LuckyCharm's Blog

Sep 15 statewide roll-out, WA Vets for Obama!

LuckyCharm — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 12:57:37 EDT

Hello fellow veterans! I'm sure you're all as outraged as I am about the Republican attack ads, smears, lies, and voter suppression tactics in key states. Now is the time to fight back, and fight hard.

Washington Veterans for Obama will be officially rolling out on Monday, September 15th. As part of this effort, we'd like to get veterans statewide to approach your local VFW, AmVets, American Legion, and other military fraternal organizations to recruit new members, spread the TRUTH about our candidate, and get out the vote. Our tasks, then, in preparation for the roll-out, are:

If you haven't yet done so, fill out the survey providing your basic contact and military info, so that we can see at a glance how many folks we've got and where everyone's located. If you're not sure whether you filled it out or not, you can check the spreadsheet and resubmit your form if necessary (please note in the comments block if this is a re-submission). If these links don't work for you, go to:

(Survey form) http://spreadsheets.google.com/viewform?key=pHEd_HnCUCSzAfpYA_SRoDQ
(Spreadsheet) http://spreadsheets.google.com/ccc?key=pHEd_HnCUCSzAfpYA_SRoDQ&hl=en#

Sign into our group website. I've temporarily set it up so you don't need approval to join, so you can get started right away. I'll try to keep it that way till everyone's in. Go immediately to the Files and Resources page, where I have linked three documents the campaign has provided us to reach veterans (they're listed under the "documents for tabling" heading). Or, you can go directly to the links under "Files" -- the titles are self-explanatory. Check out these documents and print them out. You will need enough copies of all three to support your outreach efforts. If the previous link doesn't work for you, go here: http://groups.google.com/group/wavets4o
Get out your phone book or fire up Google and make a list of all the veterans organizations near you. Contact the post commander, preferably by phone, and ask to be allowed to speak at one of their meetings and/or set up a table to reach voters. Sample script: "Hello, I am [your name and military affiliation], and I'm with Washington Veterans for Obama. I would like to know if I could attend one of your meetings to provide important information for veterans and families about the upcoming election." Find out when they meet, and try to set something up. Keep going down the list until you've hit as many as you feel comfortable to start with. Make a note of who you talked to, when, and how receptive they seemed, along with any follow-up you may need to do.
Post a new discussion on the website indicating which post(s) you will be visiting. This will help us avoid duplicating efforts. If there's someone living close to you (check the spreadsheet), you may wish to team up and coordinate efforts. I encourage everyone to select the option to receive all group emails, so that you will know immediately if someone else has just contacted an organization you were planning to call.
Obtain a small stack of voter registration forms from your county auditor's office. Public schools and libraries should also have them -- call ahead to make sure. Bring voter registration forms to your tabling event!
Share your experiences with the rest of the group via the discussions feature on the website. Some of us may be a little nervous at first about "cold-calling" these organizations, and hearing how it went for you, along with any lessons learned, might be all they need to feel more comfortable about it.

Last but not least, have fun with it! Remember, you are not asking anyone for any personal favors -- you are OFFERING them an OPPORTUNITY to empower themselves and to continue their service to our country by getting involved in the most important election, perhaps in their lifetime. An opportunity to help make history and turn our ship of state toward brighter horizons. Get names, phone numbers, and email addresses of everyone who accepts a flyer or expresses interest or support, and follow up to recruit them to our group. The more hands on deck, the easier our jobs will be.

I will be obtaining and posting an official sign-up sheet as soon as I have it from the campaign (probably today), so don't forget to print that out and have it with you. Any questions, difficulties with the survey, spreadsheet, or website, or concerns about answering objections, please don't hesitate to contact me: PierceCoVets@gmail.com, 253-507-9460.

Yours in service,

SSG Cheryl Kopec, USAR
Chair, WA Vets for Obama
--
The time for can't do, won't do, won't even try, is OVER!

Our acceptance speech watch party

LuckyCharm — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 21:45:45 EDT

He did it again last night – Barack Obama once again transfixed the nation with his message of hope and change at a time when so many Americans, as well as our neighbors around the globe, have lost faith in our country. Reuters reports that this convention speech may have set a viewership record, with one quarter of all U.S. households tuned in. And I, as an Iraq war veteran whose life is forever changed as a result of my combat tour, could not have been prouder to cheer him on, there at Spud’s Pizza Parlor with the couple dozen others who showed up for our watch party.

Now, Spud’s isn’t your most liberal place, a detail that was only brought to my attention by one of our attendees who mentioned it in the RSVP. My first clue should have been the previous evening, when I went over there on a last-minute recon, making sure everything would be suitable for our group. Several of the young servers approached me, curiously, and demanded to know why they should “vote for this guy.” Oh, that got me on a roll, even though just as I began to respond, my cell phone signaled me that my house alarm had been tripped! Ignoring the alarm, I rattled off a number of convincing reasons why Barack is the man for the job right now, then politely excused myself to see to the problem at home.

Wouldn’t you know it, one of those young people was at the front desk last night, sporting a hand-lettered “Go McCain!” t-shirt. I couldn’t help but chuckle a bit under my breath – yes, we like it like this, invading “enemy territory,” preaching not only to the choir but to voters of every ilk. Just wait till he starts speaking, I thought to myself with a secret smile.

So we settled in to our assigned area – not the cramped little game room, as they had originally arranged. Turned out they didn’t know how to change the TV channel in there (huh?), so they relented and put us into a raised platform area within the main dining room. I’m sure the manager must have been fuming, because during my previous evening’s visit, when I inquired about possibly moving it into a similar raised area in the bar due to overwhelming response, she snapped that we would be in the game room, and that was that.

I passed around the sign-in sheets and stickers and went over a few admin notes while everybody chatted and watched the preliminaries on the screen. And then, the time came, and folks got quiet to watch a moving little documentary on his life.

Finally, Barack came onstage, lights shining, music playing, and all of it outshone by his million-watt grin. “Thank you, thank you,” he repeated over and over for what seemed like two minutes, as the crowd refused to quit cheering long enough for him to start his speech. But at last, they quieted down and listened.

I won’t go into every detail of what he said. My focus at the moment is how I, as a combat veteran, heard the remarks of our next commander-in-chief.

And we are here because we love this country too much to let the next four years look like the last eight. On November 4th, we must stand up and say: "Eight is enough."

I was in the front yard talking to my neighbor this morning, and the conversation drifted to last night’s speech. My neighbor had begun by saying, “Yeah, well, I think I might be starting to lean toward him….” I did my best to regulate my passion as we talked, mostly about the war and how it’s ravaged our country, but also about the economy, our standing in the world, and other critical issues facing us. Some people harbor the mistaken notion that anybody who disagrees with the current administration or its policies must be anti-American. Not at all, I assured her: “I love this country, and I love our military, and it saddens me to no end to see how this president seems bent on ruining both! We’re so beaten down by Iraq that we cannot even answer the up-and-coming threats cropping up on the horizon, and THAT puts us in great peril! It is time for a president who will at least put us back on the right track, even if he can’t solve all our problems in one term….”

And for the sake of our economy, our security, and the future of our planet, I will set a clear goal as President: in ten years, we will finally end our dependence on oil from the Middle East.

Wasn’t it John McCain who promised that as president, he would ensure that oil independence would “prevent us from having ever to send our young men and women into conflict again in the Middle East”? Hmm, well that’s just one candidate talking, but if it’s true, how does he think it makes me feel about my combat service that people treat as such a noble thing? And how would it make me feel about him, who AGREES with Bush’s policies 90 percent of the time, and who thinks it’d be fine to keep U.S. troops in Iraq for “maybe a hundred” years?

Yes, we do need to wean ourselves from foreign oil, and Barack is committed to that goal, with clear plans for achieving it. As a conservationist, I applaud his proposals as outlined in his speech. But as a veteran, I am deeply disturbed and insulted by John McCain’s implication that my sacrifice and that of so many of my comrades was chiefly to protect our nation’s oil interests. AND, as Barack pointed out, McCain has done nothing concrete in support of his stated intention:

Washington's been talking about our oil addiction for the last thirty years, and John McCain has been there for twenty-six of them. In that time, he's said no to higher fuel-efficiency standards for cars, no to investments in renewable energy, no to renewable fuels. And today, we import triple the amount of oil as the day that Senator McCain took office.

Now is the time to end this addiction, and to understand that drilling is a stop-gap measure, not a long-term solution. Not even close.

Barack gets it right when he talks about the wrong way to do things:

You don't defeat a terrorist network that operates in eighty countries by occupying Iraq. You don't protect Israel and deter Iran just by talking tough in Washington. You can't truly stand up for Georgia when you've strained our oldest alliances. If John McCain wants to follow George Bush with more tough talk and bad strategy, that is his choice - but it is not the change we need.

I, like most of my fellow veterans, was proud to answer the call to duty and take up arms in defense of my country. It is what we raised our right hands and swore to do, and we did it willingly. In my case, I was singled out at the staging area, getting ready to board the plane, sitting on my duffel bag like everyone else, because someone in the medical facility had discovered a slight discrepancy in my civilian medical records. They wanted to hold me back to resolve it, and send me on to meet my unit later. “No way,” I replied, with a disbelieving chuckle. “I’m ready to go, and I’m going with my unit.” Little did I know the real – or made-up, as the case may be – reasons for this invasion.

As Commander-in-Chief, I will never hesitate to defend this nation, but I will only send our troops into harm's way with a clear mission and a sacred commitment to give them the equipment they need in battle and the care and benefits they deserve when they come home.

Nor did I understand the nature of the enemy we were about to confront – but who could blame me? Neither did my superiors as far up the chain as I could tell. The TACSOP (tactical SOP) that was supposed to be my “bible” over there had nothing to do with the reality on the ground. We made it up as we went along. The two months of training at Ft. Dix (during their worst blizzard in 26 years, I might add – wonderful preparation for the desert!) was a complete waste. The scenarios we rehearsed bore absolutely no resemblance to anything we had to do in Iraq.

And let’s not even talk about the equipment. I was issued a medium flak vest because they were all out of the small size. When I shouldered my weapon repeatedly, I’d get bruises on my biceps from where they’d hit the edges of the armholes, and the collar went up so high it would push my helmet down over my eyes in a prone firing position. My M-16 was famous for misfiring, and one range NCO disassembled and inspected it, and summarily ordered it off of his range for safety reasons. I could not get it replaced – they had no other weapon to issue me. No weapons cleaning kit, either, and the clothing sales store at Ft. Dix never had them any time I was able to check. When we got to Kuwait, I had to casually mosey on over to the Rangers’ tent across the way every morning and beg to borrow their weapons cleaning materials.

