Mark Wiznitzer's Blog

Obama's Hamburger Hamlet - Much Ado About Mustard

Mark Wiznitzer — Fri, 08 May 2009 17:19:44 EDT

To be, or not to be medium well, that is the question!
In the most high and palmy District of Washington.
A little ere 100 days the mightiest Republicans fell,
Were storefronts now tenantless, and swine flue fright doth rule,
Did gibber of Ray's Steaks and Hell Burgers in Arlington streets.

Where Geithner and Bernanke proclaimed that
Both a borrower and a lender be;
For loan oft gains both votes and friends,
And borrowing stimulates weary economy.

Find out the cause of this effect,
Because the Commander in Chief hungereth.
Or rather say, the cause of this detect,
For this effect defective comes by cause,
So with his VP escapeth his White Castle.

Not a computer mouse stirring.
And then it started like a guilty thing
Upon a fearful summons.
But, look, the noon, in hungered mantle clad,
Obama rides o'er the slew of yon high shills.
The memory be green of Arugula farmers,
With Biden that less than kin, yet more than kind.
That it should come to this!

"Season your admiration with a spicy mustard."
The President's baked meats
Did coldly furnish forth their ratings tables.

Words, words, words.
Give thy thoughts no tongue, except on talk radio.
Why, Rush, a robustious periwig-pated fellow,
Very like a whale,
Would hang on him,
As if increase of appetite had grown
By what it fed on.

Sean cried "Thrift, thrift, Horatio Alger!
All is not well; I suspect some French socialist Dijon foul play.
Something is rotten in the state of Virginia."

Alas, poor Yokels! We knew them, Ho-radio.
Tis as easy as lying.
What! Frighted with false ire?
The loonies doth protest too much, methinks.
They have a plentiful lack of wits.
More matter, with less condiments.
There is nothing either good nor bad, but thinking makes it so tasty.

"This above all: to thine own self be true,
Medium-well it must follow, as the night the day,
Thou canst not then be false to any man.
Brevity is the soul of wit:
"No ketchup" commandeth the Prince.

Lord! we know what we are, but know not what we may be.
For I am more a modern Lincoln than an FDR.
He was a man, take him for all in all,
We shall not look upon his like again.

A king of shreds and patches worthy of GQ.
Not just a rhapsody of words.
For the apparel oft proclaims the man.
Report me and my cause aright
To the unemployed.
Come, my limo!
Good-night sides;
Good night, sweet relish;
Good night.

Pay the Bill and Keep the CHANGE

Mark Wiznitzer — Sat, 31 Jan 2009 11:17:11 EST

Let’s be honest. We didn’t really expect Congress to come up with a "bold" stimulus plan, did we? But do we agree that NO action will only aggravate our current crisis?

The GOP surprised us when it failed to respond more constructively to the bipartisan overture from Barack Obama. I personally witnessed the precedent-setting bipartisan dinner for his defeated opponent (my photo of the President-elect at the dinner honoring McCain, January 19) and noted the subsequent meetings with Congressional Republicans. And what did we get in the way of proposals from the loyal opposition? More of the dogma-driven, supply-side ideology that contributed to our current mess: tax cuts!

On the other hand, GOP critics have a point: the bill that passed the House and was embraced by Obama essentially is an accumulation of favorite Democratic spending proposals.

What is missing is CHANGE. The CHANGE Obama advocated in his campaign for the Presidency. The CHANGE that won him a resounding mandate to govern for four years. The CHANGE from policies that have worked to benefit few and imperil many. Where are the first steps toward affordable health care, a sustainable green economy and alternative energy? And why are we not moving boldly to address the systemic failures that underlie the current crisis in credit markets?

Obama asked for ideas. And Paul Krugman and Robert Reich, among others, obliged. But what these brilliant men offer is predictable: rationales for orthodox Keynesian solutions and concern about labor market distortions, respectively. More is needed, not just in additional spending, but in fresh ideas that advance the President's policy agenda. So, if suggestions are still welcomed, here is my two-cents worth. And please do keep the CHANGE.

Health Care

Obama has promised the nation affordable health care similar to his own Federal Employees Health Benefits Program (FEHBP), to be available to all by the end of his first term. There is no need to back off this goal. Health care is one of the largest drags on our economy and the stimulus bill provides a real opportunity to begin managing its cost. In addition to the bill’s provisions to help state governments fund Medicare and work projects, I suggest that the federal government reimburse all state and local governments for their employer's share of health care for the rest of this year. In exchange, recipients may not fire government workers and must commit to integrating their health care plans with the existing FEHBP starting in 2010. That provides additional and immediate financial assistance to state and local governments, while paving the way for the establishment of a Public Employees Health Benefits Program. By January 2010, the federal government’s negotiated health care program would expand its base and economies of scale. The next step will be to apply the system to businesses, and subsequently to capture the un- and under-insured.

Energy Independence

Most honest leaders recognize that in due course government will have to produce the substantial additional revenue to pay for the stimulus. But good luck finding a politician willing to propose increasing taxes of any kind. So let me suggest instead a hefty tariff on imported oil to fund the “green economy.” A tariff of 50 percent or more on the landed cost of all imported energy (probably with some form of accommodation for our NAFTA partners) can be justified because of national security as well as the external costs to our environment inherent in the use of fossil fuels. And such a levy would promote conservation, subsidize domestic production, and help to fund and protect our investments in alternative energy. This is a measure that should be welcomed by Republicans who advocate "drill, baby, drill” as well as environmentalists interested in promoting clean energy. The windfall earned by American producers could be invested domestically or taxed as profits. And while there may be a marginal increase of fuel cost at the pump, it will pale in comparison with the amounts we forked over to foreign potentates rather than our own Treasury these past few years, when oil was effectively 200% greater than its current price.

Reestablish a ‘Risk-Free’ Investment Benchmark

Explanations for our current credit crisis and financial market meltdown abound, including the Washington Post's excellent series. But absent from all the expert analyses is any mention of the Treasury Department's October 2001 decision to discontinue issuing 30-year Bonds. That decision, on the heels of 9/11 and the cusp of Bush's costly war on terror, both lowered mortgage yields and prompted increased sales of bundled mortgages marketed as alternative 'risk-free' instruments, which in turn fueled the housing bubble and distorted both government and corporate credit point spreads. Treasury Bond auctions have resumed, but a clear provision to finance America’s recovery through borrowing would repair yield spreads – both between short and long term sovereign debt and in relation to all other debt instruments. Transparent budget financing will help re-establish more realistic risk pricing and global confidence in the US economy. But the 30-year Bond will not regain its position as a benchmark for 'risk-free' long-term investment if Fed meddling in the market, as it proposes to do with its planned purchase of Treasuries from troubled banks. In fact, this central-bankers-gone-wild approach will only create a greater Treasury bubble that will seriously aggravate our problems. Once markets are allowed to properly price the cost and risk of our recovery without Fed manipulation, global confidence in the US economy has a chance to be recover.

So Pay the Bill, and Keep the CHANGE

Barack Obama attended his last inaugural event, the Staff Ball, at the DC Armory on January 21. But he arrived after a performance by the opening act, Arcade Fire. So here are some insightful lysircs from their “Intervention”:

You say it's money that we need
As if we're only mouths to feed
I know no matter what you say
There are some debts you'll never pay

The message is relevant to the stimulus bill now before Congress.

We can act responsibly and cautiously if we:

Pay the Bill and Keep the CHANGE.

Food Tasters for Obama Logo Goes Viral

Mark Wiznitzer — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 13:15:37 EST

Check out the story behind the Obama logo as told by Sol Sender, who led its creative development. Sender recounts the story in two parts on the VSA Partners website. A graphic presentation of the other ideas that were considered in the development process leading up to the ultimate selection of the now ubiquitous design is at "Obama logo ideas that weren't chosen."

Both parts of Sol's interview are on YouTube. And if you advance to minute 2:18 on "Sol Sender - Logo Design Part 2 of 2" you will see our Food Tasters for Obama logo -- conceived by me and executed by my son Zach -- used as an example of the "viral expression" of the grassroots movement.

We will be back with more political analysis and satire soon. If you would like to be notified when a new article is posted join Food Tasters For Obama.

In Dreams I Wander Nameless Streets in Search of Faceless Voters

Mark Wiznitzer — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 19:11:10 EST

Dear Friends:

To those of you who so kindly congratulated me for Tuesday’s election outcome, as if Barack Obama’s victory resulted from my personal and deeply committed efforts. I thank you for your generous comments.

To those who may have wondered how I fared in “radio silence” for six weeks on the Ohio battleground. Be assured that I survived.

To those who do not know me or are unfamiliar with my previous descriptions of the realities and ironies of the 2008 election. What follows is the final chapter of my life as a political activist, a missionary for democracy, an apostle of Change. Hopefully you will also understand how it is that for the first three nights after I returned home I woke up from the same dream in which I wander nameless streets in search of faceless voters.

The Buckeye State

On September 23 I joined the Ohio Campaign for Change as a member of its newly created Vote Corps. The invitation had warned of 14-hour days, seven days a week, right up through Election Day. I accepted because the Obama campaign considered this important enough to make it a paid position and because it was in the one state McCain had to win to become President.

I left home certain that my life experiences -- in retail sales, as diplomat and political officer, and Obama volunteer in seven states – would be useful in the Buckeye State. Stopping at Starbucks on the way out of Burlington that Sunday morning, I noticed the first trace of red on the outer edge of a leaf on a small maple tree in the parking lot. I realized that by the time I returned to Vermont the leaf peepers would have come and gone. Fortunately, it turned out to be a mild autumn in Ohio that showcased the Buckeye State’s own colorful foliage.

The Akron Vote Corps

A hundred of us reported to Columbus for Vote Corps training and by the first night we were already deployed across the state. I was assigned to the city of Akron, birthplace of Cleveland Cavaliers star LeBron James and Pretenders’ singer-songwriter Chrissie Hynde, who wrote about her birthplace in “My City Was Gone”. The Akron Campaign for Change Office was headed by Regional Field Director Max Lesko. In charge of Summit and Portage Counties, he proved himself a very capable and genial manager. My hosts, Cathy and David, and their daughter Nicky, lived in a northwest suburb. Their friendship and cozy accommodations would be my home for the next six weeks.

At first the Akron Vote Corps consisted of six whites, from metropolitan DC, Iowa, Pennsylvania, Texas and California. Like most of the Obama staff and volunteers I met during the primaries, they were young and well-educated. In fact, I was two-and-a-half times their average age. By the end of the second week we lost one and gained five new members. Our new team-mates were all African Americans, from California, Texas and Georgia. Their average age was early forties and many had worked on the Kerry campaign. One of my first initiatives was to buy half a dozen fingerless gloves for our new friends from the warm weather states. Our Vote Corps was rounded out by a “Lead,” a young lawyer from Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown’s Washington staff.

The Vote Corps’ mission was to register voters, identify supporters and get out the vote for Barack Obama. Our primary targets were “Sporadics,” first time voters and people who voted Democratic in the past, but did not always turn out. For a while we were also instructed to knock on every single door in a targeted neighborhood. I successfully resisted attempts to create competition within our group for most doors knocked, “Doors” being the campaign’s primary measure for the work accomplished by staff and volunteers. My feeling was that competition focused on this imperfect metric would distort our effort, demoralize some members of our group, and sacrifice quality for quantity. For in the end, the real measure of our success would be the vote count on Election Day. And to that end, it was our diligence after the “knock” that would help determione the outcome.

Registration

Our first task was registering new voters and re-registering people who had moved before the deadline of October 6. We knocked on doors and scoured bus stops and other public places to register as many people as possible. Most people were already registered, as they clearly understood the importance of this election. Those who had not yet done so enthusiastically signed up, particularly in the African-American community. My first Saturday in Akron, I missed my first grandchild’s first birthday party back in Virginia. But my reward on that day was registering many first-time voters, including former felons who had recently regained the rights of other free men and women.

Many of our Sporadics were transients who frequently moved from one run-down Akron neighborhood to another. This city was in decline for a long time, and the recent economic downturn just aggravated conditions. In older residential neighborhoods there are a growing number of abandoned homes or houses soon to be vacated due to lost jobs or foreclosure. Many porches are marked by hand-painted signs announcing “Copper Already Stolen” or littered with trash by people who have given up. It is in this environment that we spread our message of Hope and Change.

Starting on September 30, we entered “golden week” when voters could both register and vote early. Ohio’s new rules allowed “no fault” early voting by absentee ballot or in person. A single polling place was created for Summit County at the Job Center in northeast Akron. The Job Center is well-known, because job losses have been ongoing for many years. The building, also known by locals as “the old library,” is next to another landmark, the County’s Auto Title Office. For those without cars, bus number 12 took people there from downtown in 15 minutes.

Early Voting

Registration and early voting at the Job Center was very convenient. Open every day, including Saturday and Sunday, there were 50 polling booths and seating for voters waiting for their paper ballots. But many Ohioans, especially African Americans disenfranchised in previous elections were suspicious. They worried that ballots were going to “disappear,” as reportedly happened in 2004 in Cuyahoga County. Overcoming these legitimate concerns required some persuasion. Our most important argument was: “Barack Obama wants his supporters to vote early.” That usually did it. We helped to spread the word that this process would protect, not suppress voting rights. And by November 3, the daily early vote turnout had grown from hundreds to thousands, the wait from 15 minutes to three hours.

By my third week I had developed a routine for creating a multiplier effect in conversation with early voters. Once they had made an Early Vote Commit, I introduced community organizing techniques to build on the widespread desire to help Obama get elected. Within the family, a grandparent or parent, or maybe the principal driver would agree to take responsibility for getting the entire household to vote early. I also encouraged voters to take along a relative or friend, or a neighbor who needed a ride.

Finally, I would make the following pitch:

“I’m working for Obama and I want you to work for him too. So I’m going to deputize you. No badge, no pay, just the satisfaction of knowing you helped to elect Barack Obama."

That always earned a smile. Then I continued:

"Now I'm sure you know someone who wouldn’t vote unless you drag their lazy a-- to the Job Center to vote. Do you know anyone like that?”

I could tell when they were hooked. Eyes turned skyward. Faces revealed minds thinking of who they would get to early vote. A knowing smile indicated they knew exactly who they would take along. In closing I urged them to let everyone know how easy it was to vote at the Job Center and that Obama wanted them to do so. By the time I left their door, the early voter had been empowered and had taken ownership of the Obama campaign. Now it was their campaign too.

Get Out The Vote

During our last week in Ohio, the Vote Corps was dissolved. We were detailed to assist Field Organizers with their neighborhood teams of volunteers, which were part of the Ohio get out the vote (GOTV) strategy at the precinct level.

I was assigned to Barberton to work for Sol, an energetic field organizer from Texas. My main “turf” was the south Akron neighborhood of Kenmore. Unlike my earlier work with Sporadics in largely African American neighborhoods, I was instructed to “persuade” and “motivate” the remaining “Undecided” voters. But with Election Day closing in fast, there would only be minutes to talk to any single voter.

In Barberton and Kenmore, the Undecideds were predominantly white, working class Democrats. Most did not want to vote for McCain, but were not yet sure about Barack Obama. I understood their concern. Not only was Obama a relatively new and unknown political personality. Most of these voters had supported Hillary in the March primary. And like voters elsewhere, they were being bombarded with smear emails, Republican mailings about Ayers and NRA propaganda warning Obama would take away their guns.

With openly racist voters there was the curt “Thanks for your time.” But it was not difficult to pull the other undecided voters off the fence, especially with the credibility of being an older white man with a knowledge of history and 23 years of federal service under five US Presidents. These voters knew that Obama and Hillary shared a common policy agenda and that she was campaigning hard for the Democratic ticket. They also recognized Rove tactics and our argument that: “They can’t win with the truth, so they are attacking him with lies.” Second amendment concerns were easily neutralized with Biden’s quote: “No one’s taking away my Beretta.” But the simplest most effective argument was “Are you happy with the way things are going or do you want change?” And Change is what voters wanted more than anything this year.

Election Day

November 3rd and 4th were taken up with the final GOTV effort, primarily distributing door hangers and reminding voters of their polling places. From 3:30 pm on Election Day until it was too dark to read house numbers, I scoured for remaining undecided voters who had yet to cast their ballots. I actually found several and they agreed to go to their local poll station, which by then was no longer crowded.

I was at the Barberton volunteers’ party at Lake Anna Hall when MSNBC announced Ohio for Obama. Having already won Pennsylvania, I knew it was all over except for reaching 270 electoral votes. While happy, I was so physically and mentally exhausted that the victory did not seem real. I headed back to my host family home and watched the candidates’ speeches before turning in and resting for the long drive home. Now as my dreams of knocking on doors in Ohio recede, the enormity of our achievement and the challenges facing Barack Obama are coming into better focus. I have no idea what my next step will be, but I will continue to do what I can to get our country back on the right track.

Epilogue

After 40 days of walking the streets of Summit County, I had knocked on or distributed campaign literature at over 4000 doors.

More importantly, I had in-person conversations with more than 1500 voters and obtained about 1000 Early Vote Commits, which probably understates the number of people who were convinced to go to the Job Center. Along the way I also helped remove several hundred bad addresses from our “Turf,” easing the task of later attempts by volunteers to find our voters.

The Akron Vote Corps’ effort over five weeks contributed greatly to the early vote turnout, which by Election Day totaled 90,000, or fully one-third of the 272,000 ballots cast in Summit County. And while he won Ohio’s 20 electoral votes with 51% of the state’s popular vote, Barack Obama won Summit County with 57.45%.

If you would like to be notified whenever Mark Wiznitzer posts a new article join Food Tasters For Obama.

Obama’s Surge Strategy: a Page from Petraeus’ Book?

Mark Wiznitzer — Sat, 20 Sep 2008 22:32:36 EDT

I got the call last week and tomorrow I leave for the American heartland to join the Obama campaign officially. My “deployment” is not a total surprise, as I did my “basic training” in Chicago at Camp Obama in June 2007 and since then have volunteered in seven states. Independent of the campaign, I conducted “psy-ops” on the net as a blogger and worked with other supporters in “rapid response” to online critics and negative media. But now I am called to official duty and by this time next week I will be on the “front lines” in a crucial swing state.

Am I to be part of a Pre-electoral “Surge”, a sort of “counter-insurgency doctrine” applied to this election in the closing days of the Presidential campaign? That may be what Obama’s deputy national campaign director Steve Hildebrand has in mind to ensure Victory on November 4. He is the “four-star general” who won the first battle for the nomination when Obama took the Iowa caucus. Lately Hildebrand has been moving his troops around in what looks like an attempt to “clear, hold, and build” support in swing states. That is where organization, registration, and turnout could deliver the vote margin that spells the difference between “victory and defeat.”

Reports from Georgia confirm Hildebrand has “drawn down” his forces in Georgia and redeployed elsewhere. That does not imply Obama has abandoned Georgia, but does mean a greater reliance on remaining staff backed by an army of local volunteers who delivered a decisive primary win. At the same time, the redeployment reflects a need to strengthen Obama’s presence in states where he lost to Hillary Clinton and did not develop as much grass roots support. It looks and sounds like its erstwhile namesake in Iraq, but this surge too can only succeed if certain other conditions apply.

Perhaps the most important of those conditions is “political reconciliation.” The Denver convention speeches of Hillary and Bill Clinton marked a symbolic end to internal Democratic opposition to Obama’s nomination. Some small “rebel factions” of the party had intended to continue “resistance”. But John McCain’s subsequent nomination of Sarah Palin as his running mate sparked a “civil awakening” and the rebellion fell flat. Now former adversaries are working to elect Obama and avoid the frightening prospect of a “fundamentalist” religious right Republican Administration. What remains for the Obama forces is to reassure independent voters and moderate Republicans that Obama is a “safe” choice who will represent their interests.

The Obama campaign also benefits from improved intelligence on voting conditions in some key swing states where there were serious problems at the polls in 2000 and 2004. His base is alert to Republican tactics designed to intimidate and disenfranchise voters, and sabotaging elections. As they obtain “actionable intelligence” the campaign will be able to address problems promptly. And after replacing some local elected officials with Democrats, they can count on better cooperation to ensure the integrity of the electoral process.

As I leave for the front I anticipate this will be my last posting for a while. But I expect that this surge too will succeed “beyond our wildest dreams.”

Top Ten Reasons Why John McCain Will NOT Hire Food Tasters

Mark Wiznitzer — Sat, 20 Sep 2008 16:04:39 EDT

It was just four months ago that the call went out on these pages for supporters to join Food Tasters for Obama. Now some wise-guys (here, here and here) are suggesting that it’s John McCain who should hire a food taster. It is an idea even he has toyed with. We don’t believe that he needs to or will do so. But just for fun we’ve devised the following Letterman-like Top Ten Reasons Why John McCain Will NOT Hire Food Tasters.

