Missoula for Obama

Bozeman

Starla Gade — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 15:26:09 EDT

The White House has confirmed that Obama will be in Bozeman on Friday August 14th. I feel we should do what ever is needed to make a strong stand behind President Obama and Health Care Reform.

Is anyone interested in helping?

Pledge Drive

Starla Gade — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 21:00:20 EDT

This weekend we have a great opportunity to support President Obama by going out and collecting Pledge Promises in support of his priorities for our country. As you are aware we elected President Obama with the promise of changing our country. In order to do that we have to help him push our top three priorities in improving our Economy & Creating Jobs; Health Care, Clean Energy, Education/Schools.

This is a great way for us to build and reenergize the folks that support President Obama, creating a database of volunteers and supporters.

The purpose of the Pledge Promise is to have supporters do the big ASK and talk to your representative asking them to pass President Obama's Budget. We can do this. This is why we elected President Obama...we are the change we've been waiting for!

Will you help President Obama with the economy?

Nathan Kosted-OFA Montana Field Director — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 18:06:01 EST

In case you hadn't seen this yet I thought I'd pass it on, please consider hosting a party or talking with a friend you can work with to find a venue to hold a party. We need many minds to figure out the stimulus plan and economic recovery and your voice needs to be heard.

Sign up to host an Economic Recovery House Meeting the weekend of Friday, February 6th.

Wouldn't it be great if we could get a party in every major town in Montana (and the smaller ones too). I have sent this e-mail to people in Bozeman, Billings, Great Falls, Missoula, and Helena, please forward this to people all over the state who may be interested, this movement is about us, the people and let’s keep it going to change Montana and America.

Please don’t let the scare tactics of Rush Limbaugh continue to run this country, we need bipartisanship to solve the economic crisis and rebuild our country. We cannot stand by as every house republican votes against the stimulus plan in lockstep, this is not a political issue, it is an issue that needs open discussion from all viewpoints and not just the Republican caucus (or Democratic one for that matter) to decide. President Obama ran his campaign on openness, bipartisanship and real solutions for America; let’s help him on the road to recovery.

Thank you and may your personal finances outlast this recession,

Nathan Kosted

P.S. Here's he link again:

Sign up to host an Economic Recovery House Meeting the weekend of Friday, February 6th.

Civil War!!!!

Randy — Sun, 14 Dec 2008 17:43:05 EST

Here we go again North against the South!!! Yep believe it or not all of the Senators that voted against loaning the big three any money to help them get past this recesssion, (which the BANKS started) are all from states from the south. When I look at these Senators they remind me of the plantation owners that believed in slavery and if we don't watch out we will be right back there again or we might as well be. Your wages will start droping and droping. All the Republicans are doing is trying to break the unions and if they do were all in trouble. The company owners will start treating people more and more like dogs. And it's already taking place all over the country in sweat shops where these people hire illegals to do the work. These Senators are not stupid they are getting all kinds of kick backs from the foriegn auto dealers that have plants in there states. This just another straw on the camels back. Bush and his people are slowly taking every penny they can. The honest people can't take anymore people all across our country are starting to eat less and less. They keep trying to tell us that we have to start working in the service sector or in the medical field but what they are not telling you is that those fields are not necessary people won't go out to eat because they won't have the money and they will just start staying home instead of going to the doctor. They are treating us like we are dum and the worst part is we are falling for it. Sometimes when i'm watch these news casters talk I wonder If they even know what they are talking about do they even know what the service sector is and does it even pay enough to take care of your family. And don't let them fool you the people that work in these shops don't make no where near 70 dollars an hour thats a bunch of crap. Well I hope you all have a Merry Christmas.

RANDY M.

Check out change.gov!

Montana for Obama — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 12:29:52 EST

I've been on change.gov lately, and am very impressed with it for
several reasons:

1. First, all Americans are being invited to make suggestions to
Barack's policy plans in all the various categories. He wants to
hear from us! That's an invitation to continue to be involved in
helping to steer our country forward;

2. There is also a survey that most of us have been invited to fill
out which asks us to identify the policy areas of greatest interest
to each individual person and whether we would be willing to invite
others in our communities to participate in by both making
suggestions and also by being willing to contact our elected
representatives to make our voices heard.

It's refreshing to see how he is using a grassroots approach to
organize and focus our creativity and energy in the service of a
better country. It's just what we were expecting and hoping to d!o!

Be sure to check this site out and to continue to help Barack in
governing our great country. We accomplished step one...and now on
to step two!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! I'm in Beaverton, Oregon today to be
with our kids and grandkids at this special time.

Frank

Step one and the next one is coming up!

Montana for Obama — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 22:57:35 EST

I've been thinking about this momentous thing that we accomplished,
all of us working together across America. No one gave Barack Obama
much of a chance when he first announced he was running for
president. Lana and I sat transfixed in front of the TV as he made
his announcement. It was a cold day in Chicago, and a pretty cool
day here in Missoula too! But there was an excitement in the air.
It was the hope of a new day, a new era in American history. A time
of renewal and rededication to the principles of equality, justice,
opportunity and fairness. As we listened to Barack that day, we saw
two bald eagles circling overhead here on the Bitterroot River. We
laughed and said, "Give us a sign!" And honestly, as all this was
happening, we felt that we indeed were witnessing a sign of new hope
and possibilities. And all this from a skinny guy with big ears and a
funny name as he has said many times. Wow.

The movement that lifted Barack up was based on the love we all have
for our wonderful country. We grew strong dispite all the bitterness
and division that existed between Americans who felt that we were
just stuck where we were. And step by step throughout this long
campaign season, people joined the voices for change. And wonders of
all wonders, we elected Barack as our President! Yes, we did!

Well, if we can do that, just think of what we will accomplish next!
For sure, Barack will need us all to stay engaged in transforming our
country. We all have our different talents and interests. Won't it
be amazing to see how we will use them for ourselves, our families,
our state, our country and the world? I'm really excited about our
prospects aren't you? In the midst of the many challanges we face,
we can do so much more than we ever thought we could do before this
election happened.

And it has been so exciting to see the reaction to the prospects of
President Obama around the world! This change for the better is
catching isn't it? What a time to be alive!

Frank

President-Elect Barack Obama!

Montana for Obama — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 11:01:50 EST

First, I'm so happy that Barack is going to be our President!

And this morning, we saw that we were unable to overcome the party
bias of our state, even though in a number of counties we had solid
Obama wins. Where we organized and worked hard, we did very well
indeed. I think we can take heart in those counties and in our
efforts.

And I think we can learn from this experience for the future.

Did we make person to person contacts, building our relationships
more widely in our state? Or, did we hope, as we have done in times
past, that we could overwhelm conservatives with our numbers as we
were able to do so in the case of Jon Tester? Certainly
circumstances are different now, but I think in the future that we
need to reach out earlier and reach out more, and organize more
effectively in outlying areas to have a better chance of achieving
our goals. What do you think you learned that might help us in the
future? I'm interested in your thoughts on this.

And finally, remember that Barack is going to need our support in the
coming months and beyond. We will be ready to give it!

Congratulations on what we were able to achieve! It is a new day in
our America!

Frank

Vote Your Pocketbook, Vote Obama

Stephen from Missoula, MT — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 18:44:33 EDT

Vote Your Pocketbook, Vote Obama

The three great stock market crashes (1929, 1987 and 2008) have happened at the end of long periods of Republican presidencies. 1929 happened at the end of eight, 1987 after six, and 2008 after seven years of Republican rule. So it’s hard to argue that Republicans have some magical touch when it comes to the economy.

The problem, as former Federal Reserve Board Chairman Alan Greenspan acknowledged recently to Congress, is that banks and investment houses don’t automatically act to ensure the safety of their investors. So, with regulation loosened or missing as it has been during several Republican presidencies, some financial institutions exploited public trust with greedy and fiscally unsound schemes that worked only for salespeople and corporate officers—like, oh, say, $516 TRILLION dollars in outstanding derivatives worldwide.

On the other hand, since WWII, Democratic Presidents have presided over the greatest increases in Gross Domestic Product, jobs, personal disposable income, industrial production, and hourly wages. Democrats also achieved the lowest misery Index (lowest inflation + unemployment.), lowest inflation and the greatest reduction in the Federal Budget Deficit-- as political economist Arthur Blaustein recently pointed out in an article in Investment News.

http://www.investmentnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20081026/REG/310279972/1017&ht=blaustein%20blaustein%20blaustein

Democrats are also much better for workers and wages. Princeton’s Larry Bartels points out that from the late 1940s onward, unemployment has been almost one-third higher under Republican Presidents--6.3 percent to the Democrats’ 4.8 percent. A final dagger in the myth of Republican economic superiority is that Middle Class incomes have grown almost twice as fast under Democrats during that time, and, for lower income Americans, incomes have grown almost six times as fast under Democrats as Republicans. http://www.csmonitor.com/2008/1021/p09s01-coop.html

So, on Tuesday, if you’re voting to protect the economy, vote Democratic.

Really Important! Missoula Needs Your Help!

Montana for Obama — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 12:15:22 EDT

We are now in the final few days, and Barack is essentially tied here in Montana. We can win if we get folks to vote and if we sign up new voters. I'm going to be out knocking on doors and there are lots of other things that need doing here in Missoula. WE NEED YOU!

Laura Warren (laura.jo.warren@gmail.com) is doing a great job of helping to organize our effort in these final days and she tells me that there is a need for volunteers to help Barack NOW. Please contact her for a list of opportunities in Missoula. Here telephone number is 274-2647.

Remember, we got er done for Jon Tester and we can do it again if we stay focused and work hard. So, join me, Laura and other Missoulians to deliver the vote for Barack! Don't put it off. Contact her right now, OK?

Thanks,

Frank

Our Jewish Friends for Obama

Montana for Obama — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 19:37:28 EDT

I found this very moving indeed and thought you would enjoy it:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K2VFRt5W4FM It was my "little shot of hope today." Frank

My American Prayer

Montana for Obama — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 19:19:32 EDT

Like many of you, I've been watching, working and waiting for the day when the answer to our prayers for our country might be lifted up to the next level. This is the evening of the 12th day until America responds to Barack's message to come together for the common good through the mechanism of the voting booth. Both Barack and Michelle have been telling us that we have to run through the tape at the finish line, doing all we can, giving our time and energy to help him win this election as our president.

Here in Montana it may not be easy, but I think it can be done. We elected Jon Tester didn't we? I think we have a good chance to pull this off, but you and I have to really be active in these remaining days. Most importantly, we have to sign up people to vote and let people know why we are supporting Barack Obama, and asking people to support him too.

We each have our own ways of making a difference. One of the most important ways, is by working with the nearest Obama campaign office to where you live. Barackobama.com lists a number of things you can do. And there are lots of ways of helping on a very personal level. I wear my Obama t-shirt when I go out to do things. People often see it, smile and even say they like it. I always ask them if they are a Barack supporter and if they are signed up to vote. If they aren't, I tell then how to get signed up and offer to take them to register. And today, I was sitting in the dentist's office waiting to get some work done and I asked the receptionist if she was excited about the upcoming election. (In other words, always provide an opening for dialogue.) She said yes, but she hadn't registered to vote yet and asked some questions about how to to it. So, I told her, and before we were done, she got permission from her boss to go register tomorrow at a particular time! I suggested she take a friend who might also need to register as well. She said, I will do it! Anyway, it's just an illustration of how easy it is to be active no matter where you are!

And here is an inspirational song about this time…a time to act on our hopes in the voting booth. A time to stand up. We can do this. Yes we can!http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oVi4rUzf-0Q In peace and love, Frank

Uncontrolled McCain

Cheryl Bramsen — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 19:53:53 EDT

Please, Senator Obama, use the term Republican every chance you have. In the debate the term was only used once and it wasn't by stupid McCain. Please remember that if you can tie him to the Republican brand by saying that he is a Republican and we are in a Republican started mess, people will remember. Please offer to discuss all his lies even if he doesn't bring them up. I wear an Obama pin everywhere and I have been approached by undecided voters that say they are warning me that Obama is a terrorist. The elderly in the group were surprised that Medicare is in danger by Mccain's plan and he conveniently forgot to discuss Medicare in his little rant. And please remember, it is still a fact that he voted for the war while you were opposed. We need to hear that you will not put up with these lies. Thank you and I pray every night that God will protect you from the nut cases that Mccain is enflaming with his rhetoric.

Why I voted for Barack

Montana for Obama — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 09:32:48 EDT

This is why I’m voting for Barack. Frank From the Huffington Post: Frank SchaefferPosted October 8, 2008 | 02:45 PM (EST) Obama Will Be One of The Greatest (and Most Loved) American Presidents Great presidents are made great by horrible circumstances combined with character, temperament and intelligence. Like firemen, cops, doctors or soldiers, presidents need a crisis to shine.Obama is one of the most intelligent presidential aspirants to ever step forward in American history. The likes of his intellectual capabilities have not been surpassed in public life since the Founding Fathers put pen to paper. His personal character is also solid gold. Take heart, America: we have the leader for our times.I say this as a white, former life-long Republican. I say this as the proud father of a Marine. I say this as just another American watching his pension evaporate along with the stock market! I speak as someone who knows it's time to forget party loyalty, ideology and pride and put the country first. I say this as someone happy to be called a fool for going out on a limb and declaring that, 1) Obama will win, and 2) he is going to be amongst the greatest of American presidents.Obama is our last best chance. He's worth laying it all on the line for. This is a man who in the age of greed took the high road of community service. This is the good father and husband. This is the humble servant. This is the patient teacher. This is the scholar statesman. This is the man of deep Christian faith. Good stories about Obama abound; from his personal relationship with his Secret Service agents (he invites them into his home to watch sports, and shoots hoops with them) to the story about how, more than twenty years ago, while standing in the check-in line at an airport, Obama paid a $100 baggage surcharge for a stranger who was broke and stuck. (Obama was virtually penniless himself in those days.) Years later after he became a senator, that stranger recognized Obama's picture and wrote to him to thank him. She received a kindly note back from the senator. (The story only surfaced because the person, who lives in Norway, told a local newspaper after Obama ran for the presidency. The paper published a photograph of this lady proudly displaying Senator Obama's letter.)Where many leaders are two-faced; publicly kindly but privately feared and/or hated by people closest to them, Obama is consistent in the way he treats people, consistently kind and personally humble. He lives by the code that those who lead must serve. He believes that. He lives it. He lived it long before he was in the public eye.Obama puts service ahead of ideology. He also knows that to win politically you need to be tough. He can be. He has been. This is a man who does what works, rather than scoring ideological points. In other words he is the quintessential non-ideological pragmatic American. He will (thank God!) disappoint ideologues and purists of the left and the right. Obama has a reservoir of personal physical courage that is unmatched in presidential history. Why unmatched? Because as the first black contender for the presidency who will win, Obama, and all the rest of us, know that he is in great physical danger from the seemingly unlimited reserve of unhinged racial hatred, and just plain unhinged ignorant hatred, that swirls in the bowels of our wounded and sinful country. By stepping forward to lead, Obama has literally put his life on the line for all of us in a way no white candidate ever has had to do. (And we all know how dangerous the presidency has been even for white presidents.) Nice stories or even unparalleled courage isn't the only point. The greater point about Obama is that the midst of our worldwide financial meltdown, an expanding (and losing) war in Afghanistan, trying to extricate our country from a wrong and stupidly mistaken ruinously expensive war in Iraq, our mounting and crushing national debt, awaiting the next (and inevitable) al Qaeda attack on our homeland, watching our schools decline to Third World levels of incompetence, facing a general loss of confidence in the government that has been exacerbated by the Republicans doing all they can to undermine our government's capabilities and programs... President Obama will take on the leadership of our country at a make or break time of historic proportions. He faces not one but dozens of crisis, each big enough to define any presidency in better times.As luck, fate or divine grace would have it (depending on one's personal theology) Obama is blessedly, dare I say uniquely, well-suited to our dire circumstances. Obama is a person with hands-on community service experience, deep connections to top economic advisers from the renowned University of Chicago where he taught law, and a middle-class background that gives him an abiding knowledgeable empathy with the rest of us. As the son of a single mother, who has worked his way up with merit and brains, recipient of top-notch academic scholarships, the peer-selected editor of the Harvard Law Review and, in three giant political steps to state office, national office and now the presidency, Obama clearly has the wit and drive to lead. Obama is the sober voice of reason at a time of unreason. He is the fellow keeping his head while all around him are panicking. He is the healing presence at a time of national division and strife. He is also new enough to the political process so that he doesn't suffer from the terminally jaded cynicism, the seen-it-all-before syndrome afflicting most politicians in Washington. In that regard we Americans lucked out. It's as if having despaired of our political process we picked a name from the phone book to lead us and that person turned out to be a very man we needed.Obama brings a healing and uplifting spiritual quality to our politics at the very time when our worst enemy is fear. For eight years we've been ruled by a stunted fear-filled mediocrity of a little liar who has expanded his power on the basis of creating fear in others. Fearless Obama is the cure. He speaks a litany of hope rather than a litany of terror.As we have watched Obama respond in a quiet reasoned manner to crisis after crisis, in both the way he has responded after being attacked and lied about in the 2008 campaign season, to his reasoned response to our multiplying national crises, what we see is the spirit of a trusted family doctor with a great bedside manner. Obama is perfectly suited to hold our hand and lead us through some very tough times. The word panic is not in the Obama dictionary. America is fighting its "Armageddon" in one fearful heart at a time. A brilliant leader with the mild manner of an old-time matter-of-fact country doctor soothing a frightened child is just what we need. The fact that our "doctor" is a black man leading a hitherto white-ruled nation out of the mess of its own making is all the sweeter and raises the Obama story to that of moral allegory.Obama brings a moral clarity to his leadership reserved for those who have had to work for everything they've gotten and had to do twice as well as the person standing next to them because of the color of their skin. His experience of succeeding in spite of his color, social background and prejudice could have been embittering or one that fostered a spiritual rebirth of forgiveness and enlightenment. Obama radiates the calm inner peace of the spirit of forgiveness. Speaking as a believing Christian I see the hand of a merciful God in Obama's candidacy. The biblical metaphors abound. The stone the builder rejected is become the cornerstone... the last shall be first... he that would gain his life must first lose it... the meek shall inherit the earth... For my secular friends I'll allow that we may have just been extraordinarily lucky! Either way America wins.Only a brilliant man, with the spirit of a preacher and the humble heart of a kindly family doctor can lead us now. We are afraid, out of ideas, and worst of all out of hope. Obama is the cure. And we Americans have it in us to rise to the occasion. We will. We're about to enter one of the most frightening periods of American history. Our country has rarely faced more uncertainty. This is the time for greatness. We have a great leader. We must be a great people backing him, fighting for him, sacrificing for a cause greater than ourselves.A hundred years from now Obama's portrait will be placed next to that of George Washington, Abraham Lincoln and Franklin Roosevelt. Long before that we'll be telling our children and grandchildren that we stepped out in faith and voted for a young black man who stood up and led our country back from the brink of an abyss. We'll tell them about the power of love, faith and hope. We'll tell them about the power of creativity combined with humility and intellectual brilliance. We'll tell them that President Obama gave us the gift of regaining our faith in our country. We'll tell them that we all stood up and pitched in and won the day. We'll tell them that President Obama restored our standing in the world. We'll tell them that by the time he left office our schools were on the mend, our economy booming, that we'd become a nation filled with green energy alternatives and were leading the world away from dependence on carbon-based destruction. We'll tell them that because of President Obama's example and leadership the integrity of the family was restored, divorce rates went down, more fathers took responsibility for their children, and abortion rates fell dramatically as women, families and children were cared for through compassionate social programs that worked. We'll tell them about how the gap closed between the middle class and the super rich, how we won health care for all, how crime rates fell, how bad wars were brought to an honorable conclusion. We'll tell them that when we were attacked again by al Qaeda, how reason prevailed and the response was smart, tough, measured and effective, and our civil rights were protected even in times of crisis...We'll tell them that we were part of the inexplicably blessed miracle that happened to our country those many years ago in 2008 when a young black man was sent by God, fate or luck to save our country. We'll tell them that it's good to live in America where anything is possible. Yes we will.