AND, my unit made me turn in my atropine injectors in Kuwait, before sending me to join a different unit in Iraq! When I arrived at that unit, the first sergeant asked to see my atropine, and I had to tell him I’d been made to turn it in. “They sent you to IRAQ with no ATROPINE???” he blustered. Yep, it was true. I don’t know if they were short on it or what, but that was still at the very beginning of things, when we weren’t sure whether NBC was going to be a factor.

Yes, Senator Obama, we will proudly serve, especially knowing that our commander-in-chief would never send us into battle lightly, without a clear mission, under false pretexts, under-equipped and ill-trained. You, Sir, will command the respect of our troops, and we’ll give 110 percent for you, knowing that you’ve got our back.

The men and women who serve in our battlefields may be Democrats and Republicans and Independents, but they have fought together and bled together and some died together under the same proud flag. They have not served a Red America or a Blue America - they have served the United States of America.

When I went to war, I was not a Republican or a Democrat, or even an Independent. Politics repelled me, and I stayed far removed from it, beyond casting my ballot every four years (which led to my amusing but sincere question upon being named PCO: “So I understand I’m responsible for organizing a precinct caucus – what’s that, some kind of meeting, right?”).

When I got home from Iraq, I had little hope left. My experience with this no-win, aimless war and the pathetic way my unit had treated me before, during and after (I was what is known in the Reserves as a “cross-level,” meaning I deployed with a unit I didn’t actually belong to), along with some very callous and insensitive remarks from various civilians upon learning of my role in the conflict, left me with a deep sense of despair. I had just put my life on the line, every day for 367 days, for THIS? It felt unreal. I didn’t even know why I had come back.

One day I read in the newspaper that Barack Obama had announced his candidacy for the presidency. “Barack Obama?” I thought. “Who’s that? Is he even American?” So I Googled him when I got home, and came up with his campaign website. I clicked on his announcement speech. Now, normally it’s difficult for me to focus my attention continuously on one thing – you learn that in combat, always keep your eyes roving, never sit still too long, be aware of your situation at all times, watch your back – but for that half-hour or so, I was stone-cold riveted. His speech left me teary-eyed. Wow. If this guy can do half of what he says he wants to do, he NEEDS to be president! But like he said himself, and continues to say, he can’t do it by himself. It’s going to take each and every one of us to get involved. So, I clicked a link on his website, and here I am today, having run (and attended!) my first precinct caucus, given the Obama persuasion speech at my legislative district caucus, running weekly meetings as well as speech watch parties and similar events, and talking to everyone I know about Obama. Because at last, here is something I can do that will really do something good for this country I love! All the blood, sweat, and tears I shed in Iraq didn’t do a thing to make our nation safer, healthier, or more prosperous – in fact, just the opposite. But now I finally have the opportunity to make a difference for GOOD for America – this country I love, red, white, and blue.

Oh, and for what it’s worth, we gathered a few onlookers at Spud’s, people who just stopped to watch the speech with us. Some were very quiet, some pounded on the railing enthusiastically. All, I am sure, will remember this night for time to come, because this was indeed history in the making. It is not too late for our country – we are still the last best hope.

GOTV rap video for youth -- enjoy, and pass it on!

LuckyCharm — Sat, 03 May 2008 11:02:32 EDT

http://www.electobamatoday.com

Seeking newspaper contact info for NC

LuckyCharm — Fri, 02 May 2008 09:04:57 EDT

Hello,

I live in Washington State, and we had our caucuses Feb 9. Now we want to do whatever we can to help other states in their Obama efforts. Could somebody send me a current list of the major news outlets in NC, so that we may write letters to editors? I am particularly interested in areas targeting military veterans, as I am an Iraq war veteran myself.

Thank you,

SSG Cheryl Kopec, Pierce County Veterans for Obama, PierceCoVets@gmail.com

200,000 people, $5 -- we can do this!

LuckyCharm — Sun, 20 Apr 2008 22:28:42 EDT

1 p.m. EST, 10 a.m. PST tomorrow -- a million dollars in a minute for Obama. Check
this out: http://www.anobamaminute.com/

Just think, the day before the PA primary, Obama's website groans
under the strain of hundreds of thousands of supporters giving $5,
$10, whatever, all in the same minute. Wouldn't that be a headline for
PA to wake up to on Tuesday?

Pass it on -- post to your blog, MySpace, listservs, IM list, whatever
ya got!

Cheers,

~~Cheryl

Our chance to help an endorser

LuckyCharm — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 00:04:22 EDT

From a recent message from Bill Richardson:

"...And while Governor Richardson left the field some three months ago, the debts we incurred in working to get his message out have not. Thanks to our many supporters, we have begun to whittle that number down but there is much more to do--and I'm hoping you will help us finally retire it all with one last contribution."

They're trying to pay off his campaign debts -- here's where we can say thank you for his courageous stand in endorsing Obama, and give Carville an apoplexy at the same time.

The minimum donation is $5. Therefore, we are proposing, as a show of solidarity, that Obama supporters donate at least $5.08, or any amount ending in $.08, to help him out and make him glad he did the right thing.

Contribution link is https://secure.richardsonforpresident.com/page/contribute/closebooks?source=z1761

Show Richardson and the rest of the party that we don't forget those who've stood up for what they really believe, despite enormous pressure to the contrary. This is how we change the way Washington works!

And be sure to pass it on, too, if you are on any other blogs, forums, MySpace, Facebook, etc.

Cheers,

~~Cheryl

Se Se Puede video

LuckyCharm — Tue, 26 Feb 2008 09:25:39 EST

On YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ky8Hvq-F0U

Pass it on, especially to your Spanish-speaking friends!

~~Cheryl

Need help writing an article

LuckyCharm — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 23:06:10 EST

I was deployed to OIF-1 with the US Army. I served proudly and am now retired, with a VA diagnosis of PTSD. I have been asked by several members of the Obama community to relate, in writing, my experiences of going into combat with substandard equipment and preparation, in rebuttal to the Pentagon's questioning of that allegation by one Army captain and Obama supporter. I want to do it, but I don't even know how to start, and every time I start trying to think about it deeply, I begin weeping. I need someone to "hold my hand" through this, because I think it's important that the campaign know there's someone solidly in his camp who can personally recount some of the horrendous lapses in supply and support during that phase of the war. I just need a good opening line and maybe some suggestions on a direction or something.... I don't just want to list a hundred bullet points -- who would read that?

Phone: 253-536-1618, IM luckycharmwa at Yahoo.

Thanks,

~~Cheryl

My first caucus ever

LuckyCharm — Sat, 09 Feb 2008 21:13:34 EST

Got up today with a start, my first thought being, “It’s caucus day!” Oh my Lord, the day is finally upon me…. I haven’t contacted nearly the number of people as I had hoped in my precinct. Haven’t rehearsed a speech. Haven’t thoroughly studied the handy guide from the campaign that I received just last night. My eyes were wide, my hands shaky, my blood pressure and pulse at record highs when I took my vitals this morning. “Calm down, Cheryl,” I kept telling myself. “If you have a heart attack or something, your district chair is gonna be pissed! Oh, and so will Obama!” I tried everything – praying, reassuring myself that all would be well, trying to resign myself to failure in the event of a loss. Somehow I got myself through the morning in that state, wolfing down some oatmeal and fruit while downloading a few last-minute talking points. Finally it was time to leave.

I arrived almost an hour and a half early, but there was already quite a crowd building. I noticed many Hillary buttons and signs, and suddenly felt very small and vulnerable. Where were all these people coming from? Had they been hiding? Until today, I don’t recall ever seeing a Clinton bumper sticker or t-shirt anywhere in town! A helpful lady up front was welcoming people and helping them find their precinct. She wore an Obama sticker, I noticed with relief. At least we didn’t have to worry about her turning away supporters and telling them they were in the wrong place, like we’ve heard happened elsewhere. Another lady who seemed to be “official” told me that the caucuses would be “in there,” pointing to an adjacent room, but the doors weren’t open yet. I explained that I was a PCO, and she mentioned Walt was in there already setting up for the whole district. “Does he need any help?” I asked. Of course he did. And I was in.

There were three other people in that room, in fact. I walked as cheerily and confidently as possible up to the stage, where Walt and Bernice were going through some boxes and folders. “Bonjour!” I called out. Bernice turned to me, placing a quivering hand on my forearm, and said, “I was just telling Walt I can’t do this.” I recognized the look in her eyes – stark panic. Just what I’d been feeling all morning, myself. “It’s okay, Bernice, I know how you feel,” I began, but she cut me off. “Oh no, I’ve decided I can do it, but when we get to the tally part, I’m going to turn it over to Anton.” Okay, good, she had a plan – she wasn’t giving up entirely!

“What can I do?” I asked Walt. “Put me to work!” I wanted to be involved in the setup process to familiarize myself with the room, the layout, and the sequence, and ask any last-minute questions before the fun really began. Another guy was going around all the tables placing envelopes on them, one table per precinct. Bernice and I pitched in and followed him, removing sign-in sheets and placards from the envelopes. We ran out of tables.

A few more PCO’s trickled in and began setting up their tables as I worked on writing in all my affidavits. I was starting to breathe a little easier by this point. There was no turning back now, no doing anything over, no squeezing in an extra phone call, visit, flyer, etc. It was finally happening for real, and it was kinda the same feeling I had during my first RPG attack in Iraq. From here on out, you either make it or you don’t, and it’s half luck and half quick wits and skill.

Stepped out to use the restroom right before we began, and passed Traci on the way. “How ya doin’, Traci? You makin’ it?” She just looked at me, sighing heavily and slowly shaking her head. Yeah, I knew that feeling – I most certainly wasn’t the only one after all! “Believe me,” I assured her, “I’ve been feeling like that all morning!” Of all the PCO’s, only Beckie was in light enough spirits to crack a joke. This was some pretty heavy business….