10. He doesn't know how to post a job opening on Monster.com

9. Republicans would consider him an "elitist"

8. His high dosage of Metamucil already flushes all toxins from his body

7. Sarah Palin would fire them and replace them with Wasilla High School grads

6. He’s not sure where they would sit in the mess hall

5. The deaths of Socrates, Napoleon and Lenin were covered in courses he failed at Annapolis

4. He loves to gamble with dice, VP selections and, of course, with his health

3. You don't eat barracuda – it eats you

2. Lipstick (just had to mention that, because it seems to be on everyone’s lips lately)

And finally, the number one reason McCain will not hire food tasters:

1. He doesn’t need to because on November 4 Barack Obama will eat his lunch

How the Bush Administration Just Deflated McCain's Tax Charge

Mark Wiznitzer — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 12:50:18 EDT

The McCain campaign has kept up the drumbeat for weeks now charging Barack Obama would raise your taxes, even though they leave out the fact that this only applies to those who make over $250,000. They also don't mention that those are the same people who were the only real beneficiaries of the Bush tax cuts.

Well Johnnie Mac's tax claims are effectively moot now that the Bush Administration has stepped in to salvage Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (no relation to the candidate, except that neither can keep track of how many houses they own). For overnight, the Treasury has levied a whopper of a tax, except instead of sending you a bill you have to pay from you checking account by April 15, they have just gone ahead and charged it to your credit card and left it to the next guy to work out payment terms.

Personal Message to Food Tasters and Tips for Using Online Tools

Mark Wiznitzer — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 22:14:59 EDT

Dear Food Tasters for Obama -

I wanted you to know that I am leaving this weekend to work (yes, I'm "coming out of retirement") for the Obama campaign in Ohio, and will be there through election day. For all of you who have kindly encouraged my blogging (my archive is here), this will explain my silence beginning September 22. During my absence, other carefully chosen administrators will assure this group's continued existence and maintain its selective standards for messaging, and the posting of events and blogs, to provide you only with the most enlightened and entertaining material.

Last Saturday I went to Manchester NH to help at the Obama rally (8000 people turned out!) and to canvass the working class neighborhood on the west side of town. Not surprisingly after these past few weeks and recent polls, I met many concerned voters. The number one question I heard was: "Can we win this?" The answer is definitely "Yes we can." But it will require Obama supporters to get involved. You've seen by now that John McCain will do and say anything to get elected, including his selection of an unvetted running mate who he had only met once before. And McCain is backed by Bush's political team for whom all tactics are fair game. So your vote alone just may not be enough this year. And you know from the last two elections that the religious right in this country knows how to get its voters to cast their ballots for the Republican candidate.

This election will be decided in crucial battleground state, like Ohio and New Hampshire. But the ground game is the same in all 50 states. There are three practical objectives in the remaining weeks: 1) register voters, 2) identify Obama supporters, and 3) get-out-the-vote (GOTV) either absentee, early or on election day. These tasks are labor intensive. If you cannot get away to NH or another swing state, there are activities scheduled almost daily at your nearest Obama campaign office. If you have not yet tried them, I've included at the bottom of this message suggestions on how to use the campaign's online tools from home. So you have no excuse not to participate actively.

There is one other thing I want to ask of you, especially if you have not yet done so or can do more. And that is Donate. I have not bothered you about this, but I am only asking you (US citizens and Residents only) to do what I and over two and a half million others have already done. So please go to my fundraising page on my.barackobama.com, click on "donate", and make a contribution of any amount you'd like, from $5 to $2300. You may not have agreed with the campaign's decision to forgo public financing. But the Republicans have already demonstrated that current public finance laws do not reduce the influence of lobbyist and special interest money on the electoral process. And the Obama campaign has proven that it manages its finances responsibly. So consider this a good investment in getting our country back on the right track.

Finally, make sure to register and vote. Voting early is now available and easy in most states. Take advantage of the online voter registration tool, ensure that your registration is up to date and make your vote count!

Regards, Mark Wiznitzer

*************************************************************************************************

Using the tools available at my.barackobama.com

Click on "Action", then "MyBarackObama.com".
When the page opens log-in or go to the second box to sign up to create your own page and account.

Once that is done, you can edit your profile, and this is where you can choose a screename so your identity is protected.

I suggest you check you're still properly registered to vote with the tool that was just added.
It allows you to find out also if you can vote early or absentee.
If needed, you can also request an absentee ballot from your state officials.

Once you are a part of the Obama network you will find "Contact Voters" at the top of the page.
That provides all sorts of opportunities to work from home contacting voters in your neighborhood.
At this time, the campaign needs to make sure that voters everywhere are properly registered and that we have identified all our supporters. This will be good practice for next month, when I expect the campaign will start to organize calls to get out the vote in the battleground states.

Other things you will find on the website:
-- what's going on in "My Neighborhood", which will show nearby events you can participate in,
-- online groups (of which there are thousands, including my own Food Tasters for Obama) you may want to join (like Women for Obama), and
-- a link to the online "neighbor to neighbor" tool that will get you started where you can have an immediate and tremendous impact, contacting people nearest you.

You can also use the tabs on the right of your My.BarackObama page to find more:
-- find "events" (by zip code)
-- find "groups" (by location, size or name)
-- find and invite "friends", and
-- read or write "blogs".
Don't ignore "Fundraising", because this campaign will require lots of money.
Most of our 2.5 million backers so far are small donors contributing to a campaign for the first time.
And after the past two weeks, you'd be surprised how urgently people are wanting to give.

I may have described a lot more here than you think you need.
But you will enjoy exploring all the possibilities available to you.
And feel free to send this message on to others you think may also want to become involved in this endeavor.

Vote for Sarah Palin (Best Impersonation, That Is)

Mark Wiznitzer — Sun, 14 Sep 2008 22:31:30 EDT

Okay. Before the campaign gets really serious again, here is your chance to vote for Sarah Palin -- that is for the best impersonation.

And there are two really great impersonators too. You may already have seen Saturday Night Live's "A Nonpartisan Message from Sarah Palin & Hillary Clinton". In case you missed it, click on the pic for Tina Fey and Amy Poehler in their SNL opening skit:

But Tina's got competition! Here name is Lisa Vega (aka Lisa Donovan), who was once featured on MADtv, and she has done three Palin sketches already. The first had her corner Obama on a stairwell as he comes home, and she browbeats him till he turns into the "angry black man"; this may explain why the clip is no longer available. But her parental guidance skit called "Is McCain Palin's Bitch?" is already a YouTube classic, and showcases the other side of Sarah:

You can click on the photo. That's Dan Oster as John MCcain.

So here's your guilt-free chance to vote for Sarah Palin (impersonator, that is). Please cast your vote below on the comment section.

Obama Sound Bites: Dosing the Message for the Masses

Mark Wiznitzer — Sun, 14 Sep 2008 17:50:03 EDT

If it is true that the great majority of American voters can only be reached through sound bites. and then only by a limited number of such sound bites, well that's what we'll need to give them.

sound bite - noun, a brief, quotable remark, or excerpt from a speech, made as by a politician and suitable for use on TV or radio newscasts: often a dismissive term implying superficiality.
YourDictionary.com

Eistein utters the ultimate sound bite:

I'm sure you can come up with your own summary phrases to describe Barack Obama's plans for the country. Please add your ideas in the comment section below. But for starters, here are my seven. I hope you'll agree they are appropriately short, sufficiently limited in number and accurately descriptive.

Don't be surprised if you start seeing and hearing bites like these from Barack Obama in ads and the Presidential debates.

A Government that Respects the Constitution
Take the War to our Real Enemies
Restore Fiscal Discipline and Tax Fairness
A Growth Economy Fueled by Innovation and Energy Alternatives
Affordable Healthcare for All Americans
Learn to Value Education
Honor Service to Country and Community

wizinit is the nom de guerre of a veteran diplomat and fan of the late columnist Art Buchwald who writes serious analysis and political satire. If you would like to be notified whenever wizinit posts a new article join Food Tasters For Obama.

McCain Co-Sponsors Down Syndrome Senate Bill GOP Killed in July

Mark Wiznitzer — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 11:35:08 EDT

So far unnoticed by the mainstream media obsessed with lipstick on pigs and pit bulls is the latest bit of John McCain hypocrisy.

McCain and Senator Ted Stevens (R-AK) decided on September 9 to co-sponsor Senate Bill 1810: "A bill to amend the Public Health Service Act to increase the provision of scientifically sound information and support services to patients receiving a positive test diagnosis for Down syndrome or other prenatally and postnatally diagnosed conditions."

That is the same bill that Republicans blocked in a procedural vote on strict party lines on the floor of the Senate on July 28, of this year. The bill, originally co-sponsored by Senators Sam Brownback (R-KS) and Edward Kennedy (D-MA), was part of a package of health care legislation that Republicans voting along strict party lines blocked from floor action. Despite the 52-40 vote for consideration, supporters fell short of the required 60 vote majority to move the package forward.

Photo: McCain's Vice Presidential running mate Sarah Palin gave birth to Trig Paxson Van Palin, a Down Syndrome baby, on April 18.

GOP Hopes Beijing Olympics Tactics Will Do the Trick for McCain's Election Challenges

Mark Wiznitzer — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 14:01:10 EDT

Inspired by his observation of the Chinese Government’s efficient management of the Olympics, George Bush has evidently returned to Washington full of exciting ideas he hopes will ensure John McCain’s victory in November. And there is some evidence suggesting that some of the Chinese tactics have already found their way into John McCain’s 2008 Presidential election campaign.

Last June, the St. Paul Police Department arrested a 50-year-old man peacefully handing out leaflets promoting a Sept. 1 march on the Republican National Convention. It is not clear if US law enforcement will be as clever as Chinese authorities, who prevented large-scale protests by arresting those who are naive enough to apply for a permit to demonstrate legally. But authorities expect to round up 800 demonstrators in Minneapolis, so even the most docile protester attempting to approach the Excel Center may be fair game for a round-up.

Like those intimidating Chinese drummers in the opening ceremonies who were instructed to smile, John McCain has been smiling a lot in his own public performances. But his handlers, worried about invidious comparison with Barack Obama, are not taking chances. Like the sweet little girl who was also in the opening ceremony, they will train McCain to lip-sync his acceptance speech while the words are spoken by one of his movie star supporters. But it is not yet clear however which of McCain’s prominent thespian endorsers' characters will provide the voice. So far, the three nominees in the category of Nominating Acceptance Speech are: Clint "Dirty Harry" Eastwood, Sylvester "Rocky" Stallone and Arnold "Terminator" Schwarzenegger.

But none of the Chinese measures has excited Republicans as much as the “passport solution”. The GOP is taking its cue from China’s women’s gymnastics team, which was able to demonstrate that its athletes met the International Olympic Committee’s 16-year old age requirement by presenting Chinese passports. So they are applying for a new passport that McCain can present as his government issued photo ID. It will address concerns of some voters who believe McCain is too old by showing that he is only 35. That will both meet the Constitution’s minimum age requirement and should reassure voters that he could easily serve two full terms as President. As an added bonus for those constitutional scholars who question if McCain meets the Consitution’s “natural-born” requirement because of his birth in Panama, the passport will list his place of birth (POB) as Panama City, Florida. Problem solved.

wizinit is the nom de guerre of a veteran diplomat and fan of the late columnist Art Buchwald who writes serious analysis and political satire. If you would like to be notified whenever wizinit posts a new article click on and join Food Tasters For Obama.

Winners of the Barack Birthday Bake Off Contest

Mark Wiznitzer — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 15:22:39 EDT

Thanks to all who signed up and participated in the Barack Birthday Bake Off. There are four Food Tasters for Obama logo t-shirt winners instead of three, because we had a tie in the "organizing ideas" category. The winners (three wonderful recipes are avaiable below the fold) are:

Best Recipe: Erica Rivera's Black and White Birthday Cake (an original recipe)

Best Photo: Hanneke Hoogstrate's Berry Spangled Baked Cheesecake and Banoffi Cheesecake on the Batavia (Jakarta Indonesia's colonial name, providing one more degree of separation from the candidate) ship's chest (posted on her Dutch website at http://www.blago.net/_baking_08/08_04_berry_tart.php)

Best Organizing Ideas:

--David Levy's (who prepared a Unity Pound Cake for 60 at an outdoor party of the Prince George's County MD office), and

--Michaele Camp (whose Sour Cream Pound Cake won the Bake Off hosted by Gena Bowser and Sharon Wilkerson at the Urban Tea Loft in Chandler AZ)

Congratulations to the winners.

Obama Trip Photo Album: Berlin

Mark Wiznitzer — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 17:40:34 EDT

Democratic US presidential contender Barack Obama in front of the Victory Column and waves to the audience in Berlin, Germany, 24 July 2008.

Speaking to a crowd of 200,000 in Berlin, Barack Obama issued a trans-Atlantic call for cooperation.

U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., left, is welcomed by German Chancellor Angela Merkel in the chancellery in Berlin Thursday, July 24, 2008. In the background is the the Reichstag that houses the German parliament.

Vermont '08 Election Dress Code: No Ties, No Tails - Updated

Mark Wiznitzer — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 17:37:06 EDT

There may be no state in the country considered as “safe” for Barack Obama as the Green Mountain State. It is after all the home of former governor and current Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean. But I wonder what happened over the past two weeks to explain why 538’s state-by-state survey of electoral outcome probabilities slipped Obama’s chances of winning the Green Mountain State from 100% (a unique status it had shared with the District of Columbia) to 99% (with Rhode Island and Hawaii).

I doubt it is related to the size of Obama’s official campaign presence here, currently one full-time staffer embedded in the Vermont Democratic Party campaign office in Burlington. Attendance at recent Obama county organizing meetings in Chittenden and Addison was respectable considering it is mid-summer and the election is 3 months from now. After all, grass roots activists had no difficulty gathering required petition signatures, conducting canvasses, registering new voters, raising funds and mounting visibility long before the official campaign arrived in Vermont just 2 weeks before the March 4 primary. And that effort built a strong foundation for the general election.

No public opinion polls have been published in Vermont since February, but these would probably be a waste of money. Two polls conducted just weeks before the Democratic primary projected Obama beating McCain by margins of 34 and 21 percent. How reliable were those polls? The same polling organizations at the time showed Obama leading Clinton by 24 and 14 percent (Rasmussen 57-33 and Research 2000 53-39). The far less scientific AOL straw poll at the same time showed him with a 20-point lead (60-40), very close to the actual primary results (59.31% to 38.59%). So go figure.

Well, that’s exactly what fivethirtyeight.com has done. They have adjusted the February data to a current projection of 59.7% to 38% for Obama over McCain. Since volatility is not a Vermont voting trait, barring some major development, you can probably bank on 538’s prediction holding on November 4.

While most Vermonters are excited about bringing CHANGE to Washington DC, the same does not necessarily apply to their state capital, Montpelier. This is a very unique election year. Neither of Vermont’s highly popular Senators, Democrat Patrick Leahy nor Independent (democratic socialist) Bernie Sanders, is up for re-election. And Representative Peter Welch, finishing his first term as one of the country’s most effective freshman in Congress, will have no Republican opponent in November, though he will face an anti-war activist in the Democratic primary and a Progressive Party candidate in the general election. So, all attention is on the Governor’s race, with Republican Jim Douglas running for his fourth two-year term against Democratic House Speaker Gaye Symington, with Progressive Party candidate Anthony Pollina as her potential spoiler.

So far, Election 2008 looks to be a bifurcated event that will focus far more resources on the state race than on the national contest. Both Democrats and Republicans have already raised the specter of coattails effects in November. Democratic Party officials talk of Obama drawing enough new voters to the polls to help Symington overcome the State’s tradition of voting for candidates irrespective of party affiliation. Republicans cautiously whisper of a reverse coattail effect, with McCain benefiting from a loyal turnout to re-elect Douglas. These may be prime examples of wishful thinking. It is doubtful that “coattail” is going to become a causative verb in Vermont any time soon. Why? Because the ties that connect these local candidates vertically to their national tickets are nebulous when compared to the strong ties that bind them horizontally to other state party officials.

Top Vermont Democrats like Leahy and Welch certainly boarded the Obama bandwagon early in the primary race. But their party has failed to court Obama’s most active grass roots supporters who are engaged in politics for the first time.

Perhaps more importantly, while most Clinton supporters in Vermont will certainly vote for Obama, it is not clear what role her state campaign chair, former governor Madeleine Kunin, is going to play at the Denver Convention.

UPDATED: She is currntly a leading advocate for an Obama-Clinton "dream ticket", choosing for now to play the yenta. But there are forces within the Democratic Party, like PUMA and the Denver Group, ready to cause havoc at the convention who would be more than happy to seize on "Hillary for VP" as their battle cry, as well as highlighting the party's schism through a roll call vote for President. By late August, Kunin may have to choose between party unity and loyalty to Hillary and her personal cause of promoting women in politics. And that decision ironically could affect both her state party's prospects of electing another female governor as much as the national party's opportunity to elect the first biracial President.

On the Republican side, Governor Douglas knows he is better off distancing himself from his party’s standard bearer. Otherwise, he risks having to defend McCain’s erratic personality and unpopular positions before a skeptical electorate. It will be much easier to present his own narrative of a steady demeanor and record of cautious stewardship. In fact it is his Lieutenant Governor, Brian Dubie, with whom he forms Vermont’s sole surviving Republican “team”, where coattails may help if at all. But this November, it is probably going to be casual Tuesday. And that means “No Ties, No Tails”.

wizinit is the nom de guerre of a veteran diplomat and fan of the late columnist Art Buchwald who writes serious analysis and political satire. If you would like to be notified whenever wizinit posts a new article click on the logo to join Food Tasters For Obama.

Obama Trip Photo Album - UPDATED

Mark Wiznitzer — Tue, 22 Jul 2008 18:52:35 EDT

Here are my favorite photos so far of Barack's trip.

Barack Obama surveys Baghdad with General David Petraeus

Barack Obama and Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai enjoyed a traditional lunch of mutton, chicken and rice washed down with a yogurt drink.

Democratic presidential contender Barack Obama greets U.S. troops at Camp Arifjan, the main U.S. military base in Kuwait. He stopped there Friday en route to Afghanistan.

Favorite Video - Kuwait - Obama Hoops with Troops

(Click on photo to link to video)

Sen. Barack Obama, left, with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, during a meeting in the West bank city of Ramallah, 23 Jul 2008

Democratic presidential candidate Senator Barack Obama (D-IL) meets Israel's President Shimon Peres (not pictured) in Jerusalem July 23, 2008.

Obama calls Israel a "miracle," vows staunch support

Obama at Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial

The Real Skinny on Obama's Palate Pleasers

Mark Wiznitzer — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 17:52:10 EDT

Today I received the following email, presumably anticipating Obama’s August 4 birthday:

“Does anyone know, what is Senator Obama's favorite kind of cake? Please let us know. Thank you. David”

As a result of David’s inquiry and for the benefit of all those with similar questions, I’ve compiled most of the reliable information about Barack’s eating habits. It’s not easy sorting through all the phony facts on the internet sites where they ask: “What is Obama’s favorite food”. There are lots of pranksters on the loose. I did chuckle at the Republican who claimed Obama’s favorite is “waffle,” but there are a lot of racist jokers with puerile and predictable suggestions, like KFC, fried chicken and watermelon.

So here’s the scoop. According to the NY Times of May 27, his personal assistant during the campaign, Reggie Love, revealed:

Senator Obama “eats pretty much anything, from chicken wings and barbecue and ribs to grilled fish and steamed broccoli.” But when he is campaigning in a small town with limited options, a cheeseburger is always a good bet. (“Cheddar is the cheese of choice,” Mr. Love added.) He knows that “the boss,” as he calls Mr. Obama, likes MET-Rx chocolate roasted-peanut protein bars and bottles of a hard-to-find organic brew — Black Forest Berry Honest Tea. He keeps a supply of both on hand.

Here are other known likes: Planters Trail Mix: Nuts, Seeds & Raisins, Roasted almonds, Pistachios, Water, Dentyne Ice, Nicorette, Vegetables (especially broccoli and spinach), handmade milk chocolates from Fran’s Chocolates in Seattle.

The NY Times reported the candidate’s efforts to quit cigarette smoking included chewing Nicorette gum. One reported side effect of Nicorette is heartburn.

And dislikes: Mayonnaise, Salt and vinegar potato chips, asparagus (“if no other vegetables are available, he’ll eat it”), and Soft drinks.

In response David’s specific question though, here’s what Obama McCain Comparisons says (which appears to give you carte blanche in deciding what to bake for the big day):

“According to Obama’s daughters he doesn’t like sweets so much... he does like pumpkin pie.”

