Over One Million Supporters on Facebook

Today we crossed an important threshold: one million supporters for Barack Obama on Facebook.  The Obama page has by far more supporters than any other page – whether it’s a politician, celebrity, or band – on all of Facebook.

For those who have touted the conventional wisdom that young people don’t care about politics, there couldn’t be a better testament to the energy and enthusiasm of young people today.  One million Facebook users have made clear that not only are they engaged with the political process, they are ready for change to come to America.

The skeptics can still be heard to wonder, “But will these people vote?”  In primary contests across the nation, young people already answered that question with a resounding yes, turning out in historic numbers.

But this is only the beginning.  We now enter the general election when it will be even more important for Obama supporters to engage one another online and then to take that energy and enthusiasm to the ground.

There’s still plenty you can do on Facebook.  Install the Obama application, where you can get up-to-date information on what’s happening with the campaign and show off your support even more easily.  Find or create a local Obama group in your town or your school to organize supporters moving into the general election.

Reaching this threshold is only the beginning of what we can do when we work together.  This is our time.

Read The Full Article:
http://my.barackobama.com/page/community/post/chrishughesatthecampaign/gG5SYm

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Road to Denver: University of Kansas Student
Clarissa

Clarissa will represent her state, Kansas, but her generation this August at the convention in Denver.

Clarissa will be a senior at the University of Kansas this fall and played a critical role in the Kansas caucus. She was the State Coordinator of Kansas Students for Obama, and had the opportunity to work with student groups across the state.

After being appointed as State Coordinator, I was incredibly excited but had no idea what I was getting myself into.

Being State Coordinator meant overseeing 11 chapters at colleges, universities and high schools throughout the state. It meant eight or more hour workdays that start after class, after studying, and after the three other jobs I work to get myself through school. It meant organizing state-wide student events, leading city-wide canvass trainings, and sometimes knocking on over 100 doors a day. It also meant housing numerous staffers for over five months, helping to oversee 20 student interns in the Kansas Obama Headquarters, and spending my winter break in Iowa and New Hampshire.

But most importantly, it meant the most incredible learning experience of my life and one that I would not have given up for anything.

Our students traveled from Iowa to New Hampshire to Nevada. They made thousands of phone calls to each of the 50 states and worked countless hours here in Kansas to help solidify the 74-26 percent win that Senator Obama had in the caucuses in Kansas.

The most memorable moment of the primary for me was actually being at my caucus location on February 5, and seeing hundreds and hundreds of people continually file into the room.  It was seeing people that I had called or people whose doors I had knocked on actually show up to caucus for Senator Obama.  It was seeing my neighbors, professors, and friends all come together on a cold and snowy night to stand up for a cause and a Presidential candidate that each of us believe in and that give each of us hope.

Along with attending the National Convention in Denver, Clarissa will be attending the College Democrats of America Convention this August. She is excited about everyone coming together as one united party.

Read The Full Article:
http://my.barackobama.com/page/community/post/amandascott/gG5JBm

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Moving Forward, Working Smart

There are many ways to capture market share.

Politics is not really as different as Dole or Toyota. I can see many of you gasping right now. You're thinking it's about ideas and the leadership of our country. Well you are right. However, for the sake of winning this upcoming election, let's position Obama as our brand and look out into the universe of voters and likely voters and establish our demographics.

We have a solid urban base with younger voters, African-American voters, and the educated cultural elite. I love these groups. These are the people I want to hang out with anyway.

However, where are the other low hanging branches...meaning where else can we pick off people with the least amount of work? Obviously, Democrats who supported Clinton are a possibility. They do agree with us on the issues, they were just so enthralled with Senator Clinton that some of them may not be able to make the switch. Also, let's be honest. Some working class, possibly bitter Democrats are clearly racist. Someone who is racist will probably not vote for a bi-racial candidate.

There are plenty of educated, liberal Republicans who care about the environment and are anti-war who might vote for Senator Obama. There are also lots of first time and previously disenfranchised people who will vote if we continue to press the case that our country cannot afford four more years of the same.

So, rather than beating ourselves up over demographics that may not be right for our brand...let's first reach out to that low hanging fruit and make our fruit cocktail. (But let's leave out the sour grapes for now.)

