Obama Offices
Different, Separate and Apart
From Democrat Party Offices
Does Obama Campaign Not Trust the Democrats?
Or is it Clintonistas?
Will Election 2008 be remembered as the first contest between Republicans and Obamacrats--or the first between the Obamacrats and the Democrats?
Senator Barack Obama is building a national organization separate and apart from the national Democrat Party apparatus--at least in any state where the outcome of the November election is at all in doubt.
In state after state, the Obama campaign, in a break with tradition, has opened up its own offices--which largely push Barack Obama, and only Obama--apart from the Democrat Party's own offices in those very same communities.
Obama has, literally, hundreds of these offices dotting the USA.
[ABOVE: Obama offices in Ohio--these are separate from local Democrat Party offices in the communities listed.]
In Ohio, seventy Obama Campaign for Change Regional Offices--all of them separate and apart from the Democrat Party. In Pennsylvania, sixty-three Campaign for Change offices.
The list goes on: Virginia, over forty offices; Georgia, thirty-eight; North Carolina, thirty-six; Indiana, thirty-two; Colorado, thirty; Iowa, twenty-three; Minnesota, twelve; West Virginia, six.
In states where the outcome is already pretty much decided, Campaign for Change operates few offices: one in Texas and California, for example.
Does Obama Trust the Democrats?
Do the Democrats Trust Obama?
The Campaign for Change offices push one product: Barack Obama.
In our weekend visit to Obama offices, we found that local and state Democrat candidates did have a presence at the Campaign for Change offices--but not much of one.
Almost all of the usual campaign giveways were there: pencils, literature, stickers. They were all on a small table in the back of the room.
That small table represented all of the local, district and state Democrat candidates--combined. The rest of the spacious room was dedicated to Barack Obama. In almost every case, it was Obama without a meniton of running mate, Joe Biden.
The local Democrat campaign office, we were informed, was "down the street, around the corner."
One of the offices visited last weekend was in Ohio.
A few months ago, after Ohio Governor Ted Strickland turned down the Obama veep invitation, Scared Monkeys noted the difficulties Obama was having getting moderates in the Democrat Party to get in line.
So much for gaining that candidate in an all important must win battle ground state like Ohio. There will be no Obama-Strickland ticket and Obama’s chances of victory in Ohio just became more difficult. What is more interesting about this decision by Strickland is that he is a staunch Hillary Clinton supporter. What does that tell us about the Democratic party so-called coming together after the bitterly contested primary?To add just a little bit more Democratic party unity, Democratic Representative Dan Boren of Oklahoma stated that Barack Obama is “the most liberal senator” in Congress and he has no intention of endorsing him for the White House. So much for support from moderate Democrats. As most had suspected, many moderate Dems find Obama to liberal to endorse.
The Obama campaign and supporters will likely dismiss the separate offices as "smart thinking" and "targeting resources". But, each office sucks up resources: lease money, campaign materials and manpower. The Campaign for Change offices are staffed by volunteers, but a volunteer sitting behind a desk is a volunteer not knocking on doors. But in this way, the Obama campaign is sure of one thing: the volunteer on the phone in a Des Moines Campaign for Change office will be talking about Barack Obama--not the local Democrat candidate for County Commissioner.
The Obama campaign is apparently charging fellow Democrats for Obama campaign materials. At a Democrat-sponsored booth at an event in Wheeling WV, local Democratic candidates manning the location complained about this sign of Obamaization. The booth featured many local and state Democrat candidates, but not much Obama signage or literature.
"We had to pay for them," a lady complained. "They don't give us anything."
Even Obama supporters have to pay the campaign for everything in the offices. "Al" who we spoke to at a local Obama campaign offices said he had to "pay for the lease out of my own pocket. All of the t-shirts, button, stickers here, I paid for."So, if Obama volunteers are paying the campaign for everything and picking up the tab for leases, isn't this just a smart move?
Each Campaign for Change office becomes a cash cow: it not only pays for itself, it sends money to the national Obama campaign for campaign materials.
And, the staff isn't wasting time contacting voters about the other Democrat candidates. At Campaign for Change, it's All Obama, All of the Time.
Is there any other reasons why the Obama campaign built this network dedicated to the election of Barack Obama outside of normal Democrat Party channels?
