Posts with the tag Nevada

UNITED AGAINST RACISM

WEBMASTER — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 12:46:34 EDT

Hi Friend

There is a new group that just started on Facebook that I thought Organizing for America members may be interested in joining. Please see United Against Racism -

http://apps.facebook.com/causes/354956/80588439?m=9dc74a6e

United Against Racism

posted by David Apperson

Nevada Election Blog

WEBMASTER — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 09:58:48 EDT

As President Obama recently related to me regarding local service; "Now is our time to work together, reaffirm our enduring spirit, and choose our better history."

It is our responsibility as Americans to vote, and vote we must. And now is the time to prepare for the next election. I invite all citizens of Nevada to post a message on the Nevada Election Blog.

Nevada Election Blog
nevada-elections.blogspot.com

BARACK OBAMA FIRST 100 DAYS

WEBMASTER — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 13:23:01 EDT

During the first 100 days of the Obama presidency we have seen outstanding leadership in tackling the many issues facing our great nation. And it seems that overwhelming poll numbers indicate that America agrees with President Obama. see THE WHITE HOUSE

The question remains; What can we as fellow Americans do to help our neighbors and countrymen? Included are nine things you can do to help the President celebrate his first 100 Days in office:

1. Donate unused suits to the Salvation Army
2. Donate time to Americorps
3. Donate toys for children at Toys for Tots
4. Donate blood at the Red Cross
5. Donate a can of food each week to a Local Shelter or Food Pantry
6. Donate money to Save the Children
7. Donate time at local a Veterans Hospital
8. Donate an hour a day to your Child
9. Donate to the Make a Wish Foundation

Participation is greatly appreciated. What you do for the least of our brethren, you do for yourself -
http://donate.barackobama.com/page/community/post/president/gGxWJh

Barack Obama First 100 Days posted by David Apperson

Let's talk about OUR First Lady!

Steve Severson — Thu, 09 Apr 2009 23:32:16 EDT

Ain't she SWEET? We all know the tune...sing along! (see her walkin' down the (now heavily guarded) street/ the kind of girl I'd like to meet/ Ain't she sweet!)

I never before really cared about "First Laidies" until Michelle burst upon the scene. All of the recent ones, with the exception of Hillary, seemed to be either NUTS (witness Barbara!) or hoplessly shallow (you'd have to be to put up with "43"...a number to which he couldn't count; which has been scientifically proven; and we ALL know how much they held science close to their hearts!)

I, of course, cannot bring any of the First Ladies from Jackie-O back into the fray, as THEY all had class and even inluence!

PRESIDENTIAL INAUGURAL SPEECH

WEBMASTER — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 13:39:36 EST

Presidential Inaugural Address Delivered by President Barack Obama on 20 Jan 2009