Facts about John McCain that need to be shared ASAP!

LuAnn in Indiana — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 08:06:20 EDT

These are facts about McCain, his family, his life and all the mistruths that he likes to brag about. Please take the time to watch these and you may be shocked.People everywhere have the right to know these things about John McCain.He is no maverick. He would be a disaster as President. He is strictly out for John McCain and has proven he will say or do anything to get elected.Please help Barack and share these facts. McCain’s campaign is getting nastier.

Thanks, LuAnn

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=06zsn5BuL3Y

http://www.politicalbase.com/profile/jnail/blog/&blogId=4588

http://www.rollingstone.com/news/coverstory/make_believe_maverick_the_real_john_mccain/page/1

The Choice

Montana for Obama — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 13:56:26 EDT

A cogent and thoughtful reason for the election of Barack Obama by the editorial staff of: The New Yorker The Choice October 13, 2008 Never in living memory has an election been more critical than the one fast approaching—that’s the quadrennial cliché, as expected as the balloons and the bombast. And yet when has it ever felt so urgently true? When have so many Americans had so clear a sense that a Presidency has—at the levels of competence, vision, and integrity—undermined the country and its ideals?The incumbent Administration has distinguished itself for the ages. The Presidency of George W. Bush is the worst since Reconstruction, so there is no mystery about why the Republican Party—which has held dominion over the executive branch of the federal government for the past eight years and the legislative branch for most of that time—has little desire to defend its record, domestic or foreign. The only speaker at the Convention in St. Paul who uttered more than a sentence or two in support of the President was his wife, Laura. Meanwhile, the nominee, John McCain, played the part of a vaudeville illusionist, asking to be regarded as an apostle of change after years of embracing the essentials of the Bush agenda with ever-increasing ardor.The Republican disaster begins at home. Even before taking into account whatever fantastically expensive plan eventually emerges to help rescue the financial system from Wall Street’s long-running pyramid schemes, the economic and fiscal picture is bleak. During the Bush Administration, the national debt, now approaching ten trillion dollars, has nearly doubled. Next year’s federal budget is projected to run a half-trillion-dollar deficit, a precipitous fall from the seven-hundred-billion-dollar surplus that was projected when Bill Clinton left office. Private-sector job creation has been a sixth of what it was under President Clinton. Five million people have fallen into poverty. The number of Americans without health insurance has grown by seven million, while average premiums have nearly doubled. Meanwhile, the principal domestic achievement of the Bush Administration has been to shift the relative burden of taxation from the rich to the rest. For the top one per cent of us, the Bush tax cuts are worth, on average, about a thousand dollars a week; for the bottom fifth, about a dollar and a half. The unfairness will only increase if the painful, yet necessary, effort to rescue the credit markets ends up preventing the rescue of our health-care system, our environment, and our physical, educational, and industrial infrastructure.At the same time, a hundred and fifty thousand American troops are in Iraq and thirty-three thousand are in Afghanistan. There is still disagreement about the wisdom of overthrowing Saddam Hussein and his horrific regime, but there is no longer the slightest doubt that the Bush Administration manipulated, bullied, and lied the American public into this war and then mismanaged its prosecution in nearly every aspect. The direct costs, besides an expenditure of more than six hundred billion dollars, have included the loss of more than four thousand Americans, the wounding of thirty thousand, the deaths of tens of thousands of Iraqis, and the displacement of four and a half million men, women, and children. Only now, after American forces have been fighting for a year longer than they did in the Second World War, is there a glimmer of hope that the conflict in Iraq has entered a stage of fragile stability.The indirect costs, both of the war in particular and of the Administration’s unilateralist approach to foreign policy in general, have also been immense. The torture of prisoners, authorized at the highest level, has been an ethical and a public-diplomacy catastrophe. At a moment when the global environment, the global economy, and global stability all demand a transition to new sources of energy, the United States has been a global retrograde, wasteful in its consumption and heedless in its policy. Strategically and morally, the Bush Administration has squandered the American capacity to counter the example and the swagger of its rivals. China, Russia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and other illiberal states have concluded, each in its own way, that democratic principles and human rights need not be components of a stable, prosperous future. At recent meetings of the United Nations, emboldened despots like Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of Iran came to town sneering at our predicament and hailing the “end of the American era.” The election of 2008 is the first in more than half a century in which no incumbent President or Vice-President is on the ballot. There is, however, an incumbent party, and that party has been lucky enough to find itself, apparently against the wishes of its “base,” with a nominee who evidently disliked George W. Bush before it became fashionable to do so. In South Carolina in 2000, Bush crushed John McCain with a sub-rosa primary campaign of such viciousness that McCain lashed out memorably against Bush’s Christian-right allies. So profound was McCain’s anger that in 2004 he flirted with the possibility of joining the Democratic ticket under John Kerry. Bush, who took office as a “compassionate conservative,” governed immediately as a rightist ideologue. During that first term, McCain bolstered his reputation, sometimes deserved, as a “maverick” willing to work with Democrats on such issues as normalizing relations with Vietnam, campaign-finance reform, and immigration reform. He co-sponsored, with John Edwards and Edward Kennedy, a patients’ bill of rights. In 2001 and 2003, he voted against the Bush tax cuts. With John Kerry, he co-sponsored a bill raising auto-fuel efficiency standards and, with Joseph Lieberman, a cap-and-trade regime on carbon emissions. He was one of a minority of Republicans opposed to unlimited drilling for oil and gas off America’s shores.Since the 2004 election, however, McCain has moved remorselessly rightward in his quest for the Republican nomination. He paid obeisance to Jerry Falwell and preachers of his ilk. He abandoned immigration reform, eventually coming out against his own bill. Most shocking, McCain, who had repeatedly denounced torture under all circumstances, voted in February against a ban on the very techniques of “enhanced interrogation” that he himself once endured in Vietnam—as long as the torturers were civilians employed by the C.I.A. On almost every issue, McCain and the Democratic Party’s nominee, Barack Obama, speak the generalized language of “reform,” but only Obama has provided a convincing, rational, and fully developed vision. McCain has abandoned his opposition to the Bush-era tax cuts and has taken up the demagogic call—in the midst of recession and Wall Street calamity, with looming crises in Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid—for more tax cuts. Bush’s expire in 2011. If McCain, as he has proposed, cuts taxes for corporations and estates, the benefits once more would go disproportionately to the wealthy. In Washington, the craze for pure market triumphalism is over. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson arrived in town (via Goldman Sachs) a Republican, but it seems that he will leave a Democrat. In other words, he has come to see that the abuses that led to the current financial crisis––not least, excessive speculation on borrowed capital––can be fixed only with government regulation and oversight. McCain, who has never evinced much interest in, or knowledge of, economic questions, has had little of substance to say about the crisis. His most notable gesture of concern—a melodramatic call last month to suspend his campaign and postpone the first Presidential debate until the government bailout plan was ready—soon revealed itself as an empty diversionary tactic.By contrast, Obama has made a serious study of the mechanics and the history of this economic disaster and of the possibilities of stimulating a recovery. Last March, in New York, in a speech notable for its depth, balance, and foresight, he said, “A complete disdain for pay-as-you-go budgeting, coupled with a generally scornful attitude towards oversight and enforcement, allowed far too many to put short-term gain ahead of long-term consequences.” Obama is committed to reforms that value not only the restoration of stability but also the protection of the vast majority of the population, which did not partake of the fruits of the binge years. He has called for greater and more programmatic regulation of the financial system; the creation of a National Infrastructure Reinvestment Bank, which would help reverse the decay of our roads, bridges, and mass-transit systems, and create millions of jobs; and a major investment in the green-energy sector. On energy and global warming, Obama offers a set of forceful proposals. He supports a cap-and-trade program to reduce America’s carbon emissions by eighty per cent by 2050—an enormously ambitious goal, but one that many climate scientists say must be met if atmospheric carbon dioxide is to be kept below disastrous levels. Large emitters, like utilities, would acquire carbon allowances, and those which emit less carbon dioxide than their allotment could sell the resulting credits to those which emit more; over time, the available allowances would decline. Significantly, Obama wants to auction off the allowances; this would provide fifteen billion dollars a year for developing alternative-energy sources and creating job-training programs in green technologies. He also wants to raise federal fuel-economy standards and to require that ten per cent of America’s electricity be generated from renewable sources by 2012. Taken together, his proposals represent the most coherent and far-sighted strategy ever offered by a Presidential candidate for reducing the nation’s reliance on fossil fuels.There was once reason to hope that McCain and Obama would have a sensible debate about energy and climate policy. McCain was one of the first Republicans in the Senate to support federal limits on carbon dioxide, and he has touted his own support for a less ambitious cap-and-trade program as evidence of his independence from the White House. But, as polls showed Americans growing jittery about gasoline prices, McCain apparently found it expedient in this area, too, to shift course. He took a dubious idea—lifting the federal moratorium on offshore oil drilling—and placed it at the very center of his campaign. Opening up America’s coastal waters to drilling would have no impact on gasoline prices in the short term, and, even over the long term, the effect, according to a recent analysis by the Department of Energy, would be “insignificant.” Such inconvenient facts, however, are waved away by a campaign that finally found its voice with the slogan “Drill, baby, drill!” The contrast between the candidates is even sharper with respect to the third branch of government. A tense equipoise currently prevails among the Justices of the Supreme Court, where four hard-core conservatives face off against four moderate liberals. Anthony M. Kennedy is the swing vote, determining the outcome of case after case. McCain cites Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Samuel Alito, two reliable conservatives, as models for his own prospective appointments. If he means what he says, and if he replaces even one moderate on the current Supreme Court, then Roe v. Wade will be reversed, and states will again be allowed to impose absolute bans on abortion. McCain’s views have hardened on this issue. In 1999, he said he opposed overturning Roe; by 2006, he was saying that its demise “wouldn’t bother me any”; by 2008, he no longer supported adding rape and incest as exceptions to his party’s platform opposing abortion. But scrapping Roe—which, after all, would leave states as free to permit abortion as to criminalize it—would be just the beginning. Given the ideological agenda that the existing conservative bloc has pursued, it’s safe to predict that affirmative action of all kinds would likely be outlawed by a McCain Court. Efforts to expand executive power, which, in recent years, certain Justices have nobly tried to resist, would likely increase. Barriers between church and state would fall; executions would soar; legal checks on corporate power would wither—all with just one new conservative nominee on the Court. And the next President is likely to make three appointments.Obama, who taught constitutional law at the University of Chicago, voted against confirming not only Roberts and Alito but also several unqualified lower-court nominees. As an Illinois state senator, he won the support of prosecutors and police organizations for new protections against convicting the innocent in capital cases. While McCain voted to continue to deny habeas-corpus rights to detainees, perpetuating the Bush Administration’s regime of state-sponsored extra-legal detention, Obama took the opposite side, pushing to restore the right of all U.S.-held prisoners to a hearing. The judicial future would be safe in his care. In the shorthand of political commentary, the Iraq war seems to leave McCain and Obama roughly even. Opposing it before the invasion, Obama had the prescience to warn of a costly and indefinite occupation and rising anti-American radicalism around the world; supporting it, McCain foresaw none of this. More recently, in early 2007 McCain risked his Presidential prospects on the proposition that five additional combat brigades could salvage a war that by then appeared hopeless. Obama, along with most of the country, had decided that it was time to cut American losses. Neither candidate’s calculations on Iraq have been as cheaply political as McCain’s repeated assertion that Obama values his career over his country; both men based their positions, right or wrong, on judgment and principle. President Bush’s successor will inherit two wars and the realities of limited resources, flagging popular will, and the dwindling possibilities of what can be achieved by American power. McCain’s views on these subjects range from the simplistic to the unknown. In Iraq, he seeks “victory”—a word that General David Petraeus refuses to use, and one that fundamentally misrepresents the messy, open-ended nature of the conflict. As for Afghanistan, on the rare occasions when McCain mentions it he implies that the surge can be transferred directly from Iraq, which suggests that his grasp of counterinsurgency is not as firm as he insisted it was during the first Presidential debate. McCain always displays more faith in force than interest in its strategic consequences. Unlike Obama, McCain has no political strategy for either war, only the dubious hope that greater security will allow things to work out. Obama has long warned of deterioration along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border, and has a considered grasp of its vital importance. His strategy for both Afghanistan and Iraq shows an understanding of the role that internal politics, economics, corruption, and regional diplomacy play in wars where there is no battlefield victory. Unimaginably painful personal experience taught McCain that war is above all a test of honor: maintain the will to fight on, be prepared to risk everything, and you will prevail. Asked during the first debate to outline “the lessons of Iraq,” McCain said, “I think the lessons of Iraq are very clear: that you cannot have a failed strategy that will then cause you to nearly lose a conflict.” A soldier’s answer––but a statesman must have a broader view of war and peace. The years ahead will demand not only determination but also diplomacy, flexibility, patience, judiciousness, and intellectual engagement. These are no more McCain’s strong suit than the current President’s. Obama, for his part, seems to know that more will be required than willpower and force to extract some advantage from the wreckage of the Bush years. Obama is also better suited for the task of renewing the bedrock foundations of American influence. An American restoration in foreign affairs will require a commitment not only to international coöperation but also to international institutions that can address global warming, the dislocations of what will likely be a deepening global economic crisis, disease epidemics, nuclear proliferation, terrorism, and other, more traditional security challenges. Many of the Cold War-era vehicles for engagement and negotiation—the United Nations, the World Bank, the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty regime, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization—are moribund, tattered, or outdated. Obama has the generational outlook that will be required to revive or reinvent these compacts. He would be the first postwar American President unencumbered by the legacies of either Munich or Vietnam. The next President must also restore American moral credibility. Closing Guantánamo, banning all torture, and ending the Iraq war as responsibly as possible will provide a start, but only that. The modern Presidency is as much a vehicle for communication as for decision-making, and the relevant audiences are global. Obama has inspired many Americans in part because he holds up a mirror to their own idealism. His election would do no less—and likely more—overseas. What most distinguishes the candidates, however, is character—and here, contrary to conventional wisdom, Obama is clearly the stronger of the two. Not long ago, Rick Davis, McCain’s campaign manager, said, “This election is not about issues. This election is about a composite view of what people take away from these candidates.” The view that this election is about personalities leaves out policy, complexity, and accountability. Even so, there’s some truth in what Davis said––but it hardly points to the conclusion that he intended.Echoing Obama, McCain has made “change” one of his campaign mantras. But the change he has actually provided has been in himself, and it is not just a matter of altering his positions. A willingness to pander and even lie has come to define his Presidential campaign and its televised advertisements. A contemptuous duplicity, a meanness, has entered his talk on the stump—so much so that it seems obvious that, in the drive for victory, he is willing to replicate some of the same underhanded methods that defeated him eight years ago in South Carolina.Perhaps nothing revealed McCain’s cynicism more than his choice of Sarah Palin, the former mayor of Wasilla, Alaska, who had been governor of that state for twenty-one months, as the Republican nominee for Vice-President. In the interviews she has given since her nomination, she has had difficulty uttering coherent unscripted responses about the most basic issues of the day. We are watching a candidate for Vice-President cram for her ongoing exam in elementary domestic and foreign policy. This is funny as a Tina Fey routine on “Saturday Night Live,” but as a vision of the political future it’s deeply unsettling. Palin has no business being the backup to a President of any age, much less to one who is seventy-two and in imperfect health. In choosing her, McCain committed an act of breathtaking heedlessness and irresponsibility. Obama’s choice, Joe Biden, is not without imperfections. His tongue sometimes runs in advance of his mind, providing his own fodder for late-night comedians, but there is no comparison with Palin. His deep experience in foreign affairs, the judiciary, and social policy makes him an assuring and complementary partner for Obama.The longer the campaign goes on, the more the issues of personality and character have reflected badly on McCain. Unless appearances are very deceiving, he is impulsive, impatient, self-dramatizing, erratic, and a compulsive risk-taker. These qualities may have contributed to his usefulness as a “maverick” senator. But in a President they would be a menace. By contrast, Obama’s transformative message is accompanied by a sense of pragmatic calm. A tropism for unity is an essential part of his character and of his campaign. It is part of what allowed him to overcome a Democratic opponent who entered the race with tremendous advantages. It is what helped him forge a political career relying both on the liberals of Hyde Park and on the political regulars of downtown Chicago. His policy preferences are distinctly liberal, but he is determined to speak to a broad range of Americans who do not necessarily share his every value or opinion. For some who oppose him, his equanimity even under the ugliest attack seems like hauteur; for some who support him, his reluctance to counterattack in the same vein seems like self-defeating detachment. Yet it is Obama’s temperament—and not McCain’s—that seems appropriate for the office both men seek and for the volatile and dangerous era in which we live. Those who dismiss his centeredness as self-centeredness or his composure as indifference are as wrong as those who mistook Eisenhower’s stolidity for denseness or Lincoln’s humor for lack of seriousness.Nowadays, almost every politician who thinks about running for President arranges to become an author. Obama’s books are different: he wrote them. “The Audacity of Hope” (2006) is a set of policy disquisitions loosely structured around an account of his freshman year in the United States Senate. Though a campaign manifesto of sorts, it is superior to that genre’s usual blowsy pastiche of ghostwritten speeches. But it is Obama’s first book, “Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance” (1995), that offers an unprecedented glimpse into the mind and heart of a potential President. Obama began writing it in his early thirties, before he was a candidate for anything. Not since Theodore Roosevelt has an American politician this close to the pinnacle of power produced such a sustained, highly personal work of literary merit before being definitively swept up by the tides of political ambition. A Presidential election is not the awarding of a Pulitzer Prize: we elect a politician and, we hope, a statesman, not an author. But Obama’s first book is valuable in the way that it reveals his fundamental attitudes of mind and spirit. “Dreams from My Father” is an illuminating memoir not only in the substance of Obama’s own peculiarly American story but also in the qualities he brings to the telling: a formidable intelligence, emotional empathy, self-reflection, balance, and a remarkable ability to see life and the world through the eyes of people very different from himself. In common with nearly all other senators and governors of his generation, Obama does not count military service as part of his biography. But his life has been full of tests—personal, spiritual, racial, political—that bear on his preparation for great responsibility.It is perfectly legitimate to call attention, as McCain has done, to Obama’s lack of conventional national and international policymaking experience. We, too, wish he had more of it. But office-holding is not the only kind of experience relevant to the task of leading a wildly variegated nation. Obama’s immersion in diverse human environments (Hawaii’s racial rainbow, Chicago’s racial cauldron, countercultural New York, middle-class Kansas, predominantly Muslim Indonesia), his years of organizing among the poor, his taste of corporate law and his grounding in public-interest and constitutional law—these, too, are experiences. And his books show that he has wrung from them every drop of insight and breadth of perspective they contained.The exhaustingly, sometimes infuriatingly long campaign of 2008 (and 2007) has had at least one virtue: it has demonstrated that Obama’s intelligence and steady temperament are not just figments of the writer’s craft. He has made mistakes, to be sure. (His failure to accept McCain’s imaginative proposal for a series of unmediated joint appearances was among them.) But, on the whole, his campaign has been marked by patience, planning, discipline, organization, technological proficiency, and strategic astuteness. Obama has often looked two or three moves ahead, relatively impervious to the permanent hysteria of the hourly news cycle and the cable-news shouters. And when crisis has struck, as it did when the divisive antics of his ex-pastor threatened to bring down his campaign, he has proved equal to the moment, rescuing himself with a speech that not only drew the poison but also demonstrated a profound respect for the electorate. Although his opponents have tried to attack him as a man of “mere” words, Obama has returned eloquence to its essential place in American politics. The choice between experience and eloquence is a false one––something that Lincoln, out of office after a single term in Congress, proved in his own campaign of political and national renewal. Obama’s “mere” speeches on everything from the economy and foreign affairs to race have been at the center of his campaign and its success; if he wins, his eloquence will be central to his ability to govern.We cannot expect one man to heal every wound, to solve every major crisis of policy. So much of the Presidency, as they say, is a matter of waking up in the morning and trying to drink from a fire hydrant. In the quiet of the Oval Office, the noise of immediate demands can be deafening. And yet Obama has precisely the temperament to shut out the noise when necessary and concentrate on the essential. The election of Obama—a man of mixed ethnicity, at once comfortable in the world and utterly representative of twenty-first-century America—would, at a stroke, reverse our country’s image abroad and refresh its spirit at home. His ascendance to the Presidency would be a symbolic culmination of the civil- and voting-rights acts of the nineteen-sixties and the century-long struggles for equality that preceded them. It could not help but say something encouraging, even exhilarating, about the country, about its dedication to tolerance and inclusiveness, about its fidelity, after all, to the values it proclaims in its textbooks. At a moment of economic calamity, international perplexity, political failure, and battered morale, America needs both uplift and realism, both change and steadiness. It needs a leader temperamentally, intellectually, and emotionally attuned to the complexities of our troubled globe. That leader’s name is Barack Obama.