This same site as well as others claim that based on an interview on January 18 of this year Obama’s favorite restaurant is Italian Fiesta Pizzeria in Hyde Park, Chicago, IL. The website tried, but failed to identify Obama’s favorite toppings. This restaurant is known for its thin crust pizza and spreading toppings to the edge of the pie. His view on where he likes to eat appears to be one position Obama has not changed since he clinched the Democratic nomination.

Obama apparently also enjoys shrimp and grits, though it is not clear if that is a home-made or eat-out dish.

One thing is absolutely clear. Chili is Obama’s favorite food to cook and/or bring to a potluck. In fact, here are his own words and recipe:

“I’ve been using this chili recipe since college and would bring it to any potluck. I can’t reveal all the secrets, but if you make it right, it’s just got the right amount of bite, the right amount of oomph in it and it will clear your sinuses.”

Ingredients: 1 large onion, chopped; 1 green pepper, chopped; Several cloves of garlic, chopped; 1 tablespoon olive oil; 1 pound ground turkey or beef; 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin; 1/4 teaspoon ground oregano; 1/4 teaspoon ground turmeric; 1/4 teaspoon ground basil; 1 tablespoon chili powder; 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar; Several tomatoes, depending on size, chopped; 1 can red kidney beans.

Method:

Sauté onions, green pepper and garlic in olive oil until soft. Add ground meat and brown. Combine spices together into a mixture then add to ground meat. Add red wine vinegar. Add tomatoes and let simmer, until tomatoes cook down. Add kidney beans and cook for a few more minutes.

Serve over white or brown rice. Garnish with grated cheddar cheese, onions and sour cream.

There you have it. Of course Obama may develop a hearty appetite in the course of this campaign. So maybe after November 4, when asked what Obama likes to eat, you’ll just have to say: “McCain’s lunch!”

wizinit is the nom de guerre of a veteran diplomat and fan of the late columnist Art Buchwald who writes serious analysis and political satire. If you would like to be notified whenever wizinit posts a new article click on the logo to join Food Tasters For Obama.

Barack's Birthday Bake Off Contest Rules

Mark Wiznitzer — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 12:43:49 EDT

With exactly two weeks to go to August 4, participants in Barack’s Birthday Bake Off are franticly preparing for the big day. Most are happy just to celebrate while organizing for the campaign. But many are admittedly drawn by the chance to win an attractive t-shirt with the Food Tasters logo (see sample at http://www.onemillionstrong.us/showDiary.do?diaryId=1313); I know I’d be. So here is our best effort to answer your questions and lay out the contest rules:

1. You must be signed up for any one of the “Barack’s Birthday Bake Off” events hosted by “Mark Wiznitzer” on my.barackobama.com, such as the event at White House zip code “20500” at: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/organizing/4g9y9#rsvp

2. All contestants, except employees of the Obama campaign, must be registered as a member of “Food Tasters for Obama” at my.barackobama.com no later than midnight August 4. Not yet a member? Sign up at http://my.barackobama.com/page/group/FoodTastersforObama.

3. One Food Tasters for Obama t-shirt will be awarded to the winner in each for the following three categories: a) best recipe, b) best birthday campaign organizing idea, and c) photo of the best decorated desert.

4. After you have complied with requirements 1 and 2 above, submit your entry via email to markwiznitzer@gmail.com. Entries must be received no later than 11:59PM EDT on August 5 (in European that’s Greenwich 04:59 on 060808). To be considered the subject line of the email submission must read: “BARACK BIRTHDAY BAKE OFF CONTEST”. Sorry, as good as it may taste, we won’t be able to personally sample your baked goods (unless you happen to be in the Champlain Valley on August 4, in which case, let us know).

5. Entries need not be your own original, recipe, idea or decoration, but then you must indicate the source of your inspiration. Winning recipes, campaign organizing ideas and decorations remain the “property” of their owner, but will be shared with the world by Food Tasters for Obama. By your entry you acknowledge your compliance with these conditions.

6. We are not responsible for any emails that are not receive on time, are blocked by spam or other internet security filters, attached files that cannot be opened or viewed, or any terrorist incident or acts of public disorder, floods, earthquake or other natural disasters that may interfere with our ability to recognize your brilliant effort and reward you with a t-shirt.

7. Selection of winners will be entirely subjective, but this competition is open to anyone who supports Barack Obama for President, including but not limited to employees of Price Waterhouse, the Obama campaign, its surrogates and volunteers, first-time voters, former Hillary backers, Obamicans, or any minors or non-US citizens who would vote for Obama if they could.

Good Luck!

As Contest With McCain Heats Up, Obama Keeps His Cool

Mark Wiznitzer — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 20:46:19 EDT

Obama wipes his forehead at a Montana campaign event in May.

McCain's handlers think they were owned. Photo-analysis suggests that Barack Obama may have been play-acting when he pulled out a hanky and patted his forehead at a campaign appearance in Montana two months ago. And the two lost months may cost McCain the election if the candidate, who is known for his volcanic temper, has a Nixonian moment of perspiration during the Presidential debates this Fall.

It's all part of a game of hot potato that the two camps have been playing, trying to stay cool under the constant glare of media scrutiny. Until today McCain's people believed they were going to win because Obama had fallen for the Republican's challenge to visit Baghdad, where the average high this month is 115 degrees. But then the news reported: "No sweat."

The confirmation was contained in today's AP story about Obama's suspicously frequent workouts, in which photo-journalists were quoted as saying that:

"even when he shot hoops earlier this year with members of the University of North Carolina varsity men's basketball team, they didn't see Obama sweat."

The report has the McCain campaign in a panic, for what was suspected and feared is now confirmed: Obama is cool, literally as well as figuratively. It's not just that he made the cover of Rolling Stone, GQ and Vibe. They knew McCain didn't stand a chance going one-on-one against Obama for the Metromale vote. That was a given. But it's the image of McCain as a sweaty old guy who turns off Hillary Clinton's women voters they were counting on to win that has them worried.

Sources who did not want to be identified because they are not authorized to discuss the sensitive subject confirm that a hush-hush project code-named "Operation Bikram" has been launched from an inconspicuous office at Republican National Committee headquarters. GOP operatives are simultaneously scouring the aisles of drug stores nationwide to find the most effective anti-perspirant and reviewing comparison tests of moisture wicking underwear. Separately a top-secret team of technicians, specialists in heating and cooling, is ready to move in and take over any debate venue that registers above 65 degrees.

These precautions are all intended to manage McCain's known tendency to get hot under the collar at the slightest provocation. And when really provoked McCain is known to breathe fire and sweat bullets. "It's hard to get John to cool off after one of these incidents," says an old family friend. "But that's why he has been so happy with Cindy, becuase he knows that at the end of the day he'll go home to an ice-cold Bud."

wizinit is the nom de guerre of a veteran diplomat and fan of the late columnist Art Buchwald who writes serious analysis and political satire. If you would like to be notified whenever wizinit posts a new article click on the logo to join Food Tasters For Obama.

Obama Goes Global: Visibility in Over 35 Countries

Mark Wiznitzer — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 14:40:04 EDT

Obama Supporters at Paris' Pont des Arts

Primary voters in early states were mightily surprised when they learned the man on the phone named "Skipp," whose genial voice urged their support for Barack Obama was calling from... Japan! Retired as president of Boeing Japan, Skipp Orr is one of many Obama supporters abroad who are doing what they can. In Skipp's case that also included fundraising and speaking to expatriates and students near his second home in Toulouse, France.

Like their counterparts at home, these supporters have formed grassroots groups and networks to help elect Obama. They are highly motivated, having witnessed and experienced first-hand the decline abroad of respect for America under the Bush Administration. So they take to the tasks of campaigning -- making calls, fundraising, writing to local publications, voting as Democrats Abroad, and requesting absentee ballots for November -- with tremendous fervor. And they have coordinated one of the most novel approaches to "visibility" through the Bridges for Obama project.

London's Millenium Footbridge

To date, Obama supporters -- American and foreign -- have conducted their visibility in over 35 countries, on every continent. Meredith Wheeler in France describes the effort:

"The project is gathering photographs and videos of Obama supporters around the world, posing at, on or under famous or scenic bridges, displaying Obama banners--the bridge being an ideal symbol for the Obama candidacy. Bridges unite two banks, spans chasms, gaps and troubled water, brings together opposing sides."

Lebanon's Sowfar Bridge - Yes We Span!

A video montage of the project may be presented at the Democratic National Convention in Denver in August. But in the meantime, you can view a slideshow of the Yes We Span groups doing their thing here. A full list of the countries and bridges (several have multiple locations) is provided below.

Vienna - Obama supporters on the Kennedy Bridge

Which brings me to another related bridge matter. New York State has voted to rededicate and rename the Triborough Bridge connecting New York City's Manhattan, Queens and Bronx boroughs. Culminating a year of events honoring his life and commemorating the 40th anniversary of his tragic death, it will officially become The Robert F. Kennedy Bridge in November. Now is a good time to learn more about or contribute to the Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Center for Human Rights.

Senators Frank Moss (D-Utah) and Robert F. Kennedy (D-New York) with Art Buchwald (center) at Glen Canyon Dam in 1967.

Obama in Berlin: One Speech, Two Audiences

Mark Wiznitzer — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 01:18:35 EDT

Barack Obama’s first trip to Europe as the “presumptive” Democratic nominee will consist of stops in Great Britain, France and Germany. Only one public speech is planned on July 24 in Berlin. The exact location is not yet announced. But psericks has provided fascinating political, historical and even architectural details about the Brandenburger Tor and other possible venues.

Obama’s campaign has proven itself as masterful (if you forgive the faux blue Presidential seal and treatment of ladies in head scarves) at choreographing the backdrop for his speeches as he is in delivering them. Berlin should be no exception. It is a thriving pan-European cultural center 63 years after WWII and two short decades since German unification. And it is full of people who, like a majority of Germans, are wildly enthusiastic about Obama. Europeans generally appear to hope Obama will be the anti-Bush, sent to heal America’s heart and soul. So at whatever place Obama eventually speaks, there should be an enthusiastic throng and prospects for a great “photo op.”

Of course, photo ops can be tricky (see insert for a personal recollection of Jimmy Carter’s missing Caracas photo op). And truly meaningful and lasting memories, like the words and visuals of the Kennedy and Reagan visits, require an almost divine alignment of man, space and time. It is not certain that all these constellations are yet in proper orbit for Obama’s visit, however. For one thing, he will actually be speaking to two important but very different audiences.

Quest For The Perfect Photo Op
President Jimmy Carter made a visit to Caracas, Venezuela in March 1978. I only vaguely recall the event even though I was personally there. It was supposed to be the start of an important visit to Latin America in the wake of the Panama Canal Treaty having been signed, ushering in a new era of US-Latin American relations. However, from my vantage point as a very junior officer serving at U.S. Embassy Caracas, it was not particularly eventful. And while the embassy’s senior staff jostled for “face time” with the President, I was assigned minor logistical duties.

I do clearly recall though that the White House advance team was obsessed about finding the perfect photo op. There were rumors it might appear in or maybe even make the cover of Time magazine. They decided to go for a still shot of Carter and Carlos Andres Perez (CAP), at the time riding high at the peak of Venezuela’s oil boom, walking through the colorful gardens at La Casona, the presidential mansion. I’ve searched, but could not find such a photo through Google.
There is, however, a small picture of the airport arrival ceremony in Google images and The American Presidency Project’s transcript of both presidents’ remarks. Reading the remarks today evokes pathos. For less than a year later, Ayatollah Khomeini would return to Iran, another OPEC country, to lead the revolution that would ultimately cause Carter’s downfall. And in his second term 15 years later, CAP would be forced from of office on corruption charges after surviving a military coup in 1992 by a young lieutenant colonel named Hugo Chavez.
The online transcript of the ceremony says that Carter delivered his speech at Simon Bolivar airport in Maiquetia in Spanish. If he did, I missed it. I was too busy behind-the-scenes making sure the President’s entourage boarded the cars waiting on the tarmac to whisk them all to Caracas.

First and most important is the audience that will not even be there: the American people. They, of course, will elect the next President. In a normally slow summer news cycle, Obama’s current world tour -- which also includes stops in Israel, Jordan, Iraq and Afghanistan -- will be closely watched here at home. However since the US media cannot be relied on to accurately report this trip, the Berlin speech is probably the most important opportunity between the last primary in early June and the Denver convention in late August for Obama to speak directly to American voters.

The other audience will include the people at the speech itself, as well as millions of other Europeans who are watching our presidential election with awe and expectation. For reasons related to their education, media focus and historic reliance on America, this audience is extremely well-informed about our politics. In fact, the average European may be as well or better informed about our national politics as the average American. But after the 2000 and 2004 elections, many Europeans have lost confidence in our ability to conduct elections and in our capacity to make a rational decision about who will lead us.

As much as Americans and Europeans have in common, and there are many ties that remain strong, these two audiences will assess Barack Obama’s performance in Berlin with different concerns and sometimes contradictory perspectives. Americans need to get to know Obama even if they don’t want to. Europeans want to get to know him even if they don’t need to.

Americans face this summer preoccupied by immediate economic problems here at home: the rising cost of gas and food, loss of jobs, home foreclosures and failing financial institutions. As Europeans head out on their traditional extended summer holidays they worry that America’s economic meltdown is dragging down their own banks and jeopardizing their unprecedented standard of living.

America worries about how it can safely extricate its troops from Iraq and restore the rule of law undermined after 9/11. Europe worries that it will be pressured to step up its commitment of forces in Afghanistan. And many Europeans wonder if the next Administration will be prepared to prosecute US officials responsible for violating international laws, conducting renditions, maintaining secret prisons and practicing torture.

America is struggling to assimilate the latest wave in a long history of immigration. Europe is wondering it its current immigrant population explosion is a threat to its religious and cultural identity, like the Ottoman conquest that was blocked somer 300 years ago.

Americans were united geographically following the Civil War, but national partisan divisions based largely on “values” and ideology now stymie government’s ability to provide for the public weal. European countries have for the first time achieved a semblance of transnational unity based on voluntary association, but they now struggle with how further to proceed further with institutional and policy harmonization.

When Barack Obama speaks in Berlin, he will be simultaneously addressing these disparate and sometime conflicting realities. His greatest challenge will not be adapting his style, but accommodating the substance of his oratory. For trying to satisfy one audience may not please the other. The challenge calls for an artful and nuanced construction of both words and ideas. We know that Obama is capable of meeting that challenge, but it will help considerably to have a great speechwriter who can provide the quotes to go along with the visuals.

wizinit is the nom de guerre of a veteran diplomat and fan of the late columnist Art Buchwald who writes serious analysis and political satire. If you would like to be notified whenever wizinit posts a new article click on the logo to join Food Tasters For Obama.

What's $2300 Buy These Days? Not Much Unity.

Mark Wiznitzer — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 14:06:28 EDT

The Obama campaign has launched an all-out effort to help Hillary Clinton retire her debt. Obama’s national finance team members (bundlers) are being asked to go back to the well and get their donor friends to kick in up to $2300 (maximum allowed by law) to Hillary Clinton’s primary campaign. Donations will be designated for Hillary Clinton’s “2008 Primary Election Debt Retirement”. Donors are being assured that the money will not be used to pay back Hillary and Bill Clinton’s personal loan to her campaign, which they reportedly are recognizing as a loss. The campaign’s message is that this financial help is critical to ensure party unity and secure the support of Clinton’s backers – both donors and voters – for Obama in the general election. I’m not convinced.

The major sticking point with most Obama donors revolves around the nature of and reason for the debt, which are obvious to backers of both candidates. No one can blame Obama supporters for not wanting to pay off Hillary’s debts to Mark Penn and his firm, estimated to be anywhere from $2.5 to $10 million dollars. There is also the widespread belief that Clinton’s debt is due in large part to her drive to win a few more states and rack up more delegates even after her decisive loss in North Carolina and bare victory in Indiana made it mathematically impossible for her accumulate enough delegates to win the nomination.

Most small Obama donors also reason that Clinton should get those “die-hard” supporters of hers, those 18 million ceiling-crackers she keeps talking about, to kick in just a couple of bucks each and she’d be home free. Even without Limbaugh’s crossover chaos Republicans in Ohio, Texas and Indiana, who never intended to vote for Hillary in the general. Even discounting the poor white Democrats the Clintons mobilized so effectively in places like western Pennsylvania, North Carolina and Kentucky, who just can’t spare the change right now. Hillary should still be left with over 12-15 million voters who are not maxed out. But getting voters to back their electoral choices with cash -- even if it is only one or two bucks -- is as hard as getting them to agree voluntarily to pay more taxes to retire the federal debt. It ain’t gonna happen.

And how much unity do Obama supporters who dish out up to $2300 get for their money? So far, it looks like the answer is “not much.” In fact, some Hillary supporters like the Denver Group and P.U.M.A. who should be out there asking her voters to kick in are instead investing in confrontation with DNC Chairman Howard Dean and a strategy to revisit Chicago ’68 if she does not get the nomination after all.

An unintended consequence of these die-hards' efforts is that they are undermining efforts by serious Clinton supporters like that other former Vermont Governor Madeleine Kunin to memorialize through a roll call vote Hillary’s historic achievement as America’s first major female candidate for President while confirming Obama as the party’s legitimate nominee. Until Hillary herself publicly rejects these distractions from unity and indicates she will personally call for the unanimous convention endorsement of Barack Obama’s nomination you maybe want to keep those 2300 dollars in an FDIC insured account.

wizinit is the nom de guerre of a veteran diplomat and fan of the late columnist Art Buchwald who writes serious analysis and political satire. If you would like to be notified whenever wizinit posts a new article click and join Food Tasters For Obama.

Fired Up! Ready to Bake!

Mark Wiznitzer — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 11:59:26 EDT

In just over three weeks Barack Obama will be 47. And over 70 Obama supporters have already signed up for the big event on August 4, Barack’s Birthday Bake Off.

What better way to celebrate than with Baked Goods? Food Tasters for Obama is hosting this nationwide event. Sign up here, and send in your ideas, photos and recipes. The best ones will win prizes like this first run t-shirt.

Bake your favorite desert recipe in honor of Barack. And use this event to raise funds, attract and register voters or organize friends of Obama. Here are some of the ideas we’ve received so far from other Obama supporters:

- Lois: “I will make a peach cobbler.”
- Beverly: “Great Idea...will think of something special to do along the lines of Voter Registration!”
- Jessica: “We'll bake oatmeal chocolate/cherry cookies to celebrate and share them with our friends :-). The recipe can be found in the Obama cookbook.”
- Joan: “I definitely will be there! Since I wont turn oven on in summer (energy preservation), I will go directly to Whole Foods for an August 4th birthday treat for our leader. There will be singing, candles, and we will consciously taste and eat it for him.”
- Julie: “Great Idea the 'winning's should be donated to the Obama fund!! Let's get him IN the White house!! ~ ~ now there an idea...a White house cake !! :) let's have fun with this !!”
- Sarah: “Here is my recipe, but it was copied from an old Sara Lee ad years ago: Thaw a Sara Lee Pound Cake and cut lengthwise.
  Cut a one-inch thick slice of Neopolitan ice cream and trim to fit on the cake.
  Put the other half of the cake on top of the ice cream.
  Frost the whole thing with Cool Whip.
  Down the middle of the top of the cake, place maraschino cherries next to each other in a long line and put half a pecan on either side of the cherries.
  Put the cake back in the freezer. Take out 15 minutes before serving.” (Sounds deeelicious)
- Brian: “It's safer for all involved if I do not cook. But I'll go to McDonalds and stick a candle in an apple pie. Happy Birthday Obama!”
- Dianne: “His birthday is 4 days after mine, same year, so we will kind of be celebrating together!”
- William: “I won't be baking but there will be cake. My birthday is August 4th :) I guess I'll have to share that day this year. But it was mine first. I'll be 49.”

Join in folks. If you just are not into baking, don't fret. Just buy a birthday cake to celebrate. (We at Food Tasters for Obama are more into the eating than preparing anyhow.) Or you can just light a candle and sing Happy Birthday. Celebrate while organizing for Obama.

wizinit is the nom de guerre of a veteran diplomat and fan of the late columnist Art Buchwald. If you would like to be notified whenever wizinit posts serious analysis or political satire, click on the logo to join Food Tasters For Obama.

Shocking Michelle Obama Revelation as Food Fight '08 Escalates

Mark Wiznitzer — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 13:57:21 EDT

It was supposed to only be a light "makeover". But Michelle Obama's June 18 appearance on The View has thrown both the gourmet and nutrition worlds into a tailspin. It was all going so well too, until the closing segment discussing breakfast. That's when Michelle revealed that she likes to get her breakfast protein from... sit down when you read this: bacon!

Sure, she also eats toast and fruit. But it was the Everyman's Side that has the food world buzzing. It seems like just yesterday that we learned Barack Obama was an Elitist Modern Metro Man when he talked about the price of arugula at Whole Foods. Well, just fogetaboutit!