My fellow citizens -
I stand here today humbled by the task before us, grateful for the trust you have bestowed, mindful of the sacrifices borne by our ancestors. I thank President Bush for his service to our nation, as well as the generosity and cooperation he has shown throughout this transition. Forty-four Americans have now taken the presidential oath. The words have been spoken during rising tides of prosperity and the still waters of peace. Yet, every so often the oath is taken amidst gathering clouds and raging storms. At these moments, America has carried on not simply because of the skill or vision of those in high office, but because We the People have remained faithful to the ideals of our forbearers, and true to our founding documents. So it has been. So it must be with this generation of Americans.
That we are in the midst of crisis is now well understood. Our nation is at war, against a far-reaching network of violence and hatred. Our economy is badly weakened, a consequence of greed and irresponsibility on the part of some, but also our collective failure to make hard choices and prepare the nation for a new age. Homes have been lost; jobs shed; businesses shuttered. Our health care is too costly; our schools fail too many; and each day brings further evidence that the ways we use energy strengthen our adversaries and threaten our planet.
These are the indicators of crisis, subject to data and statistics. Less measurable but no less profound is a sapping of confidence across our land - a nagging fear that America's decline is inevitable, and that the next generation must lower its sights.
Today I say to you that the challenges we face are real. They are serious and they are many. They will not be met easily or in a short span of time. But know this, America - they will be met.
On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord.
On this day, we come to proclaim an end to the petty grievances and false promises, the recriminations and worn out dogmas, that for far too long have strangled our politics.
We remain a young nation, but in the words of Scripture, the time has come to set aside childish things. The time has come to reaffirm our enduring spirit; to choose our better history; to carry forward that precious gift, that noble idea, passed on from generation to generation: the God-given promise that all are equal, all are free, and all deserve a chance to pursue their full measure of happiness.
In reaffirming the greatness of our nation, we understand that greatness is never a given. It must be earned. Our journey has never been one of short-cuts or settling for less. It has not been the path for the faint-hearted - for those who prefer leisure over work, or seek only the pleasures of riches and fame. Rather, it has been the risk-takers, the doers, the makers of things - some celebrated but more often men and women obscure in their labor, who have carried us up the long, rugged path towards prosperity and freedom.
For us, they packed up their few worldly possessions and traveled across oceans in search of a new life.
For us, they toiled in sweatshops and settled the West; endured the lash of the whip and plowed the hard earth.
For us, they fought and died, in places like Concord and Gettysburg; Normandy and Khe Sahn.
Time and again these men and women struggled and sacrificed and worked till their hands were raw so that we might live a better life. They saw America as bigger than the sum of our individual ambitions; greater than all the differences of birth or wealth or faction.
This is the journey we continue today. We remain the most prosperous, powerful nation on Earth. Our workers are no less productive than when this crisis began. Our minds are no less inventive, our goods and services no less needed than they were last week or last month or last year. Our capacity remains undiminished. But our time of standing pat, of protecting narrow interests and putting off unpleasant decisions - that time has surely passed. Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America.
For everywhere we look, there is work to be done. The state of the economy calls for action, bold and swift, and we will act - not only to create new jobs, but to lay a new foundation for growth. We will build the roads and bridges, the electric grids and digital lines that feed our commerce and bind us together. We will restore science to its rightful place, and wield technology's wonders to raise health care's quality and lower its cost. We will harness the sun and the winds and the soil to fuel our cars and run our factories. And we will transform our schools and colleges and universities to meet the demands of a new age. All this we can do. And all this we will do.
Now, there are some who question the scale of our ambitions - who suggest that our system cannot tolerate too many big plans. Their memories are short. For they have forgotten what this country has already done; what free men and women can achieve when imagination is joined to common purpose, and necessity to courage.
What the cynics fail to understand is that the ground has shifted beneath them - that the stale political arguments that have consumed us for so long no longer apply. The question we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small, but whether it works - whether it helps families find jobs at a decent wage, care they can afford, a retirement that is dignified. Where the answer is yes, we intend to move forward. Where the answer is no, programs will end. And those of us who manage the public's dollars will be held to account - to spend wisely, reform bad habits, and do our business in the light of day - because only then can we restore the vital trust between a people and their government.
Nor is the question before us whether the market is a force for good or ill. Its power to generate wealth and expand freedom is unmatched, but this crisis has reminded us that without a watchful eye, the market can spin out of control - and that a nation cannot prosper long when it favors only the prosperous. The success of our economy has always depended not just on the size of our Gross Domestic Product, but on the reach of our prosperity; on our ability to extend opportunity to every willing heart - not out of charity, but because it is the surest route to our common good.
As for our common defense, we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals. Our Founding Fathers, faced with perils we can scarcely imagine, drafted a charter to assure the rule of law and the rights of man, a charter expanded by the blood of generations. Those ideals still light the world, and we will not give them up for expedience's sake. And so to all other peoples and governments who are watching today, from the grandest capitals to the small village where my father was born: know that America is a friend of each nation and every man, woman, and child who seeks a future of peace and dignity, and that we are ready to lead once more.
Recall that earlier generations faced down fascism and communism not just with missiles and tanks, but with sturdy alliances and enduring convictions. They understood that our power alone cannot protect us, nor does it entitle us to do as we please. Instead, they knew that our power grows through its prudent use; our security emanates from the justness of our cause, the force of our example, the tempering qualities of humility and restraint.
We are the keepers of this legacy. Guided by these principles once more, we can meet those new threats that demand even greater effort - even greater cooperation and understanding between nations. We will begin to responsibly leave Iraq to its people, and forge a hard-earned peace in Afghanistan. With old friends and former foes, we will work tirelessly to lessen the nuclear threat, and roll back the specter of a warming planet. We will not apologize for our way of life, nor will we waver in its defense, and for those who seek to advance their aims by inducing terror and slaughtering innocents, we say to you now that our spirit is stronger and cannot be broken; you cannot outlast us, and we will defeat you.
For we know that our patchwork heritage is a strength, not a weakness. We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus - and non-believers. We are shaped by every language and culture, drawn from every end of this Earth; and because we have tasted the bitter swill of civil war and segregation, and emerged from that dark chapter stronger and more united, we cannot help but believe that the old hatreds shall someday pass; that the lines of tribe shall soon dissolve; that as the world grows smaller, our common humanity shall reveal itself; and that America must play its role in ushering in a new era of peace.
To the Muslim world, we seek a new way forward, based on mutual interest and mutual respect. To those leaders around the globe who seek to sow conflict, or blame their society's ills on the West - know that your people will judge you on what you can build, not what you destroy. To those who cling to power through corruption and deceit and the silencing of dissent, know that you are on the wrong side of history; but that we will extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist.
To the people of poor nations, we pledge to work alongside you to make your farms flourish and let clean waters flow; to nourish starved bodies and feed hungry minds. And to those nations like ours that enjoy relative plenty, we say we can no longer afford indifference to suffering outside our borders; nor can we consume the world's resources without regard to effect. For the world has changed, and we must change with it.
As we consider the road that unfolds before us, we remember with humble gratitude those brave Americans who, at this very hour, patrol far-off deserts and distant mountains. They have something to tell us today, just as the fallen heroes who lie in Arlington whisper through the ages. We honor them not only because they are guardians of our liberty, but because they embody the spirit of service; a willingness to find meaning in something greater than themselves. And yet, at this moment - a moment that will define a generation - it is precisely this spirit that must inhabit us all.
For as much as government can do and must do, it is ultimately the faith and determination of the American people upon which this nation relies. It is the kindness to take in a stranger when the levees break, the selflessness of workers who would rather cut their hours than see a friend lose their job which sees us through our darkest hours. It is the firefighter's courage to storm a stairway filled with smoke, but also a parent's willingness to nurture a child, that finally decides our fate.
Our challenges may be new. The instruments with which we meet them may be new. But those values upon which our success depends - hard work and honesty, courage and fair play, tolerance and curiosity, loyalty and patriotism - these things are old. These things are true. They have been the quiet force of progress throughout our history. What is demanded then is a return to these truths. What is required of us now is a new era of responsibility - a recognition, on the part of every American, that we have duties to ourselves, our nation, and the world, duties that we do not grudgingly accept but rather seize gladly, firm in the knowledge that there is nothing so satisfying to the spirit, so defining of our character, than giving our all to a difficult task.
This is the price and the promise of citizenship.
This is the source of our confidence - the knowledge that God calls on us to shape an uncertain destiny.
This is the meaning of our liberty and our creed - why men and women and children of every race and every faith can join in celebration across this magnificent mall, and why a man whose father less than sixty years ago might not have been served at a local restaurant can now stand before you to take a most sacred oath.
So let us mark this day with remembrance, of who we are and how far we have traveled. In the year of America's birth, in the coldest of months, a small band of patriots huddled by dying campfires on the shores of an icy river. The capital was abandoned. The enemy was advancing. The snow was stained with blood. At a moment when the outcome of our revolution was most in doubt, the father of our nation ordered these words be read to the people:
"Let it be told to the future world...that in the depth of winter, when nothing but hope and virtue could survive...that the city and the country, alarmed at one common danger, came forth to meet it."
America. In the face of our common dangers, in this winter of our hardship, let us remember these timeless words. With hope and virtue, let us brave once more the icy currents, and endure what storms may come. Let it be said by our children's children that when we were tested we refused to let this journey end, that we did not turn back nor did we falter; and with eyes fixed on the horizon and God's grace upon us, we carried forth that great gift of freedom and delivered it safely to future generations.
President Barack Obama

Presidential Inaugural Speech - A message for all people
http://my.barackobama.com/page/community/post/president/gGxHqT

source: David Apperson, webmaster

ALTERNATIVE ENERGY

WEBMASTER — Sat, 13 Dec 2008 02:26:14 EST

The Pickens Plan: For those who would like to become an active participant in a solution for our nations energy needs I urge you to join with T.Boone Pickens in his quest for a cleaner planet through alternative energy.

Also see Green Wave Energy: Green Wave was founded by Mark Holmes and was formulated for viable alternative energy solutions. Green Wave Energy is promoting state-of-the-art energy-saving products and services throughout the country.

Green Wave Energy understands alternative energy technology will become “main stream” when

individuals and organizations understand that alternative energy technology exists and
when people see the economic benefits of using alternative energy technologies

Call 949.645.1701 for information on how Green Wave Energy can help you save the planet.

Alternative Energy
Source: David Apperson

url: http://veterans.barackobama.com/page/community/tag/alternative-energy

PRESIDENTIAL TRANSITION TEAM

WEBMASTER — Mon, 08 Dec 2008 18:06:01 EST

Obama-Biden PRESIDENTIAL TRANSITION TEAM is giving all people a voice in the administration -

The PRESIDENTIAL TRANSITION TEAM is doing a great job. Thank the Almighty Creator that this is a new day in the history of this great nation.

WEBMASTER - DESIGNERS AND DEVELOPERS

WEBMASTER — Sat, 06 Dec 2008 04:14:56 EST

President Barack Obama

Internet Webmasters, Designers and Developers

If you are an independent webmaster, designer or developer and have linked a business, personal, or political website or blog to your barack obama posts or other barackobama.com web pages and would like to be recognized for your efforts let me know.