One percent

Mike from Lansing, MI — Wed, 01 Oct 2008 21:18:23 EDT

1%, or 1 vote out of 100

There have been 12 Presidential elections that were decided by less than a 1% margin; meaning if less than 1% of the voters in certain states had changed their mind to the other candidate the outcome of the entire election would have been different. More than half were decided by less than a 2% margin.

In 2004,    57,787 votes would have given us President Kerry.
In 2000,    269 votes would have given us President Gore
In 1996,    575,515 votes would have given us President Dole.

From ABC News:

http://blogs.abcnews.com/scienceandsociety/2008/09/squeakers.html

==========
"Squeakers"
Ned Potter
ABC News
September 29, 2008

How close have Presidential elections been? Closer, perhaps, than we ever guessed. Mike Sheppard, a grad student in statistics at Michigan State, has done a mathematical exercise that shows it.

He ran a computer program to answer this question: "What is the smallest number of total votes that need to be switched from one candidate to another, and from which states, to affect the outcome of the election?"

The answer: in some years, very, very few. Take a look at his analysis HERE. It shows the powerful interaction between the popular vote and the electoral college.

[...]
==========

Full article here:
http://blogs.abcnews.com/scienceandsociety/2008/09/squeakers.html

Detailed analysis here, including colored maps:
https://www.msu.edu/~sheppa28/elections.html

-Mike Sheppard

Barack Morning Buzz - 9-24-08

Barack Daily Buzz - Victory2008.net — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 08:40:19 EDT

Barack Morning Buzz - 9-24-08
On to Victory in November

(1) New Poll-Obama Leads McCain 52% to 43%
Dan Balz-Washington Post-The Trail
http://voices.washingtonpost.com/the-trail/2008/09/24/post_poll_shows_challenge_for.html

(2) Economic Fears Give Obama Clear Lead over McCain in New Poll
Dan Balz and Jon Cohen-Washington Post
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/09/23/AR2008092303667.html?hpid=topnews

(3) Poll Finds 18% of Voters Undecided
Liz Sidoti-Associated Press
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5gNO6MFpamP3jZftC_I4_oH7lXQXQD93D1RFG0

(4) Young Voters Solidly Behind Obama and Registering in Droves
Anne Ryman-Arizona Republic
http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/news/articles/2008/09/24/20080924youthpoll0924.html

(5) Obama and McCain Refine Plans for Handling Economic Crisis
Peter Nicholas and Bob Drogin-Los Angeles Times
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2008199077_econcamp24.html

(6) Obama and McCain Plot Tricky Course on Finance Crisis
Agence France Presse-AFP
http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5iuaFYLrvzN2pkK7uFil47GitCI9w

(7) McCain Calls Friday Debate Important and Praises Obama's Eloquence
Robert Barnes-Washington Post-The Trail
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/09/23/AR2008092303438.html

(8) Women Heavily Favor Obama in Donations
Brody Mullins and Mary Jacoby-Wall Street Journal-Politics & Campaign
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122213281072465941.html

(9) Hillary Clinton Says Obama "Best Placed to Sort Out Economic Mess"
Belfast Telegraph
http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/breaking-news/world/europe/obama-best-placed-to-sort-out-economic-mess-says-hillary-13981542.html

(10) Illinois Expects Obama to Make Big Impact
Judy Keen-USA Today-2008 Election Coverage
http://www.usatoday.com/news/politics/election2008/2008-09-23-50stateillinois_N.htm?csp=34

(11) Change We Need Community Gathering with Biden in Greensburg, Pennsylvania-9-25-08
Greensburg Salem High School Gymnasium-65 Mennel Drive
Doors open at 8:30 AM-Event begins at 10:30 AM
Event is free and open to public-Tickets first come, first served
No bags, signs or banners permitted for security reasons
http://my.barackobama.com/page/content/pajbgreensburg/

(12) Change We Need Community Gathering with Biden in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania-9-25-08
Nesbitt Park-180 Market Street
Doors open at 1:00 PM-Event begins at 2:30 PM
Event is free and open to public-Tickets first come, first served
No bags, signs or banners permitted for security reasons
http://my.barackobama.com/page/content/pajbwilkesbarre/

Phone Banking Results

Starla Gade — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 10:56:47 EDT

What a great time we had yesterday afternoon! Thank you to everyone that showed up. We made 345 phone calls to MoveOn.org members in the Helena area and got 36 folks to go into their local office and volunteer! Awesome! We meet some new folks and had a great time enjoying cake and ice cream after the call. What was really excellent is that many of the folks here last night night had not volunteered before for the Obama campaign, they are now fired up and ready to go!

Positive Action

Starla Gade — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 21:18:31 EDT

This weekend while canvassing I talked to people who are supporters of Sen. Obama, yet were worried and feeling unsure of the election. While I understand that, I tried to remind everyone to not focus on the polls, and the pundits. Ignore all that and do the positive work that we can do.

Make phone calls, go out and canvass, wear your buttons, talk to your neighbors, talk to folks in line at the grocery store, post office, etc. Doing something, taking action, even if in a small way will leave much more positive energy than worry. Replace your worry with action! Its amazing how good you will feel afterwards!

Its amazing how good others will feel once you've talked to them too!

Barack was great on Letterman! Please watch, read and share to help BARACK!

LuAnn in Indiana — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 14:12:36 EDT

I am not sure if you got to see Barack on the Letterman show last night but he was fantastic.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9hf6qd8b65s

I just posted this video on the DIGG site and really would appreciate you going there and digging it.

I took a swipe at McCain and how his VP pick was strictly a political move and how Barack vetted Joe and made "HIS OWN DECISION".

If we can get enough Diggs on it it will possibly be in the top 10 of the day and everyone will see it.

It would be super exposure for Barack as he commented on the stupid "lipstick on a pig" controversy and made some other great comments on several things. He showed both Humor and also made some great POLITICAL points!

Please take a minute, watch the video and PLEASE go to DIGG.com and digg it. The Republicans have been burrying some of our good stories on the DIGG site so PLEASE help!

Barack was great on Letterman! Please watch read and share to help BARACK!

LuAnn in Indiana — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 14:10:17 EDT

I am not sure if you got to see Barack on the Letterman show last night but he was fantastic.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9hf6qd8b65s

I just posted this video on the DIGG site and really would appreciate you going there and digging it.

I took a swipe at McCain and how his VP pick was strictly a political move and how Barack vetted Joe and made "HIS OWN DECISION".

If we can get enough Diggs on it it will possibly be in the top 10 of the day and everyone will see it.

Please take a minute, watch the video and PLEASE go to DIGG.com and digg it. The Republicans have been burrying some of our good stories on the DIGG site so PLEASE help!

Slogan

Cheryl Bramsen — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 20:30:20 EDT

How about another slogan? Yes we can change America, together.

Please or call all MSM NOW to help BARACK FIGHT back!

LuAnn in Indiana — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 09:30:14 EDT

I SENT THIS LETTER TO ALL THE MEDIA BELOW AND I HOPE YOU WILL do the same.Here are the addresses and numbers you NEED to CONTACT THEM! The Right has Sean Hannity and O. Reilly who can say whatever they want and call it “FAIR AND BALANCED” on FOX.

Chris Matthews and Keith Olberman were just removed from MSNBC for showing some impartial attitudes.

We on the LEFT have NO main MEDIA to hold Sarah and MCCAIN accountable! NBC
30 Rockefeller Plaza, New York, NY 10112
Phone: 212-664-4444
Fax: 212-664-4426 List of Email addresses for all NBC news programs NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams: nightly@nbc.com countdown@msnbc.com chuck.todd@nbcuni.com

Please share this VIDEO with ALL! Barack needs us to help against the Republican smears!

LuAnn in Indiana — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 11:12:28 EDT

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=955Y3NJTRIE

The Republicans are going to try and destroy Barack the next 60 days! WE can not let them do it!

PLEASE everyone HELP SHARE THIS AND PROMOTE BARACK!

Join STOP THR SMEARS on this BARACK site on the HOME page. It gives US things to COUNTER the attacks that are coming!

It gives us the TRUTH!

Please go there today and join!

LuAnn

John McCain: Piratizing, Er, Privatizing Veterans Health Care

Stephen from Missoula, MT — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 12:55:53 EDT

John McCain says that the current Veterans Administration health care system is a "burden" and should be privatized, but to be more accurate, he should use the word, "piratize," instead of privatize.

Barack Obama for President!

Randy — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 21:31:01 EDT

SARAH WHERE ARE YOU!!!!!!!!!!

IT'S THREE IN THE MORNING AND THE PHONES RINGING AND WHERES SARAH PALIN. ANSWER (JUST LET IT RING CAN'T YOU SEE I'M CHANGING THE BABIES DIAPER AND THEN I'M GOING MOOSE HUNTING AND THEN I HAVE HOCKEY GAME TO GO TO AND THEN I 'LL GET THAT DAMN PHONE.) I DON'T HAVE NOTHING AGAINST BEING A MOM BUT IF YOUR GOING TO BE ONE, BE ONE. I KNOW WHAT ITS LIKE BECAUSE THAT BABY IS MORE IMPORTANT THEN BEING MCCAINS MOUTH PIECE.

I DON'T KNOW GUYS I DON'T THINK WE WILL EVER GET A FAIR FIGHT. ALL THAT STUFF I SAID COULD NEVER BE SAID BECAUSE THEY WOULD JUST CALL IT SEXIST. I WAS REALLY HOPEING THAT WE MCCAIN WOULD PICK A GUY SO WE COULD HAVE A GUY ON GUY FIGHT. SHE CAN SAY ANYTHING ABOUT BARACK THAT SHE WANTS AND BARACK CAN'T SAY A WORD. OUR LADY SUPPORTERS BETTER GET OFF THERE BUTS AND SAY SOMETHING OR WE WILL HAVE PRESIDENT PALIN GOING TO RUSSIA AS OUR PRESIDENT BECAUSE MCCAIN WILL NEVER MAKE IT. LOOK WHAT IT DID TO BUSH.

GO BARACK OBAMA AND JOE BIDEN!!!! YES WE CAN!!!!!

RANDY

Barack's Achievements...Please share!