And they're not talking about a love of fancy rashers here. No gammon or flitch, jamon or lardon. Not even Canadian or peameal bacon. And certainly not turkey bacon. No, according to Michelle both Obamas are fond of good, old-fashioned American bacon.

Not everyone is walking around in shock after Michelle let slip the Obama secret, however. Traders at the CBOT were salivating at the prospect of a surge in activity on pork bellies, while environmental advocates were dusting off long abandoned projects for converting bacon grease to biofuels. And Food Tasters for Obama has sent its members an urgent appeal for volunteers able to consume a regular diet of high sodium and saturated fats.

Meanwhile, John McCain expressed surprise over media attacks on his wife's latest example of plagiarizing recipes. It was revealed this week that Cindy McCain tried to pass a slightly modified Hershey's oatmeal butterscotch cookie recipe as her own, and two months ago the McCain web site removed her "family recipes" after it was learned they had been filched from the Food Network. Coming to her defense, McCain said critics who call her a cereal offender are "delusional" and display "a perfect manifestation of a September 10 mindset."

wizinit is the nom de guerre of a veteran diplomat who is a fan of the late columnist Art Buchwald and comedian Andy Borowitz. If you would like to be notified whenever wizinit posts serious analysis or political satire, click on the logo to join Food Tasters For Obama.

Part II: Obama Roadmap to the White House

Mark Wiznitzer — Sun, 15 Jun 2008 18:16:54 EDT

The Candidate-Nominee Crossover

The first article in this series described how some of the most astute political observers were “blindsided by Hope” and Barack Obama’s historic victory, convinced America would continue to be ruled by Freak Show politics. Eleven organizational principles guided Obama’s campaign for the nomination, which relied heavily on grass roots and community organizing tactics. The successful “early states” strategy provided enough momentum to carry Obama over the finish line, a race he won by the only measure that counted: delegates.

This article offers a candid assessment of the campaign’s challenges as Obama goes from being a candidate to the nominee. Obama will adapt his management approach to the general election campaign, internalizing electoral strategy as an important part of the corporate culture. The internal challenge is melding a grass roots movement with the Democratic Party establishment and limiting expenditures on paid political ads and services. The external challenge is to avoid inevitable distractions and stay on message. Obama can reassure voters by convincing them he can best promote their enlightened self-interest and through his selection of a running mate and shadow cabinet. The result could be an historic and major pendulum swing in American politics.

Part II continues below the fold.

No sign of Obama hinted some sensed in 2004 that Obama would make history. But few expected it would be so soon.

It's The War Economy, Stupid! Redux - Truth About Taxes

Mark Wiznitzer — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 00:22:06 EDT

On January 12, I posted "It's The War Economy, Stupid!", which argued that our economic meltdown was directly related to the war in Iraq. Back then I tried to explain that the sub-prime mortgage crisis was but the leading edge of a much broader problem with the credit markets, aggravated if not precipitated by the fact America had gone to war after cutting taxes and without making provisions to raise revenue to finance our foreign adventure. It gave me no satisfaction (nor did I get any credit) when the editors of The Nation published a similar article two months later making much the same points as I had that was entitled... that's right: "It's the War Economy, Stupid!"

The Nation complained that the candidates had not linked "war spending with our economic woes", and that John McCain's long term ideas on Iraq threatened to balloon our national debt well beyond a conservative estimate of $3 trillion. In the electoral contest ahead of us, McCain will suggest that Barack Obama's promise to withdraw from Iraq threatens a disaster. He will also lead the GOP drumbeat to paint Obama as a tax-and-spend Democrat who will only make life miserable for all Americans, while McCain would make permanent Bush's tax cuts.

I have news for America. Remember those Bush tax cuts that John McCain now believes should be made permanent? You are actually still paying that same amount, but we're not calling them "taxes". And while conditions are already dire for many, those payments are not going to the US Government to pay for the war, healthcare, education, college education, veterans benefits, or rebuilding our crumbling infrastructure. None of it.

No, you are actually paying more than they said you would "save" on taxes to... the countries from which we import crude oil. And 40% of our imported oil comes from Saudi Arabia, Nigeria and Venezuela.

If you're interested in my methodology, here's my calculation. The cost of crude oil has gone from $32.21 on January 21, 2001, the day Bush was inaugurated to $131.38 this week, that's up to 400% over the past seven plus years. In the ame timeframe, the cost to buyers in Europe of the same barrel went from Euro 34.15 to Euro 85.21 just under 250%. So Americans pay 150% more relative to Europeans compared to 2001.

Now some will argue that this difference is the result of a major devaluation in the dollar. But the weakness of the dollar is a reflection of our economic and political mismanagement. The fall in the dollar's value is tied to global perceptions that the US has practiced reckless fiscal as well as monetary policy while conducting two wars and becoming globally less competetive. As for the reality of pricing, that is based on where you live and which economy you are embedded in. So if you are Joe Blow in Podunk USA earning dollars, you pay in dollars, while Jan Jansen in Kabouterstad NL earns Euros and pays in Euros. And Joe's effective increase is 150% greater than Jan's.

This means the relative cost to America is equivalent to $51 more per barrel than to Europe. And since we import 9.618 million barrels per day, that works out to $179 billion/year, or $588.81 for each American man, woman and child (or $2355 for a family of four). And the Bush tax cuts? Well that came to $1 trillion dollars over the first 6 years, which works out to an average of just over $548 per person per year (or $2192 for that family of four). And of course you know that the wealthy received a disprorportionate share of those "cuts". That means in the end most Americans have ended up paying far more in "taxes" to foreigners than the Bush and the US Congress "cut". And the candidates cannot begin to explain this fact cause they're too busy looking for "whitey" tapes and explaining "fist bumps".

wizinit is the nom de guerre of a veteran diplomat who is a fan of the late columnist Art Buchwald and comedian Andy Borowitz. If you would like to be notified whenever wizinit posts serious analysis or political satire, click on the logo to join Food Tasters For Obama.

Not Just Another "How Obama Won" Article

Mark Wiznitzer — Sat, 07 Jun 2008 10:38:51 EDT

You knew it would come to this, right? Now everyone's writing about "How Obama Won". I did it myself, drawing on my eight state campaign experiences, in OMS over 3 weeks ago in Part I: Obama Roadmap to the White House. TIME's Karen Tumulty wrote a great report about how Obama did it entitled... you guessed it, How Obama Did It. And there's the Atltanta Journal-Consitution article hailing the hip and tech-savvy Super Bowl ad in How Obama Won the Nomination. So here is another interesting analysis in Business Week applying guru Peter Drucker's paradigm, called Obama's Drucker-Style Win. It's time for me to write that Part II about how he's going to win in November before everyone else does so. Don't you think?

Clinton's Sequel to The Willing Suspension of Disbelief

Mark Wiznitzer — Thu, 05 Jun 2008 16:36:03 EDT

Hillary the Inevitable

Like the rest of us, Barack Obama learned from the media that Hillary Clinton will announce the suspension of her campaign for the Democratic Party's nomination for President this Saturday. And while there is all sorts of gossip about what will happen next, for now the drama continues.

Just last week, Bill Clinton complained that he'd "never seen a candidate treated so disrespectfully just for running." Well look again, Bill. Because your wife just succeeded in performing a 10-point-perfect double-dis against Barack Obama. First she stiff-armed his historic claim to the party's nomination with her "victory" speech on Tuesday night. Then the next day she ignores the most basic courtesy of telling her party's nominee she is dropping out of the race. She even passed up the opportunity to do so in person at the AIPAC conference. What a class act!

All's not well in Hillarywood. The problem with this picture show is the "suspension of disbelief."

Suspension of Disbelief
In the world of fiction you are often required to believe a premise which you would never accept in the real world. Especially in genres such as fantasy and science fiction, things happen in the story which you would not believe if they were presented in a newspaper as fact. Even in more real-world genres such as action movies, the action routinely goes beyond the boundaries of what you think could really happen.
In order to enjoy such stories, the audience engages in a phenomenon known as "suspension of disbelief". This is a semi-conscious decision in which you put aside your disbelief and accept the premise as being real for the duration of the story.
Suspension of disbelief only works to a point. It is important that the story maintains its own form of believability and doesn't push the limits too far.

Hillary Clinton herself introduced the concept last September when told General Petreus that his Iraq progress report required "a willing suspension of disbelief." But then so did much of her production of "Hillary the Inevitable", which regularly stretched the imagination to convince the media and public that she really had earned the nomination.

For example, her suggestion that party caucuses are undemocratic, that caucus state voters don't count, or that popular votes including the unsanctioned primaries in Florida and Michigan determines the winner. For five months we almost forgot that the story was all about delegates. So we have to concede she put on a fine show.

Sure, there were those plot lines that just did not seem to work because the evidence was so obvious. Like landing under sniper fire at Tuzla, or the policy on drivers licenses for non-resident foreigners, or the gasoline tax holiday. But as always, the talented Clinton Producer-Director-Acting team gave us a performance that spanned the spectrum of emotions. In fact, those scenes, from tears in NH to that distinctive laughter at the debates, will live on in memory long after show is over.

Sequel: Dream Ticket

Before we have even seen the last episode of their previous production, here comes the sequel, in which Bill and Hillary decide she would make the ideal Vice President. But now the suspension of disbelief is really to be tested.

First item is the casting. We don't yet know what part if any Geraldine Ferraro, who in the original production effectively portrayed the angry-older-white-woman with a hint of racist rage, will be allowed to play this time around. It looks like Bill Clinton, who previously as the male lead pretentiously suggested Barack take the minor part as her running mate even though he was ahead by every measure, will have fewer lines and be assigned a far smaller role at best. This is bound to make the entire story far less exciting.

BET founder Bob Johnson has already proven himself entirely miscast as the supplicant to the Congressional Black Caucus for Hillary-as-running-mate, which was just plain unconvincing. And everyone will miss Terry McAuliffe (last seen doing shots of Bacardi with Mika Brzezinski, presumably on their way to rehab) and Howard Wolfson, both of whom should be way too busy selling their tell-nothing books in the months ahead.

However, the greatest challenge to the suspension of disbelief will be those plot lines we just skimmed over the last time around. There is that little matter of being "fully vetted" and 35 years of experience. For a start, the new script-writing team of Johnson, Kennedy and Holder will have to struggle with Hillary's first radical law work in San Francisco and the performance review of her part in the Watergate investigation. And of course there are all those comments she made about Barack Obama over the past several months.

It's also not clear how the next episode will treat the problems hinted at by Vanity Fair. Forget about undocumented sexual innuendo. After Sex in the City and Larry Craig in the Minneapolis airport, that part is probably a sleeper. No, I'm thinking of Bill's high-flying friends and library donors. And those hints of influence peddling disguised as speaking and consulting fees on the joint tax returns. Now those issues could be a real problem reconciling with Obama's political themes. And if he adheres to the "no-drama" genre of inspiring documentary, the Clinton sequel could well be scrapped for a lack of both political and financial support. Just stay tuned.

[Cross posted at www.onemillionstrong.us and www.dailykos.com]

Whatever Happened to... the "Vow of Silence"?

Mark Wiznitzer — Thu, 05 Jun 2008 00:20:40 EDT

It may just be an unintended consequence of the historic trend eroding the traditional respect for the First Amendment's establishment clause. Or are we being treated to what is just another installment of the series known as "Clergy-Gone-Wild"? Does anyone else find the role played by men-of-the-cloth (and I would include women, though they seem to be having a hard time breaking the glass "celestial" ceiling) in modern political life entirely inappropriate? Or am I alone in this?

So after suffering through the distractions this year of Wright, Hagee, Parsley and Pfleger, may I propose an ancient spiritual remedy: The Vow of Silence!

[Original posted on www.onemillionstrong.us on May 30, 2008]

Mi Viaje Espiritual por Barack Obama

Mark Wiznitzer — Mon, 26 May 2008 10:50:04 EDT

Mi Viaje Espiritual

por Barack Obama

Un extracto de la traducción no oficial del artículo escrito por Barack Obama. La versión original fue publicada en la revista TIME del 16 de Octubre, 2006. La traducción era un esfuerzo comunal en el año 2007 entre 5 voluntarios, partidarios del Senador Obama.

Bill Clinton Shopping a Yenta*

Mark Wiznitzer — Fri, 23 May 2008 14:01:22 EDT

Word on the streets from Brooklyn to Boca is that former President Bill Clinton is shopping for a matchmaker. He wants to arrange a dream ticket between Hillary and “presumptive” Democratic Party nominee for President Barack Obama, a prospect that has Food Tasters For Obama salivating. That may help explain why New York Governor David Patterson reports “we’re starting to see a little desperation on the part of the woman who I support and I'll support until whatever time she makes a different determination.”

Hillary still insists she is within her legal rights to keep fighting for the nomination, which would allow her to tie the knot with Evan Bayh. You may remember that the Indiana Senator helped save Hillary’s honor in his home state’s primary, where she won by a scant 14,000 votes out of over 1.27 million. She is actively seeking out venues for a simple civil ceremony in Michigan or Florida, hoping such a chaseneh will be blessed by the Democratic Party’s Rules Committee on May 31. But Gov. Patterson dismissed Hillary’s strategy saying, “I don't think anybody in their right mind would do that, nor would they see it as a civil rights issue."

Meanwhile, Bill Clinton is trying to impress Obama with promises of a dowry. In order to arrange a graceful exit for Hillary from a losing race for delegates, Bill has offered to pay for a gala party in Washington DC next January. Hillary of course would invite her 10 million women supporters to celebrate the Obama-Clinton union. Bill boasts it would be “a party beyond anything anyone has ever seen before, beyond the imagination even of the biggest Hollywood machers.” But Obama has shown by raising lots of gelt for his campaign that he has no problem paying for his own simchas. In any case, with both his grass roots approach and green philosophy, Obama is more likely to encourage communities across American to organize their own celebrations when he takes office, rather seeing hordes of farshikkert supporters descending on Washington.

Obama is said to be unimpressed by Bill Clinton’s shtick, especially after the recently failed Bubba Tour in western North Carolina. Instead, the Obama team is apparently demanding through Veep Searchmeister Jim Johnson that Bill publish a list of donors to his opulent Presidential Library in Little Rock. According to Johnson, “after we can talk about a kalleh.”

Friends of Obama say he is far more intrigued by a possible union this November with Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius. Not only is she the chief executive of the state from which his maternal grandparents emigrated, she is also the daughter of former Ohio Governor John Gilligan. Political observers agree that Sebelius is a better turn-the-page match than Hillary. And as someone who has shown great interest in his own genealogy, Obama is undoubtedly fascinated by Sebelius’ pedigree. Little wonder that Bill Clinton has threatened Obama with lots of tsuris if he rebuffs Hillary, noting he and his Ozark kinsmen can always arrange a shot-gun wedding in Denver this August.

*For Yiddish purists, the proper term for matchmaker is “shadchen”, but the name Yenta, referring to the character in Fiddler on the Roof, has become a widely-used title.

New Food Tasters for Obama Logo

Mark Wiznitzer — Tue, 20 May 2008 22:19:39 EDT

Please leave a comment on the blog to let us know if you find our logo is in good taste.

Spice up your life. Join Food Tasters for Obama to receive both serious and satirical takes on Barack Obama's quest to become the next President of the United States.

Appreciating Kentucky's Idiosyncratic Politics

Mark Wiznitzer — Mon, 19 May 2008 15:14:23 EDT

Why the ‘Bluegrass State’ Is No ‘Land of Lincoln’

Barack Obama is expected to lose tomorrow’s primary race in Kentucky to Hillary Clinton, and it is not even expected to be close. Clinton leads Obama in the latest public opinion polls by anywhere from 25 to 36 percent, with an RCP average of 29.2 percent. But do not be surprised if her margin exceeds this range, perhaps approaching, that of her victory last week in West Virginia. Here are some things to keep in mind as you try to understand the results of the Kentucky primary.

The demographics favor Clinton, as seen in these statistics and state rankings. It is 90.4% white. It ranks 44 with a median household annual income of $37,369. It has 19% and ranks 48 in persons 25 and older with a Bachelors degree. Recent voting patterns also favor Hillary. Bill Clinton won the state in 1992 by a margin of 3 and carried it in 1996 by just 1 percent. By contrast, George W. Bush won in 2000 and 2004 by a decisive 15 and 20 percent, respectively.

A former colleague of mine who has represented the state of Kentucky overseas for several years last week forwarded a letter to the editor he had read that led me to some more curious facts and the unique historical roots of the state’s conservatism. Kentucky was admitted to the Union as a slave state in 1792, but did not secede and join the Confederate States of America. Although Abraham Lincoln was born in Kentucky, when this “native son” first ran for President in 1860, he came in last in a four-man race, receiving less than one percent of the vote. And even in the election of 1864, running only against George McClellan, Lincoln mustered only 30.17%. That made Kentucky one of only three states that did not go for Lincoln. And by comparison, he only lost New Jersey and Delaware by less than 6% and 4%, respectively.

So remember as you consider the results of the Kentucky primary, this is the state where at his peak Abraham Lincoln lost by almost 40%. Barack Obama may have good company in the record books on this one.

[Enjoy this author's work? Receive a notice of every new article posted when you join Food Tasters for Obama.]

Cross Posted at www.onemillionstrong.us

Part I: Obama Roadmap to the White House

Mark Wiznitzer — Fri, 16 May 2008 22:58:15 EDT

Blindsided by Hope

Many Americans, and not just those close to Hillary Clinton, are surprised that Barack Obama has emerged as the “presumptive” Democratic Party nominee for President in the 2008 election. But those of us who have been paying close attention to the candidate and his campaign know it is no fluke. This article explains how Obama planned and won the nomination. In subsequent articles I will try to anticipate the contest with John McCain and what the start of an Obama Administration could look like.

Largely lost in the Sturm und Drang of this historic campaign is the fact that Obama has consistently pursued a clear-cut strategy. It is a strategy unanticipated by Halperin and Harris in their 2006 epic fable of the looming contest between the politics of Clinton vs. Rove, The Way to Win: Taking the White House in 2008. And their -- for that matter, the entire mainstream media’s -- failure to anticipate Obama’s so-far successful candidacy is not just a reminder of the shortcomings of conventional wisdom and inside-the-Beltway punditry. It also a warning that we may be in a historic shift which, after the last vote is counted, will indicate that the American electorate is fed up with the heretofore successful Freak Show formula Halperin and Harris describe and that dominated Washington politics over the past two decades.

Obama’s 11 Principles

The basic ingredients for Obama’s success were a new, authentic political candidate and a country desperate for Change. But then there is the process of getting nominated and elected.

Regardless of who designed the electoral strategy and have so far effectively carried it out, Barack Obama himself ultimately bears responsibility for its success or failure. But here are eleven organizational principles of the Obama ’08 campaign I have identified that help explain how far he has come to date:

1. Conduct campaign like a business

2. Eschew staff “drama”

3. Apply community organization techniques

4. Ground game is to identify supporters, register voters and get-out-the-vote

5. Where practical, use motivated volunteers

6. Emphasize “early states,” paying particular attention to Iowa as first contest

7. “Free media” trumps paid media

8. Ride momentum of early successes

6. Compete for delegates in every contest

10. Maximize results down to the congressional district level

11. Grass roots can trump party establishment and machinery

The Clinton Myth Unmasked

The Obama campaign’s most important achievement has been largely obscured by the media’s coverage of the contest. He attracted experienced strategists and field operatives from earlier contests to his Chicago headquarters, and received the first clear indicator he could succeed in fundraising when his “early money” rivaled Clinton’s “old money”.

No one anticipated, however, that Obama would achieve his initial and most important electoral objective, and prevent Hillary Clinton from effectively winning any of the four “early states.” After all, in delegate counts, she came in third in Iowa, tied in NH, lost NV by one, and was trounced in SC. It is only the media’s acceptance of the revisionist myth spun by her campaign into widely-believed truth, that the contest was close, and the distraction of the subsequent blood match that has disguised this fact. And only those who have worked with them in Washington could anticipate the desperate measures that Clintons would resort to against Obama before the race for the Democratic nomination would end. They took a calculated gamble by tossing their most loyal constituency under the bus, the African American community that stuck with Bill Clinton through his darkest hours and was mostly pro-Hillary when the contest started. The gamble failed and ultimately backfired.

George Bush Following in Bill Clinton's Footsteps?

Mark Wiznitzer — Thu, 15 May 2008 13:50:15 EDT

Cross Posted at www.OneMillionStrong.us

George W. Bush injected himself into the 2008 presidential race today when he took a swipe at Barack Obama in a speech to the Israeli Knesset. Without naming the Illinois Senator, the President criticized Obama's call for diplomatic engagement with Iran. Former Republican Presidential candidate Pat Buchanan, commenting on MSNBC, described the President’s attack on a domestic political opponent in a formal speech in a foreign capital as “astonishing”. White House spokesmen said the speech was not a slam on Obama. However, CNN’s headline declared “Bush suggests Obama wants 'appeasement' of terrorists.”