Mail your contact and other pertinent information to:

David Apperson, Webmaster
10336 Loch Lomond Rd PMB 105
Middletown CA 95461

or email contact information to yofast@gmail.com

OBAMA FOR NEVADA

WEBMASTER — Fri, 28 Nov 2008 18:38:05 EST

Alamo * Amargosa Valley * Austin * Baker * Battle Mountain * Beatty * Blue Diamond * Boulder City * Bunkerville * Cal-Nev-Ari * Caliente * Carlin * Carson City * Crescent Valley * Crystal Bay * Deeth * Denio * Duckwater * Dyer * Elko * Ely * Empire * Eureka * Fallon * Fernley * Gabbs * Gardnerville * Gardnerville Ranchos * Genoa * Gerlach * Gerlach Empire * Glenbrook * Golconda * Goldfield * Halleck * Hawthorne * Henderson * Hiko * Imlay * Incline Village * Indian Springs * Jackpot * Jarbidge * Jean * Kingsbury * Lamoille * Las Vegas * Laughlin * Logandale * Lovelock * Lund * Luning * Manhattan * McDermitt * McGill * Mercury * Mesquite * Mina * Minden * Moapa * Montello * Mountain City * Nellis AFB * Nixon * North Las Vegas * Orovada * Overton * Owyhee * Pahrump * Panaca * Paradise * Pioche * Reno * Round Mountain * Ruby Valley * Ruth * Schurz * Searchlight * Silver City * Silver Springs * Silverpeak * Smith * Sparks * Spring Creek * Stateline * Summerlin South * Sun Valley * The Lakes * Tonopah * Tuscarora * Valmy * Virginia City * Wadsworth * Washoe Valley * Wellington * Wells * West Wendover * Winnemucca * Yerington * Zephyr Cove

Nevada * Nevada Bible Study * Obama for Nevada * State of Nevada

Pics from AD15, Nevada staging location

Dan — Sat, 08 Nov 2008 15:18:39 EST

http://s35.photobucket.com/albums/d196/dansnet/Obama%20Victory/

I'M HERE IN NEVADA

RFLTV for Obama — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 18:40:26 EST

I've been here in Nevada for almost a week from California. I'm here in Nevada to help re-enforce change as we did in California. Would you believe that I'm disabled? However, as in life, we have to fight like our life depends on it and not get too comfortable.

We are turning Nevada blue with much determination. I got a chance to see Senator Obama and Michelle on separate occasions while here working. I was sad to hear of Obama's Grandmother on the day Michelle was here and our blessings and heart goes out to them. They are both amazing and I know they will be great leaders for the United States of America. We all know that it has been such a challenge for people with disabilities dealing with our meds and healthcare. Let's all help bring this win home and make this the United States we all love, especially those with disablilites!!!

YES WE CAN!!

Please be inspired by this video we made in California:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2E8DYDbHxUs

Tracy Hardy-Mosbey

Early voting results in battleground states compared to 2004 election

Vote for the Future — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 16:31:19 EST

Nevada

2004 Final Results:

Kerry 48%

Bush 51%

2004 Final Results (Distribution by Party):

Democrats 35.0 %

Republicans 39.0 %

Independents 36.0 %

2008 Early Voting (Distribution by Party):

Democrats 51.0 % (gained 16% compared to 2004)

Republicans 31.6 % (lost 7.4%)

Independents 17.4 % (lost 8.6%)

A total of 59% of 2004 turnout already voted (as of October 31).

New Mexico

2004 Final Results:

Kerry 49%

Bush 50%

2004 Final Results (Distribution by Party):

Democrats 40.0 %

Republicans 33.0 %

Independents 27.0 %

2008 Early Voting (Distribution by Party):

Democrats 52.7 % (gained 12.7% compared to 2004)

Republicans 32.8 % (lost 0.2%)

Independents 14.5 % (lost 12.5%)

A total of 25% of 2004 turnout already voted (as of November 1).

Iowa

2004 Final Results:

Kerry 49%

Bush 50%

2004 Final Results (Distribution by Party):

Democrats 34.0 %

Republicans 36.0 %

Independents 30.0 %

2008 Early Voting (Distribution by Party):

Democrats 46.9 % (gained 12.9% compared to 2004)

Republicans 28.9 % (lost 7.1%)

Independents 24.2 % (lost 5.8%)

A total of 32% of 2004 turnout already voted (as of November 1).

North Carolina

2004 Final Results:

Kerry 44%

Bush 56%

2004 Final Results (Distribution by Party):

Democrats 39.0 %

Republicans 40.0 %

Independents 21.0 %

2008 Early Voting (Distribution by Party):

Democrats 51.5 % (gained 12.5% compared to 2004)

Republicans 30.1 % (lost 9.9%)

Independents 18.4 % (lost 2.6%)

A total of 74% of 2004 turnout already voted (as of November 2).

Florida

2004 Final Results:

Kerry 47%

Bush 52%

2004 Final Results (Distribution by Party):

Democrats 37.0 %

Republicans 41.0 %

Independents 22.0 %

2008 Early Voting (Distribution by Party):

Democrats 45.7 % (gained 8.7% compared to 2004)

Republicans 37.2 % (lost 3.8%)

Independents 17.1 % (lost 4.9%)

A total of 56% of 2004 turnout already voted (as of November 2).

Colorado

2004 Final Results:

Kerry 47%

Bush 52%

2004 Final Results (Distribution by Party):

Democrats 29.0 %

Republicans 38.0 %

Independents 33.0 %

2008 Early Voting (Distribution by Party):

Democrats 37.7 % (gained 8.7% compared to 2004)

Republicans 35.9 % (lost 2.1%)

Independents 26.4 % (lost 6.6%)

A total of 61% of 2004 turnout already voted (as of October 31).

_____________________________________________________________

Sources:

CNN (2004 results): http://www.cnn.com/ELECTION/2004/pages/results/president/

CNN (2008 early vote results): http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/10/27/early.voting.map/index.html

US Election Project (2008 early vote results): http://elections.gmu.edu/early_vote_2008.html

Meeting Barack Obama in Nevada: Henderson Rally, Nov. 1

Mark C. Eades — Sun, 02 Nov 2008 17:24:01 EST

Four days before Election Day 2008, I drove with a friend from my home in the San Francisco Bay Area to Henderson, Nevada, just outside Las Vegas, for a rally with Barack Obama. We arrived in Las Vegas on the Friday night preceding the Saturday morning event, which also happened to be Halloween. With little else to do before driving out to Henderson to take our places among the first in line for the Obama rally, we did what any other visitor does on a Friday night in Vegas: We went to the Strip. This was of course a strange prelude to the Saturday morning event, as apolitical a beginning to a political weekend as I can imagine. Surprisingly, among the crowds of revelers along the Strip in almost any kind of costume one can imagine, I didn't see a single Barack Obama, John McCain, Joe Biden, or Sarah Palin. As always, Vegas seemed to occupy a world entirely its own.

Once we tired of the Strip, we drove the few miles out to Henderson on the southern edge of metropolitan Las Vegas and located the rally site, a local high school football stadium. By two or three o'clock in the morning, dedicated Obama supporters were already taking their places in line at the gate, and we soon took our places among them. I personally had never "camped out" for any kind of event, be it a political rally, rock concert, or movie premiere, but at this event I had no intention of being any further from the front than I had to be. Our diligence paid off, and once the gates were opened we and other early arrivals were able to take places along the rope line in front of a crowd that grew to number around 15,000 (see BarackObama.com, Las Vegas Review-Journal; photos available also at Flickr).

Obama's 25-minute speech contained many of the same points he has made throughout his campaign, but lacked nothing in excitement for being what one might describe as a "standard Obama stump speech" with a little extra dose of urgency just three days before Election Day. Introduced by Nevada's own Senate majority leader Harry Reid, Obama arrived at the podium to wild applause and screams of support, the energy all positive. I couldn't help but take wonder at how the overwhelmingly positive atmosphere at this event contrasted the ugly rage, bitterness, and hate we have all seen on video from McCain/Palin rallies. The one time booing started at the mention of John McCain, Obama reminded the crowd as at other rallies recently, "You don't need to boo. You just need to vote."