Finally the doors were opened – two huge garage-type doors leading into our convention room. And the people poured in – waves and waves of them, wending their way between the tables looking for their precinct. Suddenly I was glad that one guy had been so careful about placing the envelopes in sequence! At first, no one came to my table. Hmm, this might be easier than I expected, I thought, if profoundly disappointing. But no, they kept coming, and coming, and coming. We had to put chairs on top of tables for people to get through. And even when the large room seemed packed to capacity, still more were trying to get in. Good thing the fire marshal wasn’t around!

About ten people finally wound up at my table – four for Hillary, the rest for Barack. And I had my six affidavits, one for Hillary and five for Obama. We were looking good so far…. Walt finally called everyone to order, and a cheer went up when he remarked that for the past week, they’d been getting projections on caucus turnout, but obviously somebody grossly underestimated the numbers! And then, with everyone signed in, it was time to get started.

That part was easy. I had a script to work from, and simply read off what I was supposed to read to everyone. Someone volunteered to take minutes, and someone else to figure the delegate tallies. So the tally guy counted the sign-ins, and I double-checked them and carefully explained the formula to everyone while he crunched the numbers. Around that time, we got a latecomer, so then the numbers had to be adjusted. I wasn’t sure if that was allowed, but Walt soon announced that there was no cutoff for sign-ins or voting. So far so good – I hadn’t broken any rules yet!

Then it was time for speeches. I had a prepared speech with me – I had actually “borrowed” someone else’s, having been far too scattered this past week to sit down and focus on drafting something coherent myself. So I volunteered to make the first speech, raising my voice to be heard above the din of the crowd, the three or four Clinton supporters across the table leaning forward to catch what I was saying. It was supposed to be a one-minute speech, timed by the secretary (a Clinton supporter), but by mutual agreement we collectively decided to just play it by ear. About three quarters of the way into the speech (and it was a pretty good one), I decided to abandon my prepared script, and launched into a passionate diatribe against the Iraq war – it has driven us into frightening levels of debt, decimated our military, and actually strengthened al-Quaeda! I had made pretty much all my points when the secretary motioned for time, so I ceded the floor to the next speaker. Another Obama supporter, he spoke even more passionately than me, and seemed to know his political stuff. Good job.

None of the Clinton supporters had anything to say, although when pressed (after everything was all signed, sealed, placed back into the envelope, etc.), one guy offered something about “experience.” Allrighty then…. However, another of them did actually change his vote after the two of us had spoken! Way cool… it wasn’t enough to change the delegate tally, but I was even more gratified to know that my one Clinton affidavit wouldn’t have changed it, either!

So when all was said and done, we wound up with 3 Obama delegates and 1 Clinton delegate. Now was the hard part, I thought – how many of these folks would actually volunteer to take it a step further? Since we were wedged in between other precincts like sardines, we couldn’t very well adjourn to different areas of the room like we were supposed to, to elect delegates from our respective factions, so we just did a quick-and-dirty right where we were. How many Clinton supporters volunteer to be a delegate? One. Great. That’s how many they needed. No volunteers for alternate. How many for Obama? Four! One more than we needed. I volunteered to sign on as an alternate, but the guy next to me who had given a speech said, “No, you need to be a primary. I’ll be the alternate.” Fine by me!

So we won our precinct 3-1 for Obama, and even got all our delegates and an alternate! As we were wrapping everything up, me getting all the paperwork in order and the others holding a lively debate on Obama vs. Clinton, a guy approached me from the side, touched my envelope, and asked if I was finished with it. He was wearing a Hillary button. Snatching up the envelope, I smiled and said I’d turn it in to Walt when I was ready. Overall, our caucuses had gone pretty smoothly, none of the funny business I’d been told to watch out for like some places had reported, but I wasn’t taking any chances, not after working this hard to win this precinct! The man was holding a notebook with a spreadsheet on the screen, and said he just wanted our results. Oh, okay, so I gave him those, but would NOT let him touch my paperwork! LOL

Whew. So now the caucus was finally over, and I could breathe easy, knowing I had accomplished all of my objectives – filled all the delegate slots with a majority for Obama to go to the next level, at least from my precinct. Next step should be a piece of cake compared to this!

Photos here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/18743880@N07/sets/72157603881785045/detail/

~~Cheryl

Entire video of Oprahlooza

LuckyCharm — Mon, 10 Dec 2007 11:22:15 EST

In case anyone, like me, didn't get to see the live broadcast, C-SPAN has the whole thing here:

http://switchboard.real.com/player/email.html?PV=6.0.12&&title=Campaign%202008%3A%20Barack%20Obama%20%26%20Ophra%20Winfrey&link=rtsp%3A%2F%2Fvideo.c%2Dspan.org%2Farchive%2Fc08%2Fc08%5F120807%5Fobama.rm

~~Cheryl

Federal smoking ban?

LuckyCharm — Wed, 26 Sep 2007 23:50:39 EDT

In tonight's debate, Barack said he would support a federal smoking ban in public places "if local efforts proved inadequate" or something to that effect. Yet he wouldn't criminalize abortion?

When talking to an anti-abortion person about Obama, I often point out that he is not "pro" abortion, but that he just doesn't believe in criminalizing everything that may be immoral. He prefers to tackle the problem at the source, and recognizes the troubles that could arise should all abortions be criminalized nationwide. But this statement about smoking might just shoot down that entire argument. Sure, the argument could be made that second-hand smoke affects others in the vicinity as well, so it goes beyond the individual. But abortion opponents would simply counter that abortion kills a potential human being, and not even second-handedly.

This kind of gets into why I have traditionally considered myself politically conservative. I don't believe government should regulate everything, not even everything people think is bad for us. Why not let the economy dictate policies? Ban supporters are quick to point to statistics showing that businesses' bottom lines actually improved after enacting smoking bans -- well, why not let businesses make those decisions for themselves, if it will be so good for business? Why does government even need to get involved?

I am disappointed in this debate answer. Anybody got a clue why he said this?

~~Cheryl

Finding "personal menu"

LuckyCharm — Mon, 24 Sep 2007 09:35:11 EDT

The Website Feedback's listserv just received this message: "With the newest design of the website, when a person goes to the main homepage there is no way to find your page or your group. You must go to the action center to find the personal menu. I have been getting emails from people who can't find their page, our group, even the store. Perhaps it is getting a little busy. Valerie"

I replied via listserv:

Hi Valerie, I'm not on the Web team, just an Obama supporter like yourself. But I thought I'd let you know that you can access your Dashboard (is that what you mean by your "personal menu"?) by mousing over "Get Involved" and clicking on "My.BarackObama.com" in the dropdown list. The link to the store is at the very bottom of the homepage, left corner. You can also go directly to it at http://store.barackobama.com/ . If you'd like to point your friends directly to your group using a link like this one, just bring up your group in your browser, click in the address bar to highlight the URL, hit Ctrl-C to copy it to the clipboard, then within your email message, hit Ctrl-V to paste. When the person gets your message, they'll be able to click that link and get directly to your group. They may even wish to bookmark that page so they can return again and again. Hope this helps! ~~Cheryl" Just wanted to post this on the blog as well, in case anyone else is having difficulty with this. ~~Cheryl

Campaign DVD's

LuckyCharm — Tue, 11 Sep 2007 22:15:18 EDT

Someone wrote to the listserv requesting that campaign DVD's be made available for a fee for distribution to interested voters. Great idea! But in the meantime, I have forwarded that message on to someone I know locally who creates DVD's of debates and television appearances, so that arrangements can be worked out if desired. I'm also sending him the link to this blog so he can monitor responses.

Also, I heartily encourage you, when talking to people about Barack, to get their email address, or at least a phone number! Failing that, give them your own email address -- I've printed up business cards for my "Pierce County Veterans for Obama" group, and always carry several with me to hand to people. If you can get in email contact with them somehow, you can send them any of hundreds of YouTube videos, depending on their individual interests and concerns.

Some great YouTube collections are here:

Some of my favorites from Jonathan Loving -- can't miss his "smackdown" series!

http://www.youtube.com/profile_videos?user=lovingj1

HUGE collection of 181 videos, and very up to date

http://www.youtube.com/profile_videos?user=BarackObamadotcom

A few more

http://www.youtube.com/profile_videos?user=Veracifier&search_query=obama&search=Search

You can also do a YouTube search for Obama, but be aware that many of his rivals' supporters have tagged their videos with his name, so you may get a lot of irrelevant results (although upon checking just now, it appears this problem may have been addressed -- maybe somebody complained!)

Hope this helps,

~~Cheryl

AFL-CIO debate, infrastructure question

LuckyCharm — Tue, 07 Aug 2007 23:35:48 EDT

I didn't get to see the whole debate, but I am watching the MSNBC highlights online. So forgive me if I've missed something, but does anybody else think Barack didn't really answer the question of whether our government is doing better at making our infrastructure safer? He talked a bit about the war and homeland security, and only briefly at the end mentioned that getting out of Iraq would free up resources to improve those structures.

Any comments? Better yet, anybody know where I can view the debate in its entirety?

Thanks,

~~Cheryl

Happy birthday from Tacoma!

LuckyCharm — Sat, 04 Aug 2007 11:08:54 EDT

Residents of Tacoma, Washington, have sent their personal birthday greetings! View the videos on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/profile_videos?user=LuckyCharmTacoma

Obama in '08!

Cheers,

~~Cheryl

Thanks for starting this group!

LuckyCharm — Wed, 01 Aug 2007 10:40:25 EDT

Maybe it'll take some of the pressure off the ORRT listserv. I look forward to visiting often!

Cheers,

~~Cheryl

Untangling FEC rules -- help!

LuckyCharm — Thu, 19 Jul 2007 13:59:56 EDT

Pierce County Veterans for Obama would like to hold a Barack birthday party Aug 4: get permission from a popular local hangout to set up at a table with a cake, balloons, DVD's playing on a laptop, flyers, stickers, buttons, etc. -- and of course, a donation jar. We'd like to be able to keep enough to cover our up-front costs and send the rest of the donations to OFA. However, this is getting real tricky. I've contacted the FEC, our regional OFA rep, and our county Democratic party chair, who all give me different advice.

The FEC says we'd need prior approval from OFA to keep back our overhead costs. However, my understanding is that if the campaign directly advises us in any way, we come under a whole set of even more restrictive and confusing rules, which we'd like to avoid.