The Spectre of Hillary Clinton
The Obama campaign may have set up all of those separate offices--in any state that might be the least bit in play--because of the woman Obama beat in the Democrat primaries: Hillary Clinton.
A Campaign for Change office is an office beyond any possible control of Clintonistas.
"Pssst… Did you know Obama takes Lobbyist money, even though he claims he doesn’t?"
"IMPLOSION Continues: Et tu, New Jersey?"
"Guess who says Obama has no plan? Harry Reid, That’s Who..."
The preceding headlines come from the front page of PUMA08.com. They help illustrate the rift between some supporters of Hillary Clinton and the candidate that they claim was "selected, not elected" to represent the Democrats in November.
An AP-Yahoo News poll claims that Democrats who backed Hillary Clinton in the primaries are still not warming up to Barack Obama. Fifty-eight percent of Clinton supporters now back Obama.
That was the same percentage who said they backed Obamaa in a June, when Clinton called it quits and the PUMA (Party Unity My Ass) movement was born.The poll shows that while Obama has gained ground among Clinton's supporters — 69 percent view him favorably now, up 9 percentage points from June — this has yet to translate into more of their support.
In part, this is because their positive views of Republican presidential nominee John McCain have also improved during this period. Those supporting McCain have also edged up from 21 percent to 28 percent, with the number of undecided staying constant, the survey showed.
Obama and many of his supporters haven't warmed to the Clintons.
The Clintons, and many of their supporters, haven't warmed to Obama.
Insight Analytical thinks Obama doesn't want Clinton Democrats and asks, "Why?"
It’s 44 days until the General Election as I write this and after a long and hard fought primary season the Democratic Party, and the Obama campaign specifically, are still unable to get over their terminal case of CDS. I can’t help but ask “Why”? For the uninitiated, CDS stands for Clinton Derangement Syndrome, usually defined as the uncontrollable impulse to rail against all things Clinton (Hillary, Bill, Chelsea, Hillary’s supporters, and basically anything connected to centrist positions).
Team Obama not only masterminded the overthrow of the Democratic Party to form the “New Democrats” (remember the May 31, 2008 coup when all semblance of the rules were overthrown at a behind-closed-doors meeting of the Rules and Bylaws Committee), they literally declared the nomination belonged to Obama despite the fact that:
- Hillary Clinton won more of the popular vote than Obama (when the Florida and Michigan primaries are included as originally voted)
- Automatic (also called Super) Delegates are unable to actually cast a vote until the national Convention
- Obama did not actually have enough Super Delegates “locked in” to declare himself the winner when he did
- Hillary Clinton didn’t contest the illegal theft of earned delegates in Michigan, despite her legal right to do so
Bill Clinton was accused of having short coattails; of being "Good for Bill Clinton, bad for Democrats."Obama may turn out to have even shorter coattails. While Clinton campaigned for other Democrats--a lot--so far, Obama campaigned for Obama.
One reason given for the recent outbreak of rumors concerning the dumping of Joe Biden from the ticket was the "Obama only" syndrome.
No Biden Rumor: No Obama-Biden Campaign Materials in Obama Offices
Will Bower, of PUMA08.com, isn't buying the "Dump Biden" rumors.
"I believe that the "Dump Biden" rumor is exactly that -- a rumor."
Bower added that "I don't believe that Hillary would encourage Obama to do such a thing at this juncture. It would only serve to make him (accurately) look weak and indecisive."
Will then directed us to the following video.
Will Obama win using his national network of Campaign for Change offices, which are separate from the local Democrat Party?
Will Obama have any coattails, helping local Democrats to victory in close local races?
Does it matter?
After all, Barack Obama--who may be described as having been in perpetual campaign mode--is building his own network of volunteers, fund-raising and organization. It's a network beholden to no one outside of the Obama campaign.
In case of an Obama win, it's a network that's already in place and can be expanded upon in 2012 for a re-election run.
In case of an Obama loss, it's a network already in place that can be expanded upon in 2012 for another run against all comers--Republican or Democrat.
Will the Obama organization supersede the Democratic Party? Or will the Clintons and their supporters be able to circumvent this looming obstacle?
2008 may be remembered as the beginning of a battle in which John McCain was only one opponent among many.
by Mondo
image: dbkp; dbkp file
