing that for many in America, exercizing a right that many around the world give their lives to achieve, isn't worth the trouble of searching to for a parking spot or waiting a half hour.

Biden and Dodd have withdrawn, and with any luck, Thompson will bow out as well.

What's the fallout of tonight's results going to be?

Preacher Mike won the Republican contest. (What's with Chuck Norris being right at Huckabee's side at every single appearance? Does he follow him into the shower?) How long before, and how, will Huckabee eventually crash and burn as is inevitable? What does he need to do to withstand the renewed scrutiny this win will bring? Will his humanity be enough to cover his apparent lack of knowledge about so many issues?

Huckabee just gave what I felt was by far the best speech of the night. I only wish that Edwards or Clinton could have connected in that way, rather than grinding out their usual script. (Obama has yet to speak at the time this is written.)

The thing that strikes me about the Democratic contest is not so much that Obama won, but rather than Clinton came in third, albeit a very close third.

What does this portend, if anything?

Can Edwards roll on with his second place finish? Or will he conform to the pundits script and essentially become irrelevant since he didn't come in first?

What are your thoughts on where things go from here? What do the results mean in your opinion? What did you think of the media coverage? What was the night like at the caucuses if you were at one? Are you pleased with the results? Disappointed? Surprised? Let us know.