Our regional rep says that instead of holding it at a public venue like that, we should have a potluck block party. This would be even more difficult to coordinate and pull off, and we would still like to be able to accept donations, and would have even greater overhead expenditures: event publicity, table rental, plates, plasticware, napkins, etc. This doesn't solve the problem.

Our county Dem chair says, "I think that if you log the contributions, subtract expenses and donate the balance (with your calculation page) to the campaign that would work fine." However, since this directly conflicts with the FEC's advice, I am leery of that approach. Besides, would we have to specify that donations benefit the Obama campaign, or our group, Pierce County Veterans for Obama?

Does anybody know of an authoritative, clear source of guidance on this issue?

Thanks in advance!

~~Cheryl

Dorgan-Conrad amendment 2135, increasing bin Laden bounty -- why didn't Barack vote?

LuckyCharm — Tue, 17 Jul 2007 11:09:14 EDT

I see that this amendment has passed the Senate with an overwhelming majority, 87-1, with 12 not voting. Sen. Obama is among those who didn't vote -- anybody know or guess why not? Just curious -- I can see Obama-bashers seizing on this as an example of "soft on terrorism."

~~Cheryl

Using Obama's name in our group names

LuckyCharm — Fri, 15 Jun 2007 10:11:36 EDT

Hello,

I recently received email indicating that our local grassroots groups may not use Obama's name in our group names. I checked it out on the FEC website, and found this:

Sec. 102.14 Names of political committees (2 U.S.C. 432(e) (4) and (5)).

(a) The name of each authorized committee shall include the name of the candidate who authorized such committee. Except as provided in paragraph (b) of this section, no unauthorized committee shall include the name of any candidate in its name. For purposes of this paragraph, ``name'' includes any name under which a committee conducts activities, such as solicitations or other communications, including a special project name or other designation.

(b)(1) A delegate committee, as defined at 11 CFR 100.5(e)(5), shall include the word delegate(s) in its name and may also include in its name the name of the presidential candidate which the delegate committee supports.

I know there are a lot of groups here that use Obama's name, and I myself have started Pierce County Veterans for Obama. Is this illegal? Who can shed some light on this subject?

Thanks,

~~Cheryl

Biden's Iraq plan

LuckyCharm — Wed, 30 May 2007 02:08:16 EDT

What do you all think of Biden's plan for Iraq?
I'm an Obama supporter, but I must admit I'm impressed with this plan!
Does Obama have anything comparable, or has he supported Biden's plan in any way?

Cheers,

~~Cheryl

A day in the life of the war

LuckyCharm — Thu, 24 May 2007 00:24:14 EDT

New York Times
May 23, 2007
Pg. 1

As Comrades Search, Fatal Bomb Wreaks Havoc

By Damien Cave

MAHMUDIYA, Iraq, May 22 — The ground exploded under an ashen sky at dawn. Dust, dirt, blood and military equipment filled the air, clearing after several seconds to reveal a frenzied scene of horror.

Where Sgt. Justin D. Wisniewski, 22, had just been standing there was now a crater five feet wide and three feet deep. His body lay nearby. The wounded were scattered around him.

The soldiers swore.

“It was Ski,” one said, using the sergeant’s nickname.

Sgt. Joshua Delgado, 23, the unit’s medic, rushed in and went to work on the most seriously wounded soldier, who lay with shrapnel wounds to the face, arm and side. Two other Americans and an Iraqi were also hurt.

One of the wounded, Staff Sgt. Robert Simonovich, 31, knelt off to the right. He had taken his body armor off and, with just a T-shirt on, it was clear he had not walked far enough yet to sweat. His hands rested on his knees, his head tilted down. Eyes closed, he said he couldn’t see.

“It’s not one of our guys, is it?” he said. No one answered.

Capt. Blake Keil, 31, who commanded the group of 11 Americans working with about 50 Iraqis, called for a medevac helicopter.

The bomb was the third planted away from a road that the soldiers had discovered since May 12, when they began searching for three soldiers from their unit who had been captured after an ambush that left four Americans and an Iraqi soldier dead.

After the attack on Saturday, the reality of the threat set in: the fields they had been crossing on foot for months might now be as dangerous as the roads they had learned to avoid. What they had just witnessed — a homemade land mine, or what the military calls a dismounted improvised explosive device — could be anywhere.

Some of the soldiers began to move more slowly. Seeking cover, they traced one another’s footsteps to an abandoned house. Sergeant Simonovich continued to kneel alone.

“I’m worried about my guy out front, Sergeant Wisniewski,” he said. His Ohio accent was thick enough to sound southern. Blood had splattered his face, which was bruised but intact. “I have a question,” he said, pointing to the left side of his head. “Is my ear still there?”

The army has a creed — no soldier left behind. The soldiers of Second Platoon, A Battery, Task Force 2-15, Second Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division, lost one of their own on Saturday in an effort to follow that creed. Sergeant Wisniewski, 22, died at the start of a 10-mile trek through farms and over canals with the goal of finding the three missing Americans.

Both that ambush and the bomb that exploded beneath Sergeant Wisniewski reflected the changing dynamic the soldiers face in an area with unique terrain and a fresh set of American tactics intended to secure it.

Here, south of Baghdad, in the area known as the “triangle of death,” Iraq’s desert gives way to lush green vegetation. Sunni tribes are dominant, and irrigation canals are perhaps the area’s defining characteristic.

Since 2003, insurgents have focused on hitting military vehicles to undermine the American effort in Iraq. Most of those devices were planted along the major roads that could handle the weight of American vehicles. The craters appear everywhere, and American troops have named many of them, making them landmarks.

Because of that risk and the stepped-up counterinsurgency effort, troops have increasingly moved out of forward operating bases to smaller outposts where they can maneuver on foot.

But the shift to foot patrols has brought a progressively greater toll as insurgents have adjusted to the new tactics and begun placing bombs along footpaths and back roads. Since taking over the command in September, 42 soldiers from the Second Brigade, 10th Mountain Division, have been killed in hostile attacks. Of those, 14 were killed during dismounted patrols. The search has added to the risks.

“I’m not out here to win any medals,” said Capt. Michael Abercrombie, leader of a platoon from B Battery, which had the unenviable task of replacing Captain Keil’s unit. “If you see soft ground, walk around.”

The Iraqi and American soldiers moved slowly through the area, reminding one another to walk 10 feet apart so that if another explosion hit, casualties would be limited. After about 15 minutes, they came across a one-story stone house with a wide grass lawn, a cattle pen and five young men whom the Iraqi soldiers had lined up against a wall. Their names were checked against a list of insurgents wanted for questioning in relation to the May 12 attack.

None of their names appeared, but Captain Abercrombie ordered them arrested anyway, in light of the bomb attack that morning.

“I’m detaining them all,” he said. “For proximity.”

Ski, as he was known, was a sarcastic joker. A native of Standish, Mich., he was tall, blond and decisive. He was young for a platoon sergeant. A winner of the Bronze Star and a Purple Heart, he was promoted by his commanders because he had the ability to inspire. And to goad.

At one point, his friends said, he made his soldiers wear their helmets and goggles on base — where no one else does — so that they would remember to keep them on at all times while on patrol.

In return, on his 22nd birthday, his friends gave him a gift they thought he would appreciate: they threw him in a Dumpster.

Losing Ski and seeing three other friends wounded brought out a mix of uncharacteristic honesty and anger in the platoon. Immediately after the explosion, the soldiers swore and kicked whatever they could find. One said he wanted vengeance.

But “I love you, man” was far more common. Huge, strong men hugged, tears streaming down their faces. When it was not clear whether the seriously wounded soldier on the ground would make it, “I love you” was said repeatedly, blurted out as if it was something they wished they had told Sergeant Wisniewski.

When one of the wounded soldiers insisted that the mushy stuff had gone too far, there was friendly resistance. “What, I can’t love someone now?” a soldier said.

“I love you,” he said. “I can say ‘I love you’ if I want to.”

The group had been fighting together for 10 months. Covering central Mahmudiya and parts of the surrounding area, they had been attacked by rockets, gunfire, mortar shells, grenades and roadside bombs. They had always survived. Ski was their first killed in action.

“I haven’t really accepted it,” Sergeant Simonovich said, after returning to his unit with minor shrapnel wounds to his face and a burst eardrum. “I haven’t accepted it.”

His eyes were open and intact. He had been wearing his goggles when the bomb exploded.

Four hours into Saturday’s search, the soldiers received more news they did not want to accept: a sniper shot hit another member of A Battery in the head. He had been on the roof of a house that was being searched, oblivious to the threat.

Capt. Aaron Bright’s unit, a platoon of B Battery, received the news, too. It was a few hundred yards north of Captain Abercrombie’s group when the call came in. The men were disappointed, angry, frustrated.

Seconds later, the word came down that the unit up ahead did not have a medic. Captain Bright’s unit did, so the group ran several miles to the house only to find that a helicopter had already picked up the wounded soldier. His friends sat on the floor, on stairs, their faces showing they had been crying. A flak jacket with some blood on it rested next to a soldier leaning against a set of white kitchen cabinets. The body armor belonged to the soldier who was shot.

Captain Bright, 29, the battery commander, said the group would have to keep moving. “We have some more objectives we have to hit,” he said.

The search operation continued in the midday heat. Captain Abercrombie’s unit walked through farms, searched houses and struggled through a wide swath of mud that nearly claimed a few pairs of boots.

In a house close to where helicopters would later deliver bottles of water in black body bags, they rested once again. Sgt. Stephen Byers, 31, of Detroit said that Friday night was the first time he had a chance to call his wife and kids since the search started.

He said that he was too tired to say very much, but that his wife was clearly worried. He had begun to wonder himself if the search was becoming more dangerous. “The more we chase them around,” he said, “the more they know where we’re at.”

But, he said, in a war without front lines and goals that are hard to achieve, the search offered the comfort of certainty, of a clear and noble goal. “If we find them, we accomplish something specific,” Sergeant Byers said. “It’s not like trying to bring peace to the area then finding out later that you didn’t.”

Saturday’s searching turned up nothing significant. The three soldiers — Pfc. Joseph J. Anzack Jr., 20, of Torrance, Calif.; Specialist Alex R. Jimenez, 25, of Lawrence, Mass.; and Pvt. Byron W. Fouty, 19, of Waterford, Mich. — were not found.