[begin satire]

Speaking to a group of Americans Abroad in Tel Aviv after his speech, the President echoed Bill Clinton’s appeal on behalf of Hillary in January in New Hampshire, asking voters to give John McCain a "fighting chance" to continue the policies of the past eight years. “We can’t be a new story, I’m sorry,” he said apologetically, “there’s nothing we can do. I can’t make him younger, hairier, or African American. There’s lotsa things I can’t do. But if you want a President and you need one, he would be by far the best.”

These comments of course have led some political and psycho-analysts to see other strong similarities with former President Clinton's sometimes controversial role in his wife’s campaign. They speculate Bush is trying to make up for the public humiliation he subjected McCain to during his failed contest for the Republican nomination in 2000. Others note a McCain victory may be the last opportunity for Bush to restore the legacy of his own Presidency, stained by the scandals of a failed war, an economy on the brink of depression and the Administration’s response to Hurricane Katrina. However, most analysts do not expect Bush to follow the example of former Presidents Clinton and Bush’s own father, George H.W. Bush, in promoting philanthropy after he leaves the White House. With all the catching up he has to do on the golf course, unfortunately they just don’t think there will be enough time left for fighting AIDS or helping disaster victims.

In other news, White House Press Secretary Dana Perino confirmed that the President has asked the Justice Department to provide him with a list of all Administration officials who may have committed crimes while in office. “The President wishes to ensure that before he leaves office his Article II powers to grant pardons are exercised to the fullest extent, whether just for directing lucrative contracts to cronies or the commission of war crimes. This is one section of the Constitution that the President considers sacrosanct.” Perino would not indicate, however, if the President was prepared to make public the names of all donors to the George W. Bush Presidential Library that will be constructed starting next year at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, and is expected to cost as much as $500 million. "It is too early to make that call," said Perino, "and we were frankly hoping Bill Clinton would break ground on that precedent. We'll just have to wait and see what he does if Hillary becomes Vice President."

wizinit is the nom de guerre of a veteran diplomat whose career highlight was lunching with the late Art Buchwald in an Eighth Floor dining room at the US State Department in the mid-eighties. He is now a registered Fan of Andy Borowitz at the Huffington Post.

"Vote For Change" Registration Drive in Burlington VT

Mark Wiznitzer — Sun, 11 May 2008 13:14:35 EDT

Vermont State Attorney General William Sorrell and grass roots organizer Mary Sullivan listen as state representative Rachel Weston fires up Vote For Change volunteers at Burlington City Hall.

About twenty Obama supporters gathered in front of the Burlington City Hall at noon Saturday to participate in the Obama campaign's national "Vote for Change" voter registration drive. The event was organized by Mary Sullivan, a former Democratic member of the Vermont House of Representatives and grass roots activist for Obama. Before fanning out across the city to register new voters, Vermont State Attorney General William Sorrell and current state Rep Rachel Weston spoke to the volunteers (I previously reported Sorrell's participation in a Club Obama organizing party last September, as well as his Top Ten List of reasons to support Barack Obama) . The voter registration drive was reported on local news station WCAX-TV, including coverage of Sorrell giving the Vermont Voter's Oath (foremrly Freeman's Oath) to new registrants (read story and view the video report here).

Food Tasters for Obama Prepare for Ultimate Sacrifice

Mark Wiznitzer — Fri, 09 May 2008 15:24:33 EDT

Tuesday's primaries made Barack Obama the "presumptive nominee". Now there is increasing speculation that Hillary Clinton will be his running mate. But some pundits warn that Obama better watch his back should Hillary become his Vice President. Concern was heightened after Bill Clinton recently invited Barack Obama for tea with some of Vladimir Putin's "associates" at New York's famous Russian Tea Room.

The danger of having the Clintons, who know their way around the White House kitchen, too close for comfort has motivated some Obama supporters to launch a new group seeking to protect their candidate from any close encounters with a bad oyster. Die-hard Obama supporters now have the opportunity to serve and make the ultimate sacrifice by joining Food Tasters for Obama.

Photo - Curry taster Sanjay Singh Sighat, whose tongue is insured for a million British Pounds, has not yet joined the group. The group members HOPE he will agree to help train the Food Tasters for Obama.

A number of enthusiastic supporters have already signaled their desire to build the cadre of committed tasters to supplement the secret service's work of protecting the President of the United States.

Greg says he looks forward to enjoying wholesome foods prepared by outstanding White House chefs. "I've been trying for months to get away from all those leftovers reheated in the microwave," he exclaimed happily, "but it has been hard to do fine dining during the intense campaign these past few months." Hannah said she is excited to taste for Barack, although she does not like mushrooms. Joe wants to make sure the group includes hard-working, white Americans and the foods they love, like meat and potatoes. "I wanna devote my sophisticated palate to da cause," he said, "and that ranges from Big Mac meals right through to meatloaf and garlic mash, and everything in between."

Food Tasters for Obama founder Mark said the Obama food tent will be large, with room for every everyone. "We are fully inclusive and are sure there will be meaningful roles to play for supporters of all dietary persuasions. That includes kosher and halal, veggie and vegan, gluten- or peanut-free, and any other kind of food allergy. In fact, Steve, one of our most ardent members, is a lactose-inolerant soy latte drinker who stays awake all night thinking about getting started. I told him to switch to decaf until he gets the call."

Elsewhere, this morning on NBC's Today show mega-millionaire Bill Clinton declared that he will never release the names of his Foundation donors -- not during the presidential campaign, and not even if Hillary becomes Vice President. "I'm not the candidate," he said.

Germans Want You To Know: Dusseldorf Appreciates Barack Obama's Dogged Pursuit of the Nomination

Mark Wiznitzer — Mon, 05 May 2008 00:15:05 EDT

Last month I told you about the Belgian politicians who decided to put up posters of Barack Obama at the entrances to the historic city of Brugge (Bruges) in an effort to reach out to American tourists. Well in case you missed it, here are photos of a float in the Dusseldorf carnival parade in early February, just before Super Tuesday. A Stern poll of over a thousand Germans conducted about the same time indicated that they favored Obama over Clinton by 43 to 39 percent.

NC Diary: Your Calls Do Matter!

Mark Wiznitzer — Sun, 04 May 2008 22:45:09 EDT

In deference to the request of the Obama campaign that volunteers not blog about their work in North Carolina, I am going to avoid discussing strategy, numbers, or any details that could be misrepresented or misunderstood. What I will report is that, after two days of talking to North Carolina voters, the closest comparison I can draw with the six other states I have been to is my initial impression last January in South Carolina. Missing in the dynamic "Triangle" is the widespread and mind-numbing poverty of rural South Carolina.

On my first day, I had the pleasure of working in Raleigh with an older African-American woman from Houston who traveled here for her first canvass ever. For the rest of my stay here I will be working with Alex and Tom, staffers previously in Iowa and NH, in Cary NC. Cary is one of the fastest growing towns in the country, known locally as the "Containment Area for Relocated Yankees".

I spent the entire day yesterday with Pierre, a Haitian-American lawyer from central Florida, here at his own expense to help the campaign for two days. We were joined at the end of the day by Amy, a woman in her sixties and a transplant from northern Italy now living in this area, who has campaigned long and hard for Obama in various states. So my experience with staff and supporters here has been as inspiring as my contact with North Carolina voters.

North Carolina's period of "One-Stop EarlyVoting" program, which allowed citizens to register and vote at the same time, ended yesterday at 1PM, and the sites near here were swamped. Now all eyes are on the Tuesday primary, from 6:30AM to 7:30PM.

The threat of rain predicted for this weekend apparently has passed. So I look forward to three more beautiful days of sunny, warm weather that will allow me to do what I do best: talking to voters face-to-face. But you too can help Barack Obama tremendously in North Carolina (and Indiana). Voters here as elsewhere across the country have been overwhelmed by media "noise" and campaign distractions. This has taken its toll and is reflected in recent polling. So do make calls to remind voters of why they were going to vote for Obama in the first place. They really do believe in and hope for change in Washington, and those hopes need to be validated.

Howie "Baghdad Bob" Wolfson's Cut on ABC Debate

Mark Wiznitzer — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 23:49:29 EDT

In conference call Thursday morning, Clinton Propaganda Director Howie “Baghdad Bob” Wolfson said that the ABC Debate moderators -- Charles Gibson and George Stephanopoulos -- had done "a superb job" last night. “How fortunate the voters are,” he said, “that they were spared the agony of having to get through two full hours of complex, substantive discussion. Instead, they got to see Barack Obama dodge and weave as only an accomplished basketball player can.”

Wolfson saved his greatest praise, however, for Hillary Clinton: “Senator Clinton was able to use the occasion to propose an ‘umbrella of deterrence’ for our all of our friends in the Middle East, not just Israel. This will guarantee once-and-for-all that the royal households of the Gulf, who donated so kindly and generously to the Clinton Library, can count on us to keep them in power and ensure our national addiction to imported oil for generations to come. No other candidate of either party has demonstrated this level of creativity in all the debates of the past year,” he boasted.

Howie Wolfson Borrows Baghdad Bob's Playbook

Mark Wiznitzer — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 23:36:03 EDT

In a Pennsylvania “state of the race” telephone conference today, Hillary Clinton’s spokesperson, Howie Wolfson, brushed aside recent calls from some senior party officials for her to end the race before she destroys the Democratic Party. Asked if Senator Barack Obama’s lead in pledged delegates, states and popular votes won did not pose an insurmountable obstacle to Clinton winning the nomination he said: "Pay no attention to those people. The road to 1600 Pennsylvania goes through Pennsylvania, and there are no Obama delegates on that road, just liars.”

Elton John's Misogyny Unbound

Mark Wiznitzer — Sun, 13 Apr 2008 10:35:15 EDT

1.25 million dollars.

That is the approximate value of Sir Elton John’s performance at Hillary Clinton’s New York fundraiser April 9. I base that on the estimated cost of a private show by the Rocket Man at a Wynn Las Vegas piano bar in late 2005, with an upward adjustment for the British Pound’s subsequent appreciation. So the final bill for this week’s appearance comes to about one-half of the $2.5 million reportedly raised at the event.

We’ll leave it to the FEC to set the final valuation of necessary campaign reimbursement to avoid what would otherwise be an in-kind donation by a foreign national, which is strictly verboten. Of course, if it moves at its usual speed, the regulatory body should take at least 2-3 years to sort this one out. It is much easier, however, to figure out the absurdity of Elton John’s provocative critique of Americans who dislike Hillary Clinton when he said:

“I never cease to be amazed at the misogynistic attitude of some people in this country.
And I say to hell with them."

It is doubtful that Sir Elton read Kevin Drum’s article in the April 9 Washington Monthly. Drum reports on a blind test poll that found, while 26% of voters were “angry or upset” at the idea of a female US President, the response was virtually identical among men and women. And this poll was conducted in March 2006, long before Hillary declared her intention to run for President. So it is not obvious that widespread disapproval of Hillary is due to a hatred of women per se.

A Message From Mark Wiznitzer

Mark Wiznitzer — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 18:23:43 EDT

Dear Family and Friends,

I have volunteered my time with the Obama campaign for almost a year now, as most of you know. My engagement is primarily with domestic politics, not the foreign policies of my professional past. My efforts have tried to inform voters and build support for Barack Obama. I am motivated by the passionate belief that this is the most important election of my lifetime, our country is at a critical crossroads and, long after my career of public service has ended, I still have a duty and obligation to work for the best possible course for our future.

Policy of course is part of the conversation, whether in New Hampshire, Iowa, Nevada, South Carolina or Vermont. And the policies that most voters there expressed an interest in were the war in Iraq, economy, healthcare, energy, environment, education, influence of special interests in Washington, and the Government's upholding the Constitution. These issues appear to be of tremendous importance and urgency to most Americans regardless of party, gender, race, religion, geography or other distinctions.

Interestingly, except with family and some friends, the subject of Obama's support for Israel or attitude towards Jews had seldom come up until my visit to Pennsylvania this past week. This was the first time I canvassed in a predominantly Jewish area, and I encountered widespread concern about Obama's views on both Israel and Jews.

In my last blog, entitled The Politics of Fear vs. the Politics of Hope, I described the campaign of fear and suspicion through emails and media coverage that can be traced back to January 2008. The campaign stimulated concerns that were obviously exacerbated by the coverage last month of comments by Obama's former pastor Jeremiah Wright. Just yesterday the LA Times appeared to continue the campaign with an article entitled "Allies of Palestinians see a friend in Barack Obama".

I hope that you will take the time to reach your own independent opinion on this subject, and felt it important to provide you with some information you may not have seen before. The following is from Fact Check on LA Times Story on Obama, Islam and Israel. I've added at the end of this message an article entitled "My Neighbor, Barack", written by Rabbi Arnold Jacob Wolf, rabbi emeritus at Chicago's KAM Isaiah Israel, Illinois's oldest Jewish congregation. He lives across the street from Senator Barack Obama.

Thank you in advance for taking the time to read this long message. Mark

PA Wrap-Up: The Politics of Fear vs. the Politics of Hope

Mark Wiznitzer — Thu, 10 Apr 2008 22:02:44 EDT

The PA primary has come to this. No it's not a fallout shelter, just the vault in the Ardmore Obama'08 office mentioned in my previous diary.

This is my last day canvassing in PA. On my way back home, I will stop off northeast of Philly for the campaign-sponsored meeting tonight with Dan Kurtzer, our former Ambassador to both Egypt and Israel. It has been nine years since I last saw him at the Department of State, where he was my boss during my last two-year tour of duty in Washington before we both headed overseas to very different destinations. It will be good to see him again, but even more important to hear how he addresses the concerns of the Jewish community here, which has clearly been influenced by the politics of fear.

Dan Kurtzer is both the consummate diplomat and a great human being. And that is why I was very pleased to hear last month that he had come out in support of Barack Obama. With his Middle Eastern experience and as an observant Jew, Kurtzer should have considerable credibility in addressing Jewish concerns. But I do not want to minimize the challenge here, underlined by the young female rabbi visiting from NYC who told me yesterday that she was surprised by the degree of suspicion of Obama in the Jewish community.

PA Diary: Canvassing a Philly Suburb

Mark Wiznitzer — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 23:00:13 EDT

I have cautioned from the beginning that public opinion polls should be considered with utmost caution. Nowhere is this more certain than the current primary race in Pennsylvania. The latest American Research Group poll was conducted April 5 and 6, which happen to be the two days I was out knocking on doors for Barack Obama in the Main Line Philadelphia towns of Gladwyne and Penn Wynne in Montgomery county. The poll results show the candidates tied state-wide with 45% each. That erases the 12% lead that Clinton enjoyed in the same poll as recently as March 26-27. I have to admit, I don't get it.

I arrived late Friday and headed on Saturday morning to the Obama'08 office in Ardmore, less than 2 miles from where I am staying with friends. The office is installed in a former bank. The lot was full, so I parked in the old bank’s drive-through lane. The bank vault was once used to store precious possessions; it still is. But this time the valuables are campaign materials, like literature and yard signs. I am not exaggerating. Here voters must personally come by the office and make a donation before they can get a yard sign.

There were lots of first -time volunteers, including my hosts’ 13-year old son who joined me on Saturday. Our goal was to ID Obama supporters for the GOTV on April 22. After a well-organized training session, it was out the door to Lower Merion Township. I did not fully realize until we arrived in nearby Gladwyne that we were canvassing in one of America's wealthiest communities. Scattered among the stately old stone homes and tastefully renovated barns were a few gaudy MacMansions. Walking was out of the question, as the distances between addresses on our list were considerable, and the driveways of some houses were far too long and/or extremely steep.

The Rev. Wright: What Fox Failed to Mention

Mark Wiznitzer — Thu, 03 Apr 2008 19:31:47 EDT

In a previous posting here, I pointed out that FOX News had failed to inform viewers that the chickens-coming-home-to-roost comment part of the Rev. Wright guilt-by-association "loop" that it ran ad nauseam was actually quoting a white US Ambassador that he had heard on... FOX!

Ironically, it took today's Chicago Tribune op-ed by former Reagan Administration appointee Lawrence Korb to demonstrate the true meaning of "fair and balanced". Korb, who served as Assistant Secretary of Defense for Manpower, Reserve Affairs, Installations and Logistics, reviews Wright's patriotic record of military service from 1961-67, during the height of America's civil rights struggle. He also contrasts this record with that of VP Cheney, Presidents Clinton and George W. Bush, as well as comedians Rush Limbaugh and Bill O. Think FOX will devote much time to this subject?

Belgians Want You To Know: Brugge (Bruges) For Obama

Mark Wiznitzer — Thu, 03 Apr 2008 14:58:56 EDT

Should you be lucky enough to visit Flanders province in Belgium this summer you may be surprised to find a life-size poster of Barack Obama greeting you at every entrance to the historic old capital city of Brugge.

This support and attempt to influence the 40,000 Americans who visit the UNESCO World Heritage Site annually is an initiative of two popular local politicians. Jean Marie de Meester, a council member in Oostkamp, says "the US elections are almost as important to Europeans as to Americans themselves." If Obama gets the Democratic nomination, he hopes to come to the US to help his campaign in the week before the election. His is prepared to go door-to-door for the Democrat or serve as poll watcher/election observer. So you may see him in Florida this fall.

Another Obama supporter is Dalila Douifi, who is a member of Parliament from Torhout. In addition to opposing Bush Administration attempts to draw Belgian military forces into active combat in Afghanistan, she expresses concern with the lack of adequate health insurance in the US.

The two Belgian politicians -- who are members of the Belgian socialist party -- paid for the posters out of their own pockets because they believe that Obama is a symbol of change, of a new America, what they call "change you can believe in."

Follow The Money: Will Clinton Keep On Running After Denver?

Mark Wiznitzer — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 22:37:36 EDT

Hillary Clinton may not get the nomination at the Democratic Party Convention in Denver. All the pundits say the odds are she cannot win the nomination unless she somehow convinces two-thirds of the superdelegates to overturn the pledged delegate edge that Barack Obama will have by July. But that does not mean she will stop running for President.

Clinton has accumulated $22 million in donations through February that can only be spent in the general election, and she could probably raise millions more from donors who are already topped out for the primaries. If she does not run in the general election she has to return the money. So don't be surprised if Hillary Clinton runs for President in November, just not as a Democrat.

Bowling for Obama - Keep This Campaign Out of the Gutter!

Mark Wiznitzer — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 22:33:53 EDT

OK, so he sucks at bowling. But can Hillary dunk?

Let us resolve to STRIKE a blow for Obama's victory at the Denver convention,

That we shall SPARE no effort to keep the campaign out of the GUTTER,

That we will not tolerate attempts to SPLIT the Democratic Party,

That our APPROACH in November is to unify America so we can bring about true change.

You keep SCORE, I'll buy the beers.

Why Barack is Letting Hillary Go On As Long As She Wants

Mark Wiznitzer — Mon, 31 Mar 2008 10:16:26 EDT

First of all, she cannot stop. Hillary has taken new money from donors with the promise she is going to fight till the end. Cowpoke Carville has "branded" Richardson for treason, and Hillary complains the men are at it again. The Clintons won't listen to anybody, so just give them their space.

Second, they don't believe in the graceful exit Sen. Leahy offered. Never mind if they risk humiliation later. Bill Clinton wants to be the Putin-Lite power behind his wife's throne. He says "relax" and "chill". But when he gets on stage at Denver, will he get the same treatment that Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee got in Texas this weekend. He would have it coming for injecting race into the campaign and suggesting Obama is not patriotic.

Third, the Clinton campaign is already in serious debt. Just check out this Politico article. If they still owe money from Iowa and Ohio, what has happened in the past few weeks while Hillary, Bill and Chelsea have been campaigning intensly across PA, NC and IN? And if they forget to release their tax returns in two weeks, we won't. And what about the Clinton Library donors list. By the time the Puerto Rico primary rolls around, the Clintons may be yelling "Tio" when their creditors come to collect "la cuenta".

Does Putin-Lite's "Saddle Up" Signal The Final Assault?

Mark Wiznitzer — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 00:32:48 EDT

No one should be surprised by the threatening letter to Nancy Pelosi from the Democratic Party fat-cats supporting Hillary Clinton. Despite all the high-minded talk of “sticking to the issues”, the Clintons have since the beginning followed a strategy of offering favors to supporters and attempting to intimidate voters in the Democrats' 2008 Presidential campaign. And the Pelosi letter is only the latest example that these tactics are now being applied to superdelegates. For those who have not followed these matters as closely, let me recap some highlights.

