Angelou: Now I Don't Have To Apologize For America To My Euro Friends

You might not be thrilled by the election of Barack Obama, but look on the bright side: it's made life a lot easier for Maya Angelou when she hangs out with her European friends.  Asked by Andrea Mitchell during MSNBC's 1 PM hour what was going through her mind as the results rolled in, the poet mentioned, among other things:

I realized, almost within the minute, I don't have to apologize for my country when I'm abroad.  I can say: "I belong to a great country." And the Europeans who say: aren't you glad to be here in France where we don't have the racism you live under?  Aren't you glad you're here in Britain, where we don't have -- I mean, I've been on the defensive so long.  This time I can say: "I am an American: look at us, look at what we've just achieved."