LuAnn in Indiana — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 18:12:15 EDT

Legislative Experience: Senator Barack Obama (D-IL)

my.barackobama.com —

You can get this information by logging on to the Library of Congress website http://thomas.loc.gov/ and conducting a search under Barack Obama.

This posting organizes and categorizes the Bills sponsored and co-sponsored by Senator Obama, and highlights those that have been passed into US Law. IL State Legislature accomplishments are summarized.

Also please go to Digg and digg this to bring it to DAYLIGHT!

LuAnn

BARACK OUR ONLY TRUE HOPE FOR REAL CHANGE!

CRITICAL email with VIDEO to watch, read and share to help BARACK!

LuAnn in Indiana — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 12:21:33 EDT

Hello to all my Obama/Biden friends,This is so important. Please read it, go to Digg and digg it and share it with everyone!McCain is using Palin to try and steal women votes. Hillary and her have NO basic beliefs in common.Surely there are enough of us who know the difference between a woman who wants to help ALL women and Palin who wants to help her far RIGHT side!I still think most women do not want the government telling us what to do with our bodies, want equal pay (which McCain has voted against 12 times), want health insurance (which the Republicans don't talk about) and do NOT want social security PRIVATIZED! Privatizing Soc. Security and Insurance in the end means leaving it only to the wealthy the ones who can afford it!I, personally have Federal health care and each year I can chose which plan I want. The Congress and Senate have it also.If it works for them why not us all? It is a Federal Government (social program)...I don't see any of them turning it down, do you?LuAnn Barack is our ONLY way for REAL CHANGE!

http://mybarackobama.com/page/communityblog/luanninindiana

From: rauldominguez@msn.com
Reply-to: SouthDakotansforObama@groups.barackobama.com
To: SouthDakotansforObama@groups.barackobama.com
Sent: 9/4/2008 8:13:06 A.M. Eastern Daylight Time
Subj: [SouthDakotansforObama] Re: ACTION: Joe Klein: "We will tell the truth about Palin, despite bullying by McCain."
Thanks for sending this! I think the messages are getting through!!!His comments are now being shown on Real Clear Politics as well.Raul
----- Original Message ----- From: Lisa Owen To: South Dakotans for Obama Sent: Wednesday, September 03, 2008 11:43 PMSubject: [SouthDakotansforObama] ACTION: Joe Klein: "We will tell the truth about Palin, despite bullying by McCain."
Please I am begging you to digg this! Joe Klein says that McCain camp has been “bullying the press” all year and don’t give in to him! Please read it too.JOE KLEIN: TIME MAGAZINE:“There is a tendency in the media to kick ourselves, cringe and withdraw, when we are criticized. But I hope my colleagues stand strong in this case: it is important for the public to know that Palin raised taxes as governor, supported the Bridge to Nowhere before she opposed it, pursued pork-barrel projects as mayor, tried to ban books at the local library and thinks the war in Iraq is "a task from God." The attempts by the McCain campaign to bully us into not reporting such things are not only stupidly aggressive, but unprofessional in the extreme.”http://digg.com/political_opinion/Angry_Amateurs_Swampland_TIME Spread the truth. TIME MAGAZINE:Angry AmateursPosted by Joe Klein | Comments (383) | Permalink | Trackbacks (0) | Email This The story of the day out here in Minneapolis is the McCain campaign's war against the press. This has been building for some time. Those of us who have criticized the candidate--and especially those of us who enjoyed good relations with McCain in the past--have been subject to off-the-record browbeating and attempted bullying all year. But things have gotten much worse in recent days: there was McCain's rude, bizarre interview with Time Magazine last week. Yesterday, McCain refused to an interview with Larry King, for God's sake, because Campbell Brown had been caught in the commission of journalism on CNN the night before, asking McCain spokesman Tucker Bounds what decisions Sarah Palin had made as commander-in-chief of the Alaska national guard. (There was an answer that the unprepared Bounds didn't have: she had deployed them to fight fires.)So what's going on here? Two things. McCain is just plain angry at us. By the evidence presented in the utterly revealing Time interview, he's ballistic. This is a politician who needs to see himself as the man on the white horse, boldly traversing a muddy field...any intimations that he's gotten muddied in the process, or has decided to throw mud, are intolerable. The second thing is more insidious: Steve Schmidt has decided, for tactical reasons, to slime the press. He wants the public to believe that there is an unfair--sexist (you gotta love it)--personal assault going on against Palin and her family. This is a smokescreen, intended to divert attention from the very real and responsible vetting that is taking place in the media--about the substance of Palin's record as mayor and governor. Sure, there are a few outliers--and the tabloid press--who have fixed on baby stories. That was inevitable....the flip side of the personal stories that the McCain team thought would work to their advantage--Palin's moose-hunting and wolf-shooting, and her admirable decision to have a Down Syndrome baby. And yes, when we all fix on the same story, whether it's a hurricane or a little-known politician, a zoo ensues. But the media coverage of the Palin story has been well within the bounds of responsibility. Schmidt is trying to make it seem otherwise, a desperate tactic. There is a tendency in the media to kick ourselves, cringe and withdraw, when we are criticized. But I hope my colleagues stand strong in this case: it is important for the public to know that Palin raised taxes as governor, supported the Bridge to Nowhere before she opposed it, pursued pork-barrel projects as mayor, tried to ban books at the local library and thinks the war in Iraq is "a task from God." The attempts by the McCain campaign to bully us into not reporting such things are not only stupidly aggressive, but unprofessional in the extreme. http://www.time-blog.com/swampland/2008/09/angry_amateurs.html

This video is from Arizonia. Let's rally all DEMS and Independants...SHARE this and DIGG it too!

LuAnn in Indiana — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 13:06:04 EDT

Please take the time to watch this video and then one more minute to go to Digg and digg it. I had it posted on DIGG this morning.We need to get the Dems to rally NOW.GREAT news.....I just heard Barack is at 50% in the GALLUP poll for the first time.MSNBC just said it....actually Chuck Todd did!Obama is our only HOPE!Please share this with every one and ask them to please go to DIGG. We can make it rise to the top today!

http://mybarackobama.com/page/communityblog/luanninindiana

From: mail@bennyskyn.com
To: ArizonansforObama@groups.barackobama.com
Sent: 9/3/2008 9:03:59 A.M. Eastern Daylight Time
Subj: [ArizonansforObama] Take It Back...Right Now!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EMSsm_B8iaE
or
http://www.bennyskyn.com/songlist.html

This land belongs to you
no not just a few
and you can take it back
right now

Vote responsibly, not traditionally.
Benny Skyn

-------------------------------------------------------------------------
This email was sent to 484 members of Arizonans for Obama
Listserv email address: ArizonansforObama@groups.barackobama.com
Your reply will be sent to: mail@bennyskyn.com
Unsubscribe or change your email settings: http://my.barackobama.com/page/group/ArizonansforObama/listserv-unsub

66 days..

!Andy Shirtliff U of Montana SFBO — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 16:27:34 EDT

What a convention huh?! The Future starts now and it starts with us. However, Now is the time to work, we have 66 some days until the election.

Tabling, Going door to door, talking with friends and family, registering voters and signing up volunteers, with so much to do we cannot win in November without you.

www.mt.barackobama.com to find your local office, donate not just your money but your time.

People have said for years that the youth in this country don't care... I firmly disagree, not this time, not this year. The torch has been passed and we are going to run and fight for it. This is our time.

One last thing, we have been witness to 8 years of partisan politics, and divisive speech. When words like Rights, Terrorist, Patriotic, Conservative and Liberal have all but lost their original meanings. Just like Sen. Obama said in his historic speech, we are better than the last 8 years under President Bush. I say we should not use our anger in the form of useless and sometimes hurtful words that make us look low-class and don't serve any purpose in our lexicon. If someone comes up and calls you a "liberal" fight back with knowledge about the issues, ask them to explain their positions, think of them as potential voters for Obama that are just a little more stubborn than most.

On that note, regarding Gov. Palin of Alaska. I have heard some people refer to her in terms that do not belong in this campaign. We are better than name calling. She is a very capable and formidable candidate that deserves our respect and should not be underestimated. Independents and undecideds could see this and say "well if they're gonna promote talking about her like that, i'm going over to McCain."

This is a new kind of campaign. One of hope, change, and yes, a campaign of class.

The most historic and important campaign of our life times, probably in our country's history, should not be reduced to name calling, and low-blows.

We are better than the last 8 years and better than that.

mt.barackobama.com

Andy Shirtliff
UM SFBO

Tonight: Another Milestone Toward Victory

Montana for Obama — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 11:20:34 EDT

For so many years, I've continued to listen to Martin Luther Kings, "I Have a Dream" speech. I really wondered if a time like tonight when Barack accepts the nomination for President could ever come in my lifetime. But I hoped it would. As I write this, and think about tonight I have a lump in my throat, imagining what this evening will be like.

I'm thinking many of my friends who's ancestor's were slaves and what this will mean to them tonight too. I think of other friends of diverse backgrounds who's hope for themselves and our country are being rekindled by this event, a marker on a very long road.

I'm really excited about what's happening this evening. And yet at the same time I know that this is a step along the way. The next step is getting Barack elected.

It's up to us, isn't it? Yes we can!

Have you invited your friends and neighbors to join with you in watching tonights acceptance speech on TV? It's history in the making and I can hardly wait!

Frank

BARACK OBAMA AND JOE BIDEN!!!!!

Randy — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 20:32:56 EDT

BARACK OBAMA AND JOE BIDEN!!!!!

HI ALL, I WAS GONE FOR AWHILE BETWEEN COMPUTER PROBLEMS AND FAMILY PROBLEMS. WELL I DON'T HAVE TO TELL YOU, YOU ALL KNOW WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT. BUT YOU DON'T HAVE TO WORRY STILL GOT MY EYE ON BARACK AND NOW JOE BIDEN WOW WHAT A PICK. JOE BIDEN IS ONE OF THE HARDEST WORKING SENATORS THAT WE HAVE. HE MUST BE I KNOW HIS NAME AND I DON'T EVEN HAVE TO LOOK IT UP ON A COMPUTER. I WAS STARTING TO FEEL SORRY FOR BARACK HAVING TO FIGHT OFF THE MCCAIN/BUSH BIG COMP. OIL MONSTERS ALL BY HIMSELF. WELL NOW THAT HE HAS JOE BIDEN AT HIS SIDE AND THE CONVENTION IS GOING STRONG I CAN SEE A SIGH OF RELIEF IN BARACKS EYES AND HE DESERVES IT. HE HAS BEEN UNBELIEVEABLE, HE HAS POURED HIS HEART OUT TRYING TO WORK AND TRYING TO CAMPAIGN AND TRYING TO UNITE ALL OF AMERICA.

AND ALL AT THE SAME TIME (GO PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA AND VICE PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN)

YES WE CAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

BYE FOR NOW RANDY

Thank you Sen. Clinton

Starla Gade — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 00:44:00 EDT

It was an honor to watch Sen. Clinton speak tonight. I was impressed with the words of unity and change that she spoke. In talking to many of the Sen. Clinton supporters over the last couple of months, I could relate to their pain and sorrow in the loss of Sen. Clinton, I respected all that they had done in working hard to support her. I understand how hard it must have been/is for them. Yet, with that being said, Sen. Clinton made it very clear tonight that her supporters MUST join her in supporting Sen. Obama, to bring the change that we want in our country. We must UNITE for us to win and to put behind us the last 8 years of poor political judgment by our President. We must UNITE to gain health care for all of us, to reduce gas prices, provide alternative energy for our country and to bring home our military, UNITING family, and country for our good. Thank you Sen. Clinton for a great speach! You did more than I thought you would. I am so grateful!

This was sent to me about POW McCain and thought it needed sharing

LuAnn in Indiana — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 22:44:31 EDT

I Spent Years as a POW with John McCain, and His Finger Should Not Be Near the Red Button | Election 2008 | AlterNet

I sent this to several medias. Don't know if it will do anything. Please share. Barack is getting put down so wrongly!

Michele was great last night!

Please read this and use it in any way you legally can. I am so tired of hearing Barack being called a Muslim and Michelle being accused of hating this country.Now these NEW ads that McCain is running using his POW experience to win "hearts and minds" is too much.I fear all his negative campaigning is winning and the polls are showing that.

Is there anyone out there who can bring things like this article to daylight?Why does the media protect McCain from the terrible way he cheated on and dumped his first wife for Cindy?If it was Barack who had done that the world would know.I talk to people daily who had no idea of his infidelity, his wife's bringing drugs in for her personal use through her out of country programs and I hear and also receive daily emails saying that Barack is a Muslim and worse. Why do more people not hear about how low in his class McCain graduated? I would think intelligence is a priority in a President of our country.

I also feel as this fellow POW does that a man with a "hair trigger" temper should not have his finger on the "button".There is freedom of speech in our country. Sean Hannity , Rush Limbaugh,Ann Coulter and others spew lies about Barack constantly.Can the MAIN STREAM media such as MSNBC please say or do more?McCain is "swift boating" Barack and WE all know that was all not true. John Kerry should have been President.Bush stole the election from Gore. Please can someone with some power help out people like me in the true EVER DIMINISHING MIDDLE Class?

I know I live in one home.

I know what a gallon of gas costs and I now people on minimum wage are hurting badly. John McCain does not care, nor does he have any way of identifying with the TRUE middle class people.His family has always had money, he is John S. McCain III and he married an heiress. How can he possibly feel for people who make $6.00 an hour?He wants to privatize Social Security and could care less if we have health care. Is it true he collects his Social Security? I happen to have Federal Blue Cross Blue Shield Insurance through my X husband. Each year I am given the chance to choose which type of insurance I want. If I want to pay a lot less, I can even choose an HMO.

I believe that is the same insurance the Congressmen and Senators have and I also believe they do not have to pay for their's. If everyone in the country paid into this they should be able to get the same benefits.I pay $600.00 a month for myself but I have very good insurance. If I could not afford that I could choose a lesser plan each year.

How fortunate we are!

Starla Gade — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 23:06:50 EDT

In watching Michelle speak tonight, tears ran down my cheeks, and my heart was so filled with joy and excitement. I felt so fortunate to have such an awesome woman to fill the role of First Lady! She'll be great. I am so impressed with her precence, warmth and grace. Its going to be a great week to be part of this change!

It's going to be a historic speech on Thursday!

Montana for Obama — Sun, 24 Aug 2008 18:31:31 EDT

Hi All!

I just got back from a summer filled with a variety of activities, and
am now home here in our Montana. Ahhh!

What are your thoughts about Joe Biden as Barack's VP choice? I have
been really looking at it and I think he is a good one...although of
course no one is perfect. He will be a terrific choice for a variety
of reasons.

Will you be watching the convention starting tomorrow? I don't want to
miss it, especially when Barack speaks on Thursday. Consider a "watch
the message" party on Thursday and invite your friends to join you.
I'm going to do that too...

Cheers,

Frank

So many ways to help

MsMontana — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 08:06:11 EDT

I have been away from this site for a long time but have not been remiss in my efforts to help see that Obama becomes the first president in my history to offer this country trustworthy leadership, positive change and hope for millions who have little else to hang on to.

I have never felt so sure about anyone in politics as I am about Obama, and I know all of you feel the same. So instead of preaching to the choir, here on my site, I have been busy blogging where I can argue the opposition or simply teach the uneducated. I've tried to open the eyes of some on the right who are blind to the past of John McCain, and believe me, his history is not pretty. But mostly, I've been promoting my candidate. From the time he announced when we were living in Hong Kong and I opened this site for expats living abroad, to our move to Dallas where I swiftly placed my "Women for Obama" bumper sticker on my car, to this very day when I decided to host my very first Obama event.

The more I do, the more charged I get and the better I feel about his chances and the future of this country.

Cheers to you all, Obama fans!

The Easiest Way to Ensure Obama's Election

Stephen from Missoula, MT — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 13:27:47 EDT

The Easiest Way to Ensure Obama's Election

During the primary, Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton got 2.5 million new voters to register to vote Democratic--and another 1 million registered to vote Republican. Sounds pretty impressive doesn't it? However, because of the new voter roll purge regulations enforced under the requirements of the Help America (De)Vote Act, between 4 and 6 million citizens who have previously voted will be unable to vote in November. Beyond that, up to 21 million voters may not show up or will be turned away because they don't have the proper ID to be allowed to vote. In the face of 25 to 27 million Americans who may want to vote but can't, the 3.5 million new registrations in this election cycle are a pittance.

http://votetrustusa.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=2866&Itemid=26
and: http://www.gregpalast.com/the-razorcake-interviewinvestigating-vote-theft/#more-2061

So how can Obama campaign workers help ensure we return to a functional democracy in 2008?

WaPo Ombudsman Responds to Criticism of Obama Hit-Piece

""""Jeff C."""" — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 20:32:49 EDT

Deborah Powell, the Washington Post's ombudsman, responded to criticism the Post had received for its article concerning Barack Obama's home mortgage.

The story that originated the criticism ran on page A3 of the July 2nd paper & was titled: "Obama Got Discount on Home Loan."