Read The Full Article:
http://blog.texansforobama.com/showDiary.do?diaryId=1252

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WNC for Obama, Part 1: It Started with a Click...

This is the first installment of a multi-part series that takes an in-depth look at the creation and evolution of a grassroots group, from it's humble beginnings as a local discussion group to its eventual role as a key component of the campaign's ground game. We'll look at the challenges they faced, the lessons they learned, the keys to their success and the role they hope to play in the general election in November.    

February 10th, 2007: Barack Obama has just delivered a stirring speech on the steps of the Illinois State capital in Springfield announcing his run for the presidency. At the same time, his campaign website, barackobama.com goes live, allowing supporters to create personal profiles and start groups in support of his efforts.

Almost instantly, thousands of supporters logged onto my.barackobama.com, creating groups that appealed to an endless variety of constituencies. While some would falter and eventually be abandoned, many would serve as the starting points for one of the largest dedicated grassroots political efforts in decades.

It started simply enough. A supporter named Ian, who had met Barack during his time in Springfield, knew that this was bound to be a special campaign, and wanted to express his support through the website. He created Western North Carolina for Obama (WNC for Obama), a place for supporters from the region to gather and discuss the campaign on a local level.

Before long the group had garnered a rather substantial membership, and Ian decided to take the next step and hold an actual event in the area. Paul, a long time group member, recalled those first efforts:

He e-mailed everyone to gauge interest in a meeting. We ended up holding a fundraiser with local politicians and supporters, but then things started to peter out.

That initial fundraiser was followed by a series of “movie nights” in which supporters gathered to watch clips of Barack’s speeches. Unfortunately, there was no long term plan of action, and the group lost steam.

The group remained dormant through much of the spring until a supporter named Mary Alice, a transplant to the area who had formerly lived in New Hampshire, took an interest in reviving the group.

I was staying at home with the baby, so I got the chance to read [Barack's] books. They inspired me to get involved in the campaign. I felt compelled to take an active role, so I got on my.barackobama.com and started shooting off e-mails to people on the list serv. At first, the response was rather tepid. One couple took an interest, but kept picking the wrong times, like Sunday mornings. And they wanted to promote a rather abrasive message, which didn’t line up with Barack’s.

It soon became clear to Mary Alice that things would not simply come together on their own. If they were really going to build a movement in Western North Carolina, they needed to be organized. With that in mind, she signed up to attend Camp Obama in late August. The training gave her the tools she needed to achieve the level of organization that had thus far eluded the group and also motivated her to step up and take the lead.

Initially, I really didn’t want to take on the role as a group leader, but after Camp Obama I was sure she could do it. The diversity I witnessed there inspired me. I saw people of all ages, races and backgrounds coming together for a common cause. I knew people in my area supported Barack and wanted to help, we were just waiting for someone to take the first step.

Fresh from Camp Obama, Mary Alice returned to North Carolina at the end of August, determined to succeed. She renewed her efforts to activate people in the area, this time focusing more on organizing and establishing the group than jumping right into events.

The language I used when talking to people changed. It was ‘Tell me which day is best for you’ not ‘do you think you might be able to come?’ I gave people set dates and times, and asked for a firm commitment. I didn’t take no for an answer.

Mary Alice contacted supporters through my.barackobama.com and invited them to an organizational meeting. It was at that point that things really started to take off. Only a handful of people attended, but they took the time to share their personal stories and really form a bond. In retrospect, that was one of the key elements that had been neglected in the past.

If I could give one piece of advice to anyone out there trying to start a group, it would be let people get to know each other and connect. If you can get people talking about themselves, they feel like they belong.

Another valuable addition was consistent scheduling. The group hosted regular, weekly meetings. They came together at the same place, at the same time, on the same day every week. This allowed members of the group to plan their lives accordingly and develop a sense of investment.

Over the weeks and months that followed, the group would continue to grow and begin to thrive. As the numbers increased, the focus began to shift from organizational to activist. With the North Carolina primary over eight months out, the question became: what next?

The answer was obvious… South Carolina.

Check back tomorrow night for the second installment of the WNC for Obama series.