On Sunday, the group welcomed the return of two of its wounded soldiers — Sergeant Simonovich and Pfc. Nicholas Barker, who had slight shrapnel wounds to the face. American soldiers are not allowed to drink alcohol here, so they had a barbecue. They celebrated. They talked.

And on Monday, it was back to work. The men of Second Platoon prepared their Humvees for another day of walking, another day of searching. They reviewed the route for what would be a seven-mile march that they hoped to do in three hours.

Wearing dark glasses, his uniform bloodstained from two days earlier, Sergeant Delgado, the medic, was a picture of calm. “We had our time to grieve, but after that you have to detach from your emotions and drive on,” he said. “We’re going to be here for another six months.”

Barack's Detroit speech

LuckyCharm — Sat, 12 May 2007 10:03:33 EDT

Here's a post I made on the Des Moines Register blog:

"An editorial in the Detroit News said: 'Sen. Obama embarrassed himself in Detroit with his lack of understanding of the problems facing the automobile industry...'"

Excuse me? The problems facing the automobile industry are more important than the problems facing the entire PLANET?

The automobile industry needs to change, not today, but yesterday. We desperately need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions NOW. Adapt or suffer the consequences -- there is too much at stake to sit around complaining and making excuses.

I applaud Senator Obama for his bold and even audacious stand, and pray that those listening will take heed.

~~Cheryl

This is embarrassing... 10,000 died?

LuckyCharm — Thu, 10 May 2007 11:46:21 EDT

Conservatives are having a field day with Barack's comment that 10,000 died in the Kansas tornado, when it was really only a dozen. What can be said in response to that?

~~Cheryl

Do we even need a 2008 election?

LuckyCharm — Wed, 25 Apr 2007 03:05:20 EDT

Why do we have to wait so long? Isn't there some way we could force an early election? Maybe by impeaching Bush/Cheney? Gosh, it's so hard to wait and have patience (something my dog has learned way better than I have!)

~~Cheryl

CNN reports MoveOn.org's meeting & poll!

LuckyCharm — Sat, 14 Apr 2007 10:12:52 EDT

Read it here

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- "What's the best and fastest way to end the war in Iraq?'' That's the question put to presidential candidates by MoveOn.org, a Web-based organization of 3.2 million grassroots progressive activists.

The organization invited 12 candidates to participate in a candidate town-hall meeting on Tuesday night. No Republican accepted. All seven Democrats did -- which tells you something about the growing influence of MoveOn in the Democratic Party and the powerful anti-Iraq war consensus among Democrats.

Sen. Barack Obama, D-Illinois, told the audience he opposed the war from the start.

And Former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards said, "Congress should use its funding authority to force President Bush to end the war."

Having heard the candidates, MoveOn.org members voted online on the question, "Which candidate do you believe would be best able to lead the country out of Iraq?''

The winner? Obama, but not by a big margin. He was rated best on Iraq by 28 percent of the roughly 43,000 MoveOn voters -- just ahead of Edwards, who got 25 percent of the vote.

What about Sen. Hillary Clinton? She came in fifth, with 11 percent. Rounding out the top five, Rep. Dennis Kucinich, D-Ohio, had 17 percent and Gov. Bill Richardson, D-New Mexico, took 12 percent of the vote.

MoveOn's Washington director Tom Matzzie believes Clinton's stance on the war was an issue.

"I think there have been times in the past when we have been critical of Sen. Clinton's positions in Iraq," he said.

The New York senator gamely participated in the town hall and told the crowd, "Although some of your members may be a little surprised to hear me say this, I am grateful for your work."

And what did Obama say to MoveOn members?

"What my plan says is that on May 1 of this year, we need to begin a phased withdrawal from Iraq with the goal of removing all combat troops by March 31 of next year."

Strange, then, that the anti-war favorite was embraced by Sen. John McCain, R-Arizona, who recently said, "I hope Democrats in Congress will heed the advice of one of their leading candidates for president, Sen. Obama, and immediately pass a new bill to provide support to our troops in Iraq without substituting their partisan interests for those of our troops and our country."

Obama said McCain misquoted him. Obama clarified in an interview with CNN: "What I said was that Democrats aren't interested in playing chicken with the troops, and that we were absolutely committed to making sure that the troops have the equipment they need in order to come home safely."

MoveOn members who gathered at house parties to watch the candidates preferred Edwards and Richardson to Obama.

"The strength that Sen. Edwards and Gov. Richardson picked up at the house parties is probably because of their presentations," said Matzzie, "and their forcefulness about how they talked about Iraq."

Richardson told an audience, "I would pass a congressional resolution de-authorizing the war based on the War Powers Act."

So what impact will the MoveOn vote have? "The strategy for stopping the president in Iraq is to keep ratcheting up the pressure on the Republicans," said Matzzie.

"Democratic presidential candidates uniting on getting out of Iraq is a big step forward to doing that."

Usually a straw vote showcases the differences among candidates. Who's best? Who's worst? The MoveOn vote does something different. It showcases the Democrats' basic unity on the Iraq issue.

Do one thing a day for Barack

LuckyCharm — Wed, 11 Apr 2007 11:07:42 EDT

We can't all move mountains every day as individuals, but as the Zen saying goes, "A sparrow stirs, and the universe moves slightly." Each of us can cause little ripples in our environment that, combined, can add up to a mighty wave. Can we each commit to doing one thing every day for Barack? Here is a list of simple things each of us can do, right now, to help get the message out:

Wear your Obama gear. I have a few t-shirts I wear in public at least a couple times a week, and have Obama stickers on my waist pouch and visor. More often than not, a stranger will make a remark or ask a question, sparking a brief discussion. It's great to be provided these impromptu opportunities to discuss Obama in public, dispelling misconceptions where they exist and showing my personal support!

Carry/read his book. I carry a copy of "Audacity" everywhere -- when I shop, I'll place it in the top basket of my cart, and open it up while waiting in line. This too opens up lots of opportunities to engage in conversation and show support.

Add an Obama slogan to your answering machine/voice mail message: "Obama in '08!" "Barack the Vote!" etc. If you're a group administrator, that's even better -- my answering machine now says, "You've reached Cheryl, and Pierce County Veterans for Obama." Now everybody who calls you will hear his name again, and name recognition is an important factor at this point in the campaign.

If you have a personal website, put a Barack banner on the home page! You can find left and right corner banners here: Link -- or put up a horizontal banner, here:

Carry blank voter registration forms in your car. If you happen to be talking to someone about Obama, ask if they're registered to vote. If they aren't, you can give them an application on the spot! Forms can usually be obtained for free from your county auditor's office, or public schools and libraries. Check in your area.

Of course, put a bumper sticker on your car, or a yard sign in front of your house. If you don't want to stick anything to your car, you can make a sign on your computer and tape it to a box in your rear window.

If you regularly use an IM program, consider permanently changing your status message to a pro-Obama slogan. Now, everyone who has you on their lists will see his name every day!

Become a Ba-ROCK artist! Decorate ordinary rocks with colorful designs and slogans on one side, and the website address, www . BarackObama . com on the other. See some examples of my own here: Link or view the original concept here: Link . I make about a dozen a day, and leave them at strategic locations -- phone booths, tourist attractions, wherever people will see them. And I know they do, because I often have to replace them! Yesterday I left one on the veterinarian's desk as I left her office -- an assistant came out with it and asked if it was mine. I said, "Keep it, compliments of Sage!" The young lady examined it appreciatively, turned it over, smiled, and remarked that it was beautiful. I think it just said, "Audacious Hope." These are ridiculously simple to do, yet make a powerful impression.

Become a truth sleuth! When you read news articles or blogs about Obama, take time to scan the comments. If you spot anything negative, post a response and back it up with facts. Let's dispel the misconceptions folks try to perpetuate -- even if you don't change the original poster's mind, think about all the others who will read that afterward!

Find ways to bring up Barack's name in conversation. When people ask what you're up to lately, mention that you've been working on the campaign. Most people who are mildly interested in the race will become actively curious once they actually KNOW someone who's participating!

Remember, even if you can't move a mountain all by yourself, you can create a ripple in your little corner of the world. Together we can help put Obama in the White House!

Cheers,

~~Cheryl

List your events on Pierce County Democrats!

LuckyCharm — Wed, 04 Apr 2007 10:44:48 EDT

Just a reminder, anyone planning events in and around Pierce County, please get them listed on the Pierce County Democrats website -- there's already a Hillary Clinton house party listed there, and we don't want to get left out!

Cheers,

~~Cheryl

Why did he back down???

LuckyCharm — Tue, 03 Apr 2007 12:42:51 EDT

It's been all over the news since yesterday, how Barack has backed down to Bush on the Iraq war funding bill. I've been waiting for someone to blog something in his defense -- doesn't this just undermine all the Dems' efforts to push for troop withdrawal? Why would he do that? Is anybody else as troubled about this as I am?

Worried,

~~Cheryl

Question on using prior campaign funds

LuckyCharm — Mon, 02 Apr 2007 14:16:30 EDT

I am brand-new to politics, so please pardon my naïveté, but I find myself troubled to read that Clinton has added leftover funds from her Senate campaign to her current war chest. Is this an accepted/expected practice in political circles?

It seems to me that at least part of that money could have come from donors who may have supported her Senate run, based on her opposition at the time, but who don't necessarily back her Presidential bid.

Couldn't or shouldn't that money have been given to some neutral organization, maybe even the IRS or something to pay down the national debt?

Just curious....

~~Cheryl

Barack'in McChord AFB!

LuckyCharm — Sun, 01 Apr 2007 14:27:56 EDT

Went to the commissary yesterday morning -- wore my Obama t-shirt, as well as my waist pack which prominently displays an Obama sticker. Anticipating a wait in line, I also had my copy of "Audacity" in the little basket at the top of the cart. In short, I was all about Obama! Wasn’t sure how my pro-Obama message would be received on a military base, but as it turned out, I got a lot of smiles, more than usual. As I bent down to retrieve an item from one of the shelves, a middle-aged white man nearby asked, “Think he’s got a chance?” gesturing at my shirt. “Oh, YEAH,” I replied, “I think he’s the only one who does!” The man said he hoped I was right, then leaned in to whisper conspiratorially, “I wish he’d pick Colin Powell as his running mate – I served under him in the Gulf War.” I agreed Colin Powell would make a fine VP, and added that I’d heard him speak in person once, and it blew me away. I even wrote him in for President in the last election, and the man said he had done so as well…. But we both agreed that Colin's probably had enough of politics as it is.