Where do I even begin with both the story and Howell's analysis of the story? Neither of the articles are exactly moving targets.

I won't even dissect the original WaPo article, which was a gutter-level smear through innuendo masquerading as investigative journalism.

Howell provides some context under which the original story was written, but gets to the meat of her analysis near the end of her critique. The circular logic is simply priceless.

In the second to last paragraph, Howell states:

Readers deserve to know everything pertinent The Post can find out about Barack Obama and John McCain's finances. In that context [the public deserving to know everything pertinent--brackets mine] and in the context of the home mortgage crisis, the story had news value.

Moving to the last paragraph, Howell concludes:

Still, the story had a negative cast to it. It also lacked the important context that other wealthy and savvy borrowers could have done as well under similar circumstances.

Let me attempt to wrap my noodle around those two statements.
Think about those sentences for a moment.

I, the reader, as a member of the public, deserve to know everything pertinent about public officials getting sweetheart deals, specifically, I assume, because of
the home mortgage crisis. In that context, Howell writes that "the story had news value".

Howell then pivots off of that statement to conclude that "other wealthy and savvy borrowers could have done as well under similar circumstances" [could have done just as well=no sweetheart deal].

So, unless I'm completely dense, Howell has just admitted that "the story had a negative cast to it" while maintaining its newsworthiness. Ostensibly, Howell admits that the condition that needed to exist [Sen. Obama receiving a sweetheart deal] for the story to be pertinent did not, in fact, exist.

This article was a hit piece.

I'm sure that it wasn't meant to be a hit piece. I'm sure that everyone involved had the best journalistic intentions, although I'm not sure what is worse: the smear by innuendo nature of the article or Howell's insistence that it was "newsworthy".

I was reading through a message board of a Jake Tapper story the other day concerning Sen. McCain and his Pittsburgh Steelers comments. There were multiple posts in which the posters trotted out all the greatest hits: "Rezko", Bitter-Gate", "Lapel Pin" & "Michelle not Proud of America" to diminish Sen. Obama.

However, now they had a new one--"Sweetheart Deal". Short. Easy to understand. Encapsulating multiple problems and themes into one word.

You can't put the genie back into the bottle now, WaPo [not that you're even trying]. Howell should be ashamed of this story and the implications it has for the quality of journalism at WaPo in that it was able to make it to press. This story should have been killed.

And it's, frankly, the type of hit-piece that someone needs to lose their job over. And people wonder why readers are abandoning newspapers in droves.

VOTE. VOLUNTEER. DONATE.

Have you tried the Neighbor to Neighbor Tool yet?

Bev4Obama — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 10:31:52 EDT

Am reposting this. Go to your DASHBOARD, look at ANNOUNCEMENTS, and there is a new tool; Neighbor to Neighbor that allows you to download a list of 20 people in your neighborhood, a script and other information. You walk the neighborhood, gather the information and upload it later.. What a great way to find supporters, volunteers and everything! Please try it!

FISA Bill Just in Time to Hijack 2008 Election?

Stephen from Missoula, MT — Sat, 05 Jul 2008 15:05:25 EDT

Given that the Bush Administration has done everything they could to hijack the past two elections, why should we expect them to not use new FISA powers to do the same to the 2008 election? What happens to the 2008 election when the US government and the Bush Administration have a legal right to listen in on every conversation by every Democratic campaign worker? Just a few reminders of their tactics: illegal purge of 94,000 legal voters in FL in 2000; the whole US Attorney scandal and resultant voter purges; Don Siegelman's illegal reversal of his Governorship victory in Alabama in 2002; 500,000 voters purged in Ohio before the the 2004 elections; the hacked and illegally removed voting machines in Ohio in 2004; the Dan Rather gambit where they ran a 10-page rebuttal minutes after Rather broke the latest story about Bush's abominable military record (BTW, did you know that IBM Selectrics in 1972 DID have adjustable spacing?); the reprogramming of the voting machines before the Ohio recount in 2004--the list is endless. Why should we think it will be different this time and why would we give these lying goons even more power to subvert the 2008 election? Please follow the link to Elliot Cohen's very insightful article about the dangers of this happening as a result of the passage of the FISA Bill. http://www.opednews.com/articles/Would-the-White-House-be-A-by-elliot-cohen-080703-577.html

Neighbor to Neighbor

Bev4Obama — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 08:29:28 EDT

Obama's Grassroots Organization never fails to amaze me! Check out the Neighbor to Neighbor campaign that allows you to walk your neighborhood and contact undecided voters. I just printed off my list and will go print flyers and get started today! Just think how many voters we can reach? I challenge all of you to get started now! Together, WE CAN!

FISA, the 4th Amendment and Abortion Rights.

Steve Wells from Western Montana — Sat, 28 Jun 2008 12:22:28 EDT

The recent legislation passed in the US House and currently expected to pass the Senate and to be signed into law by the so -called president allows for the collection of information by our government without a court ordered warrant or meaningful judicial review. Most constitutional experts have interpreted this proposed law as weakening 4th amendment rights prohibiting invasive government intrusion into citizens private lives.

This should alarm proponents of abortion rights. Roe v Wade was decided based on what the supreme court said was an inferred right to privacy in the US constitution, based in large part on the 4th amendment.

When our government weakens the 4th amendment, they weaken one of the major under-pinnings of Roe v Wade.

This Spade is a Spade: FISA Deal Is Bunk - ACLU on FISA

Steve Wells from Western Montana — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 23:30:15 EDT

http://blog.aclu.org/2008/06/19/this-spade-is-a-spade-fisa-deal-is-bunk/
posted by Amanda Simon, ACLU at 7:38 pm

This Spade is a Spade: FISA Deal Is Bunk

So, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer announced his precious FISA deal today and I’m sure it will not come as great shock to this general audience that we at the ACLU think it’s crap. And by “crap” I mean unconstitutional. Remember that horrible bill the Senate passed earlier this year? The one that had virtually no Fourth Amendment protections? Ok, now imagine Congressman Hoyer and Senator Bond putting a really pretty, really meaningless bow around it to distract you from what’s actually inside. Then they added a giveaway to the phone companies. There. Now you have the current FISA bill. Let me explain.

* Court review? Pssh. Please. This is how it would work: The government wants to tap someone's phone. It claims "exigent circumstances" and begins to do so. Then it goes to the FISA Court to be granted a warrant. "Hold up," says the court. "This application is problematic and based on heresay." Now the government starts the appeals process and that goes on for heaven knows how long. When does the surveillance stop on the problematic target? Um, never. The government is allowed to begin tapping without the courts and continue tapping when the court says no, provided it appeals. Nice, strong and meaningful judicial review, huh?

* Immunity? Yes. Yes, it is. Here's why: This immunity "compromise" sets the bar so low that anyone can clear it. Immunity hinges on whether a document from the president or government exists asking the companies to comply? We know they have them. You know who told us? The president. Asking the phone companies to put on their Sunday best, waltz to the courthouse and present a note from the leader of the free world does not a full and fair airing of the facts make. It's a farce and, frankly, it's offensive to those of us who cherish our privacy rights. Congress will be opening a Pandora's box if this provision becomes law. What's to prevent these companies from handing over our information again? Absolutely nothing.

So, Americans' Fourth Amendment rights and presumption of privacy are both teetering on the verge of irrelevance and guess who wins? The telecoms and the re-election coffers of all the members who vote for this. For those of you around at the end of last July, this is eerily familiar. The administration working behind the scenes with congressional leadership, false deadlines, general cowardliness...Protect America Act anyone? Maybe that's too harsh. Oh wait...no it's not. This bill has immunity. If you're looking for a more in-depth and better written look, God bless Glenn Greenwald. And if you happen to be a member of Congress trolling the ACLU Blog of Rights, maybe you should read yesterday's New York Times editorial for instructions on how to behave during this vote.

Another Opportunity Montana

Herschel.Corpus.Christi — Sat, 21 Jun 2008 01:50:01 EDT

I HOPE this helps:

Experiences From A Corpus Christi, Texas Volunteer

Being able to stop in Obama headquarters was an enlightening experience. There was always encouragement and excitement. “Wonderful” and “Awesome” were forever words of the day. One feels good being a part of this unique American experience, a grassroots effort by ordinary people, just like us, to change political influence and political direction. With each phone call, with each conversation, with each conversion one gets a “warmth.” With each rejection we know we have more work. With both rejections and conversions we know WE are MAKING A DIFFERENCE. This campaign is about US making CHANGE.

I grew up in a small town in Georgia. For much of the year conversations revolved around cakes, pies and peas; but, during late summer the town would come alive. Tobacco buyers would arrive; the chant of the auctioneer interrupted slow southern drawls; anticipation and excitement consumed. As an elementary grade kid, I sold boiled peanuts in those tobacco warehouses. Another world was exposed. After a month of auctions, buyers left; tranquility returned; and conversations again reverted to those same cakes, pies and peas. But, a child had been changed; a longing for excitement remained. The Obama office staff is gone; the office is empty; excitement is missing and that same yearning experienced by the child has returned to the gray beard. Another world has again been exposed.

The primaries are over. If you miss the "action," you might think off becoming active on my.BarackObama.com. This is an “awesome” site to network. Montana will be a VERY important state in the General Election. Try to get your friend to communicate via the Obama Friends.

The distance between Point A and Point B is most likely several miles in Montana. Emails on my.BarackObama.com are an environmentally friendly way to organize. If you stay active the “fire” remains.

Yes we did!...step one and on to the presidency!

Montana for Obama — Sat, 07 Jun 2008 21:38:59 EDT

I don't know about you, but I was so jacked up when Barack met the nomination number. And today Hillary packed it in as well.

Her speech helped me realize that she was representing many people and the hopes of women and others who are relying on us all to help all of us to move forward together to elect Barack now, and then all Americans during the presidency. Now that the heat of the struggle for the nomination is over, we can begin to heal and come together as democrats.

I've been away for a bit but of course have absentee voted for our guy. It is a thrill isn't it to realize that we as citizens have the power to make change...and this is just for starters! Just wait until we have Barack as our president and our voice!

Thanks to everyone who worked so hard!

Frank

Barack Obama for President!

Randy — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 21:18:14 EDT

WE DID IT!!!

I JUST WANT TO SAY THANKS TO EVERYONE WHO SUPPORTED BARACK OBAMA AND MADE IT POSSIBLE FOR BARACK TO BECOME OUR DEMOCRATIC NOMINEE FOR PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES. ALL OVER THE COUNTRY WE CAME TOGETHER AND WERE STILL COMING TOGETHER AND TOGETHER WE WILL GIVE BARACK THE SUPPORT THAT HE WILL NEED TO BECOME THE NEXT PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES. SO I THANK YOU ALL.

J. MCCAIN IS TALKING ON T.V. RIGHT NOW AND IF YOU LISTEN TO HIM, YOU WILL REALIZE THAT J. MCCAIN IS ONE HECK OF A SMART ASS. DOCTORS SAY THAT IS ONE SIGN OF OLD AGE AND THAT IS WHY I THINK HE IS TO OLD TO BE PRESIDENT. HE THINKS HE KNOWS EVERYTHING. I HATE THE WAY HE WALKS BACK AND FORTH SAYING MY FRIENDS, MY FRIENDS AND AT THE SAME TIME HE'S STABBING US ALL IN THE BACK. OUT OF ALL THE PEOPLE IN THE UNITED STATES THIS IS THE ONLY GUY THAT THE REPUBLICANS CAN FIND TO RUN FOR PRESIDENT WHAT A SHAME.

WELL ANY WAY ITS OUR DAY, IT'S A GREAT DAY IN AMERICAN HISTORY. WE FIANLLY MADE IT BARACK OBAMA WILL BE THE DEMOCRATIC NOMINEE. A PROUD MOMENT IN OUR HISTORY BARACK OBAMA WILL BE THE FIRST AFRO AMERICAN TO RUN FOR PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES. WITH BARACKS MESSAGE OF HOPE AND CHANGE YES WE CAN COME TOGETHER AND HELP EACH OTHER FROM THE BOTTOM UP REBUILD OUR COUNTRY AND HELP THE SICK AND FEED THE POOR NOT JUST HERE BUT ALL AROUND THE WORLD.

GO OBAMA (YES WE CAN) THANKS EVERYONE WERE ONE STEP CLOSER KEEP ON TALKING AND SPREADING BARACKS MESSAGE.

Volunteering For the General Election

Bev4Obama — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 19:29:54 EDT

FIRED UP.......READY TO GO! Ok,Barack Friends, after tonight or tomorrow, I will be taking a sumnmer break - Off to Maine, Boston back home then off to Vegas and a Cruise to Alaska. By the time I get back summer will be ending and IF BARACK HAS NOT PUT HILLARY ON THE TICKET, I will give all my time and energy to volunteer for the campaign! Let's let Barack have a vacation with his girls and Michelle, then he can hit the trail running! Hope you all are with me on this! I'm so HAPPY RIGHT NOW! We proved, working together, we could do it,,,,YES WE CAN! YES WE CAN! ON TO NOVEMBER!

Amazing Grace

Nancy Lloyd — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 16:23:39 EDT

I would like to compliment the Obama supporters who were in attendance at the Rules & Bylaws Committee Meeting (RBC) in Washington DC this past Saturday. Under a continuous, ever-increasing barrage of hyper-emotion from opposition demonstrators, these people stayed cool, calm and mature. As I watched at home with my heart pounding, gut twisting and blood racing, and, yes, shouted a few times at the TV, I marveled too at the sight of others' composure. At their amazing grace.

These people followed the request that was made by the campaign that supporters refrain from negative demonstration on the day of the RBC. As a country we have already learned much from the example set throughout this campaign by Barack Obama. And as we continue on to the General Election and the Presidency, we will, no doubt, get a chance to learn much more about remaining calm in the face of opposition.

--Nancy Lloyd 06/02/08

Montana Volunteer Spotlight: Carol in Missoula

Caitlin Harvey — Sun, 01 Jun 2008 19:39:46 EDT

Carol, a retired restaurant management trainer and waitress, lives on her parents farm in the Grass Valley of Missoula, which she owns with her brother. She has six children that she "raised mostly by herself," and had to work two full time jobs in order to support them.

Healthcare is an important issue to Carol because says says:

I'm not old enough for Medicare. If I had had preventive medical care, I wouldn't have had to retire so early.

As a volunteer in our Missoula office, Carol phonebanks, does data entry, and helps out around the office. She says:

I'm the worker bee. I do whatever they ask me to do. I talk to a lot of people!

Veterans issues are really important to Carol, and she says, "my heart breaks for the veterans coming home. They're not getting the care that they need." She's impressed with Barack's plans to help our veterans, saying "he has a human consideration for what's going on."

Carol also likes how "Barack's donations come from regular people. He will not be beholden to big corporations, he will be beholden to us."

Carol is making sure that everyone she knows votes for Barack on June 3! Find your polling location and make sure to vote!

Just a Barack Video to make you Smile...Best of luck with your Primary!

LuAnn in Indiana — Sun, 01 Jun 2008 16:33:30 EDT

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Csa5ehRwoac

I love this song and I can truly appreciate how much time the producer put into it. Like the song says..............

"Your Simply the Best!"...................Obama '08

Yes We Can!

Hope this makes you smile,

LuAnn :)

I put this together to help with primaries. You can copy and paste it!

LuAnn in Indiana — Sun, 01 Jun 2008 16:06:51 EDT

Community Blogs Welcome, Lu Ann.
Manage | Logout | Search Blogs Post from LuAnn.in.Indiana: IMPORTANT I hope this helps with your primary, Best of luck!By LuAnn in Indiana - May 18th, 2008 at 10:14 am EDT Also listed in: 10 groups Comments | Mail to a Friend | Report Objectionable Content

I can't be there with you in person, but I put this narrative and video together so you can easily copy and paste and share with everyone before your primary.

I think it is important to share Barack's story with others who do not know much about him.

I will be glad to send more if you send me more addresses.

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

I would like to share this poem about Barack Obama that was put to music. Every person who is preparing to choose our next leader should know the ‘FACTS” OF Barack’s life.

Please watch it and share it with your friends, family, co-workers, fellow supporters and even with some who do not know Barack, are Independents, Republicans or doubters.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tzSKD0PnVhk

You can simply set by and watch as our next leader is chosen for us or you can get involved and share the life story of Barack Obama.

His story is one of an American boy, who against all odds has elevated himself to the level of possibly becoming our next President of the United States of America.

His life story proves that in the United States of America anything is possible.

Thank you for your time and please consider choosing Barack to lead us through this extremely challenged period for our country.

Together we are strong and we can take back our great nation.

Yes We Can! Barack Obama……..2008

LuAnn in Indiana

Please stop by MY SPace and get a Super Delegate Button for yourself!

http://www.myspace.com/luanninindiana

Don't Give Up On Obama

OAKLAND NATIVE — Thu, 29 May 2008 22:45:03 EDT

I don't understand the Bias of Fox News and other stations. Barack can not nor will he ever control over what other people say. Sometimes though, the truth will set you free and in other cases the truth will hurt. I'm not sure if either of these apply in the lates controversy. However, it seems Senator Obama is being held to a different standard of having to answer for what others say, which is sad. Statements such as these still show we have a long way to go to heal race relations and the affects of slavery in this country.