After former Iowa governor Tom Vilsack endorsed Hillary Clinton, her campaign arranged for some of her wealthy supporters to pay off some of the $400,000 debt he incurred before ending his own Presidential candidacy the previous month. That was almost 10 months before the Iowa caucuses. At the end of 2007, as evidence mounted of Clinton's inability to contain the growing grass roots movement for Barack Obama, her campaign set out to intimidate out-of-state students, who under Iowa law were legally allowed to register to vote and caucus in January. This was the first, but not be the last attempt at voter suppression.

In NH, poll watchers were prevented from observing some polling stations. I personally met a poll watcher who was asked to leave in Keene, ostensibly because it was too crowded; but Obama was able to carry all five wards in the city. But there were reports of widespread intimidation in areas where Hillary Clinton registered her best results: Nashua, Concord and Manchester.

Hillary's Choice, Chelsea "Miss Speaks"

Mark Wiznitzer — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 14:41:03 EDT

This is a satire (for those of you who take these things too literally, I thought I should point this out).

In an interview with a conservative Pennsylvania newspaper yesterday, Hillary Clinton took the opportunity to address an issue that she has studiously avoided discussing in public during the current Presidential campaign. Over the past year the media has gingerly tiptoed around the 800 pound gorilla in Hillary Clinton's baggage (mixed, non-biblical metaphor intended), Bill Clinton's record of indiscretions culminating in the Monica Lewinsky scandal.

When asked about her public humiliation as First Lady, Hillary cautioned "It's a very personal matter." However she went on to say that if she had known what Bill was like from the start: "He would not have been my husband. You don't choose your family, but you choose what marriage you want to be in."

Meanwhile, on her 70th college campus visit in Indiana promoting her mother's candidacy, Chelsea for the first time discussed her part in Tuzlagate in response to a question from a pro-Clinton student at Butler College in Indiana. Recalling her visit to Bosnia with her mother in 1996 when she was 16 years old, Chelsea said she and her mother were "very disappointed" by the fireworks display they had been promised at the airport. She had gotten over it however, but was even more miffed the following year upon hearing that U2 had put on a concert in Sarajevo in 1997 which Bono declared "Belongs to the Future". "And all I got was Sinbad and Cheryl Crow. Can you believe it?"

Ms. Clinton would not answer a question about whether she is on paid or unpaid leave from the Avenue Capital Group, a New York hedge fund whose co-founder Marc Lasry has been a major contributor to Democrats over the years, but also has donated to George W. Bush's campaigns. There is no evidence the FEC is investigating Chelsea's status, which could constitute a significant donation to the Clinton campaign far in excess of the limits permitted by law.

When asked to comment on Chelsea's remarks about the disputed nature of the trip to Bosnia, campaign spokesman Howard Wolfson explained: "Chelsea Clinton, unlike her illustrious parents, is not a politician. So you cannot expect her to misspeak as well as they do."

Carville Unrepentant

Mark Wiznitzer — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 23:24:09 EDT

James Carville stood his ground today, refusing in a CNN interview to apologize for the "biblical" and "seasonal" metaphor, name-calling of New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson. He had compared Richardson to Judas Iscariot for endorsing Barack Obama instead of Hillary Clinton.

Carville apparently believes Richardson owed the Clintons his support, if not continued neutrality. But he also pointedly signaled that if Obama is the party's nominee he himself is prepared to join the Obama campaign "from Day One". Is his "friend", David Axelrod, really looking forward to having this man join the campaign? If so, please assure us Carville will first be subjected to thorough ablutions.

Carville, who Cecil B Demille would have cast as the snake that got Adam and Eve thrown out of the Garden of Eden, avoided any reference during the interview to his New Testament namesake, the Apostle James. James was rebuked along with his brother John for seeking power and authority above the other disciples. Carville probably knows that James was beheaded and the first Apostle to be martyred.

(Cross-posted on OneMillionStrong)

America Out-FOXed Again!

Mark Wiznitzer — Sun, 23 Mar 2008 12:30:26 EDT

If you're like me, you think the last thing you want to do is watch a sermon by Jeremiah Wright. That is unless, you want a "context", as it is called, for the incendiary vitriol of those snippets we were bombarded with by the media, with FOX News leading the charge.

Please take 10 minutes and watch the more fulsome version of the "chickens coming home to roost" quote in the post-9/11 sermon.

What you will learn is that Wright is quoting a former U.S. Ambassador, Ed Peck, in a FOX News appearance. Peck is a retired State Department "Arabist" who has made it his business to criticize US Middle East Policy on everything from our support for Israel to the sanctions on Saddam Hussein's Iraq. When you hear Wright's sermon in its context, not just the sound bite we were treated to previously, what is your reaction? Please comment below.

This was crossposted on March 21 at One Millions Strong, where you can read a number of good comments.

Super Delegates: The Reluctant "Elder Statesmen"

Mark Wiznitzer — Sun, 16 Mar 2008 22:09:50 EDT

We all know that this play looks increasingly like a Greek tragedy. I've already suggested the worst-case scenario. That's the "Train Wreck in the Station" that turns the Denver Democratic Convention into a modern-day "Chicago '68". There is also the more insipid, but similarly destructive possibility for which there is already evidence in the tone of the campaign and polls of Democratic voter attitudes. That is the nominee is selected "free and fair", but fails to win a significant share of other contender's support, allowing McCain to slide through in November. The chances for this outcome could improve the longer this race drags on.

No wonder the pundits are now wringing their hands in search of an elder statesman to save the day. Albert Hunt sees the need for someone to sort out the Michigan/Florida mess. After all, if George Mitchell can hammer out a plan for Northern Ireland and the Middle East, as well as professional baseball, he can certainly work out something for the DNC. I concede that these renegade states are important to the Democrats’ electoral total in November. But solving the problem created by the queue-jumpers may not solve the Clinton-Obama stalemate, only prolong it.

Lorne Michaels Shuts Barn Door, But Not Buying New Horse

Mark Wiznitzer — Thu, 13 Mar 2008 15:49:40 EDT

Of course it would come to this. The news media entertain while comedy shows deliver political spin.

Having apparently boosted Hillary Clinton's campaign by playing the media-is-too-easy-on-Obama skit immediately before her wins in Texas and Ohio, and the Hillary-at-3AM ad last week, Lorne Michaels, the executive producer of Saturday Night Live has gone out of his way with the NY Times and LA Times to dispel the impression his program in any way backs the former First Lady for the Democratic nomination. He was reacting to the two skits and the bitches-get-stuff-done endorsement from former SNL cast member and 30 Rock diva Tina Fey that have raised suspicion of political agenda at work.

If you follow the money, however, are there more clues to some intentional or subliminal motives? Lorne Michaels has been an active political donor over the years. The largest and most consistent beneficiary of his largesse since 2000 has been Chris Dodd and the Chris PAC. Dodd withdrew from the current race in January and has since endorsed Obama. But Michaels has also regularly given to John McCain since 2000, including donations in March and May of last year totaling $2300, the maximum allowed for the primaries. Is Michaels on some level helping McCain, who he vows will not receive additional donations now that he has captured the GOP nomination, by trying to ensure that Clinton becomes his opponent? Just asking.

Mr. Micheals' remonstrations might be more convincing if he had not selected comic-musician Fred Armisen to impersonate Barack Obama. The otherwise-talented Armisen has failed to capture any of the charisma and inspiration that make the candidate so appealing. Instead, his is a dour and dumb Barack Obama Who Never Smiles, guaranteed not to garner any sympathy when viewed alongside the simpatico Hillary Clinton of Amy Poehler.

At the start of this season, Michaels streamlined the SNL staff in what was viewed as a cost-cutting measure. It was also reported earlier this year that the chubby Kenan Thompson was on a diet so he could play Obama. When the writers' strike came to an end, tryouts for the part at SNL were widely reported. Does Michaels' decision not to sign a new impersonator indicate he does not expect Obama will be in the running much longer, so he is saving money with someone already on staff?

Art imitates art. Meanwhile, as I reported previously, it is now confirmed that Seth Myers will play Eliot Spitzer on SNL this Saturday. Not clear yet who will play Kristen or if they will in fact call the segment "Superdelegates Gone Wild".

Clinton Picks Armisen to Replace Obama on Dream Team

Mark Wiznitzer — Tue, 11 Mar 2008 19:07:57 EDT

Reliable as always, Hillary Clinton has come up with a Solution to the crisis of finding another running mate after Barack Obama turned down the job. Rumor has it that Fred Armisen of Saturday Night Live has agreed to play Clinton's proposed Vice President at the Democratic Convention in Denver this August.

The crisis arose yesterday when Barack Obama reminded the Clintons that, notwithstanding last week's results in Ohio, he is still the front-runner by a long distance as calculated in states won, votes cast or delegates pledged. Furthermore, he informed his opponent that he was not available to be her running mate in 2008, as he had made plans to star in his own series this Fall. It is not clear how Clinton intends to overcome the vote and delegate hurdles, but at least she has a running mate if she succeeds.

What a difference a day makes.

Just last week Hillary Clinton confidently implied she would be the Democratic nominee for President and pick Barack Obama as her VP running mate. Bill Clinton even described the pairing as "unstoppable". The Clintons had good reasons to be optimistic. Hillary had just won the popular vote in the Texas, Ohio and Rhode Island primaries. And in a victory for feminists everywhere, she also demanded and received the head of Samantha Power, Barack Obama's most prominent female supporter, on a platter for calling her the M word.

That was then, and this is now. First, Hillary's crisis management creds took a hit when Lord Trimble, who earned a Nobel Peace Prize for his work in Northern Ireland, described Hillary as a "cheerleader" to Bill Clinton. He also said her claim to an intsrumental role in the peace process there "a wee bit silly." But the most shocking revelation came from Sinbad, the comedian, who spilled the beans on Hillary's 1996 peace mission to Bosnia. Turns out they, along with Sheryl Crow, were on a USO tour, and the most important challenge they faced was finding a place to eat. Sinbad did not reveal how well the First Lady entertained the troops, but some of the soldiers in the audience have said off-the-record that she definitively should not, repeat, not try out for Dancing With the Stars.

When asked if Fred Armisen was ready to become VP, Clinton spokesman Howard Wolfson said that while he had not yet met the national security threshold, it may be possible for him to do so by August. Furthermore, he expects there is little danger that Fred will upstage the former First Lady, having seen his impersonation of Barack Obama Who Never Smiles on SNL.

Unnamed Clinton supporters on SNL were elated with the choice of Fred Armisen and are hoping he will actually be elected. They believe it will be far easier to find someone to impersonate Fred than it has been to find a credible Obama-impersonator. In the meantime, it looks like this Saturday Seth Myers and Kristen Wig will be playing Client 9 and Kristen in the first SNL episode of "Superdelegates Gone Wild".

Barack Obama as "Protected Species"

Mark Wiznitzer — Mon, 10 Mar 2008 17:44:24 EDT

Lake Champlain, March 10. 2008

On April 20, 1982, the Vermont House of Representatives passed Resolution H.R. 19 protecting Champ, the legendary lake monster, “from any willful act resulting in death, injury or harassment.” A similar resolution was adopted in the same year by the State Assembly of New York. One theory is that Champ, whose sighting predates the famous Loch Ness monster, is a plesiosaurus, a prehistoric water-dwelling reptile that escaped extinction in Lake Champlain, which lies between Vermont and New York.

Vermont Democrats, who last week voted 59% to 39% to make Barack Obama their party's nominee for President, are now considering a new resolution similarly declaring their candidate a "protected species" to provide him the same legal safeguards as Champ. The fear is that Obama has had his mojo stolen and may be eaten alive by his opponent. And so she would prematurely bring to an end the career of a new breed of politician intent on fundamentally changing Washington.

There is some evidence to support their concerns. After Vermont, Hillary Clinton won primaries in Rhode Island, Texas and Ohio. And the 3AM phone call ad and NAFTA-gate that contributed to her victories are still actively discussed in the media. On top of all that, one of Obama's two top female foreign policy advisors, Samantha Power was forced to resign late last week after she called the former First Lady a "monster".

It is interesting that the comparison of Hillary Clinton to a monster did not come out until after the Vermont primary. But it does raise some questions. Was the former First Lady's decision to move to New York affected in any way by that state's resolution protecting the lake monster? Just asking. It appears Hillary has not suffered "death, injury or harassment" since she migrated to NY; probably pure coincidence. Is Hillary in fact a carnivorous Plesiotsuris (from the Greek plesio and Yiddish tsuris, meaning "similar to trouble") who is taking advantage of the legal protections intended for Champ, whose friendly image serves as mascot of the minor league Lake Monsters baseball team? To quote Hillary: "There is nothing to base that on, as far as I know."

Elsewhere, NY Governor Eliot Spitzer, a super delegate who endorsed Hillary Clinton, announced he may not vote for her in Denver after all.

Today's Signal Victory - Obama Coattails on Display in IL14

Mark Wiznitzer — Sat, 08 Mar 2008 23:24:57 EST

That's great news about Obama winning the Wyoming caucus. But the big news that will get real superdelegate attention is the Democratic win in former House Speaker Dennis Hastert's district, birthplace of Ronald Reagan, Illinois' long-time Republican 14th Congressional District. Both McCain and Obama sought to influence the outcome, but Democrat Bill Foster won the fight to finish off Hastert's term. Read all about it here. The superdelegates will definitely notice this one.

Calling Out The "Monster"? Hey Wait, That's My Job!

Mark Wiznitzer — Fri, 07 Mar 2008 23:29:41 EST

Anyone who has been as deeply involved in this campaign as we here on OMS knows the feelings that pushed Samantha Power to call Hillary Clinton a monster. After all, even Tina Fay, who is unabashedly pro-Hillary, used much stronger language on Saturday Night Live to describe the former First Lady.

One of the main reasons I have been very happy to serve -- and I have done so with the strongest of commitments -- as a volunteer supporter of the Obama campaign was because it reserved for me the freedom of expression that is just not possible for those who have formal roles as staff or advisors. And having worked for the Bill Clinton Administration and some of its appointees, rest assured, I have strong feelings about the Clintons that are often difficult to contain. But if you're a senior policy advisor to the candidate, you have no choice but to keep such feelings out of the public domain.

So, it's too bad. Samantha Power's angry outburst reported by a foreign journalist has lead to her resignation from the campaign. Just in case it is not yet clear to her, this means that her role in an Obama Administration will probably be limited at least initially to a position that does not require Senate confirmation. There are lots of those at the NSC and State Department for a brilliant policy professional like Ms. Power, especially with her background on the crises in Darfur and the Balkans. In fact, she would find a precedent and suitable match in Bill Clinton's appointment of Sam Brown to head our delegation to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), which has had a major institutional role in Kosovo, Chechnya, and as far away as Central Asia.

Brown's radical past and prior record at ACTION made it impossible to get Jesse Helms' approval for an ambassadorial appointment. So Brown served a full tour as the Head of Delegation, without the rank of ambassador, to the US Mission to the OSCE in Vienna. Intent on leaving government service with the title of Ambassador, however, Brown reached out to his former secretary Betty Curry, Bill Clinton's personal secretary in the White House (who had an interesting role herself in the Monica Lewinsky scandal), for help. She made sure that the President gave Brown an "interim" appointment, a temporary measure permitted under law while the Congress is in recess, that gave Sam Brown the title, but not rank, of Ambassador.

So Samantha Power, while things may look bleak today, you are now free to speak out, and still look forward to a fruitful role and position in the Obama Administration.

The Party Is Over

Mark Wiznitzer — Thu, 06 Mar 2008 15:37:16 EST

The Democratic Party, that is, if Hillary Clinton becomes a nominee for either President or Vice President. Her March 4 results using a "kitchen sink" strategy, only extended the contest, but did not significantly improve her delegate count. But it has made the Presidential nominating battle ugly, really ugly. And I believe matters have already gone too far, and neither Barack Obama nor Hillary Clinton can count on enough of each other's voters to win the general election.

Dirty Tricks

It's getting difficult to remember all the dirty tricks by Hillary's campaign. And I'm not even talking about the policy-related misrepresentations on substantive matters, such as foreign policy and national security, healthcare and social secuirty, or women's issues.

The most prominent involved the two dismissed Iowa supporters caught forwarding scurrilous emails, the firing of NH Campaign Co-Chair Bill Shaheen for suggesting drug dealing (Hillary apologized to Obama out of view on an airport tarmac), former Senator Bob Kerrey's Muslim remarks (another more public apology), BET's Bob Johnson's "I won't say what was doing" comment (yet another apology), and the more recent Drudge Report turban photo (for which Obama took her at "her word" that she did not know anything).

But my line has been crossed. I mean, isn't anyone else amazed that Hillary Clinton got away with hedging on 60 minutes on the question of Barack Obama's religion? And how she perversely aggravated the situation when offered a chance to clarify her remarks by alleging that she herself has also been victimized by rumors and smears? It certainly helps explain how it was ABC found a Clinton supporter wearing an "Osama for Obama" shirt who insisted unequivocally at her victory party last night that Obama is a Muslim.

Red State, Blue State... Green Mountain State.

Mark Wiznitzer — Thu, 21 Feb 2008 00:17:49 EST

Remember the Alamo...

The March 4 Texas (and possibly Ohio) primary may be the decisive, if not final battleground for Hillary Clinton’s campaign to win the 2008 Democratic nomination. Like Col. William Travis of the epic tale, she is making an Alamo-like last stand in the face of Barack Obama’s insurgency that has dissolved her once formidable lead in Texas polls. As an irony of history and in contrast with the original narrative, Hillary Clinton is hoping that Mexican-American voters concentrated along the southern border of the Lone Star State will, along with white women and lower income/education voters, come to her rescue.

But Don’t Forget the Green Mountain Boys

Generally ignored is the fact that, in addition to the Texas and Ohio primaries, there are two other primaries scheduled with a total of 370 delegates at stake on March 4: Texas 193, Ohio 141, Rhode Island 21 and Vermont 15. These numbers do not include Super-delegates.

Vermont has a tradition of political independence even older than that of the Lone Star State. After all, Vermont was briefly a republic before it became the fourteenth state. That tradition is reflected in the fact the current governor is a Republican (Jim Douglas), while its Senators include a Democrat (Pat Leahy) and a socialist (Bernie Sanders). Primaries are open, with citizens able to choose the party ballot they want to vote on. And first-time registrants still have to sign a modern version of the Freeman’s Oath, declaring they will vote their conscience and not let anyone tell them how to vote.

There is More...

SC Wrap-Up: A Tale of Poverty and Hope

Mark Wiznitzer — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 14:36:23 EST

Poverty is Not Just a Campaign Slogan

Having traveled in the Middle East and South Asia, and lived and worked in Latin America and the Caribbean, I have seen poverty. But I was entirely unprepared to find poverty as widespread as it is today, in January 2008, in South Carolina. Over the past several months I knocked on doors of ragged trailer parks in Iowa and run-down parts of towns in New Hampshire. However, what I encountered in SC was different in scope and nature. In Berkley County, the place where I campaigned for Barack Obama, I saw the economic and social face of poverty. I also witnessed the psychology of hoplessness of those for whom the American Dream faded long ago. Forty years after the War on Poverty, we are far from victory. My week in SC moved me deeply and I am still processing what I saw. But I can testify that poverty in America is a problem for which finding solutions should be a top priority.

The Landslide Victory

We all know how it turned out, the final match of the four-round early states. An overwhelming victory for Barack Obama. According to plan, as projected by the Chicago HQ staff at the four-day June 4 Camp Obama last summer (my five-part description of why I went and some of what I learned starts here). Reflecting their experience and expertise, the campaign's pros pursued an early-states strategy designed to get Obama known and build momentum for his candidacy. I won't dwell here on the wisdom of the strategy, which is apparent in its results. And I won't spend time on the methodology, which I've persistently promoted, or the community organization-based approach that I described in detail in my blogs over the past eight months. But I do want to give you a feel for the power of an all-volunteer army of supporters promoting hope and delivering change.

SHOW HOPE DAY - Let the World Know That O's Got Mo

Mark Wiznitzer — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 12:04:59 EST

When I was at Camp Obama back in June, we learned about the early states strategy, built on a grassroots approach reflecting Barack Obama's community organizing experience Chicago. Now, here we are in late January. The four primaries and caucuses behind us and the results are as predicted. Obama decisively won Iowa and South Carolina, and NH and Nevada were a delegate draw. His successes have generated the invaluable publicity (you cannot buy this kind of coverage) he needs to become known nationally. The next phase is a series of primaries and caucuses, starting on February 5. Let's show America that Obama support is everywhere on SHOW HOPE DAY, this Monday, February 4. You can wear a button or t-shirt. One woman told me she was stenciling her own shirt, while another already wears her button every day. Whether at work, school, out shopping or just walking around the neighborhood, you too can SHOW HOPE. Spread the word by sending this post to every Obama supporter and group, and indicate your intention to participate in this one-time event by registering here. Let's make sure the world knows that February 4 is SHOW HOPE DAY!