In his speech Obama reminded his supporters that the election has yet to be won: "Don't believe for a second this election is over. Don't think for a minute that power concedes. We have to work like our future depends on it in these last few days, because it does. But I know this, Nevada: The time for change has come." As he spoke, the tiny silhouettes of police and/or Secret Service lookouts could be seen atop buildings and other high points around the rally site, just in case anyone should wish to harm the Democratic nominee. Secret Service agents also patrolled the crowd and shared the open space between Obama's stage and the rope line with news photographers taking rapid-fire shots both of Obama up at the podium and of the cheering crowd. A helicopter circled over the rally site, too high to tell whether it was a news helicopter or police.

For us and others at the front of the crowd, the climax of the event came at the close of Obama's speech, as he began to make his way along the rope line to depart. Surrounded by Secret Service agents and rapid-firing news photographers, Obama moved along the rope line shaking hands, kissing babies, and thanking his supporters. The Secret Service agents pushed back against the metal barriers as the crowd surged forward to get a glimpse of Obama or shake his hand. My friend and I suddenly found ourselves with little room to move or even breathe as Obama approached and the crowd pressed in around us, holding their hands out in hopes of getting a handshake with the man they hope will be the next President of United States. We both did get handshakes with Obama when he finally arrived at our place along the rope line, and when my turn came I looked into Obama's face and told him the first thing I could think of to say: "You are going to be a great president." Obama looked back at me and said in all sincerity, "Thank you." Then he was gone.

Finally, as Obama moved away from us along the rope line shaking more hands and kissing more babies, we got a chance also to shake hands with Harry Reid. Having previously shaken hands with Ted Kennedy at an Obama event in Oakland just before the California primary, I can now say that I have shaken hands with three of the people Republicans most love to hate. One of those hands, I hope, will soon be holding the keys to the White House.

Mark C. Eades
http://www.mceades.com

In Nevada Late Undecided Moving to McCain

Jeremy Smith — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 18:25:10 EDT

As predicted some polls believe the Nevada Race is tightening. I did not notice in my last calls to Nevada for the first time there were a greater shared of committed to McCain than in previous calls. We are going to need to work harder.

Inside Nevada Politics

RGJ political reporter Anjeanette Damon provides breaking news, insider observations and experienced analysis from Nevada's political arena.

Late undecideds moving to McCain in NevadaPosted by Anjeanette at 10/29/2008 11:39 AM PDT

While U.S. Sen. Barack Obama appears to be maintaining a consistent lead over U.S. Sen. John McCain, the latest RGJ poll indicates that the late undecided voters appear to be breaking for McCain, as many political observers predicted they would.

The numbers are small and well within the margin of error so it's difficult to draw too firm of a conclusion. But compared to the last time the RGJ polled earlier this month, the number of undecideds has dropped from 4 percent to 2 percent, while McCain's support has increased from 43 percent to 45 percent. Obama has remained steady across the two polls at 50 percent.

With the margin of error, this could remain a neck-and-neck race and the tiny number of undecideds could ultimately decide it.

As for other interesting findings in the poll, Obama continues to do well among women and Latino voters. Among Hispanics he's favored by a 43-point margin. He also continues to lag with white voters and men.

In Washoe County, McCain appears to have made up some ground compared to the last poll. He's favored 48 percent to 45 percent over Obama. Last time he was favored by just 1 point. However, the numbers I'm hearing on internal polls from both parties has Obama leading in Washoe County.

Further bad news for McCain: he hasn't improved his favorability rating with Nevada voters-- it remains at 45 percent favorable and 49 percent unfavorable-- and the number of voters with an unfavorable view of his running mate, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, has increased by 5 points. Palin's favorables are 40 percent, compared to 51 percent unfavorable.

Obama has maintained a 54 percent favorability rating compared to 42 percent unfavorable.

Traveling to Nevada

Colleen from Belmont, CA — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 19:32:50 EDT

I've lived in California all my life and in the San Francisco Bay area for the last 25 years. As an activist it often feels like I'm just working to get the converted moving. My most fulfilling times have been when I have extended to more difficult areas.

I have been making calls out of state, but I really want to travel to Las Vegas to get out the vote. Unfortunately I am currently out of work and a bit too old to start searching travel websites to find strangers that will let me crash in their house. Does anyone know of any organized efforts of SF Bay area folks to travel to Las Vegas beginning this weekend? I'm looking to share housing and gas costs.

Does what we do really matter?

Heather from Kuna, ID — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 23:40:34 EDT

Please consider passing this on to others in the Obama campaign. I have already changed two votes in ID and five in CA and many others in NV by sharing this story about my family.

MAKING A DIFFERENCE
Saturday, the 18th, my family lost a loved one on the Obama campaign trail. My uncle-in-law, Dewey Swensen of Sparks, NV, and fellow democrats were going door to door, when he suffered a massive heart attack and literally dropped dead on someone's doorstep. His wife Susan, was shocked on Monday to receive flowers and a phone call from Senator Barrack Obama himself, expressing heartfelt condolence. Later, that same day, Senator Obama announced he was leaving campaigning to be with his ailing grandmother. Taking the time during campaigning and a time of personal crisis to personally call Susan, made my family and family-in-law, feel that he mattered, he made a difference, and Dewey didn't die forgotten and for nothing. We are grieving his loss greatly, and we feel that regardless of one's political views, this story is worth sharing because it supercedes politics. It is a matter of human to human kindness. Please keep a moment to remember Dewey, who passed-away doing something he believed in.

Heather

Kuna, Idaho

Eric Garcetti, LA Council President, on Driving for Change

Sarah Gallagher — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 13:34:36 EDT

Last weekend, I traveled with 150 friends to the battleground state of Nevada, joining thousands of Californians in campaigning for Senator Barack Obama.

Over the weekend, our group knocked on over 5,000 doors. We spread out across Las Vegas, meeting people in their homes and talking to them about their hopes and concerns. What we heard is that Nevadans, like many of their fellow Americans, are worried. They are yearning for change and strong leadership to put our country back on track. Most were responsive to Senator Obama's economic plan of tax cuts for the middle class and smarter regulation of our financial sector.

I know that an Obama administration would bring renewed focus toward reviving our urban centers, and I will be working to bring that message to other voters between now and Election Day.

Join us on another Drive for Change for the final Get Out the Vote Weekend.

Faith In Obama Is A Fact! "Closet Racism" Is A Myth!

David from Ojai, CA — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 13:49:58 EDT

"I can't tell my husband, but I am 100% behind Obama," a voter from Nevada told me one night while phone banking. Our Ojai volunteer campaign office has placed more than 5,000 calls to Nevada and New Mexico and we are hearing similar stories from men, women, and children from these more conservative battleground states. Quite the opposite of the occasional news-line that "closet racism" may hurt Senator Obama's election bid, we are finding undecided voters to be overwhelming Obama supporters! Our office polls show Senator Obama ahead 3 to 1 amongst undecided voters in Nevada, even higher in New Mexico, and a 6 to 1 margin in our California calling. More and more, people are feeling the power that comes with making up your own mind for yourself and they are asking for yard signs, buttons, and tee shirts more than at any point in this campaign. The people who are not honest about their own beliefs and that harbor such feelings weren't going to vote Democrat anyway: they will not sway this election even a part of one point, so forget about 'em!

Let's stay positive, remain confident that we are on the brink of monumental progress in our great country, and push on through to November 4! Faith in our fellow citizens is a two way street: we get as we give. We know others will do the right thing as we ourselves are sure we will do the same for them! Keep it up and smile, smile, smile.