Don't give up!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yes we can!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Getting Out the Vote in Missoula

Caitlin Harvey — Thu, 29 May 2008 12:19:23 EDT

On Tuesday evening, our Missoula office held a big Get Out The Vote training where they explained the process of canvassing and what exactly our campaign will be doing during GOTV. After the training, 85 people signed up for multiple GOTV shifts!

Yesterday morning, Jean Carnahan, Former Senator from Missouri, and Betsy Myers, National Chair of Women for Obama, held a special discussion over coffee in our Missoula office. After the meeting, everyone marched through downtown Missoula to the polls to vote early, chanting "Yes, We Can!"

After the march, everyone returned to the office to enjoy brunch and to make phone calls to undecided voters in Missoula. A local Missoula artist even screened t-shirts with a "Women for Obama" print.

Check out a slideshow of pictures from Tuesday's and Wednesday's events!

Make sure to vote early!

Barack Obama for President!

Randy — Thu, 29 May 2008 02:06:54 EDT

I JUST WANTED TO SAY HI TO EVERYONE OUT THERE IN SOUTH DAKOTA AND MONTANA AND LETS NOT FORGET PEURTO RICO, I JUST WANT TO LET YOU KNOW THAT WE ARE ALL BEHIND YOU, ALL THE WAY. AND I AM SO GLAD THAT WE CAN COUNT ON ALL OF YOU TO VOTE FOR BARACK OBAMA. BARACK OBAMA HAS A MESSAGE OF HOPE AND CHANGE AND HE ALSO BRINGS A FEELING OF TOGETHERNESS LIKE NOTHING LIKE I'VE NEVER FELT BEFORE. PEOPLE ALL ACROSS THE UNITED STATES ARE STARTING TO FEEL UNITED AGAIN. I HONESTLY FEEL LIKE HE TRUELY CARES ABOUT US AND HE WANTS TO START REBUILDING FROM THE BOTTOM UP AND I LIKE THAT IDEA BECAUSE WHEN YOU DROP THE MONEY FROM THE TOP ALMOST NOTHING GETS TO THE BOTTOM. WE'VE SEEN THAT OVER AND OVER AGAIN. AND MAKE SURE YOU GET ALL OF YOUR FRIENDS TO VOTE FOR BARACK TO. THE MORE THE BETTER. WE HAVE TO BE REAL CAREFULL THE CLINTONS ARE SO HOOKED ON WINNING THEY WOULD EVEN CHEAT TO WIN.

I LIVE IN MICHIGAN AND I DIDN'T VOTE IN MY PRIMARY BECAUSE I WAS TOLD BY THE NEWS ON T.V. THAT THE PRIMARIES WOULDN'T COUNT. BOTH STATES FLORIDA AND MICHIGAN BOTH NEW THEY WERE BREAKING THE RULES AND THEY NEW IT, SO IT IS MY OPION THAT IT WOULD BE NOTHING BUT CHEATING TO SEAT ANY DELEGATES. THEY TALK ABOUT DISINFRACHISEING THE VOTERS IN FLORIDA AND MICHIGAN THAT VOTED. WELL WHAT ABOUT ALL OF US THAT STAYED HOME BECAUSE WE WERE TOLD NOT TO VOTE THAT IT WOULDN'T COUNT. THERES PROBABLY MORE OF US THAT STAYED HOME AND IF YOU START SEATING DELEGATES THAT WOULD BE JUST LIKE GIVING ME A PENALTY FOR OBEYING THE RULES.

I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW WHY THEY DON'T TALK MORE ABOUT US WHO OBEYED THE RULES.

I ALSO BELIEVE THAT THE 48 STATES THAT DID VOTE AND DID OBEY THE RULES DID JUST FINE AND AS A MICHIGANDER I WILL FOLLOW THOSE OTHER 48 STATES. THE ONLY WAY I WILL BE DISINFRANCHISED IS IF THE RULES COMMITEE CHANGES THE NOMINEE BY SEATING THE DELEGATES. FLORIDA AND MICHIGAN BROKE THE RULES PLAIN AND SIMPLE. RULES ARE RULES!!!!!YOU JUST DON'T START CHANGING THE RULES JUST BECAUSE YOU ARE A CLINTON AND YOU ARE LOSING. I WONDER IF CHELSEA CLINTON FEELS THIS WAY DEEP DOWN INSIDE BECAUSE WE ALL KNOW ITS CHEATING.

BARACK OBAMA FOR PRESIDENT!!!!
(YES WE CAN)
THANKS RANDY!!!!!

Women for Obama Missoula Group Meeting

Caitlin Harvey — Sat, 24 May 2008 14:40:23 EDT

On Thursday night, our Women for Obama group in Missoula met to discuss the ways to get involved in the campaign in Montana, and make phone calls to undecided Montanans.

After enjoying a dinner of soup, salad, brownies, and chocolate chip cookies, the group made over 1,100 calls to Montanans, and they plan to meet again next Thursday to continue their work.

You can find out more about getting involved with Women for Obama here! And if you live in Montana, make sure to vote early!

50-State Strategy IS THE ONLY 17-State Strategy!

Stephen from Missoula, MT — Mon, 19 May 2008 16:53:07 EDT

50-State Strategy IS THE ONLY 17-State Strategy!

cross posted at: http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2008/5/19/14250/3338/295/518377

Mon May 19, 2008

In an article in Slate.com, entititled, "How will Barack Obama get to 270?," Democratic Pollster Paul Maslin continues the tired, ineffective seventeen-state argument that the only way for Barack Obama to win this fall is for him to pull out victories in a handful of key Purple states. The implication is that somehow that means that we need to focus all our resources on those states—as the Kerry campaign so disastrously tried in 2004.

Here’s the problem: In an ever more communicative and mobile society, what Maslin and John Kerry’s entire election staff ignored, and what the Republicans and right-wing radio clearly understand, is that the path to those crucial 17 states is through the 50 states.

It’s all about influence leaders, and many of them are rural and live in Red States. So, Uncle Harry in Wyoming listens to Rush Limbaugh every morning without any refutation from progressive radio or from Democratic advertising, and then advises his three beloved nieces in Colorado and Iowa to vote for McCain on Election Day. Or farmer Sarah sends out a daily email blast spreading Obama rumors from the mountains of Tennessee to 400 of her internet friends throughout America—including many in some very blue and purple states.

Kal Penn Canvasses in Missoula

Caitlin Harvey — Sun, 18 May 2008 15:07:29 EDT

This morning, actor Kal Penn held a Canvass Kick Off event in our Missoula office, where he spoke about why he supports Barack Obama for President.

After addressing a large crowd, Kal went canvassing in a local neighborhood with a group of interns from Hellgate High School, and they encouraged Montanas to vote early for Barack.

Make sure you vote early!

Barack in Montana on Monday!

Caitlin Harvey — Fri, 16 May 2008 12:39:25 EDT

Barack will be holding events in Billings and Bozeman on Monday, May 19! Here are the details:

Town Hall With Barack Obama

Billings West High School
2201 St. Johns Avenue
Billings, MT 59102

Monday, May 19th, 2008
Doors Open: 9:00 a.m.
Program Begins: 10:45 a.m.

The event is free and open to the public. For security reasons, do not bring bags. Please limit personal items. No signs or banners permitted.

Tickets are required. Admission is first-come, first-served for ticket-holders. Seating is limited and is based on a first-come first-serve basis. Tickets can be picked up at:

Obama for America Headquarters
222 North Broadway
Billings, MT 59101

Tickets are available:

Friday, May 16 - 10:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.

Rally With Barack Obama

Brick Breeden Field House
Montana State University
1 Bobcat Circle
Bozeman, MT 59715

Monday, May 19th, 2008
Doors Open: 5:30 PM
Program Begins: 7:30 PM

The event is free and open to the public. For security reasons, do not brings bags. Please limit personal items. No signs or banners permitted.

Tickets are required. Admission is first-come, first-served for ticket-holders. Seating is limited and is based on a first-come first-serve basis. Tickets can be picked up at:

Obama for America Headquarters
105 West Main Street
Suite 1 Mezzanine West
Bozeman, MT 59715

Tickets are available:

Friday, May 16 – 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Saturday, May 17 – 9:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Sunday, May 18 – 11:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Monday, May 19 – 8:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.

Make sure that you vote early after you pick up a ticket! Hope to see you at an event!

Missoula Organizational Meeting

Caitlin Harvey — Thu, 15 May 2008 18:44:07 EDT

Last night, over 100 Montanans came out to an organizational meeting in our Missoula office to find out how to get involved with the campaign in their community.

They learned about the importance of becoming a precinct captain, tomorrow's Hellgate High School March to the Polls early vote event, and how easy it is to volunteer in the office!

After the presentations, people mingled, ate pizza, lasagna, and salad, drank soda, and picked up yard signs. About 10 stayed and made phone calls to undecided Montanans -- some of them phonebanking for the first time!

Sign up to volunteer in your local office!

Barack the Vote: High School One-Stop Early Voting

Caitlin Harvey — Wed, 14 May 2008 18:39:49 EDT

Attention Montana High School Students!

Have you voted early yet? There's no better time than now to vote early and make your voice heard!

Tomorrow and Friday, join other high school students in your area and vote early for Barack, then head to your local office and learn about how you can get involved in the campaign. Bring your friends!

In Montana, you can one-stop early vote from now until June 3rd, even if you are not already registered to vote.

Find the event nearest you here:

If there isn't an event in your area, you can create an event here:

http://my.barackobama.com/page/content/mthighschoolonestophost/

If you'd like more information about one-stop early voting, call 1-877-MT-EARLY (877-683-2759).

Hope to see you at an event!

Voter Registration in Sanders and Missoula Counties

Caitlin Harvey — Tue, 13 May 2008 12:52:29 EDT

For the last few weeks, volunteers all across Montana have been registering folks to vote and spreading the word about Barack in their local communities.

Check out some pictures of volunteers registering voters and passing out information about Barack at a farmers market in Sanders County, Montana last week.

And here are some volunteers reminding voters to register to vote outside of our Missoula office last Monday.

Did you know that right now, you can register to vote and vote early all at once? Find your early voting location here and stop by today!

Sportsmen for Obama Week in Montana

Caitlin Harvey — Sun, 11 May 2008 14:06:19 EDT

On Thursday, as part of "Sportsmen for Obama Week" in Montana, Obama supporters in Missoula participated in two different events in order to encourage Montanans to vote early and meet fellow supporters in their communities.

A group of University of Montana students met at the U of M oval, then biked to the Missoula County Election Office in order to turn in their ballots.

Later in the afternoon, a group of Obama supporters turned in their ballots to the Missoula County Election Office, then headed to a local range to do some skeet shooting.

If you live in Montana, join Sportsmen for Obama to find out more about upcoming sportsmen events, and make sure to vote early!

Memo to Democratic Party Members of Congress

""""Jeff C."""" — Sat, 10 May 2008 18:02:27 EDT

TO: Democratic Party members in Congress that are interested in keeping their jobs

FROM: Someone stating the obvious

For those of you that were too dense to figure it out earlier, the past few weeks should have made everything clear for even the densest among you to miss. That is, the Clintons are toxic for the DemocraticParty; and not just a garden variety of toxicity mind you--but rather anuclear winter form of 'there's nothing left but Keith Richards and cockroaches' toxic.

Hillary's been singing an oldie but a goody[at least for the Republican Party] for the past few days. I can namethat tune in five syllables: triangulation.

It's the old "third way" back with a bang. In its most recent iteration, I believe Hillary has referred to it as her "Goldilocks" idea with regards to the gas-tax holiday. She referred to her hare-brained scheme thusly:

"You know, Sen. Obama says we shouldn't do it and it's
a gimmick. And Sen. McCain says we should do it, but we shouldn't pay
for it," Clinton said. "I sometimes feel like the Goldilocks of this
campaign: Not too much. Not too little. Just right."

Every democrat by now should be very familiar with this scam. It's the same scam that cost the democrats about sixty congressional seats and nine governorships during the Clinton presidency.

It goes something like this: you artificially split the difference between the republican and democratic positions. You offer an "alternative" while simultaneously knee-capping others within your party. Your fellow party members are now left with their deals, notwithstanding the gender inequity of the statement, swinging in the wind.

Despite the obvious drawback of leaving the people in your party hanging out in the wind, there's a less obvious and more damning consequence. That is, it artificially moves the line on the political continuum rightward. This is especially damaging when liberal/progressive policy views are ascendant.

That's how policy such as DOMA, AUMF, the Telecommunications Act, the Welfare Reform Act and the Anti-terrorism & Effective Death Penalty Act come to be seen as "bi-partisan" legislation.

That's how what constitutes mainstream Republican Party ideas now are those that would have only been considered by John Birch Society wingnuts a generation ago. Because the so-called "fighters"
allowed the political center to be dragged way to the right while they simultaneously double-crossed those in their own party that went out a limb for them.

It's time for this hideous race to the bottom to end. It's time for democrats to start being democrats again.

Just walk away democrats. Don't look back. Get as much crap as you can stuff into the car, grab the kids and beat it out of Dodge. You don't have to take the abuse any longer. Everything will be alright.

We Need Your Help Volunteering!

Caitlin Harvey — Wed, 07 May 2008 18:57:55 EDT

Carrie Glenn, Montana Field Director for the campaign, just sent out this email encouraging Montanans to volunteer:

Dear Caitlin,

Volunteer in Montana Last night, Barack won a decisive victory in North Carolina and finished closer than anyone expected in Indiana.

Today, the spotlight turns to the 6 remaining contests -- and with less than one month to go before Primary Day, Montana is playing an increasingly vital role in this election.

Together, we can finish this race off and secure the nomination, but we need your help. And the best place for you to make a difference is at the Obama office nearest you.

There are lots of ways you can help out at your local Obama office, so find yours today and sign up to volunteer before the primary:

http://mt.barackobama.com/MTofficevol

Like you, I've seen the excitement on the ground here for Barack's message of change.

It's because of this excitement -- and the amazing work of grassroots supporters like you across the country -- that we've won the most states, the most votes, and the most delegates with only 6 contests remaining.

You've helped create a movement that will compete in all 50 states in November, but we need to finish primary season strongly. And as the last state to vote, Montana can make a powerful statement that change is coming to our country.

We have just four weeks to make this happen, so sign up to volunteer at your local office:

http://mt.barackobama.com/MTofficevol

Thank you,

Carrie

Carrie Glenn
Montana Field Director
Obama for America

P.S. -- One-Stop Early Voting is underway in Montana, so you don't have to wait another day to add your voice to the millions in this country calling for change.

Even if you aren't registered to vote, you can register and vote early for Barack all at once.

Look up your early voting location and vote for Barack today:

http://mt.barackobama.com/MTonestoplookup

If you've already voted early, use our simple online tool to make sure your friends and family in Montana know where to vote early:

http://mt.barackobama.com/MTlookupinvite

I voted!

Sue — Wed, 07 May 2008 16:38:50 EDT

Got the early ballot and mailed it in. :)

Last night was cool - it was so close. Gary, Indiana!

Perhaps Hillary should consult an economist: Spending $12M of your own money for a $400K job?

New Radio Ad in Montana: "Tradition"

Caitlin Harvey — Wed, 07 May 2008 16:27:29 EDT

Yesterday, our campaign began running a 60-second radio ad entitled “Tradition,” which features Montanan Jim Posewitz, a lifelong sportsman, member of Helena Hunters and Anglers Association and retired biologist with the Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks Commission. Mr. Posewitz affirms Barack’s commitment to preserving the Second Amendment and the rights of hunters and sportsmen.

You can listen to the ad here:

Make sure that you vote early!

New TV Ad in Montana: "Need"

Caitlin Harvey — Wed, 07 May 2008 12:32:00 EDT

Yesterday, our campaign began running a new television ad in Montana called "Need." The ad talks about Barack's plan to stand up for the middle class by returning balance to our tax code, closing corporate loopholes that lobbyists put in, and making sure that tax breaks are given to people who really need them.

Watch the ad here:

You can read Barack's full economic plan here.

Make sure that you vote early! Find your early vote location here.

Vote Early Today!

Caitlin Harvey — Tue, 06 May 2008 12:44:37 EDT

Lauren Watts, Early Vote Director here in Montana, just sent out this email:

Dear Caitlin,

As you read this message, Barack supporters in North Carolina and Indiana are casting their ballots.

You don't have to wait another day to join them in voting for change.

One-Stop Early Voting has begun in Montana, and any eligible voter can vote early at a local election office right away -- even if you are not currently registered to vote.

Early Voting continues through Primary Day, June 3rd. Visit your local election office Monday through Friday (most offices are open from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.) to complete a registration form and ballot.

Don't wait -- find your One-Stop Early Voting location and vote today:

http://mt.barackobama.com/MTonestoplookup

If you'd like more information about one-stop early voting, call 1-877-MT-EARLY (877-683-2759).