Read The Full Article:
http://my.barackobama.com/page/community/post/HQblog/gG5SzM

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The Daily Show on Baracknophobia

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http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/BarackOblogger/~3/314151866/daily-show-on-barackno
phobia.html

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Barack Obama Yes We Can Video Wins Emmy Award

According to CNN.com the famous ?Yes We Can? video that spliced together clips of Barack Obama?s New Hampshire primary night speech and set it to music with celebrities singing along has won an Emmy award. CNN reports that the Will.i.am produced video won in the first time “New Approaches in Daytime Entertainment? category that [...]

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http://bloggers4obama.com/2008/06/17/barack-obama-yes-we-can-video-wins-emmy-awar
d/

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Barack Visits GM Workers During Shift Change

During his time in Michigan yesterday, Barack stopped by the GM Powertrain Flint Engine South for the afternoon shift change to meet some of the workers who had seen the decline of American automobile manufacturing firsthand. In the 1970s, 80,000 people made their living in Flint in automotive jobs, compared to just 12,000 in 2006.

Here are some pictures from Barack's stop...

You can read about Barack's economic plan here.

Read The Full Article:
http://my.barackobama.com/page/community/post/amandascott/gG5SDP

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Panoramic View of Last Night's Michigan Rally

Thanks to a reader for highlighting this for me.

Go here to see a full panoramic view of last night's Obama rally in Michigan.

As my reader and Andrew Sullivan noted:

Who else could draw in a crowd like this?

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http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WeNeedObama/~3/314105275/panorama-view-of-last-nig
hts-michigan.html

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Texas: The Next Battleground State

Last week, Texas was graced with a three-city swing by David Axelrod, chief strategist for Barack Obama's campaign. Residents in Dallas, Austin and Houston opened their homes to a fundraiser for Obama, at which Axelrod spoke at length and answered questions.

It was the last question asked in Austin that should perk up the ears of Texas Democrats -- a guest asked if the Obama for America campaign would pay attention to Texas, or just "use it as an ATM." A fair question to ask, given the history of Democratic campaigns taking Texans' money but not working as hard for their votes.

While Axelrod did not give an unequivocal answer, he did seem impressed by the impassioned support in all three cities. Local volunteers Ian Davis and Ken Flippin presented Axelrod with a "Texans for Obama" bumpersticker and a "Turn Texas Blue" t-shirt. The strategist received the gifts warmly, and the following night in Houston pledged fifteen paid Obama staff members to Texas.

Coming on the heels of the campaign announcement that Obama will send staff to all fifty states, it looks like neither Democrats nor Republicans can assume Texas' "red" status will remain unchallenged.

Crossposted at Turn Texas Blue.  


Read The Full Article:
http://blog.texansforobama.com/showDiary.do?diaryId=1251

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Unite for Change: Planning for November

With the primary season over, people are looking for ways to keep spreading Barack’s message and start planning for the fall. Each state will be important this November and supporters are gearing up to organize their community...

Roxanne from Montana:

I decided to hold a Unite for Change event at my house to energize people about this campaign and the up coming election.  We had a great primary, but I don’t want the people of Montana to lose hope over the next 6 months and forget about what issues are important. 
On in my e-mail list, when I signed up, I did not list that many people, but I am calling friends and asking them to bring anyone they know, especially people who may be on the fence. 

Here in Montana, many people do not know where Barack stands on gun rights and open lands.  I feel they vote for the Republican ticket because they think Democrats what to get rid of all guns and close all lands.  They need to know the facts so they can make an educated decision.

My hope is that this will energize people and they will then in turn hold events, talk to their friends and neighbors, make contributions, etc.

Kenya from Michigan:

My husband and I have decided to host a Unite for Change event at our house. We're grilling hot dogs and hamburgers for anyone in our city who wants to join us on June 28th to "unite for change" this election season.

We hope to answer questions about Barack Obama and convince whoever walks through our door undecided, that he is the best candidate for our country right now.

We'll be discussing dates and locations to register voters in our area, and days that we can go door to door to talk to our neighbors. One person can change a room. That room can change a block and that block can change a city. We will be that room on June 28th!!!

Hosting a Unite for Change event on June 28 is the perfect way to connect with your neighbors, talk about issues that are important to you and spread Barack’s message of hope. Sign up to host an event in your town today.

Read The Full Article:
http://my.barackobama.com/page/community/post/amandascott/gG5Mvf

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