Thanks for listening.

David

I Don't Have a Twin

Just me — Sun, 12 Oct 2008 19:20:57 EDT

Well this is really something!

Although, it is not impossible, it seems very unlikely that somebody else has my exact name, so I write today to clear up this confusion that I have just this day, discovered... "I" am the real "flesh and blood" "Todd Larkin"!

I share few if any views with the mystery blogger and supposed vet_08 author of the other "Todd Larkin's Blog" on this site. I would appreciate it's prompt removal as a possible imposter since I am an exceedingly conservative/libertarian minded Republican in good standing. I live in Alaska, burn wood, kill stuff too eat, don't want government to get another dime from American business and workers and so on...

If (and that is a big "if") I had any reason at all to support the likes of Barack/Biden, it would only be in the desperate hope, that a hard enough or radical enough turn to the left and full embrace of socialism or outright Communism, would be 'enough' to shake people out of their slumber and reject such notions once and for all as the failed experiment they are. Then we might get back to what built the most successful and powerful country the world has ever seen; principals such as, free market exchange between common citizens, unfettered by government constrictions or taxation, or, applying the occasional biblical principal to such things as work ethic/caring for the needy/treatment of others/government actions/etc... and finally, the right to (yes) fail! We once honored the right to bet the farm or just never even get up and milk the darn cow and suffer for the consequences without the constant and hugely expensive "safety nets" government sets up and complicates life with.

Beyond that singular reasoning for Obama support, i am at a loss as to why one would vote for this man or any similar socialist.

Now if it is not obvious, I am supporting, McCain/Palin in this presidential race, not that my party's nominee is terribly conservative but, with the addition of Palin, it seems there is a brighter future for us conservatives and a seat at the table; nevertheless, it is McCain/Palin that I endorse and NOT Obama/Biden, so I would thank you to not create confusion around my name. I am active and somewhat known in Alaska political circles and do not appreciate it one bit!

You (the Obama Campaign) would do well to 'vet out' whether your "vet" is who he claims to be before a lawsuit arrives at your campaign doorstep. As for me? Vet me out all you like, I AM "Todd Larkin", the real thing! I live here in Alaska with my dog in a small one bedroom house I built myself and barely afford. I'm here all the time and darn easy to find, so get on it! If you want pictures... Google me and you'll see that I "am" and that I have a bit of political activity under my belt and all those people I dealt with are pretty sure I'm really me too (especially my enemies, don't be one).

As for the "other" Todd... if by some outside chance you are just another guy with my exact name, I (and my name) are very disappointed in what you've become. Stop feeling and start thinking! Go try to find the socialist or communist society that worked out well for the people or didn't result in mass killings, and wake up to the failed experiment, Jeeze man!?

Slightly frustrated regards,

Todd Larkin

Bush 2004 States Are Tipping to Obama: John Nichols in The Nation

Stephen Fox, Contributing Editor New Mexico Sun News — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 23:10:26 EDT

>>>>>>>>>10/08/2008>>>>>>>>>>>>>

The national polls are instructive early in the fall presidential campaign season. They tell us whether a candidate has strength, momentum, a chance.

But as the campaign enters its final stage -- with election day less than a month away -- the numbers from the states start to matter. That's where the electoral votes start to pile up. So what of the battleground states? Forget about states, competitive or otherwise, that backed Democrat John Kerry in 2004.

The latest polls from all of them favor Democrat Barack Obama this year. (Indeed, the analysts at Real Clear Politics have in recent days moved four 2004 states Kerry states that were supposed to be battlegrounds this year -- Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Jersey and Pennsylvania -- from "Leans Obama" status to "Solid Obama.")

What of the states that backed Republican George Bush in 2004? Where are they trending. Here's something to ponder:

In 2004, Bush secured the presidency with the electoral votes of: Colorado Florida Iowa Missouri Nevada New Mexico North Carolina Ohio Florida

As of today, the Real Clear Politics poll of polls for each state -- which averages all the recent surveys of voters -- has Obama winning every one of these battlegrounds. If the election were held today, and if the polls proved correct, Obama would win the Electoral College by a margin of 364 votes to 174 -- a split roughly parallel to that in the 1996 race between Democrat Bill Clinton and Republican Bob Dole.

"Fascism should more appropriately be called Corporatism because it is a merger of state and corporate power" - Benito Mussolini

On a Personal Note: Obama in Nevada - Swing States are Hungry for Real Change

Irish Musician for Progressive Solutions — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 22:50:46 EDT

By Julia Horner, Administrator for Irish Musicians for Obama

http://my.barackobama.com/page/community/group/IrishMusiciansforObama

October 6, 2008

Two of my friends and I drove to Carson City, NV one recent weekend on behalf of the Obama campaign to talk to voters. What an adventure it was! I hadn't been to Carson City in years and I had never before done any political canvassing. I was a bit uncomfortable approaching people in the privacy of their homes, but once my friends and I started moving through the neighborhoods and knocking on doors, hearing human voices both for us and against us, I was inspired. This was a slice of real life, not a politician's skewed view from the podium or some unrealistic made-for-TV adaption of Main Street. We were going face-to-face with real Americans on real streets and we were talking about the issues together. We were connecting on a human level that is so often overlooked during political campaigns, especially this one with its contentious and divisive feel.

There were hundreds of volunteers amassed outside the Democratic headquarters in Carson City, many of whom were overspill from the Reno contingent; they had too many people show up and had to ask folks to drive to Carson City instead! Most of the volunteers were from the San Francisco Bay Area who had made the trek from California through the first rain of the season. Indeed, that morning dawned cold and windy with a dusting of fresh snow on the low mountains surrounding Carson City. It was breathtaking.

So it was that we headed into the neighborhoods, jackets pulled tight, the wind at our backs, expectations in check and positive countenances to the fore! In between the clearing storm clouds the sun shone brilliantly, warming our hearts with good energy to face the task at hand.

Travel to Reno! (I just did)

Nick Davidenko — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 19:01:33 EDT

Hi SF4Obama,

I just got back from a weekend canvassing in Reno. It was fun and productive, and I highly encourage you to do it! You can sign up here:

http://my.barackobama.com/page/s/nvdfc

The canvassing wasn't nearly as scary as I thought it would be, and the campaign volunteers and organizers show you exactly what to do. It was an inspiring experience, and now I know it actually makes a big difference. I feel like I personally added 3-5 more votes to the Obama column (multiply that by the number of volunteers and, well, you get the idea).

The next four weekends are going to be crucial! Find a weekend that works for you, and do it. And better yet, find some friends to join you -- it's more than worth it.

http://my.barackobama.com/page/s/nvdfc

They will provide carpools and housing if you need it.

Go Obama!

Nick

30 Days to Go for Early Voting

Phuong from Los Angeles, CA — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 18:09:45 EDT

Hi All. I am probably one of the biggest cynics on Earth, but I believe that this is the time to act.

My parents were political refugees who came to the states with the ideal of America as being a land of liberty and freedom. I would like to keep that a possibility, a work in progress.

I'm writing on behalf of the Obama Campaign. We are revving up for phone drives in the battle states Colorado, Nevada, and New Mexico, specifically calling them to get out the early vote.

WHY THE EARLY VOTE? This is to ensure that we lock in these very important swing states. We have October 18 - October 31 to do this. 30 minutes of your time dialing and talking can impact the next 4 years. Can you handle for more years of Bush/Cheney Deregulation and Pro-War Policies with McCain/Palin? Please help yourself, your family, your future, and community.