SC Diary: SHOW HOPE DAY on Monday, Feb. 5

Mark Wiznitzer — Mon, 28 Jan 2008 14:21:22 EST

What a Difference a Landslide Makes

I am happy to admit that my previous post may have reflected an overly pessimistic view of the state of play in the current race for the Democratic Presidential nomination. It was probably most affected by the negative attacks in the last debate, the "invisible" looks I got from many whites when they saw my Obama button and witnessing the abject poverty in which many African-Americans live in South Carolina. But I kept at my main task, knocking on doors to advocate for Obama's election. And I am proud to have been a small part of this amazing grass roots effort, and of the postive, uplifting message with which Barack Obama acknowledged the victory.

Let's Make February 4 a SHOW HOPE DAY.

I will write more specifically about my experiences in the coming days, For now, I propose the following. Let's get every Obama supporter to wear a t-shirt, button, hat or sticker on Monday, February 4. We can show America how far and wide the grassroots movement has spread on the eve of Super Tuesday.

We do this to demonstrate:

Our commitment to Change in the conduct of American politics and our Hope for the future of our country.

If you agree, please forward the link to this diary or spread the idea to all your networks.

SC Diary: Can Obama's Candidacy be Resurrected?

Mark Wiznitzer — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 13:47:35 EST

Will Barack Obama Have Another Chance to Become President

I think not. The Clinton campaign has so far successfully applied the Rovian tactics that Bill Clinton so admired when Bush took down John Kerry in 2004. The character assassination of Barack Obama has been swift and merciless. I expect that any damage done in 2008 will be permanent, and will not be repaired by subsequent apologies or regrets. That is, unless Obama proves he is willing and able to take Hillary down with him, sacrificing some principles (and really pleasing a lot of anti-Clinton voters in the process). That may even come to include withholding his support or endorsing a third party candidate.

Pleas to Hillary that she not distort the facts and to Bill to "cool it" will not do the trick. Is Barack Obama capable of striking back without holding back? It requires relentlessly ripping every aspect of Hillary's 35-years-of-experience myth and dirtying hands unearthing all the corruption and lies that are buried under the "fully-vetted" fairy tale. The Republicans will do the job in the Fall in any case, so why not? And if religious leaders like Kirbyjon Caldwell really want to help Obama, they should start by encouraging their flock to conduct their own email campaign decrying the "good Christians" who anonymously took part in the bearing-false-witness campaign and promoting intolerance.

With two days left in South Carolina, will this prove to be Obama last stand, or the start of his resurrection?

SC Diary: Vote For Hope

Mark Wiznitzer — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 09:42:38 EST

I will keep this short so I can get out this morning and continue my work here.

I arrived in North Charleston late Monday. Lauren and John, who are working on the campaign in Berkeley county north of here, obliged my request to knock on doors by assigning me to the town of Goose Creek, where I spent my first day. Canvassing a predominantly African-American neighborhood I found strong backing for Barack Obama. The Clintons have succeeded is sowing some doubt, however, revealed by the indecision of some voters who had previously indicated support. But many previously undecided or not yet identified voters signaled they are going to vote for Obama. I see my task here as ensuring the voters do not take an Obama victory for granted and to Get Out The Vote.

Hillary Clinton apparently does not think there is much point in fighting for South Carolina any more. She took off after Monday's debate for California, leaving Bill behind as her surrogate. The Clintons have seriously damaged their image here, especially through Hillary's aggressive behavior in the last debate and Bill's undignified campaigning. Voters don't remember what he said in his dogged effort to diminish Barack Obama; all one voter could recall was seeing Bill Clinton dozing off during a Martin Luther King memorial service. But the Clinton campaign can be expected to try anything, and have lots of surrogates to help them. Just see what happened in Iowa, NH and Nevada. They are willing to suprress the vote and spread false information, caring little for the integrity of the process or the fate of the Democratic Party. So I certainly expect there will be problems during the primary election here on Saturday.

I do not have a sense of how white South Carolinians will vote, but according to Linda Hansen they apparently have been targeted effectively by the slurmail campaign. We know that the American Jewish community has been similarly targeted, and the viral campaign was serious enough to prompt letters from Jewish US Senators and community leaders decrying the email's hateful message. Senator John Kerry has weighed in by likening these messages to the Republican "swiftboating" campaign of 2004.

Anyone who wonders if it is possible the Clinton campaign could actually be behind these efforts should read "The Way to Win: Taking the White House in 2008" by Mark Halperin and John F. Harris. If you don't have the time, just read what they say about the "freak show" in this excerpt. The election is coming down to a choice between Hope and Drama. I will vote for Hope!

It's The War Economy, Stupid!

Mark Wiznitzer — Sat, 12 Jan 2008 10:45:27 EST

The polls tell the story. People are hurting in their pocketbooks and becoming complacent about the war as the visible toll of violence in Iraq has subsided. Never to let such an opportunity escape, Hillary Clinton has rolled out an ambitious economic package that she hopes will resonate in the next set of caucuses and primaries to restore her electoral edge. The immediate and most prominent part of her package is the three month moratorium on foreclosures, a doubtful proposition barring voluntary compliance. This makes Hillary the shining knight on the white horse. Clever that, resurrecting Bill Clinton's old war cry: "It's the economy, stupid".

Not so fast. Why are we in such bad shape econmically, with a growing chorus of experts predicting recession, if we are not already there? The proximate cause appears to be the sub-prime mortgage shakedown. But that is merely the leading edge of our economic crisis. Dig deeper and you will find that regular mortgages, commercial loans, and the investment borrowing that underwrote the M&A/LBO frenzy, are all affected seriously as well. In fact, in the face of inflationary pressure, the Fed's attempts to mitigate the financial crisis that is slowing down our economy are not working reliably.

There is a reason for that. And Hillary Clinton does not want to be reminded of the real reason for this economic disaster. It's simple really, it is Bush's war on Iraq. Like all wars, it has produced unintended consequences. Congress authorized the invasion having just passed a massive tax cut early in the first Bush term. There was no cushion to fund a war, and there subsequently has been no serious effort to raise the money to pay for the prolonged occupation of Iraq. In the meantime, both U.S. business activity and government services have suffered. And we have become more, not less dependent on imported energy, and crude oil is through the roof. The next President will inherit an unprecedented and burgeoning national debt. We won't even know the final cost untill we have taken proper care of every veteran or affected family member.

George Bush did not ask Americans, other than the men and women of our armed forces, to make the necessary sacrifices for this failed foreign adventure. And now the bill is coming due. All of Hillary Clinton's economic proposals are mere palliatives, and conveniently distract from the real issue. Ending the War in Iraq is the first most important step in getting this country back on track economically. And ending our energy dependence on foreign sources is the long term objective for securing and stimulating our economy.

All the Democratic candidates can devise appealing short term steps to alleviate some of the pain that is out there on Main Street. But this is an election about the long term future of this country, and the solutions to our fundamental problems. Unfortunately, no amount of lipstick on this pig will change the fact that: It's The War Economy, Stupid!

NH Wrap-Up: Honesty Out Of Fashion?

Mark Wiznitzer — Fri, 11 Jan 2008 16:18:15 EST

Dedicated Followers of Fashion

This diary is about Honesty. But it is also about Fashion. For these are two aspects of the campaign in NH that struck me after leaving the Granite State and in preparing for the upcoming Nevada caucus (which is probably the most problematic contest in the long primary season and subject of my next post, but you can always check Las Vegas Diary: High Stakes Game in Nevada Desert to get the idea).

Although the Democratic presidential contest has not been entirely dominated by fashion and style, it has had an impact on the race.

Some early examples include:

-- the cost of John Edwards haircuts (at odds with his new populist image),

-- Hillary Clinton's cleavage in Senate committee meetings (evidence of persistent sexism), and

-- Barack Obama's tie-less look (run alongside photos of similarly-attired Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, while Howard Wolfson declaimed Obama's readiness to talk to Holocaust deniers).

Of course, these details distract us from the more painful issues consistently dominating canvassing New Hampshire voters. Like how to get out of Iraq, where our soldiers are being blown up, while al Qaeda regroups in Pakistan. Or health care. Or education, taxes, loss-of-jobs and the environment. But fashion is what you are likely to get from a media and in a culture obsessed with the antics of Paris Hilton, Lindsay Lohan and Britney Spears. So don't hold it against Barack Obama for allowing himself to grace the cover of the September GQ, when becoming known by the public was his number one challenge.

Primary Diary: Cold Comfort for Change

Mark Wiznitzer — Wed, 09 Jan 2008 17:58:07 EST

By now you know how it turned out. Hillary Clinton won the New Hampshire primary, getting 2.6% more votes than Obama. It is certainly true that her campaign very successfully mobilized support from women of all ages to deliver a narrow winning margin. But to understand how close the outcome was, consider that Clinton and Obama both took the same number of delegates, 9 each (Edwards won 4). And Obama, with 3 of 5 of the state's superdelegates (Dem officials), has effectively "won" the NH delegate count.

In my opinion, what really happened Tuesday is that a "perfect storm" of expectations-driven behavior, combined with the sympathy generated in the closing days by the debate and Hillary's highly publicized weeping, gave her the narrow win. Obama "lost" the New Hampshire primary to the general expectation of a large win following Iowa. Public opinion polls on the last day before the primary had Obama ahead by 10-13%. This expectation stimulated voter behavior, particularly among Undeclared (independent) cross-over voters and anti-Hillary Democrats, that would probably have been very different if the polls had been able to convey the degree to which the race had narrowed by Tuesday.

Iowa had killed Hillary's inevitability crown and demonstrated that Barack could be viable. Clinton barely avoided another loss in New Hampshire. This has again made the Democratic nomination a contest. But the New Hampshire results should hardly provide cold comfort for the Clinton campaign.

Primary Diary: "Yes", and What About Nevada?

Mark Wiznitzer — Mon, 07 Jan 2008 23:02:12 EST

I had not one, but two days to figure out the answer to the question with which I ended my last post: "Will tomorrow's outing reinforce our impression that we had actually registered the "momentum" everyone said follows an early state win?" We continued knocking on doors on Sunday and Monday, reaching almost all of the voters on our list for the area we were assigned, which had not been visited by any campaign this season.

Our results provide a consistent answer: Yes! Obama is enjoying a measurable momentum. Our sample is of course too limited to know if it will be enought to score a decisive win in NH. There are still a lot of undecided voters, and there is ample support for other Democratic candidates. But there is a clear willingness of voters to entertain an Obama presidency, and they are far more positive about his candidacy than in any of my previous canvasses since May. We'll know tomorrow. But from what we heard from the Undeclared (independents) and Republicans, he is in great shape here for the general election if he becomes the Democratic nominee.

I have no doubt that a win here will boost Obama further in the South Carolina primary. But what about Nevada? The answer to that question is: it all depends on how successful we are in the ground game there.

After all, as I've indicated before in "Las Vegas Diary: High Stakes Game in Nevada Desert" (at http://www.onemillionstrong.us/showDiary.do?diaryId=242), the Nevada caucus is a real crap shoot. Nevada has never held a caucus of any significant size. The largest on record was under 4000 state-wide (unofficial claims are that over 9000 participated in 2004). Yet Harry Reid has stated publicly that he expects 100,000 to participate this year. Anything less will be an embarassment and consitute a failure of Nevada's Democratic Party to live up to its early state designation.

At the same time, a turnout of the magnitude predicted by Harry Reid would seriously test the party's ability to run a major contest. And it could threaten the influence over Nevada politics currently enjoyed by Harry's son Rory, who is chairman of Hillary Clinton's campaign and is expected to deliver a victory for her. So there is a looming conflict between the need to assure Nevada's reputation and the party machine's impetus to retain control.

So what about Nevada? For the Obama campaign, there is only one option. That is, to continue pursuing the ground game as it has in Iowa and NH, ensuring a huge turnout of Obama supporters, and accompanied in this case by a vigilant monitoring of caucus procedures.

Primary Diary: NH Decides At Last

Mark Wiznitzer — Sun, 06 Jan 2008 00:34:04 EST

This is a short post, because it has been a long day. But I wanted to give you a feel for what is going on in NH, for those of you who have been asking for more info.

My old friend Charles arrived in Keene to join me as a campaign volunteer at the local field office on Thursday afternoon. We met Zach, a staffer who attended Camp Obama with me in June and was going to manage our assignments through primary day. We made some calls to invite undecided voters to Keene HS to hear Obama on Sunday, before breaking for dinner and watching the Iowa caucus results at a nearby pub.

Like everyone in the Obama campaign we were elated with the caucus outcome. But a conference call with the NH HQ reassured us that, despite the resounding win in Iowa, we were to stick to the game plan here for the next five days. In sports terms, I like to describe this as a "ground game", with lots of running, but not taking any chances with throwing the ball. Especially no long passes! The ground game is essentially the same on-the-ground, door-to-door, voter-by-voter effort, modeled on the community organization principles Barack Obama applied in Chicago. While there would also be TV ads, a Saturday night televised debate, lawn signs and other visiblity, the model relies essentially on a retail approach to political campaigning.

We didn't get much sleep that night. Besides being in strange hotel beds, we were pumped up by the Senator's speech and wondering how Iowa would affect NH voters, whose views I have been collecting since the first soggy canvas in Manchester on May 19. We didn't get much clarity from our work the next day, which consisted of knocking on doors in a neat middle class Keene neighborhood. Many people were not home on Friday afternoon, and while there were some postive comments, it seemed that the results from Iowa had not yet sunk in. Our phone calls to outlying towns that evening were no more revealing.

Everything changed on Saturday. Dozens of newly-arrived volunteers showed up at the office, and Obama foreign policy advisors Tony Lake and Susan Rice launched the morning with a pep talk that got everyone "fired up." Charles and I had insited the night before that we wanted to go out and hit more doors. So Zach had come up with an assignment that few people would take, or be entrusted with. We were asked to canvas a spread out collection of houses (OK, so they did call it a village!) sprinkled along a valley north of town. It had not been canvassed in person by any of the campaigns and the area was unlikely to gain anyone's attention by Tuesday. It required driving from house to house on our list, and a GPS system to find our way. The deep snow and slippery conditions did not help.

As we drove to our site, we heard the news that Rasmussen Reports had just released its latest NH poll, with Obama now ahead by 10%. This news appeared to be confirmed by what we discovered on our canvas. Many people who had previously indicated in phone contacts that they were undecided, had now made up their minds. And Obama was the overwhelming benificary of this development. This even included some voters who had previously supported other candidates. Some had concluded that a vote for minor candidates would be a waste. In my eight months of canvassing, I never saw anything like this. There was a palpable enthusiasm for Barack Obama, helped in large measure by his Iowa win.

It was clear that the voters had paid close attention to the campaign and evaluated the candidates carefully. They all liked Obama, but had been unsure of his readiness to take on the job of President. They also want a candidate who will win the election. Iowa had reassured many that their impressions were correct, and that there were many other people who also craved his message of hope and change. More than momentum, what Iowa achieved was to end once and for all Hillary Clinton's "inevitability" argument and give Barack Obama an aura of viabiltity.

Tomorrow we resume our canvas, which ended today after darkness fell. Will tomorrow's outing reinforce our impression that we had actually registered the "momentum" everyone said follows an early state win?

Joe Wilson Missed the Memo

Mark Wiznitzer — Mon, 31 Dec 2007 14:25:47 EST

Crossposted at dailyKos.

Where Have You Been?

On December 21, the Huffington Post published an article by former Ambassador Joseph C. Wilson entitled "The Real Hillary I Know - and the Unreal Obama". In the article, which promoted Hillary Clinton's candidacy, Wilson associated himself with Wes Clark and Dick Holbrooke as early opponents of the Iraq War. He also made denigrating comments about Senator Barack Obama.
One can only guess why Joe Wilson would write such a provocative article. And while they also back Hillary Clinton, why have Clark and Holbrooke not publicly distanced themselves from Joe's characterization of Obama?

Iowa Diary: Discovering Obama's Hidden Edge

Mark Wiznitzer — Fri, 14 Dec 2007 21:12:08 EST

This is the last of three diaries about my December 3-9 Iowa volunteer experience. The first Iowa diary described the trip to Iowa and the “fun” of political involvement. The second related a chance encounter with a voter in Riverside, future birthplace of Startrek’s Captain Kirk. In this last diary, I explore what may be Obama’s demographic breakout advantage, one that has not been measured in polls and may not necessarily be restricted to the state of Iowa.

Winter Strikes

Kiana, Illinois volunteer Alex and I went to Washington to help get the new field office for Washington and Louisa counties ready for the “official” opening on Sunday. Many of the details, particularly getting our internet service up and running, were worked out by Jay, a lawyer who had worked in Illinois writing speeches for Michelle Obama before he had recently returned to his hometown of Washington, Iowa. Jay’s presence freed up Kiana to liaise with the local political establishment and organize Obama support in the dozen or so precincts for which she is responsible. Snow fell throughout the day, and we did not know that the road back to Muscatine was considered “secondary” and therefore would not be cleared until morning. The icy winter Iowa weather remained a problem for the rest of my visit, and I can certainly imagine that it could play a very significant role on January 3. However, this evening Kiana contacted a local Obama supporter and, after Alex and I made our calls, I headed to her house to spend the night in her basement.

Iowa Diary: Looking for Captain Kirk, Finding Mary

Mark Wiznitzer — Thu, 06 Dec 2007 17:54:57 EST

I'm in Washington Iowa, southwest of Muscatine, where we are opening a new Obama office to cover Washington and Louisa (pronounced Lu-eye-sah) counties. And this message is being transmitted via free WiFi at the friendly Dodici's coffee shop, because we are waiting to have phones and internet installed sometime today. In addition to making a few calls two nights ago, my work in Washington has been related mostly to the start-up: scraping the ice off the sidewalk, putting up a coat rack, shelves, and Obama posters, picking up and organizing supplies. Most of all, though, I've enjoyed meeting the steady stream of supporters and volunteers who have stopped by, some to donate office equipment, but mostly to check out the office and/or pick up their coveted tickets to the Obama/Oprah event Saturday night in Cedar Rapids. They are great, enthusiastic Obama supporters who are proud to have the campaign's official presence in their area.

There will be a formal opening with an Open House this Sunday, featuring former Democrat Party state chairman and Obama supporter Gordon Fisher. Unfortunately, I'll miss it, as I am scheduled to leave Sunday morning. But we are not waiting until Sunday to provide services here. A mock caucus is scheduled tonight. Chelsea is coming from the Davenport office to lead the event. I met her yesterday, when I made an emergency run to deliver some extra Oprah tickets. That was before I began my canvas in Riverside, future birthplace of Captain Kirk.

Iowa Diary: The "Fun Part" Started Long Ago

Mark Wiznitzer — Tue, 04 Dec 2007 15:06:05 EST

As I was packing for my week of volunteering in Iowa, I was alerted by a member of my Rapid Response group to a brilliant posting by Geekesque in dailyKos. And a very funny story at that. But when I checked the HillaryHub's facts link, I realized it was based on a real Clinton attack claiming he has been plotting to become President since kindergarten! All I can say is: politics imitates parody. So is this what Hillary meant when she said "Now the fun part starts"?

If you have not read the post, I urge you do so. It will only take a couple of minutes, but this is in my opinion the funniest story to come out of the Presidential campaign to date. And if you have a lot of time on your hands, read some of the almost 1300 comments that have been made on this story, for it has truly inspired some of the most hilarious puns and jokes I can recall.

I was in between flights to Iowa the next day when I read a far more serious blog by none other than Robert Reich, Bill Clinton's Labor Secretary, in which he criticized the "stridency and inaccuracy" of Hillary's charges against Barack Obama. He proceeds to describe Obama's approach to Social Security as "progressive" and his proposals on healthcare as "better" than Hillary's.

The Oprah Message

Mark Wiznitzer — Sat, 01 Dec 2007 21:46:02 EST

Much is being made about the upcoming tour that Oprah Winfrey is making in support of Barack Obama's candidacy, which will take her to Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina starting next weekend. Even the foreign press is full of anticipation and speculation about what her motives are for associating her precious “brand” with a political candidate whose odds are only rated between 3 and 5 to 1, compared to the even favorite Democratic frontrunner, Hillary Clinton (these are recent odds in Britain, where betting is legal).

I can only speculate on what Oprah's message will be in the scheduled events that are undoubtedly going to draw huge crowds and capture major media attention. But I can fairly safely predict that her endorsement by itself, no matter how passionately stated, is not going to change any votes directly. Nor should that be her objective.

In previous comments, Oprah has acknowledged that she is making this, her first ever presidential endorsement, because she has gotten to know him personally, that what he stands for is worth her going out on a limb for, that she believes in Barack Obama.

There is not much more that Oprah Winfrey needs to say. Most Americans still don't know Barack Obama except for the limited and superficial information they have gotten from the media. So, what Oprah needs to do is fill in some of the details: examples of what he is like as a human being, why he has inspired her to come out on his behalf, what kind of leadership we can expect from him in the White House.