Thank you,

Lauren

Lauren Watts
Montana Early Vote Director
Obama for America

P.S. -- This week is Sportsmen for Obama Week, and Obama supporters across Montana are gathering for outdoor activities of all kinds -- then making our voices heard by voting early for Barack right away.

Find an event in your area and sign up to join us:

http://mt.barackobama.com/mtsportsmenweek

Congratulations to Bitterrooter Volunteer Melissa on becoming a grandmother today!

Steve Wells from Western Montana — Sun, 04 May 2008 22:09:14 EDT

Another baby girl for Obama comes into the world.

Mother and baby are doing fine!

Neutralizing the Smear Emails

Stephen from Missoula, MT — Sun, 04 May 2008 14:48:44 EDT

This snippet of a diary on DailyKos.com offers a very simple way to effectively reply to the smear emails and to help counteract their effect--and all the tools are already on the BarackObama.com website.

Best,

Steve

http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2008/5/3/202426/9750/972/508563

<<Guess Who's Spreading the Smear Emails?

<<by newyorknewyork Sat May 03, 2008 at 06:29:01 PM PDT

<<Though it's hard to believe, especially after the seemingly endless coverage about Obama's CHURCH, the Muslim smear emails are STILL circulating. I just got another one today. While I have no way of knowing where the first emails came from, I can tell you who is responsible for spreading them. I'll tell you how I know after the fold...

<<• Obama's website has some easy ways to help fight back if you get smear emails. http://my.barackobama.com /...

<<I followed the steps on his website, which are:

<<1. Forward the email to watchdog@barackobama.com (probably so they can try to trace it and keep tabs).

<<2. Hit "reply all" and fight back with the facts (www.factcheck.barackobama.com ) They have copy already written on topics such as religion, his church, patriotism, that you can just copy and paste in your reply- so that makes it easy. Anyway, I have gotten several smear emails.>>

(This way you reply to everyone the smear email went to, which challenges the original sender's motivation--and may stop him or her from doing it again.)

Steve Corrick

Down to the Wire in Indiana

Montana for Obama — Fri, 02 May 2008 13:16:39 EDT

In four days, Barack has a chance to take Indiana and N. Carolina. He is likely to do so in NC, but Indiana looks more like Clinton's to lose...although she isn't leading by a lot. In any event, the swing overall is going just fine for Barack. This is the time to be calling as a volunteer for Barack to the Indiana folks, letting them know why he is the better candidate...without putting Hillary down. The more we do that calling, the better chance Barack has of tying up the election early. The volunteer section of barackobama.com has instructions and even a script to follow, so get some friends together...or by yourself, and go for it!

Right now, I'm in Oregon and it's clearly Obama country...pretty much like Montana. But it's that way only because we decided to get involved for our candidate. This is major push for the goal time as the time is fleeting before our Montana June 3rd primary! The more we do now, the better for Barack. We're getting close aren't we?

Frank

Sportsmen for Obama Week

Caitlin Harvey — Fri, 02 May 2008 10:54:21 EDT

Representative Kendall Van Dyk, House Democratic Chair of the Montana Legislative Sportsmen Caucus, just sent out this email about Sportsmen for Obama Week:

Dear Caitlin,

My name is Kendall Van Dyk, and I'm the Montana House Democratic Chair of the Legislative Sportsmen Caucus. I'm also a lifelong hunter and angler who is supporting Barack Obama.

I'm excited to announce that next week -- Monday, May 5th to Sunday, May 11th -- is Sportsmen for Obama Week.

All across the Montana, Obama supporters will gather for outdoor activities of all kinds -- then make their voices heard by voting early or committing to vote early for Barack.

Learn more and sign up for a Sportsmen for Obama event near you:

http://mt.barackobama.com/MTsportsmenweek

I'm supporting Barack because he respects the rights and traditions of Montana sportsmen. As president, he will protect our gun rights, expand access to public lands, reward those who open their lands to sportsmen, and protect the natural habitats that make our state so rich in wildlife.

And I'm not alone. Sportsmen all across the state are working hard to elect Barack (read our editorial in the Missoulian) -- and next week is an exciting chance to build on our momentum.

One-stop voting, where you can register to vote and vote early, begins this Monday, May 5th and lasts all the way through primary day, June 3rd. All next week, hunters and anglers who support Barack will be gathering to enjoy the outdoors, discuss how to build this movement, and learn how to vote early and register to vote through one-stop voting.

Sign up for a Sportsmen for Obama event near you:

http://mt.barackobama.com/MTsportsmenweek

Or plan your own Sportsmen for Obama event:

http://mt.barackobama.com/MTsportsmenweekhost

Thank you for supporting Barack,

Representative Kendall Van Dyk
House Democratic Chair, Montana Legislative Sportsmen Caucus

P.S. If you haven't already signed up, join Sportsmen for Obama today:

http://mt.barackobama.com/MTsportsmen

Make sure that you register to vote!

Montana, The World is watching.

!Andy Shirtliff U of Montana SFBO — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 12:52:16 EDT

VOTE EARLY! VOTE OBAMA!

***THIS IS A REMINDER THAT D-Day May 5th, the Deadline to get an Early Vote ballot is fast approaching!***

Early votes are so paramount to the campaign because, Montana is the last state to vote. A large contingency of students leave Montana next week, if they haven't voted in their respective states, they will not be able to have their say until November.

In the past Montana has always been a fly over state, a state without much say. In the past, the nominee was chosen months before the primary got to us.

But this Election is different, This is the most historic and Important election of our life times, possibly this Nation's history. This time, Montana will have its say. This time, Montanans our voice will be heard.

With our work in these next few days, with early votes from communities and college campuses across the state, For the first time Montana will decide who will be the next President of the United States. Our Moment is now.

The race is close, our opponent wants the decision to be made on the convention floor in Denver or by Super-delegates, who the Clinton campaign believes owe them something. We CANNOT let this be another debacle like the Democratic Convention in '68

The nomination WILL be decided by Montana. THIS ENDS HERE.

VOTE EARLY! VOTE OBAMA!

FIRST: Register to Vote
http://sos.mt.gov/ELB/forms/voters/register.pdf

then, Print this absentee ballot request form,
http://sos.mt.gov/ELB/forms/voters/absenteeballot.pdf

Print it off, Fill it out, and Mail it/drop it off at your courthouse.

VOTE EARLY! VOTE OBAMA!

Montana For Obama

Andy Shirtliff
University of Montana
Students for Barack Obama

Rev Wright and Barack

Montana for Obama — Sat, 26 Apr 2008 11:14:32 EDT

Obama Came Close in PA

Montana for Obama — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 10:34:19 EDT

It was a good night for Barack. PA is a state made for her as a candidate. After a huge gap in the polls, Barack ended up with only losing 8.7% of the popular vote, and Hillary gained only 10 elected delegates. Here's how Barack's campaign manager put it on the net:

David Plouffe, Obama's campaign manager, said the loss was expected and did little to change the trajectory of a nomination battle that continues to favor his candidate.

"Some states are stronger for our opponent," he said. "Some are stronger for us. We assumed she had an edge there [in Pennsylvania] and we would try to keep it as close as we could. You have to be clear-eyed about that. We have two contests coming up in two weeks. We'll see where the race is after that. . . . The structure of the delegate contest will not be changed appreciably, and that's the most important factor in the race."

So, Barack will end up with somewhere between 100 and 150 elected delegates at the end of this race if it goes all the way to the end. And he will pick up more and more superdelegates, just as he did today with the announcement that the Gov. of Ok. who was not going to endorse until all the states had voted decided today to make the declaration today. That will continue. Barack is very likely to continue his lead in the popular vote as well.

I think this all means that if he just stays steady as we know he will, he is going to be our nominee for president. But for this to happen, we are going to have to work hard in Montana to make sure that we nominate him with the large majority of elected delegates. To make sure of this we need to work really hard beginning now. Whatever we choose as volunteers to do, it in the final analysis comes down to this:

1. Expanding the list of people who contact the campaign at barackobama.com indicating their willingness to work for and to vote for him; When you talk with people, get their names, addresses, phone numbers, email addresses. You can download a sign up sheet from barackobama.com and use that if you want to. Get this info to the campaign at your nearest Obama office.

2. Getting people interested in Barack to register to vote. This is a really big thing!

3. Sign up people for early voting! This dramatically increases the ease of voting for Barack people. The nearest Barack office can get applications for early voting to you. Go get them.

4. Tell everyone you know, family, friends, barack group, and most importantly the public why you support Barack.

5. No matter what, VOTE!!!!!!!!

6. The Montana campaign offices are doing a wonderful job of helping us stay focused on these essential tasks. Work with them; they are good folks!

We are on the path to victory; first the primary, then the presidential election, then working with him to make his presidency a success. The tide isn't turning, it's already turned. If we do what we need to do, Barack will do just fine.

For me, this is the most important message we need to get out there! Ramp up the intensity now and keep it there for the primary as the next successful step in Montana.

Yes we can and yes we will!

I'll be out of Montana for a bit, but I'm going to continue to work for him along with you.

Make it happen.

Frank

$23 away from $2000

Nathan Kosted-OFA Montana Field Director — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 01:09:17 EDT

So I am $23 away from reaching $2000 raised on my personal fundraising page and I was hoping that you all would be willing to help me show the campaign the strength that they have and how far we are willing to go to support Senator Obama.

Donate Here: http://my.barackobama.com/page/outreach/view/main/nathankosted

I am hoping for Donations of $9.60 or the percentage that Hillary beat us by in Pennsylvania, give more or less, but that amount shows the campaign we are with them.

My ultimate goal is not $2000 but $2300 which is the maximum contribution that one major donor can give. I know that like me you all could never donate $2300 yourself, but that is all the more reason to show the campaign that we together can achieve the same as one donor can give even though it has taken me 14 months to get there, when it takes a major donor just 10 seconds to write the check. Be a part of the over 150 people who have helped me get this far.

Donate Here: http://my.barackobama.com/page/outreach/view/main/nathankosted

I know that the Pennsylvania loss hit hard, but to avoid the same kind of loss in Indiana or North Carolina on May 6th please help the campaign with whatever amount you can spare.

Donate Here: http://my.barackobama.com/page/outreach/view/main/nathankosted

Thank You all for everything you do,

Nathan Kosted,

Montana State Director-Students for Barack Obama

Healthcare

Nicolas Bryan Hobson — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 17:04:18 EDT

Hilary Clinton plans to unify healthcare for Americans. It means that her healthcare plan will take away insured Americans healthcare premiums and allow Americans to apply for her healthcare that would be public and government owned healthcare that would provide options. Barack Obama healthcare plan provide options for the American people. Hilary Clinton healthcare plan would raise taxes and corporate taxes. Spread the world and this blog.

Vote for Barack Obama for Prtesident and your Democratic nominee

One of theMost Important Endorsements for Barack!

Montana for Obama — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 13:15:28 EDT

Robert Reich's Blog
Robert Reich is the nation's 22nd Secretary of Labor and a professor
at the University of California at Berkeley. This is his personal
journal.

Friday, April 18, 2008
Obama for President

The formal act of endorsing a candidate is generally (and properly)
limited to editorial pages and elected officials whose constituents
might be influenced by their choice. The rest of us shouldn't assume
anyone cares. My avoidance of offering a formal endorsement until now
has also been affected by the pull of old friendships and my
reluctance as a teacher and commentator to be openly partisan. But my
conscience won't let me be silent any longer.

I believe that Barack Obama should be elected President of the United
States.

Although Hillary Clinton has offered solid and sensible policy
proposals, Obama's strike me as even more so. His plans for reforming
Social Security and health care have a better chance of succeeding.
His approaches to the housing crisis and the failures of our
financial markets are sounder than hers. His ideas for improving our
public schools and confronting the problems of poverty and inequality
are more coherent and compelling. He has put forward the more
enlightened foreign policy and the more thoughtful plan for
controlling global warming.

He also presents the best chance of creating a new politics in which
citizens become active participants rather than cynical spectators.
He has energized many who had given up on politics. He has engaged
young people to an extent not seen in decades. He has spoken about
the most difficult problems our society faces, such as race, without
spinning or simplifying. He has rightly identified the armies of
lawyers and lobbyists that have commandeered our democracy, and
pointed the way toward taking it back.

Finally, he offers the best hope of transcending the boundaries of
class, race, and nationality that have divided us. His life history
exemplifies this, as do his writings and his record of public
service. For these same reasons, he offers the best possibility of
restoring America's moral authority in the world.

The Debate Last Night

Montana for Obama — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 11:32:04 EDT

Overall, I thought Barack did just fine given the horrible job of ABC who were responsible debate. But as you watched it, where were the pressing questions facing our nation?

I sent the following comment to ABC as a result:

The April 16th debate, or should I say circus, was the worst case of shoddy work by Gibson and George S, I've witnessed. It marks a new low in so called news journalism. You wasted my time and that of Clinton and Obama with sideline non-issues. Folks, this was not Bozo the Clown with Charlie Gibson, this was supposed to be a debate about the future of our country! The management of ABC owes an apology to We The People of the United States of America, including me.

Shame on you!

Good grief,

Frank

Taxes

Nicolas Bryan Hobson — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 21:11:51 EDT

Higher taxes do cut jobs in the economy. It is better to provide tax breaks at all businesses in the U.S to create jobs.

Two Superdelegates Clearify Their Positions Today

Montana for Obama — Tue, 08 Apr 2008 14:36:37 EDT

We know that the two superdelegates below are supporting Barack but
for one, party rules preclude endorsement at this time. As a result,
Ms. Campbell must officially curtail endorsement at this time for the
contested race. Ms. Dahlman continues to endorse Barack but with the stipulation that her endorsement must follow the will of the people in Montana.

Thanks to both of them for their support. Below is part of the
newsclip circulating in Montana today:

Also Monday, Margarett Campbell, a state lawmaker from Poplar,
initially said she was endorsing Obama after the two candidates
visited Montana over the weekend. A short time later, she said
Montana Democratic Party rules prevented her — as vice chair of the
state party — from endorsing in a contested primary.

Despite that, Campbell's loyalties seemed clear.

"I am very interested in endorsing Obama, but party rules preclude me
from endorsing," Campbell told The Associated Press. "It's been
emotional, it's been frustrating. It has been very frustrating. It is
a huge responsibility."

Both Obama and Clinton campaigned in Montana last weekend, with
separate visits to Missoula and back-to-back speeches in Butte at the
state party's annual dinner.

Dahlman said she made her decision to back Obama after meeting both
candidates in Butte. She did, however, add the caveat that she may
reconsider if Montana voters pick Clinton in the state's June 3
primary.

"At this point, after thinking about it long and hard, I would like
to endorse Barack Obama," Dahlman said in a telephone interview from
her home. "I would just like to honor the Montana primary votes by
saying that I would reconsider if there were a significant difference
in the outcome on June 3."

Dahlman almost changed her mind after verbally committing to Obama on
Saturday night. On Monday morning, she said she felt it might be best
to wait until after June 3. Later, she said she would officially
endorse Obama.

"I don't feel lukewarm about endorsing Obama," Dahlman said. "His
leadership potential is amazing, and he has brought so many new
people into politics."

You Bet the Tide is Turning in Montana!

Montana for Obama — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 20:09:40 EDT

Wow, what a weekend, and what a start to the week! Barack was welcomed in both Missoula and Butte with overwhelming enthusiasm...and if you were at either event, you know just how moving it really was. I talked with many people and had a lot of impressions. I was a volunteer outside before and after Barack spoke in Missoula. I met several folks who were getting ready to vote for the first time. They told me they really looked forward to going to their precinct, lining up to vote and going into the voting booth to register their decision for our Montana nominee and later for president of the United States of America. It was thrilling for me to hear them speak and I shook their hands and congratulated them on their decision not to fill out an early vote application...even though I was there to sign up people to register to vote and apply for early voting! Secondly, I was excited to hear from all those people in that long line inching toward the gate who were not just there to hear Barack, but were there because of their love of our country and because they were there to help our country to get back on track again. Third, after the rally, I talked with a pal who has been a Republican all his life. He told me that he was voting for Obama...because of who he is and what he could do to repair the wounds to our country. While I talked with people and laughed with them, I kept thinking of that phrase that Barack had said, "We are the ones we've been waiting for." And I had the privilege of being in their midst that day...

And yes, I was one of those folks who drove to Butte to hear Barack that night at 6:40pm. Again, what a roar took place in the Civic Center, just like the Adams Center earlier! I really think that the majority of ticket holders were Obama fans, and when we stood to applaud and yell our approval time and time again during his speech, we were all sending a message to the Montana Democratic Party that the time for change had come and would not be denied!

Barack had two quite different speeches for the two settings and each was delivered wonderfully well. They were substantive, deeply personal, and they looked forward to what America was capable of becoming...not backward. They were inclusive...not divisive. And he spoke without notes. He is a terrific American and he personifies the meaning of the term. It meant a lot to me to be there.

And now to know that there are a total of four superdelegates in Montana who have endorsed Barack... Yes. Together, Democrats, Independents and some Republicans. We really are the ones....