We need these three states to push us over the 270 electoral votes to win the Presidential election. Though no one ever agrees a hundred percent with any candidate (it's a byproduct of having a mind of one's own in a free society), Obama offers the best broad-based and holistic solution to what the U.S. needs right now.

How you can help:

Register for the Friend to Friend Phoning to the Battle States CO, NV, and NM (and have them register for early voting. You can do this for yourself and friends, too. See link below).

Forward this e-mail to your friends/family. Forwarding this message and/or sending it to your e-mail list can mean your 1 vote times 100.

Have phone bank parties.

Host an event to get out the vote.

Friend to Friend Sign Up - Phone Lists for Battle States
http://my.barackobama.com/page/votercontact/login

Early Voter Information for Battle States
https://www.voteforchange.com/?secure=ofa

My Camp Obama Great Experience

Grace from Palo Alto, CA — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 13:04:21 EDT

Grace's Camp Obama Blog - September 27 - San Jose

8:00 - Arrived and registered at the Union Hall at 240 Market Street in San Jose. For the next half hour, the room filled up with about 100 people. Fruit and pastries and juices were served. Our name tags included a number 1 through 11. I was in group #6 and took my seat in the first row. On every seat was a handout of the slides for the day (apparently 60 slides reduced and copied front and back).

The ethnic make up of the group was representative of California in the following order - 1/2 Caucasians, rest were African American, Hispanic, East Indian, Asian. We were told that for every person that was in the room, 6 had applied. In the volunteer organizational hierarchy, we are trained to be Deputy Field Organizers in charge of volunteers. We were told the ground organization of Obama to McCain is 35:1. The dems have out-organized the GOP with the largest campaign organization in US history. There are almost 350 field offices. The Hispanics for Obama are called "Obamanos"! They are jazzed!

Barack has 10 offices all over California with 13 paid staff. We are the feeder group for training volunteers for neighboring states. A couple of weeks ago, Nevada asked for 100 volunteers and 500 volunteers signed up, were trained and deployed! Late today, we were told that Colorado and Missouri have asked also asked for volunteers to help.

Goals of the organization - Win on November 4th and Organize our country so we can win on November 4th and ready to do the work on January 20th (the Jan 20th goal was never discussed today).

Goals of Camp Obama (1) Develop a compelling 'Story of Self" (2) Learned to volunteer in Battleground States (3) Made calls to voters in a Battleground State (4) Learned how to build Neighborhood teams (5) Learned how to Recruit and Retain volunteers.

The "Story of Self" which must be told in 2 minutes with the following elements - Character, Challenge, Choice, Outcome. We had two guest volunteers who told their (Story of Self) stories. AWESOME!!! One was the most gorgeous African American father of two in medical school who told a fantastic story of a near death experience that changed his values and caused him to join the Obama campaign. (He's a better, more emotionally connected speaker than OBAMA!) The second speaker was a 15 year old young lady who showed up at a volunteer meeting out of curiosity and was immediately put to work. She is now so fired up about Obama that she and a girlfriend went to Nevada and knocked on doors for votes. She has started a high school group for Obama. Fantastic young lady who was SO amazing! Tall blond girl who was dressed in shorts and flip flops!

We broke into groups to work on our own stories. Turns out Group 6 is Palo Alto and Menlo Park. There were 6-7 of us. (One VC, one Apple SW engineer, one Palo Alto mom, 2 retirees, didn't know what others did). We worked on our stories for one hour. After practicing, we had to choose the best one to be told in the larger group. My story was chosen. Each group's representative shared their stories and the group cheered each of our stories WILDLY!!! Lots of inspiration and emotion at this point. One woman told the story of her daughter's suicide due to lack of ability to obtain medication because of no insurance. Many were in tears. She got a standing ovation.

GOING TO NEVADA - We had all committed to at least one weekend in Nevada. Nevada strategy: Look at the numbers - tells you why.

2004

Total Registered Voters: 854,822

Registered Democrats: 343,679

Registered Republicans: 355,116

Democratic Deficit: -11,437

George Bush: 50.47%

John Kerry: 47.88%

Difference: -2.59%

2008

Total Registered Voters: 1,059,613

Registered Democrats: 458,877

Registered Republicans: 397,172

Democratic Advantage: 61,705

(as of today, the number is closer to 80,00)

Statewide Goal - 52% of the vote for Barack (2 more congressional seats)

We broke for lunch at 12:30 or so. Pizza and Salad for lunch. During lunch we were encouraged to sign up for the Nevada trip. Our team was told that we would probably go to Carson City. It turns out that most people get together and drive to Nevada and share the gas cost. They get up at 3:30 and arrive in Nevada by the 9:00 am orientation and training. The travel assistance group does everything via the database. A bank of laptops were available for our sign ups. The technology of the Obama Campaign was impressive. Our team would like to go together and targeted the second weekend in October. I was the coordinator of the contact information.

After lunch we had a guest speaker - Kamala Harris. She was warmly welcomed. She did the cheerleading stuff for our candidate. We almost got Al Gore (he was at the San Jose Fairmont) but was dragged away by his handlers for another event.

Next - Phone CALLS to New Mexico - we were all asked to bring at least one cell phone and charger to this event. Many of us dreaded this part. Fear of getting into a debate, fear of rejection, fear of getting an angry McCain voter! That's because most of us didn't understand the role of the phone bank. The real purpose of the phone bank is to IDENTIFY the voter, NOT to CONVINCE the voter. ALWAYS be respectful, keep it brief (30 seconds) and document every call. The training included role playing which was very helpful. We were all given call sheets with 40 people and sent off for an hour with a script. Just as we were told, most people were not home. In these cases, we circled "NH". I reached 10 people out of my 40. One told me she was having a party and hung up on me. All the rest were already OBAMA voters!! I was calling the Santa Fe area code and that's obviously a BLUE area code. My entire group had the same experience. The best answer was for us to get an UNDECIDED VOTER but I didn't get any. I had one call when the answer was an abrupt Yes. I suspected the person said Yes, he was voting for Obama just to get me off the phone. All the rest were enthusiastic OBAMA voters and one thanked me for working for the campaign.

We tabulated all the statistics at the end of the hour - 2,845 calls were made, 784 actual connections and 590 Obama voters. This information will be carefuly inputted into the database. All undecided voters are put on a list for the travelers to Nevada who will go door to door and make every attempt to talk to this person in person. That's what our group will be doing the second weekend in October. We are warned this is very tiring and to wear comfortable shoes.

Our next speaker was another new volunteer. In three weeks she had created a new neighborhood organization in her tiny town in the Santa Cruz area of 70 volunteers - two phone bank events every week. Her story is SUPER inspiring. She said that everything is at stake in this election and believes she is saving America for her children. This attitude was echoed over and over throughout the day. Another amazing, inspired, motivated, passionate person.

Everyone felt this was the most important election of our time. This election is a "CAN"T LOSE". The stakes are too high. The future of our country and our children are at stake. You could almost hear the "AMENS" all around the room when the passion and urgency of this campaign is communicated.

This was my first political campaign and it was a great experience! Made some new friends and learned a lot!

October 8, 2008 - Phone Bank Event at Griffin Home - 6:30 pm to 8:30 pm. Please join if you have time and let me know.