Anyway, I just want to encourage everybody to wear their Obama gear proudly -- and be prepared to get engaged in discussion!

~~Cheryl

Obama's support for Katrina victims

LuckyCharm — Wed, 28 Mar 2007 11:09:09 EDT

(For anyone wondering where Obama stands on the Katrina recovery process, this is from the Chicago Tribune)

Obama blasts Bush adminstration on Katrina recovery
By Mike Dorning
Tribune national correspondent
Published January 29, 2007, 8:48 PM CST

NEW ORLEANS -- Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama blasted the Bush administration Monday for the slow pace of Hurricane Katrina recovery efforts, saying reconstruction no longer seems to be a White House priority.

"There is not a sense of urgency in this administration to get this done," said the senator from Illinois. "You get a sense that will has been lacking in the last several months."

Obama, the Senate's only African-American member, was in New Orleans for a field hearing on Gulf Coast rebuilding conducted by the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee.

[...]

The session follows criticism of Bush for not including any mention of the New Orleans recovery effort in last week's State of the Union address. Obama echoed that criticism, noting that Bush had traveled to the city shortly after the disaster and promised to do "what it takes … as long as it takes" to rebuild New Orleans.

But "17 months later, we heard not a single word, not one word in President Bush's State of the Union address," Obama said. "Those of us who are concerned all across the country wonder if we're in danger of forgetting about New Orleans, and that's shameful."

I fully trust Barack's commitment to the plight of all Katrina evacuees, and indeed, all disadvantaged citizens everywhere. It's past time for a change -- Obama in '08!

~~Cheryl

NYT article on Las Vegas candidates forum

LuckyCharm — Sun, 25 Mar 2007 14:07:41 EDT

Yesterday, the New York Times published an article about the Democratic candidates' positions on health care reform:

"Senator Barack Obama of Illinois appeared less conversant with the details of health policy and sometimes found himself on the defensive, trying to explain why he had yet to offer a detailed plan to cover all Americans.

The most important challenge is to build a political consensus around the need to solve this problem,' Mr. Obama said.
[...]
Mr. Obama said that he would be issuing a detailed plan 'over the next couple of months' to achieve universal coverage by the end of the first term of the next president, in January 2013.

When asked why he did not have such a plan, he said, 'Our campaign now is a little over eight weeks old.'

While most people get coverage through employers, Mr. Obama said, he wants to foster federal and state purchasing pools. Employers would still have the option of providing coverage, he said, but after 10 or 20 years, 'many people may find that they get better coverage,' or better value, outside their employers.

Mr. Obama said he did not know how much it would cost to achieve universal coverage. In response to a question, he said, 'I have not foreclosed the possibility that we might need additional revenue' to reach that goal.

'We should not underestimate the amount of money that could be saved in the existing system,' Mr. Obama said. But he opposed cuts in payments to hospitals, doctors and nurses."

I don't see this as a liability, personally. I LIKE the fact that instead of trying to come up with all the answers instantly, by himself, he is willing to study the issue carefully before making rash promises. In "Audacity," pp. 183-186, he talks about having an independent group study the problem and come up with recommended solutions, which he would then take into account while formulating a policy. Wouldn't it be nice, for a change, to have a president who doesn't pretend to know it all already, and is willing to listen to prudent advice from the experts? If only GWB had done that when he was crafting his Iraq policy!

~~Cheryl

Great idea from Sacramento -- postcards!

LuckyCharm — Sun, 25 Mar 2007 11:10:23 EDT

Found this in the Sacramento area blog, wanted to pass it along:

Today I printed 44 postcards inviting people to join Sacramento for Obama, donned my Obama tee shirt, and went to the Capitol building looking for people to recruit. It was a beautiful sunny day, around noon, when the Capitol workers, and office workers nearby like to stroll, jog or power walk around the Capitol grounds. I felt fortunate to find a parking slot right on L street alongside the Capitol, and plugged in 90 minutes worth of quarters.

Then I started strolling towards the north end of the Capitol, asking everybody I met, "Do you want to support Obama for President?" Those who didn't just shrug me off I handed a post card to. In only 20 minutes I ran out of cards! One went to a man who said he will be a volunteer at the rally tomorrow, but he wasn't aware of our group. About 4 went to people who definitely wanted to join us, and a few more went to people who said they might want to join us. The rest were obviously taken just to be polite.

It was a fun, but brief "event". It is always an uplifting experience to take that walk, seeing the school classes picnicing on the grounds, people taking photos of the area, and just experiencing the human variety in the area.

This is an easy way to contribute time to the effort to make Senator Obama become President Obama. Just print some postcards, spend a half hour of your lunch hour getting some good exercise, and working off your shyness. It is worth it, believe me!

Thanks to Vaugh in Sacramento for this idea -- Obama in '08!

Cheers,

~~Cheryl

P.S. The link in the above text might not show up real well in some browsers, but click the word "postcards" in the last paragraph for a sample in PDF format.

Obama looking good in Quinnipiac poll!

LuckyCharm — Sat, 24 Mar 2007 11:56:11 EDT

Read the results

March 22, 2007 - Clinton, Obama, Edwards Run Better In Ohio, Quinnipiac University Poll Finds; Obama Narrows Gap With Clinton Among Democrats

Ohio, a key state in the 2004 presidential election, continues to slightly lean towards the Democratic candidates for 2008, with New York Sen. Hillary Clinton and 2004 vice presidential candidate John Edwards holding slight edges over top Republican candidates, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released today.

Illinois Sen. Barack Obama has moved up and now ties Rudolph Giuliani 42 - 42 percent and leads Arizona Sen. John McCain 45 - 37 percent, the independent Quinnipiac (KWIN-uh-pe-ack) University poll finds. In other general election matchups:
Sen. Clinton defeats Mayor Giuliani 46 - 43 percent; Sen. McCain 46 - 42 percent and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney 51 - 32 percent;
Sen. Obama bests Romney 51 - 26 percent;
Edwards has 43 percent to Giuliani's 42 percent, and tops McCain 45 - 37 percent and Romney 53 - 26 percent.

"The Democrats generally seem to be doing somewhat better in Ohio than in some other historical swing states," said Peter Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute. "Although it is 20 months until Election Day, the Republicans may want to determine why. This poll is especially good news for Sen. Obama as some Democrats seem to be looking for someone other than Sen. Clinton."

"The Democrats swept last November's election in Ohio and new Democratic Gov. Ted Strickland is quite popular, while the war in Iraq is as unpopular there as in the rest of the country. Those could be the reasons for the current Democratic tilt in Ohio."

In the Democratic primary, Clinton leads Obama 32 - 22 percent, compared to 38 - 13 percent in a January 30 Quinnipiac University poll. In this latest survey, former Vice President Al Gore gets 14 percent, followed by Edwards with 11 percent.

On the Republican side, Giuliani leads McCain 31 - 20 percent, compared to 30 - 22 percent January 30. Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich gets 8 percent, followed by 6 percent each for Romney and actor and former Sen. Fred Thompson.

"Former U.S. Sen. Fred Thompson, who has been appearing on Law & Order rather than campaigning, has just recently said he is considering running. But he shows the same level of support as Gov. Romney, among Ohio Republicans," Brown said.

Despite Clinton's lead over her fellow Democrats in the primary and each of the Republicans in the general election, she may face a potential problem because she has little room to grow her support. Only 48 percent of Ohioans view her favorably, while 41 percent see her unfavorably. That is a much less positive situation than for Obama, with a 43 - 17 percent favorability; McCain at 46 - 23 percent, and Giuliani at 52 - 22 percent.

"Sen. Clinton appears close to her ceiling, while that does not appear to be the case for most of her major competitors," said Brown. Bush Approval

Ohio voters disapprove 66 - 30 percent of the job President George W. Bush is doing and say 73 - 21 percent that the nation is heading in the wrong direction.

Voters disapprove 69 - 28 of President Bush's handling of the war in Iraq and say 60 - 34 percent that going to war in Iraq was the wrong thing to do.

From March 13 - 19, Quinnipiac University surveyed 1,122 Ohio voters, with a margin of error of +/- 2.9 percentage points. The survey includes 385 Republicans with a margin of error of +/- 5 percentage points, and 431 Democrats with a margin of error of +/- 4.7 percentage points.

The Quinnipiac University Poll, directed by Douglas Schwartz, Ph.D., conducts public opinion surveys in Florida, Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Ohio and the nation as a public service and for research. For more data -- Link, or call (203) 582-5201.

Ba-ROCK party in South Tacoma!

LuckyCharm — Thu, 22 Mar 2007 01:05:23 EDT

Meet other audacious and hopeful people for an evening of fun, friends, videos, and free-flowing creative juices! To view the Ba-ROCK concept, go to the MySpace page. The object here is fun -- we'll have Barack videos to watch while we're painting our rocks. Materials will be provided, but we'll be pot-lucking the munchies, so brown-bag your dinner and/or bring a finger-food snack and/or beverage to share. Atmosphere is casual -- tables and chairs will be available, but for those who prefer to sit in a circle on the floor while we work, you might want to pack a cushion.

Prizes will be awarded at the end for different categories: Most Creative, Most Whimsical, Most Unusual, etc. Category suggestions are welcome, if you have additional ideas!

Cost is $15 per person -- $10 advance registration fee (this part goes directly to the campaign -- you'll be emailed instructions to complete that step once you sign up) and $5 at the door to cover materials and prizes. Email PierceCoVets@operamail.com for more details.

Sign-up deadline is 11 a.m. March 29th, so don't delay -- and pass it on to your friends and fellow Obama supporters!

See you there next Thursday -- Obama in '08!

Cheers,

~~Cheryl

P.S. Even if you can't make it to the party, but still want to help, you can post a flyer at your place of employment, local grocery, barber shop, tavern, laundromat, wherever you can think of that'll let you tack something up! Just RSVP to this event, indicate you're not attending, and in your comments, let us know you'd like a flyer to put up -- we'll email you one to print and post!

Obama on gay/lesbian morality

LuckyCharm — Mon, 19 Mar 2007 14:24:20 EDT

At our local meeting last night, the concern was raised that some members of the LGBT community don't feel Obama has spoken out strongly enough in their support. So I did a little research, and feel that some of the comments to a March 15 New York Times article may provide some useful talking points when discussing the issue with members of that community:

"This is not a real issue. Personal morality is one thing - one should be able to set aside one’s personal moral convictions if they stand in the way of the Constitution and the recognition of individual liberty and our inalienable rights. I don’t care whether Barack or Hillary think I am immoral, what I want to know is whether they will work to insure that I have the same rights as everyone else."

