This is largely a re-posting based on my comments on the Obama HQ blog earlier today under the heading of the outreaches being conducted on various social networking sites.
I am weary of attack politics. I believe Barack Obama's vision, character, and eloquence make it possible for him to run with dignity and "presidential bearing" largely on his own positive attributes without spending inordinate amounts of time reminding the voters of his opponents. I'm all for differentiating the front-runners, but I assert we have two major re-unifications to accomplish en route to a successful Presidency. We must keep two turning points in mind:
First, after the nominating convention it must be reasonable for supporters of other candidates to get behind the Obama candidacy. Second, after the election we need open-minded Republicans who didn't vote for Obama to find a path to support a President from the "other" party. In both cases, individuals need a way to re-align their commitment while preserving their values, sense of honor, and personal integrity.
I'm inclined, accordingly, to favor approaches which leave fewer wounds to heal down the road; I think these positive outreach efforts on social websites are excellent, for instance, despite the somewhat skewed demographic slice(s) they likely reach.
I trust that strategists are considering many approaches. I know I'm not a campaign expert, but I am representative of some segment of the population. I don't want to see Senator Obama or his partisans descend (even on the advice of advisers) to muck-raking and name-calling. Simply put: if Clinton or Edwards supporters lose face by changing their allegiance after the convention we risk disenfranchising them during the rest of the campaign.
Hardened, divisive, adversarial positions do not serve the campaign any better than they do the country - or, for that matter, the world.
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