Frank

Superdelegate Jeanne Lemire Dahlman Endorses Barack

Montana for Obama — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 19:20:11 EDT

There is more news today about a super-delegate! Jeanne Lemire Dahlman - a national committeewoman - says she is backing Obama. However, Dahlman said she may reconsider if Montana voters pick Clinton in the state's June 3 primary.

Many thanks to Jeanne Lemire for endorsing Barack Obama! She has identified the person best suited to winning the Montana primary on June 3rd, and winning the White House in the general election.

Now, it's up to us as volunteers to demonstrate our willingness to do everything we can to be worthy of Jeanne's confidence in our candidate. We need to first win the primary with an impressive margin so that the majority of Montana's elected delegates are Obama delegates. That is something we can really work toward!

So, let's concentrate on that for now and prepare to continue into the general election later. Again Jeanne, thank you!

Cheers,

Frank

An Important Post by Nancy Wauer...a must see

Montana for Obama — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 13:27:58 EDT

Nancy Wauer posted this message on Whitefish for Obama. She says,

"This is the best response to the Rev. Wright issue I have seen. Open
the link below and then click on Fox News link and it will take you to
the interview clip. It is very powerful. Please pass this onto
everyone you know - it needs to be heard."

And here is the link. You need to understand it and be prepared to
speak the truth to people who might not understand the Rev. Wright and
what he said, IN CONTEXT."

Here is the link and thank you so much Nancy!

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2008/4/7/6543/06534/725/491505

Frank

Super Margaret Campbell Endorses Barack!

Montana for Obama — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 12:41:27 EDT

Margaret Campbell, a Montana state legislator, plans to declare her support for Senator Obama, of Illinois. She becomes the 69th superdelegate he has picked up since the Feb. 5 coast-to-coast string of primary elections and caucus votes.

Margaret, that is wonderful news to us all! Thanks for your support of this extraordinary person. We support you too!

Let us know how we can help.

Cheers,

Frank

Endorsing the New Michigan Plan

Brian — Sat, 05 Apr 2008 20:16:51 EDT

My first blog. Maybe my only one. But I saw this a few days ago about the latest Michigan delegate-splitting plan...

CNN: New Michigan Plan Proposed

...and I feel like I haven't heard a whole lot of talk about it, here or elsewhere. So I wanted to get this off my chest.

I would love to see the Obama campaign get behind this idea. It's a safe bet that these delegates are going to be seated at the convention one way or another. In this scenario, the Clinton campaign would walk off with a net gain of no more than 8 delegates. Nothing we can't absorb. It allows some of the January vote to be reflected -- fairly or unfairly -- going a long way to quiet those who argue against "disenfranchising" Wolverine Staters. Above all, it shows a graciousness on the part of the Obama campaign, a willingness to put the party first.

It's not the most desirable plan, and it's not the most fair. Preferable and maybe worth pushing for would be the same scenario with the delegates split evenly -- 78 according to the January vote, 78 according to the popular vote. But the loss of 8 delegates is a small price to pay for the good PR.

A similar scenario in Florida -- assuming both candidates evenly divide the 17% that went to Richardson and Edwards -- would result in a net gain of only 11 delegates for Clinton.

To put the Michigan/Florida question to rest -- and come out looking very much the good guy -- at a cost of only 19 delegates...this is a bargain.

The only reason I can think of that the campaign wouldn't be all over this is that it legitimizes the popular vote in FL and MI. But Obama would still be up -- as of now -- by a couple hundred thousand. And it seems like a risk well worth taking.

---

A final thought on FL and MI, a sort of rebuttal to those who plead (often sincerely, I think) against "disenfranchising" voters. Here in Montana, a bill was introduced last year to move our Democratic primary up from June 3 (when it "would never count") to February or March. And it was shot down. Not by some off-limits party process, but by people -- citizens of the state -- acting via their state legislators.

I feel for people in Florida and Michigan, to some degree. It's a lousy scenario. But folks in Florida and Michigan had control over this to the same extent they have control over every other decision their representatives make. These states' legislatures defied party rules in a quest for cash. Rewarding the people that couldn't or wouldn't keep them in check...this disenfranchises me, as well as the other 48 states worth of us who played by the rules.

The new Michigan plan is an honorable compromise that would "enfranchise" all of us.

Barack's Visit

Joan Davis — Sat, 05 Apr 2008 14:20:42 EDT

Hi,

After arriving at the Adam's Event Center at 5 AM this morning, this was one of the greates events I have ever been involved with. Seven hours later, after a whirlwind of passing time I am so thrilled to have been part of this historic event.

Seeing Barack Obama in person, was so worth it!!!

I would just like to THANK EVERYONE who worked so hard and did so much and brought it off like clockwork. Both paid staff and volunteers, FANTASTIC, FANTASTIC, FANTASTIC. The people who worked so hard to bring him here, the field staff at 218 Front Street. the patient people who waited for tickets, the sign makers and most of all, everyone who just showed up, you did a really terriific job and you should be so proud of yourselves!!!! Joan D.

Barack Will Rally Missoula, Sat, April 5th

Montana for Obama — Wed, 02 Apr 2008 22:57:56 EDT

Well friends, it is happening thanks to all your hard work. Barack will be in Missoula for a 10am rally in the Adams center this coming Saturday, April 5th! Here's the breaking headline in the Missoulian:

Rumors buzzing for weeks about a possible visit to Missoula by Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama were finally put to rest Wednesday when the campaign announced the Illinois senator will hold a free public rally Saturday at the University of Montana.

The event will be held in the Adams Center at 10 a.m. Doors will open at 8 a.m. Tickets are required for entrance, but seating is on a first-come, first-serve basis.

Free tickets are available either online at www.barackobama.com or for pickup at Obama’s local campaign headquarters in Missoula, which opened Wednesday at 218 E. Front St. They’ll be available Thursday and Friday between 9 a.m. and 9 p.m.

It’s the only free public event the Obama campaign is holding in Montana, said Matt Chandler, spokesman for the campaign.

The rally in Missoula precedes the sold-out Mansfield-Metcalf dinner in Butte on Saturday evening, where both Obama and his rival for the Democratic presidential nomination, New York Sen. Hillary Clinton, are scheduled to speak.

Clinton will speak in Missoula on Sunday at a fundraiser at the Hilton Garden Inn.

“Montana has a very important position,” Chandler said. “Montana has a number of delegates still up for grabs. We’ve seen great enthusiasm for his message of change and we expect a good outpouring of support Saturday.”

John Melcher Backs Obama!

Montana for Obama — Wed, 02 Apr 2008 19:35:55 EDT

HELENA - Former U.S. Sen. John Melcher says he is going to cast his
key Democratic Party superdelegate vote for Barack Obama.

Melcher is one of eight Montana superdelegates who can vote for
whoever they please at the party's national convention this summer.

Melcher says he chose Obama because he believes the Illinois senator
has been against the Iraq war since the start.

One other Montana superdelegate, Ed Tinsley, earlier announced
support for Obama.

All the others - including Gov. Brian Schweitzer and U.S. Sens. Max
Baucus and Jon Tester - have said they will wait until after the
state's June 3 primary to decide.
--------------------
OK, now that's two for Barack. We are moving on...and with all of us
working together we will help Montana to see Barack as our primary
choice on June 3rd.

Thank you John!

Frank

Postcards for Barack in PA

Joan Davis — Wed, 02 Apr 2008 12:39:05 EDT

Hello to the "Mrs.'s, Miss's, and Ms.'s

I have been putting some serious thought into this 'women writing postcards' campaign for Barack in PA.

Let's say that the 10 postcards you write and 10 postcards your friend writes, pushs some 'undeceided' off the fence into the Obama Camp. That is a 5% return on your efforts. Was it worth the 20 postcards to get one vote, YOU BET!!!

If we consider that this PA primary race is going to be CRITICAL to Barack Obama's access to Superdelagates support, that 5% is an outstanding #. EVERY VOTE is critical!!

Just think if Obama comes out AHEAD by 100 votes, or 1 delagate, What a COME FROM BEHIND FINISH!! And you can be a part of it. I know you are out there, the person who just can't face the idea of talking to strangers on the phone. You wish you could, but....

Well, here's your opportunity to make a difference. Sign up for the POSTCARD LUNCH BREAK, to write to women in PA. If you don't live in the Missoula area, or can't get to the lunch, that's okay. It's the postcards that count.

Call me or e-mail me and we'll figure out how to get them to Ohio.(A women's group in Ohio has the mailing list and will do all the addressing), but we have to send the cards to Ohio BY THE 7TH OF APRIL, next Monday.

CAN WE DO THIS FOR BARACK, YES WE CAN!!

Hope to hear from many of you soon!!! And tell your fellow Obama supporters, in case they are not in a group getting this e-mail.

Joan D.

PS: To get to the 'Event', go to Events; 'find events'; use 59801 Zip; and 10 miles. scroll down the list and you'll find it.

April Fool's Day / Post card Lunch Break.

Joan Davis — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 18:38:02 EDT

Hi Everyone,

Good turnout again today for the Postcard Lunch Break. We produced almost 300 cards to be sent to Ohio and then mailed to women in PA who were "undecided" when called thru' the phone bank.

It was, of course, fun to meet some more Obama volunteers. Lots of Buzz about the upcoming Butte Event and ideas to get things moving around Missoula. June will be here before we know it.

There will be one more Postcard Lunch Break at Romeo's next Monday, April 7th. For those of you who weren't able to make the first two, LAST CHANCE to have lunch with some pretty enthusiastic Obama fans AND 'do' postcards.

For those of you who have been to 'lunch' or have been doing cards at home, if you have survived the 'writer's cramps, please come again!!!

Joan D.

Barack Evening Buzz - 3-30-08

Barack Daily Buzz - Victory2008.net — Sun, 30 Mar 2008 17:20:07 EDT

Barack Evening Buzz - 3-30-08
On to Victory in November

(1) Record Crowd of 22,000 Greets Obama at Penn State University
Centre Daily Times
http://www.centredaily.com/news/politics/story/490893.html

(2) Obama Now 10 Points Ahead of Clinton in New Poll-52% to 42%
Gallup Daily Election Tracking Poll
http://www.gallup.com/poll/105841/Gallup-Daily-Obama-Now-52-Clintons-42.aspx

(3) Gallup Says Obama has 10 Point Lead over Clinton-Largest this Year
Jill Lawrence-USA Today-On Politics-Election 2008
http://blogs.usatoday.com/onpolitics/2008/03/gallup-obama--1.html

(4) Obama Says Clinton Can Run to the End and Hillary Says Nomination Will be Resolved at Convention
Steven Hurst-Associated Press
http://www.mlive.com/newsflash/index.ssf?/base/mississippi-0/1206905941302000.xml&storylist=international

(5) When Will the Democratic Race End?
Chris Cillizza-Washington Post-The Fix
http://blog.washingtonpost.com/thefix/2008/03/sunday_reading_when_will_it_en.html

(6) Supporters Say Obama and Clinton Should Stay in Race until June
Jesse Westbrook-Bloomberg
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601070&sid=aVrB4dcNr8II&refer=home

(7) Obama Bowls for Voters in Pennsylvania
Devlin Barrett-Associated Press
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/03/30/AR2008033000690.html

(8) Video-Super Delegate Vermont Senator Patrick Leahy Urges Clinton to Quit Race
Associated Press
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-8TYzkHJAIY

(9) Democrats Face Summer of Bitter Infighting
David Wiessler-Reuters
http://www.reuters.com/article/marketsNews/idUSN3032878820080330

(10) Open Letter from Alice Walker-We Must Build Alliances Not on Ethnicity or Gender But Truth
Alice Walker-TheRoot.com
http://www.theroot.com/id/45469/output/print

(11) Stand Up for Democracy in the Democratic Party
MoveOn.org-Petition
http://pol.moveon.org/democracy/?r_by=-9135676-d0EVY1&rc=paste

(12) Barack Obama Music Coalition
http://www.barackobamamusic.com/

Clinton's "popular vote" rationale makes no sense

earldy — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 13:39:22 EDT

Hillary supporters have tried to justify dragging this thing out by pointing to her chance (albeit slim) to win the popular vote. This is also why she wants Florida and Michigan's primaries to count so much, insisting it would disenfranchise their voters. However, THERE IS NO POPULAR VOTE COUNT! The only reason Clinton is even competitive in the popular vote category is because it automatically disregards caucus results. States such as Iowa, Nebraska, and Washington don't held caucuses and caucuses generally don't count popular vote, but instead the proportion of each caucus that chose a certain candidate to choose how many delegates to allocate.

While Clinton is accusing Obama disenfranchising voters of two states, her campaign is openly suggesting superdelegates disregard the results of twenty-some caucus states. No wonder delegates from Iowa recently jumped from Edwards to Obama; Clinton wants to disregard their votes completely and instead give them to Michigan who didn't even have Obama on the ballot.

Obama - Richardson 08

earldy — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 01:26:43 EDT

It's already a foregone conclusion that Obama will be the nominee, the only question is how damaged he will be when gets there with Clinton going all Tonya Harding and all. So, maybe it's time to start talking about VP choices. I've always thought Richardson would be a great choice, but I was afraid it would unavoidably inject race into the equation while Obama was trying to stay away from it. However, with Fox News already rolling soundbites from Rev. Wright's surmons on a continuous loop, the issue is not going to go away.

Every cloud has a silver lining though. As conservatives decide to attack Obama's preacher, they'll have to stop spreading rumors that he's Muslim. Also, the only ones who would be a little skittish of a double-minority ticket have already jump overboard.

Why Richardson? Other than being a great guy in his own right and one who agrees with Obama on playing fair in politics, he also perfectly balances Obama's ticket. His experience is more rounded than McCain's: he's a Governor, former energy secretary and UN ambassador. He can't be labeled a liberal (He's one of the few Governors to get an 'A' from the Heritage foundation, a conservative think tank, for fiscal responsibility). And, the one cheap shot that the Republicans could throw at him (that since he's hispanic, he must be week on immagration) has been taken away from them because McCain is their nominee and he's much worse on the issue.

Richarson keeps the hispanic vote from moving to McCain like it did for Bush, plus with an opportunity for hispanic issues to play a prominant role in the white house would certainly encourage many to register to vote. Moreover, he's popular in the west. It's no secret that Schweitzer prefered Richardson over the others.

With Richardson and Obama on the ticket, states such as Texas, New Mexico, Nevada and even McCain's homestate of Arizona could come into play and possibly Florida. And I honestly believe Montana is a purple state and if Richardson were on the ticket talking about energy policy and western needs the Democrats would have a chance even in Montana.

Michelle Obama Addresses the Experience Factor

Montana for Obama — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 22:30:52 EDT

Now here is a down-to-earth person telling it like it is, addressing the "experience" issue often hurled at Barack. Why is it that he can deal with all the negative comments thrown at him? Why will he be able to win the presidency? You just have to listen to these comments below!

http://youtube.com/watch?v=l0LTGUSwdSo

Pretty amazing isn't it?

Cheers,

Frank

The Tide is Turning

Montana for Obama — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 18:58:51 EDT

Today I was talking with a friend of mine who is in finance. He was
acutely aware of the problems facing our country, in both human,
environmental and economic terms.

He was intersted in Barack Obama and admired what he had to say.
Yet, he was typical of many people in our community who ask questions
like, "Is Barack a muslim?" "What's that thing about his pastor and
himself?" "What makes him qualified to be president of the USA at
such a young age?" You know, these are questions you must be able to
answer. And there are many more in the realm of policy as well.

It just reminded me that although we know why Barack will be a superb
president, many others have basic and important questions which need
to be answered by you. He is depending on you to do that vital job
for him and for the future of our country.

But as you know, the tide is turning toward his message. We can help
make progress through our efforts to get his message out to voters.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=7s9ubMQX7WE

This might also be a good video to present to others in your talks
with them...

Frank

Today's Postcards for PA Event

Joan Davis — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 00:47:28 EDT

Hi Everyone,

We had a good turnout today at Romeo's Italian Kitchen to write postcards to be sent to PA. It was great to meet people whom we had been e-mailing back and forth with for a while. Little bit of sharing the latest news and plans for the future campaigning for Barack in Missoula.

We are having another one next Tuesday, same place, same time. So, come on over and join us and don't forget to bring your 10 Montana Postcards AND a friend.

Joan D.

one's own confusion?

Joseph Caldwell — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 16:28:41 EDT

it's not one for me to go negative on somebody but this needs some clarification. Hillary Clintons remarks about how she stated she misspoke about her trip to Bosnia with Sinbad where she landed in sniper fire.Is this lady bipolar, is she on meds for hallucinations, I have made tales about how big a fish I caught but this kind of blunder on any other resume would get you fired from you're job. You did'nt misspeak Senator you LIED>plan and simple. And too use today too blast Rev. Wright (who you also hosted at the white house) to change the subject off your decietful manner, well is just plan decietful.

Detroitoctane fires up!

Montana for Obama — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 08:48:12 EDT

Make sure you've got a lot of base on your computer speakers! Detroitoctane just hit youtube with a dynamite song that could be heard in Barack's campaign:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=kPLtotzqH0M

"He's the only way to go..."

Yeah!

Frank