"I’m glad Barack and Hillary both came out and clarified this and I think it’s silly to judge which one did so first since they were probably released within an hour or two of each other. I think the Clintons have a record of failing the gay community, and believe Barack will stand up for civil rights wherever they are lacking."

"I think this article is misleading. Clinton said she would leave it up to people to decide for themselves whether it’s moral or not(a non-answer). But Obama directly said that it is not immoral. There’s a huge difference in those statements. Saying that they are in sync is a distortion."

"A straight answer from a stand-up guy. Barack has my vote!"

"I just wanted to add that, if anyone feels that they are upset by Barack Obama’s….vibe of what I describe as indifference, on the gay rights issues; I just watched a 60 minute interview of Barack, by Charlie Rose from back in September,,, and I think I can honestly say that his…distaste if you will, for dwelling on your issues stems from his disgust with the way your issues are used to divide us. That’s the key issue here. If some pundit can get Barack to say something that pleases you, but makes a majority of straights and / or homophobics pissed off, then that pundit has done his or her job very well. But they have hurt us all in the process. And it’s that hurt, that division which disgusts Barack, not your identity as gay. He’s OK with YOU, it’s just that YOU, and YOUR ISSUES can be used as a wedge against progressivity, if you will. I hope I made sense, and we can all get along, elect a Dem and save our country. Vote for Obama for a change."

Hope this helps,

~~Cheryl

P.S. I'm not trying to "bash" anybody, and tried to select quotes that were objective and reasonable. These are not my own words, people -- I'm just reporting what's out there!

Points from Tacoma for Obama meeting March 18

LuckyCharm — Mon, 19 Mar 2007 08:59:36 EDT

Last night's meeting, if a bit smaller than hoped, was a big success in terms of clarifying priorities! Thanks especially to Richard May, who traveled all the way from Blaine with yard signs, bumper stickers, and lots of printed material to share with the group -- you rock, Richard!

Among priorities identified were:

Need for PCO's (Precinct Committee Officers) -- if your precinct doesn't have one yet, put yourself in for the position! Check your precinct map online, and if there's no PCO listed, throw your own hat into the ring! The Pierce County Democrats can help you determine who to contact in your district.
Document copying capabilities -- anyone got special access to discounted document reproduction?
People to work their local neighborhoods and communities, educating and registering voters, with a view to networking communities statewide.

There may be other needs/topics I'm forgetting at the moment -- official meeting minutes haven't been posted yet, and I wasn't taking notes myself. Feel free to comment and/or volunteer!

Cheers,

~~Cheryl

YOU make a difference!

LuckyCharm — Fri, 16 Mar 2007 02:28:59 EDT

Tonight I was dropping off a friend's dog, who I was babysitting while he was bowling. When my friend came home, he remarked that I had turned the TV to C-SPAN. "Yes, I'm interested in politics," I replied. He knew that already, and knows I'm active in the Obama campaign. The conversation turned to voting in general, and I casually remarked that I had a stack of voter registration forms in my car if he wanted one. Now, this is a guy who hasn't voted in decades, is so cynical that he believes his vote will never count, the politicians are all corrupt, yadayadayada....

My friend said, "Go ahead and leave one on my table next time you're here." I couldn't believe what I'd just heard, and had to make him repeat it just to be sure. Yes, he wanted a voter registration form!

Don't underestimate the power of your personal conviction with the people close to you! Talk to people, find ways to casually introduce the subject of the elections if you can, and especially of Barack Obama! I carry his book with me -- that has at times sparked conversation. By all means wear an Obama t-shirt -- I'm considering having one specially made (or making it myself) saying "Ask me about Barack Obama!"

Even seeking event sponsors can be an outreach effort. I recently sent out 42 letters seeking sponsors for a fundraiser, and so far have gotten one response after two days. Even if I don't get any further sponsors, I feel the effort is worth it, because now 42 business owners in my community know that there's a force for Obama out there, and it's powerful!

Do what you can, don't hold back, and be amazed at the influence you wield!

Cheers,

~~Cheryl

Latest Rasmussen Reports

LuckyCharm — Thu, 15 Mar 2007 11:25:45 EDT

Unless I'm reading this wrong, it looks like, according to the latest Rasmussen Reports, Obama has the highest favorable rating among Democratic candidates, and a lower unfavorable than HRC. Can he finally be said to be leading in the polls?

~~Cheryl

Obtaining voter registration forms

LuckyCharm — Wed, 14 Mar 2007 11:50:03 EDT

Just thought this might be useful for some -- here is a link to the State of Washington voter registration form in PDF format, in case anybody wants to print one off and make copies, as well as alternate sources for the forms:

Seeking musicians/groups for Tacoma event

LuckyCharm — Fri, 09 Mar 2007 10:27:27 EST

Hello, I blogged this before, seeking musicians for a March 28 event, but it doesn't look like that's gonna happen. Couldn't get a group and a venue lined up for the same date and time.... But we'd still like to do a concert fundraiser here, sooner rather than later, so if any of you Obama supporters can perform in Tacoma, please raise your hand! Even better if you already have connections with a local venue....

I will take care of all the publicity and other nuts and bolts, all you need to do is show up and play!

Obama in '08!

Thanks,

~~Cheryl

Best ways for us to communicate

LuckyCharm — Wed, 07 Mar 2007 02:08:20 EST

Okay, a number of us have removed ourselves from potentially valuable listservs. Some people don't want to post to blogs because their messages disappear after a short time. In short, a conundrum.

This website is phenomenal, and I want us ALL to continue using it! But in addition, we might consider creating our own groups on Yahoo, Google, wherever else we can.

Barack on -- Obama in '08!

Cheers,

~~Cheryl

How to get people to use the blog vs. listserv?

LuckyCharm — Tue, 06 Mar 2007 01:11:29 EST

When I got home tonight, late and tired, I was greeted by an inbox overflowing with messages from this group. I had no choice but to delete them all, unread -- there was no way I was going to be able to open each and every one of them! In doing so, I undoubtedly missed out on some valuable information, which I do regret.

So I'd like to ask that everyone who sent a listserv message yesterday please post it to the blog if it's still relevant. And going forward, please let's use the blog, people, okay? I have removed myself from the listserv.

Thanks,

~~Cheryl

Countering the "ideological Muslim" claim

LuckyCharm — Sun, 04 Mar 2007 10:49:06 EST

Here is a Snopes (famed urban legends site) article with a rebuttal to claims that Obama is really a Muslim at heart:
If that link doesn't work, just go to Snopes.com and search for Obama -- there are a couple other interesting articles there as well.

Cheers,

~~Cheryl

Use of "O" logo

LuckyCharm — Sat, 03 Mar 2007 23:00:35 EST

I am creating a logo for my new group, Pierce County Veterans for Obama, and have come up with a design that uses the official "O" logo with text and graphics superimposed. Is this kosher? Does anybody know who to contact for information on acceptable uses of the logo, or is there information already published somewhere on the subject? I intend to use the logo on event and fundraiser flyers, walkathon t-shirts, etc., but want to be sure there's no restriction on using the "O" as a backdrop for my group's logo!

Thanks,

~~Cheryl

Thank Rep Smith for endorsement, email Sen Murray!

LuckyCharm — Fri, 02 Mar 2007 10:52:22 EST

Yesterday's News Tribune reported that Rep. Adam Smith has publicly endorsed Obama (link posted in separate comment).

I encourage all citizens of Washington to contact Smith's office to thank him for his support. Here's an email I drafted to send him:

*****
Dear Representative Smith,

I want to thank you for taking a stand to publicly endorse Senator Barack Obama for President, as reported in yesterday's News Tribune. Americans are tired of divisive ideological politics, of being mired in a war of undetermined length, at undetermined cost, with undetermined consequences, and of the culture of corruption that we see in Washington DC. We are ready to get to work to meet America's energy needs, honor our veterans, and create a health care system that works. I believe Obama is the man to get us solidly on the road to those ideals, and I am proud to know that a Representative from our great State of Washington has lent his voice to that vision.

Thank you again, Representative Smith.

Warmest regards,
*****

Unfortunately, when I tried to send this message from his website (link posted in separate comment), it gave me an error because my zip code is outside his district, so I will have to call his office, 253.896.3775

Meanwhile, I have also emailed Sen. Patty Murray to ask for her endorsement as well:

*****
Dear Senator Murray,

Yesterday’s News Tribune reported that Rep. Adam Smith has publicly endorsed Sen. Barack Obama for President in 2008. Americans are tired of divisive ideological politics, of being mired in a war of undetermined length, at undetermined cost, with undetermined consequences, and of the culture of corruption that we see in Washington DC. We are ready to get to work to meet America's energy needs, honor our veterans, and create a health care system that works. I believe Obama is the man to get us solidly on the road to those ideals, and I am proud to know that a Representative from our great State of Washington has lent his voice to that vision.

I encourage you, as a respected leader in Congress and a well-known advocate for working families, veterans rights, and environmental protection, to also formally endorse Sen. Obama. When you talk, people listen, and this is one message I would like our citizens to hear.

Respectfully,
*****

See comment for the link to her contact page. Links seem to be getting corrupted when I try to place them in the main blog post.

Please join me in seeking our legislators' endorsements -- at this stage in the campaign, they will carry a lot of weight!

Cheers,

~~Cheryl

How long to get a new group created?

LuckyCharm — Thu, 01 Mar 2007 11:03:08 EST

Hi, I tried to create a new group the other day, Pierce County Veterans for Obama, and received a message that it would be added pending site administrator approval. As far as I know, it's still pending. How long does it take to get a new group started? I have already begun planning a fundraiser for this group, to take place Mar 28, and would like to get started publicizing it here!

Thanks,

~~Cheryl

Seeking musicians for Tacoma fundraiser March 28

LuckyCharm — Thu, 01 Mar 2007 02:50:25 EST

Hello all,

I am organizing a fundraising concert for Obama in Tacoma, just off I-5 at 84th St., for the evening of March 28. We already have a group that has agreed (tentatively) to perform, but someone suggested I look for others as well. No harm in having more than one group play on a single night, right?

