Hearing American Voices

Nov. 5, 2008 — -- President-elect Barack Obama claimed victory late last night amid the cheers of thousands of supporters.

When he is sworn into office in January, however, millions of Americans hope he will hear and remember, more than the cheers, their concerns.

"Good Morning America" traveled the nation the week before the election to hear those concerns firsthand. Each story was told by an individual speaking specifically about his or her life, and yet was emblematic of the struggles of thousands of others.

Keith Brown, an auto union president from Dearborn, Michigan, worried about the economy and the auto industry in particular. He worried for good reason -- Brown's family tree is coated in motor oil.

"I have worked for Ford now over 15 years," Brown said. "My dad spent 35 years with UAW Ford. My brother has about 10 years with Ford. My father-in-law worked at Ford. My sister-in-law works at Ford. My brother-in-law works at Ford. I have an uncle that retired from Ford. We are an auto industry family."

Brown said that he fears the potential GM and Chrysler merger, which could result in plant closings and job loss. Even without a merger, Brown said, things are getting hard in Detroit.

"When the auto industry is in a downturn, Detroit and Michigan, they feel the same downturn," he said. Brown said people do not go out to eat as much, consider giving up vacations and have "lost the initiative" to decorate for the holidays.

But Brown said that the next president's priority ought to be, above all else, fixing health care.

"I think it's sad at this point in the country. You look at the seniors and retirees -- those are the people who built this country... And there are some out there that are making the choice between getting this month's supply of prescriptions or using that money to buy groceries at the grocery store," he said.

For the Fletcher family of Seymour, Mo., the war in Iraq dominates discussion. Al and Valerie Fletcher have a son in the Marines currently serving in Iraq in a war they say seems to never end.