If you want to drop in and make some phone calls yourself, the Palo Alto office on El Camino Real is open from 9 to 9 every week day. 9 to 8 on Saturday and 11-8 on Sunday. Rachi (Rocky) is the volunteer in charge. She is an beautiful Indian women who just received her MD. She was offered a position by Kaiser and told them she had to delay her start date because she has to work full time for Obama until the election.

OBAMA/BIDEN 2008!!!!

Phone Banking

Tim — Sat, 04 Oct 2008 21:49:01 EDT

Just got back from a very fruitful phone banking session at the Northern California Obama HQ in Berkeley. We had planned on hosting eight to ten people at our home but the technology didn't comply. No worries! Our group sprang into action and we took the party to the headquarters where things were working just fine.

I'd recommend, to any and all Obama supporters to head down to your local campaign office and make some calls to your neighbors or to swing state voters. You'll get a chance to interact with folks that support Obama (both your mates at the center and the voters you're calling) and have a good time.

Now on to Nevada. The campaign promised someone would get in touch on Tuesday. My current plan is to be there from October 25 to November 4. Fired up! Ready to go!

My Detailed 2008 Election Predictions for All 50 States

Eli Corp — Sat, 04 Oct 2008 01:44:09 EDT

My Detailed 2008 Presidential Election Predictions!

You can check out your own state and see how every demographic group will likely break down in this election.

Today I made some minor changes to my predictions after news broke that McCain was abandoning his Michigan campaign, and putting resources into Indiana and Pennsylvania. I also made some very minor changes to Minnesota, New Hampshire, Nevada, North Carolina and Ohio after looking at some new polling data. These changes were minor and did not change the eventual electoral outcome in any of the states, but instead solidified Obama's lead in those states.

Let me first explain how these election projections were made. Each State was carefully researched for the most recent census and other important demographic data. Using State by State U.S. Census data I broke down the state by Gender, Race, Party Affiliation, Age, Education Level, and Religion.

Using a complex formula I did the following, I created a Demographic profile of individuals. (ex. Men-White-Democrat-18 to 44-College Educated-Catholic) There were about 216 Different Demographic Groups represented.

Next I created a two part formula, the first was issue oriented, the second demographic oriented based on CNN Election 2004 Exit Polls.(http://www.cnn.com/ELECTION/2004/pages/results/) The issues represented a wide variety of issues from Women's Issues, to Urban and Rural Issues, Foreign Policy and Economic Policy. I also included cultural issues such as Gun Rights and Racial Issues.

By answering a series of Yes/No Questions regarding those issues, I assigned specific numerical values to each question either Negative (liberal) or Positive (conservative).

On the Demographic formula I assigned importance based on exit polls from CNN. For instance Party is more important than Age or Gender. Race is more important than Gender etc.

The end result is a formula that is about 90%-95% accurate. I double checked the results against Exit Poll Data from 2004, and they match up remarkably well. Political Party numbers do tend to be under-represented in my formulas but do match up fairly accurately, and do balance out in the end. I used Exit Poll data, and numbers of Democrats and Republicans in the state legislatures to determine likely voter models for each political party.

HERE ARE THE FINAL RESULTS:

I project that Barack Obama will become the 44th President of the United States!

I project that Barack Obama will win with 338 Electoral Votes to John McCain's 200 Electoral Votes. (270 needed to win)

Obama will win 26 States and the District of Columbia. McCain will win 24 States.

Obama will win 51.12% of the Total Popular Vote; 67,531,664 - 338 Electoral Votes

McCain will win 47.03% of the Total Popular Vote; 62,130,227 - 200 Electoral Votes

Nader, McKinney, Barr and others will win 1.86% of the Vote; 2,451,238 - 0 Electoral Votes

TOTAL VOTES: 132,113,129 - 538 Electoral Votes

Projected difference between Obama and McCain: +4.09%

Obama Projected Wins:

California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, Washington DC, Wisconsin.

McCain Projected Wins:

Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, West Virginia.

Below is a full list of Predictions from every State and Washington DC.

FULL LIST OF EVERY STATE AND WASHINGTON DC WITH NATIONAL POPULAR VOTE:

Here is a full list of all state predictions:

Alabama

Alaska

Arizona

Arkansas

California

Colorado

Connecticut

Delaware

Florida

Georgia

Hawaii

Idaho

Illinois

Indiana

Iowa

Kansas

Kentucky

Louisiana

Maine

Maryland

Massachusetts

Michigan

Minnesota

Mississippi

Missouri

Montana

Nebraska

Nevada

New Hampshire

New Jersey

New Mexico

New York

North Carolina

North Dakota

Ohio

Oklahoma

Oregon

Pennsylvania

Rhode Island

South Carolina

South Dakota

Tennessee

Texas

Utah

Vermont

Virginia

Washington

Washington DC

West Virginia

Wisconsin

Wyoming

Voices for Change: Lisa in Nevada

Sarah Ramey — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 13:48:12 EDT

We just spoke to another Republican voting for Barack Obama.

Guess you'd call me a Reagan Republican, but at this point, you have to vote for whoever has the best ideas about the issues that affect you.

First and foremost, the economy is the issue that affects Lisa and her family in Las Vegas, Nevada the most. For two decades she worked in the food industry for one of the country's largest food companies -- only to be laid off with thousands of other employees when the company was in trouble. While she tried to figure out what to do next, she watched her old company's CEOs go out with multi-million dollar golden parachutes.

You just can't reward that kind of behavior. That philosophy is what's gotten us into this mess economically.

Lisa is right. And she thinks it's critical that Obama has been clear about opposing corporate greed from the beginning -- unlike John McCain, who only seems to have come around to that conclusion in the last week. She says this country is due for a very serious change, and the only candidate whose policies actually reflect genuine change from the failed policies of the Bush Administration, is Barack Obama.

The biggest thing on my mind -- on everyone's mind -- is the economy. We bought a house two years ago, and now that house isn't worth what we paid for it. We're being responsible and making our mortgage payments, but the government needs to do its part and get control.
It's pretty simple: we have to have real leadership, here and around the world. I think that's what Barack Obama provides as a candidate -- he can change how people look at us by changing the way we do things here at home.

You can read more about Barack Obama's plans for the economy, including substantial tax cut proposals for working class families like Lisa's, by clicking here. There you'll read about Barack Obama and Joe Biden's plan to enact a windfall profits tax on excessive oil company profits to give American families an immediate $1,000 emergency energy rebate to help families pay rising bills. This relief would be a down payment on the Obama-Biden long-term plan to provide middle-class families with at least $1,000 per year in permanent tax relief.

You can also read Barack's speech about the economy that he gave in Reno.

Before we got off the phone with Lisa, we just double checked to see if she was registered to vote.

Of course! Did it outside the grocery store.

And now we have great news: you don't even have to go to the grocery store to make sure you can vote. Just go to our extra-easy one-stop voter registration site, www.VoteForChange.com, and you can get it done in just a few minutes.

November 4th, 2008: Democrats, Independents, and Republicans -- voting for change.

You can help us bring that change as we work to keep registering voters and spreading Barack's message to people like Lisa by making a small donation today.

VP Debate Watch Party!

Erika — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 01:12:45 EDT

Come join the VP debate watch party at the Lincoln Lounge tomorrow evening!

We had such a great time last week... So nice to meet so many fellow supporters! Great company, cocktails, pizza... and lots of laughs, motivation, and excitement over the upcoming election.

Bring your undecided or uninformed friends... and spread the word!