Anyone in the Seattle/Tacoma area interested in participating? The first group is called Instant Winner, and you can find them if you search MySpace.com.

Obama in '08!!!

Thanks,

~~Cheryl

Where do I get fundraiser do's and dont's?

LuckyCharm — Wed, 28 Feb 2007 13:53:09 EST

Hello, I have called campaign HQ, 866-675-2008, twice now to request a fundraising kit, and so far have received nothing. I know they must be swamped with requests right now, so in the meantime, is there any online resource I can refer to, a checklist of some kind, tips and suggestions, legal considerations, etc., when planning fundraisers?

Thanks,

~~Cheryl

Barack on the Daily Show -- 6-min. video

LuckyCharm — Wed, 28 Feb 2007 11:44:32 EST

A must-watch when you have a few spare minutes -- Barack really shows his poise and humor here, and totally wows the crowd! Click "Read more" if necessary to access the link -- for some reason my links are still being corrupted when placed in the main post text.

~~Cheryl

Petition Governor Gregoire to endorse the big O!

LuckyCharm — Tue, 27 Feb 2007 00:38:21 EST

I've created an online petition to begin gathering signatures asking our governor to endorse Barack Obama for president. It will probably be delivered to the governor at some strategic date in the future, but the time to begin gathering signatures is NOW. I will soon be posting similar petitions to our Democratic senators and representatives as well.

Please click "Read more" to get to the link -- due to a site glitch, links posted in the initial body text are being corrupted.

And don't forget to pass it on -- Obama in '08!

Cheers,

~~Cheryl

Early fundraising critical

LuckyCharm — Sun, 25 Feb 2007 10:23:48 EST

Check out this Time magazine article: Clinton-Obama: Fasten Your Seat Belts

From the article: "As for which candidate is truly Hollywood's darling, everyone will be watching the March 31 campaign-finance reports for the answer to that question. "Obama is Usher, but she's Madonna," says Hilary Rosen, the recording industry's former chief lobbyist and a Clinton supporter. "He has a long career ahead of him, but the touring dollars don't compare." At least not yet. If the show is this good already, the tickets may be worth the price."

March 31 -- that's not far away, folks! Let's get busy!

Cheers,

~~Cheryl

My letter to the News Tribune editor

LuckyCharm — Thu, 22 Feb 2007 22:37:44 EST

Re: "Obama, Clinton trade shots" (22 Feb)

Am I the only one scratching my head upon reading that Howard Wolfson, Hillary Clinton's campaign communications director, called for Sen. Obama to "remove Mr. Geffen from his campaign and return his money" after David Geffen publicly denounced the Clintons after a private fundraiser? Wolfson incorrectly referred to Geffen as Obama's "finance chair" -- huh?? Obama's finance chair is actually Penny Pritzker of Chicago. In an interview with Arianna Huffington the next morning, Geffen stated, "I have no official role in the campaign. None whatsoever." So how is Obama supposed to "remove" him?

Clinton's aides took the personal opinion of a private contributor and turned it into a campaign issue, accusing Obama's campaign of violating its stated goal of avoiding slash-and-burn politics. This is absurd -- Sen. Obama cannot be held ethically responsible for every opinion of every one of his supporters. If he were made to return Geffen's contribution on account of his public criticism of Clinton, he would have to return MOST of his campaign contributions, including mine.

Besides, by inaccurately referring to Mr. Geffen as an Obama campaign official, isn't the Clinton campaign only proving his point regarding their, ahem, very loose definition of "truth"?

Sorry, Mr. Wolfson, you and your candidate hold no moral high ground here. If anything, this type of cheap shot so early in the campaign only reveals a pathetic sort of desperation.

Obama leads in unofficial blog poll

LuckyCharm — Wed, 21 Feb 2007 11:36:57 EST

Just thought I'd pass this on, a recent article showing Obama leading in a blog poll. We all need a picker-upper now and then, and this was encouraging to me!

Cheers,

~~Cheryl

Petition to ask Gov. Gregoire & Senators for endorsement

LuckyCharm — Wed, 21 Feb 2007 09:52:13 EST

Hey group, I want to create an online petition to ask our governor and Democratic senators to endorse Obama. Below is the proposed text of the petition -- any feedback is appreciated! Anything we should add, delete, change? Also, if anybody belongs to any other Washington groups, feel free to link to this blog post so we can get as much involvement as possible.

Cheers,

~~Cheryl

Dear Governor Gregoire: Today, we, your constituents from the great
state of Washington, are writing you in regards to the upcoming
presidential election in 2008. This election will, no doubt, be the
most pivotal election in America's history as we currently stand at a
crossroads. With the war in Iraq taking a turn for the worse, and
violence in the region seemingly increasing each day, we need a
president that will take a stand to bring our troops home. With
partisan bickering at an all-time high, we need a president that will
find areas of common ground and bring both parties together, to work
towards common goals for the American people. With political action
committees and lobbyists corrupting our government we need a president
that will create an honest government; an ethical government that
answers to its citizens.

Today, Governor Gregoire, we are asking you to publicly endorse
Senator Barack Obama for President of the United States of America.
America is in need of a new direction and we believe that Senator
Obama is the only candidate with the ability to take this nation in
that direction. It is a new generation, a generation that should be
built around the citizens of this country. We need a new type of
political leader. One that is ready to put aside partisan politics and
work towards making this country what it can be and what it once was.
We need a president that can build bridges and not burn them. We need
a president that is respected in the world and can bring sensible
solutions to Washington. We need Barack Obama.

Governor Gregoire, once again, the residents of Washington are asking
you to go on record and publicly endorse Senator Barack Obama for
President of the United States of America.

Dodgeball.com

LuckyCharm — Tue, 20 Feb 2007 11:41:01 EST

Hey folks, I just ran across this post on another blog:
I've signed up and would like to try using this service for impromptu, informal meetings whenever folks have a few spare minutes, just to stay in touch, brainstorm, discuss things, and most importantly, allow ourselves to be seen in public talking about the most exciting Presidential candidate in decades! The thing is, to invite friends you have to provide their email addresses, and I never provide folks' email addresses to websites. So, if you'd like to use this service as well, please message me or email me if you still have my email address, and let me know which email address you'd like to use for this purpose.

Obama in '08!!!

Cheers,

~~Cheryl

Viewing recent blog posts?

LuckyCharm — Tue, 20 Feb 2007 10:42:53 EST

Hi, is there any way, when I log onto my.barackobama.com, to see all recently added blog posts in all my groups? Currently I have to click on each group separately and scroll down to read recent posts.

Thanks,

~~Cheryl

P.S. Oh, and is there a way to view messages I've sent to my event attendees? Or to CC myself on them?

P.P.S. I notice that whenever I write a blog post, even if I only check one group (I've only checked Website Feedback on this one), it says, "Also posted in DC for Obama." I'm not even a member of that group!

Hmmm.....

LuckyCharm — Tue, 20 Feb 2007 01:17:45 EST

Just received this in email:

REMOVE ME FROM YOU LISTINGS!
I AM LOOKING FOR VALUABLE AND REAL SUPPORTERS!
DEBORAH WOODLEY
THIS SEEM LIKE BULL!
DO NOT EMAIL ME!

Any ideas from the group on how to handle this? I'd kinda like to find out what exactly turned her off, and am willing to do so myself, but wanted to check with everybody first to get your feedback on stuff like this.

Cheers,

~~Cheryl

Good rebuttal to "troops lives wasted" remark

LuckyCharm — Tue, 20 Feb 2007 01:06:47 EST

Saw this on one of the blogs, decided to post it here:

By Bryan K. Long Feb 18th 2007 at 8:44 pm EST
It was mildly audacious to say that the soldiers lives had been wasted, because it is obviously true and yet something that others might "jump on him" for. He should have been ready with a more audacious statement, like:

"Those soldiers died honorably, as heros for their country, fighting a war that should never have been fought. We have let the blood of our heros fall where none should have fallen. It is no diminishment of their honor, and no slight to their heroism to say their blood was wasted. They were heros who went where they were ordered to go, and fought well. It would diminish those heroes to suggest that we could have won if they had fought harder or better, and I reject that suggestion wholly. But they should have never been given their orders to go and fight in a war we did not need to fight and which we could not win."

Cheers,

~~Cheryl from Tacoma

DVD's available

LuckyCharm — Mon, 19 Feb 2007 10:12:23 EST

For those willing to host an in-home coffee, wine tasting, etc., Leo Henton just sent me this via email:

"I have some DVD-R's of the FEb 10, 2007 speech in Springfield, IL. If you don't mind bootleg copies of DVD-R's and CD-R's I could send you a few in the U.S. Mail.
Do any of your memebers have consumer grade DVD-HDD recorders? Not all combo machines with hard drives will copy from a DVD, even if it sis unprotected.
No fees involeved with this. These are strictly free. I have to copy them in real-time one at a time, so I only have about 15 coipies on DVD-r and CR-r so far and I was planning on giving most of them to SEattle Committee Feb 24."

Is anyone planning to host such an event? I for one would love to attend if possible! Also, can anyone help with reproducing these DVD's? Let me know, and I will put you in touch with Leo!

Cheers,

~~Cheryl

How can we in Washington State help the early primaries?

LuckyCharm — Mon, 19 Feb 2007 09:50:33 EST

Tacoma, Washington, had its first meet-and-greet event last night, and we're all excited to be part of this historic campaign! Since we are so late in the primary cycle, we'd like to know how we can support states like IA, NH, SC, and NV from where we are. Can anyone give us some pointers?

Obama in '08!!

~~Cheryl

Website technical question

LuckyCharm — Sat, 17 Feb 2007 12:10:39 EST

Is anybody aware of a way I can pull up the blog posts I've commented to? I can pull up my own original posts, but can't find a way to easily view comments and replies.

Thanks much,

~~Cheryl in Tacoma

Obama and Clinton on same ticket?

LuckyCharm — Fri, 16 Feb 2007 23:58:30 EST

Am I the only person who's troubled by the disturbing but ubiquitous blogosphere predictions of a Clinton/Obama or Obama/Clinton ticket for '08? I'd love to hear from other folks just how you feel about this -- personally, I detest Clinton to the same degree that I like Obama, and if they were to run together in either combination, he would instantly lose my support. Thoughts, comments, anyone?

~~Cheryl