Many of us have gotten to know Barack Obama, but most of us have had to do so from reading his books or listening to his speeches. Some of us have been fortunate enough to hear from some of the people who have known him over the years. Whether it is Mike Kruglik or Jamillah Muhammad, who worked with him in his early Chicago days, or JFK's speech writer Ted Sorenson, or Bill Clinton's first National Security Advisor Tony Lake, each one affirms that Barack Obama is authentic, inspiring, and ready to be our next President. And that is what the voters in these early states and elsewhere really need to hear.

After all, Oprah, like Obama, is a self-made person whose professional success derives from a transcendent self-awareness and steadfast commitment to core values and fundamental principles. That is the basis of the respect and wealth she generates. So the most we can hope for is that -- after she has toured and spoken -- more citizens of this country who crave honest leadership and a change in direction will come to understand that is what they have the opportunity to elect with Barack Obama.

Rasmussen Reports: Clinton Lead Falls to Single Digits in NH and Nation

Mark Wiznitzer — Sat, 01 Dec 2007 16:26:40 EST

With the usual caveat about the validity of polls, Rasmussen Reports just released its latest New Hampshire and Nationwide polls in which Hillary Clinton's lead has fallen to 7% and 9%, respectively.

http://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/politics/election_2008__1/2008_presidential_election/new_hampshire/election_2008_new_hampshire_democratic_primary,

http://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/politics/election_2008__1/daily_presidential_tracking_polling_history

This is welcome news, but can be deceiving. We know that the polls do not tell the full story, which is that many people are undecided until the proverbial last minute. So don't let this news deter from the focus of our campaign, which is to generate maximum support in the caucuses and primaries, where it really counts.

Las Vegas Diary: High Stakes Game in Nevada Desert

Mark Wiznitzer — Mon, 19 Nov 2007 21:45:55 EST

(The author is a former diplomat whose duties included observing and reporting on foreign elections. This analysis was also posted on www.onemillionstrong.us).

As my 5-day visit to Las Vegas comes to an end, I leave with some trepidation about the preparations for and integrity of the Nevada caucuses scheduled at 11:00 on Saturday morning, January 19, 2008. Of the four “early states” in the Presidential nominee selection process, the Nevada caucus poses the most daunting challenge to the Obama campaign. There is a very real possibility it will be eclipsed by results and momentum established by the winner(s) in Iowa and New Hampshire. Nonetheless, organizing for a win here remains a high priority.

A variety of factors combine to make this state one of the most difficult places in the US to operate politically. In fact, one has to wonder whether the Democratic Party fully understood what it was agreeing to in August 2006, when it decided to anoint Nevada as an “early state”. Nevada is considered a “swing-state,” but except for Bill Clinton’s victories in 1992 and 1996, it voted Republican in every other Presidential election since 1980. Also, its current governor and junior senator are both Republicans. The tradition of political apathy fits neatly with the state’s economic mainstay. So, in gaming parlance, Nevada’s political elite, particularly Harry Reid and his son Rory, are playing “high stakes” with their state’s image and personal reputations. While the current odds do not favor Obama, in the end it may be his campaign that lends needed legitimacy to the Nevada caucus.

Borat Endorses Obama, Sort Of

Mark Wiznitzer — Fri, 09 Nov 2007 19:21:26 EST

For those of you who missed the big news this week. In a November 6 Reuters interview with comedian Sacha Baron Cohen, quoted tonight on MSNBC's Tucker, Borat said he favored Barack Obama, sort of. Here is the relevant Q&A from the interview:

Q: Who do you favor for President in the United States?
A: "I cannot believe that it possible a woman can become Premier of US and A - in Kazakhstan, we say that to give a woman power, is like to give a monkey a gun - very dangerous. We do not give monkeys guns any more in Kazakhstan ever since the Astana Zoo massacre of 2003 when Torkin the orang-utan shoot 17 schoolchildrens. I personal would like the basketball player, Barak Obamas to be Premier."

full story here: http://www.reuters.c...

Diary: Day 6 - New Hampshire Halloween Canvass Wrap-up

Mark Wiznitzer — Sun, 04 Nov 2007 18:39:23 EST

Obama and Iran - Is it too late for Diplomacy?

Mark Wiznitzer — Fri, 02 Nov 2007 14:18:04 EDT

Barack Obama's proposed diplomatic approach to Iran was headline news in the NY Times and MSNBC news programming today. It is marked particularly by a proposed pledge to abandon a policy of regime change in exchange for Iranian cooperation in Iraq and on nuclear proliferation.

The ideology-driven Bush Administration squandered its early opportunities and openings for diplomacy with Teheran. Its subsequent strategic blunders in Iraq and the broader Middle East have greatly reduced Iran's incentives for accommodation with the U.S.

It is impossible to gauge the eventual reaction from the Iranian political leadership to Obama's openings. But confrontation is not inevitable and there is far less to lose through diplomacy than can be gained through belligerence by either the US or Iran.

It may not be a question of "is it too late?" for diplomacy, but rather whether it is too early.

Diary: Day 5 - It's Your Man!

Mark Wiznitzer — Thu, 01 Nov 2007 16:04:24 EDT

I want to tell you about one of those Obama campaign experiences. It reminded me of why I am so committed to his candidacy.

On Tuesday night, before I joined the Upper Valley for Obama crowd for a debate-watching party at EBAs (Everything But Anchovies) in Hanover, I agreed to make a few phone calls to voters from the Lebanon, NH campaign office. After all, the main purpose of this trip to New Hampshire was to help Sarah, one of the campaign staffers responsible for a large chunk of Sullivan County. So Sarah decided to use me to contact "senior" voters in her region, and printed a list of registered Democrats and "undeclareds" in the town of Newport.

I was not having much success, when Yvette, a woman who my records indicated was 80 years old, answered the phone. She spoke in a clear voice that revealed a slight French accent. "I've had three calls now from the campaigns. Usually, no one ever calls me except when they dial the wrong number." Well Yvette had not yet decided who to vote for, though she had a positive impression of Barack Obama.

Diary: Day 4 - The NH Halloween Canvass

Mark Wiznitzer — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 00:04:28 EDT

(Also posted on One Million Strong at http://www.onemillionstrong.us/showDiary.do?diaryId=79)

My goal was to write Diaries for Days 1 to 6 and just put out a one-liner on Day 7. Maybe a sentence fragment from Genesis 2:2. Something like: "and on the seventh day he took his rest from all the work which he had done." I mention this now cause it ain't gonna happen that way. As John Lennon said: "Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans." So, now a higher duty calls me back to New Hampshire for a few days, and it's unlikely I will be posting from there.

My first stop will be an early evening Halloween party tomorrow at the Obama campaign office in Lebanon. Well, I have my disguise, but you will just have to guess who I'm going as! Then, at 8PM, I'll join the dynamic Upper Valley for Obama group, a team of citizens who live along the central Vermont-New Hampshire border, at EBA (Everything But Anchovies) for a debate-watching party. (Hopefully, Obama will seize every opportunity at this debate to discuss Clinton's earmarks, secrets and support for Bush's failed Iraq and Iran policies.) We did the same thing last month, and Senator Obama stopped by later to thank everyone for their enthusiastic "visibility" on the Dartmouth Green preceding the debate. But this is the fun part, and not the main reason for my trip.

Diary: Day 3 - "Need to Know"

Mark Wiznitzer — Sun, 28 Oct 2007 21:45:52 EDT

On Friday night, October 26, before heading out to canvass in New Hampshire the next morning, I watched MSNBC's Hardball with Chris Matthews. He interviewed Sally Bedell Smith, author of a new book titled "For Love of Politics: Bill and Hillary Clinton: The White House Years". You can watch the interview here, and I highly recommend it:

http://video.msn.com/video.aspx?mkt=en-us&brand=msnbc&vid=91c01a70-60ca-4c7c-807c-2e96dbde59fe

Reflecting on my political campaign experience this year, I am struck by the fact that so many people think they know who Hillary is and what they will get if the Clinton's go back to the White House. And yet there is so much about them that is not known and which they have made sure to keep secret. There have been numerous examples of Hillary Clinton refusing to answer questions or her campaign refusing to reveal information which could negatively affect her run for the White House. This contrasts with the honesty and openness that has marked Barack Obama's own approach to the campaign.

I am not referring to the more salacious and personal aspects of Bill Clinton's reputation, or whether the Clintons really "live together, as Chris Matthews wondered. It does not even matter to me in the end whether Hillary used the leverage over Bill derived from his daliances to carve our a role for herself on healthcare, or whether they had long ago agreed that would be her role in his Administration.

Diary: Day 2 - Sanctions, Iran and the Coming Elections

Mark Wiznitzer — Sun, 28 Oct 2007 00:34:38 EDT

This Blog was originally posted on:

http://www.onemillionstrong.us/showDiary.do?diaryId=58

It was easily as rainy in Hanover NH today as it was in Manchester on May 19 during the first canvass for Barack Obama. And this time we didn't have hundreds of other volunteers with whom to share the "misery".

Three hours of rain almost shredded our voter lists. But Dana and I, joined by Bill from Woodstock VT, dutifully knocked on doors and people appeared somewhat more decided about how they planned to vote in the primary than in my past canvasses. There was a Republican woman who planned to vote for Richardson and a Democrat who supported Edwards, but it sounded like Obama was a strong alternative if their candidates floundered.

Anything can happen, but as I described in "The Psychology of Primary Politics - The Marginal Utility of Second Choice" (see http://my.barackobama.com/page/community/post/markwiznitzer/CJCX), being the fall-back choice in the current race could turn out well for Obama.

Before heading home, we returned to the Lebanon office, where we turned in two signed supporter cards and a couple of requests for lawn signs. Pretty good results considering few people were home on this rainy Saturday afternoon.

As I reflected on the day's experience, however, an eerie thought crept into my mind. Only one voter had mentioned the war in Iraq to me, and no one had brought up Iran, even though that had been the most important foreign policy issue in the news this past week.

Diary: Day 1 - You Have A Choice

Mark Wiznitzer — Fri, 26 Oct 2007 22:42:04 EDT

Well, I should be writing about unilateral sanctions, of the kind announced yesterday by the Administration on the heels of the Kyle-Lieberman Resolution. After all, I do have enough experience to claim some expertise administering Anti-Terrorism Export Controls against Iraq in the early 1980's and Anti-Proliferation controls related to CBW in the mid-1990's. Not to mention another 5 years experience administering and negotiating multilateral controls on weapons and dual use technology to the former Warsaw Pact. But maybe I'll save that for another day.

(This Diary also appears in the Obama-related site called One Million Strong at http://www.onemillionstrong.us/showDiary.do?diaryId=47)

The Psychology of Primary Politics - The Marginal Utility of Second Choice

Mark Wiznitzer — Wed, 24 Oct 2007 22:09:55 EDT

The convoluted primary system is hard to get your hands around. So what strategy do you pursue at this stage of the game, as the fist voters are making up their minds?The task is not made easier by the polling data and how it is presented by the media (which I tried to put in context in the "Idiot's Guide to Public Opinion Polls and the Media in This Primary Season" (http://my.barackobama.com/page/community/post/markwiznitzer/CJkg). For these figures and reports misrepresent the true state-of-play and ignore the dynamics of the caucuses and their effect on the subsequent primaries. But the large number of candidates and "undecideds" suggest a winning approach and may help to explain why polls have been notoriously off target in predicting primary results. Limited anecdotal evidence from two sources in Davenport suggests Iowa voters are increasingly committing to support Barack Obama in the caucuses. Some previously "undecided" and many "leaning" voters are signing pledge cards. Every such commitment to Barack Obama is, of course, critical to doing well on caucus night. But the rules of the caucus -- and the staggered nature of the primaries --could ultimately benefit our campaign.Only candidates who meet the "viability threshold", which is anywhere from 15% to 25% of attendees in an Iowa precinct caucus, continue to the final round determining the allocation of delegates. This means a substantial percentage of caucus attendees, supporters of candidates who do not meet the threshold, are likely to realign themselves with a "second choice". In addition, there is a built-in incentive and mechanism for supporters of some candidates to combine their excess votes to take a delegate that otherwise could strengthen a front-runner's tally.With such a broad field of candidates, a lot of people will end up voting for someone who may not have been their first choice. So being the second choice of many voters is a distinct advantage. The Iowa results have a similar effect on other states. Based on my own experience canvassing in New Hampshire, many people do not firmly decide who they will vote for until the final days of the campaign. Especially for these undecideds, the Iowa results help to flag which candidates are viable and which are not. For many voters, the surviving candidates may not include their first choice. There is "momentum" to support a second choice, if that person has fared better in the caucuses.The strategy of our primary campaign at this stage is to sow the seeds for people to identify Obama as their first choice, but otherwise also to keep them open to considering him as their second choice. It is a strategy well-suited to Barack Obama, who has enjoyed high "favorable" ratings, and it is unlikely to help a front-runner with high "negatives".

Obama First to File, Again Leads Fundraising in Vermont

Mark Wiznitzer — Thu, 18 Oct 2007 23:55:36 EDT

Senator Barack Obama is the first presidential candidate to file with the Vermont Secretary of State to appear on the Democratic primary ballot next March. Over 1500 signatures were gathered by volunteers, 500 more than required, over the past 6 months in a grass roots effort to meet the petition requirements for filing. Applications to participate in the primary can be submitted as late as mid-January, but Obama’s enthusiastic supporters did not wait for his campaign to ask for help in completing the petition requirement, and the formal application was submitted in Montpelier on October 17.

Obama also remains the number one fundraiser in the Green Mountain state by the end of the third quarter. Based on his latest filing with the FEC, the Illinois Democrat has raised $334,792 this year, an amount that exceeds the combined total for all other candidates from both parties.

Here are some links to news reports regarding the early ballot filing:

http://www.burlingtonfreepress.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071018/NEWS02/710180303/1007/NEWS05

http://www.vpr.net/news_detail/77811/

http://www.wcax.com/Global/story.asp?S=7230500&nav=menu183_2

http://www.rutlandherald.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071018/NEWS04/710180389/1004/NEWS03

You Can Vote Now Against Bush and for Obama!

Mark Wiznitzer — Mon, 24 Sep 2007 12:36:17 EDT

A book to be released today quotes the President as saying Hillary Clinton will win the Democratic nomination. At the same time, an unnamed White House official is being quoted as saying Obama is "lazy".

Let the world know if you agree with the President about who will win the Democratic nomination. You can vote on this at:

http://www.examiner.com/a-952015~examiNation_DC__What_do_you_think_about_Bush_predicting_Hillary_will_defeat_Obama_.html

No Code For Honesty - The Canvassing Experience

Mark Wiznitzer — Thu, 20 Sep 2007 15:03:39 EDT

Presented here are some thoughts about the canvass, undecided and committed voters, and what I've learned from the canvassing experience.

I wrote this for my June 4 Camp Obama friend Mario and the group of NYC supporters with whom he will be canvassing in New Hampshire this weekend. I hope you too will find it worthwhile. Please offer your own comments and refer other volunteers to read it, but do not repost outside of barckobama.com.

No Sign Of Obama

Mark Wiznitzer — Mon, 17 Sep 2007 16:31:43 EDT

VT State Attorney General's Top Ten List

Mark Wiznitzer — Fri, 14 Sep 2007 12:35:04 EDT

Vermont State Attorney General’s Top 10 List of Reasons to Support Obama

About 100 people attended an event in Burlington organized by Vermonters for Obama on Wednesday night, September 12, at which Vermont State Attorney General William H. Sorrell, Vermont State Treasurer Jeb Spaulding, and Former Burlington Mayor Peter Clavelle publicly endorsed Senator Barack Obama’s candidacy for President. Vermont State Auditor Tom Salmon was unable to attend the event, but also sent a message of support. A highlight of the evening for the enthusiastic crowd was Attorney General Sorrel’s David Letterman-style list of the top 10 reasons to support Barack Obama:

Ch-5 WPTZ Covers Club Obama Organizing Party

Mark Wiznitzer — Thu, 13 Sep 2007 17:29:12 EDT

Obama Supporters Rally In Burlington - View video of the event and interview at the following link

http://www.wptz.com/news/14103268/detail.html

POSTED: 12:01 am EDT September 13, 2007UPDATED: 12:18 am EDT September 13, 2007

Times Argus/Rutland Herald Report Endorsements

Mark Wiznitzer — Thu, 13 Sep 2007 17:22:43 EDT

Vt. politicians lining up to endorse Barack Obama

September 12, 2007

By Louis Porter Vermont Press Bureau

Ch-3 WCAX covers Club Obama Organizing Party

Mark Wiznitzer — Thu, 13 Sep 2007 17:17:45 EDT

Does Vermont Have Primary Pull?

from http://www.wcax.com/Global/story.asp?S=7067592&nav=4QcS

With video link to the report

PRESS RELEASE: Major Vermont Political Figures Endorse Barack Obama for President

Mark Wiznitzer — Tue, 11 Sep 2007 17:06:46 EDT

PRESS RELEASE5:00PM, TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 11, 2007

** Major Vermont Political Figures Endorse Barack Obama for President**

Burlington, VT, September 11, 2007

Vermont State Attorney General William H. Sorrell and Vermont State Treasurer Jeb Spaulding, as well as Former Burlington Mayor Peter Clavelle, will announce their endorsement of Illinois Senator Barack Obama’s candidacy for President at a political rally and organizing party tomorrow evening. Obama was the top political fundraiser in the state during the first six month of the year, collecting more than all other candidates of both parties combined. He also won a poll conducted by the Vermont Democratic Party, which announced on August 1 that Obama had 36% of some 800 votes cast.

Sorrell has served as Attorney General since he was appointed to the position in May 1997, and was subsequently re-elected five times. In 2004-2005 he served as president of President of the National Association of Attorneys General (NAAG), which had given him the Kelley-Wyman Award for being the “Outstanding Attorney General” in 2003.

Jeb Spaulding was first elected Treasurer in 2002, having served eight terms in the State Senate from 1985-2000. A University of Vermont graduate, he was a founder and General Manager of WNCS-FM in Montpelier and a general partner in Precision Media, Inc., which owned and operated radio stations in New England, for many years.

Peter Clavelle served seven terms as mayor of Burlington from 1989 to 2006, having previously served as Director of Community and Economic Development in the administration of then-Mayor Bernie Sanders. Clavelle, who now assists in community development projects abroad, won an EPA Lifetime Achievement Award in 2006 and Champlain College’s Distinguished Citizen Award in 2007.

Vermonters for Obama, a grassroots organization made up entirely of local volunteers, has scheduled a “Club Obama Organizing Party” from 6-9PM on Wednesday, September 12 at Club Metronome (above Nectar’s), 188 Main Street in Burlington. The group has already collected signatures to ensure that Obama’s name appears on the March 4, 2008 Democratic Presidential Primary, and has participated in neighborhood canvassing, both in Vermont and New Hampshire. The party, at which the three senior politicians will officially announce their support, will feature big screen presentations of the candidate, music, and Obama merchandise. The event is open to the public.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

For information regarding this press release contact:

Mark Wiznitzer at 571 277-7248 or

Neil Jensen (Vermonters For Obama Group Administrator) at 802-377-9638

Fundraising Analysis - Now even more so

Mark Wiznitzer — Mon, 10 Sep 2007 22:23:12 EDT

I wrote this after the second quarter numbers came out. Subsequently, there were reports that Clinton's campaign had to lower some of their ealier numbers due to double counting. But now that the Hsu no longer fits and the Clinton campaign is returning $850,000, there will have to be some serious recalculation. I can't wait for the third quarter, which ends in only 3 weeks.

An Idiot's Guide to Public Opinion Polls and the Media in This Primary Season

Mark Wiznitzer — Mon, 20 Aug 2007 18:07:55 EDT

The author is a former diplomat whose duties included reporting and analysis of foreign political developments. He is an active Obama supporter, as evidenced by his previous post regarding the experience of attending Camp Obama. Like many other Obama backers, he is sometimes frustrated by the fact his candidate does not appear to be doing better in polls, particularly at the national level. It is still relatively early in the race, and Obama fares better in the early states of Iowa, NH and SC. So he decided to post here this layman's guide to polling to promote understanding among those who are relatively new to political activism, regardless of which candidate they support.

Originally posted on myDD on Thursday, August 16, 2007

Mi Viaje Espiritual: Spanish translation of TIME article by Barack Obama

Mark Wiznitzer — Fri, 22 Jun 2007 10:37:02 EDT

A Spanish translation of the October 16, 2006 Time article by Barack Obama is now online at:

Link

This is an informal translation of the article, which appears in its original English version at: Link.

This project was completed with the help of five volunteers.

We hope that it will assist both the Faith and Spanish-speaking communities in getting to know the candidate better.

Please share this message with other interested groups or individuals.