The Lincoln Lounge is located on the corner of East 4th St and Evans, directly across the street from Louis' Basque Corner. Debate starts at 6pm... come a few minutes early to grab a drink and a good seat!

Recap: Californians Drive for Change

Sarah Gallagher — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 17:08:13 EDT

Elizabeth Kim is a volunteer in Nevada.

This weekend Californians drove across state lines to canvass for Barack Obama alongside their Nevadan neighbors. The day started off with training sessions across the state. One group of Golden Staters got a quick tutorial on Nevada issues from NW Las Vegas Regional Field Director Evan Sutton.

Why is Nevada so important? Al Gore lost Nevada by 2% in 2000. If Nevada had turned, Gore would have won the election. The good news is that in previous cycles Democrats had a net negative of 8,000 registered voters in Nevada compared to Republicans. We now have a positive advantage of 75,000 registered Democrats over Republicans thanks to the hard work of our volunteers.

Click here to continue reading…

What a Week!

Karen D. — Sun, 28 Sep 2008 13:38:15 EDT

Joined hundreds of folks from the Bay Area and canvassed in Reno, NV last weekend.

It is so affirming to speak to others about this campaign. Most everyone was very positive about Obama and those that were undecided were respectful and vice versa. I registered two new voters and one had never voted before. They were both voting for Obama. Only three folks refused to talk out of 200 doors that I knocked on last weekend. (Altitude and hills were tough so thank goodness for my training!) I hope to go back for the pre-election weekend and help wrap this up. thanks to the Coopers for letting me stay at their lovely home and hooray to all the other North Bay folks who made it to Reno last weekend... keep going back! Its working! Thanks Deb and Amber and Bree for all you do.

And Barack so prevailed this week: the whole "mercurial" activity of the opposing candidate made Barack look so steady and presidential. *Well, Barack does that anyhow regardless of the opposition. *So many of the MSM said the Barack won the debate, and that was heartening because it is so hard for me to be objective. What a weak debate tactic to say over and over that "you don't understand." Clearly Barack's responses showed that not only does he understand... he has a plan that is coherant and reasoned.

Lastly, I gather that my letter to the editor -- one of the action items found on *this* website -- made it to the Santa Rosa Press Democrat editorial pages (I have yet to see it) I am surprised but so glad I decided to do the letter while watching MsnbC and getting mad.

So glad for the great organization of this campaign to allow us all to do our part. All the groups that I belong to, with a special shout-out to the Trichicks for Obama group, are doing great. Keep up all your good work!

Karen D'Or, Santa Rosa, CA

Minds and times are changing

Pj — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 16:39:09 EDT

Heard great news from a friend today. This was shared among friends, so I won't reveal his identity, but here is the message:

Both of my parents, who have been Republicans since before I was born, are voting Obama this year. Dad likes Biden's stand on labor, and thinks Palin is "sick."

"She scares the hell out of me," said Dad. "Here's someone who goes out and butchers caribou in the name of 'culling the herd,' and she's running with a 72-year-old guy who's had two bouts with cancer."

"And frankly," he added, "the last eight years have been a disaster."

My parents are in their sixties. And they live in a battleground state, Nevada. You have no idea how big a deal this is. If folks like my parents can change tickets, that tells me something. It tells me we can win this thing.

Isn't that inspiring? Obama and McCain are still in a dead heat here in Nevada. Let's change that!!

MY MAIL CARRIER'S GOING TO NEVADA

Blair — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 19:46:52 EDT

Since my wife and I put Obama stickers on our cars (several months ago), I've had a bunch of friendly chats with our main mail carrier, who's very much a kindred spirit. Today I told him about Camp Obama (was it only last weekend in Long Beach? so much has happened) and our phone bank group, and he told me he's going to Nevada with his union!

I get lots of very warm responses to my bumper sticker (even here in deepest south Orange County) and my "veterans for Obama" pin. The other day in the grocery checkout line, an assistant manager was running the register. He said to me, in a quiet voice:

"I like your pin. We're not allowed to say so, but I like your pin!"

Fired up? Ready to Go!

Canvassing for Obama in Reno, Nevada

Bruce Mirken — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 23:25:34 EDT

Last weekend, I ventured out from my safe little enclave in San Francisco to spend a weekend in Reno walking precincts for the campaign. The campaign has asked volunteers not to publicize certain strategic details, but this should give you a flavor of what it was like.

Bottom line: It was tiring but exhilarating. If you're on the fence about doing this sort of campaign volunteering, DO IT.

The most striking fact was the mob of volunteers Obama has generated. There were so many people signing up that they realized around midweek that they couldn't do the weekend's orientation/training in their Reno headquarters, and got a local supporter to let the campaign use her business's WAREHOUSE for the weekend. I am not making this up.

The number exceeded the campaign's wildest hopes by a big margin.There were so many of us, in fact, that it somewhat overwhelmed the local Democratic organization, which I suspect is rather a cottage industry most of the time. But under the circumstances, the logistical snafus weren't too bad overall, and everyone mostly kept their sense of humor. Hopefully they will get better having had this weekend under their belts, but anyone going to Reno for the campaign should definitely plan on taking careful notes and being sure to write down phone numbers of all the contacts you need in case of mixups. It wasn't too hard to roll with the punches, but it does help to anticipate that there will be a few little bumps along the way and come prepared to be as self-reliant as you can. Do NOT leave your cell phone at home!!!

By the way, if McCain has any sort of ground operation in Reno, it's not visible.

The voters I talked to were were generally friendly. I did get one door slammed in my face (he looked at my Obama shirt and said, "Wrong door for that guy!"), but I also talked to several Republicans for Obama (and not one Democrat for McCain!), I also had a fairly lengthy chat with another self-described conservative who is unhappy with the Bush crowd, and I seriously think I moved him a notch closer to the Obama column. And I registered three new Obama voters. Some supporters I spoke to were wonderfully, infectiously enthusiastic.

The economy is a huge issue in Nevada, one of the states hardest hit by the foreclosure crisis. In one affluent neighborhood I walked there was a truly shocking number of "For Sale" signs. People are beginning to get rattled about the state of economy.

Aside from the strains from what is normally a fairly small local Democratic organization trying to organize what surely was the largest mass of volunteers they've ever had, it went well and was pretty damn exciting. And I'm pretty ****ing sunburned. But I'll survive.

And it was a really wonderful group of people to spend the weekend with.Seriously, folks DO THIS. Pick your nearest swing state (for my fellow Californians, that's definitely Nevada), and get your body there. Or if you can't possibly do that, hook up with the folks coordinating phonebanking. I'm more convinced than ever that our grassroots army is what can win this thing.

After Long Beach Camp Obama (Sept. 20-21)

Blair — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 23:57:26 EDT

The Camp Obama brought together nearly 300 people from all over Southern California. Our little group, about 10 of us from Congressional District 44, bonded really nicely. However, we split into two groups, one from Riverside, one from Orange County. Had we not split, we'd have wasted lots of gasoline driving over the mountains.

Our Orange County group includes me, from San Clemente, and four great people from Coto de Caza. We're just getting started; our first meeting will be tomorrow, Wednesday, Sept. 24.

We are all thrilled by this experience. But now we're going to turn to NUMBERS ... how many volunteers can we sign up for Saturday's push to call Battleground Nevada?

Call Latino Nevada Voters

Fa! — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 18:02:33 EDT

Many of us are traveling to Nevada this weekend to register Latino Voters in the Silver State. Others are not traveling East this weekend, but they can still contribute in the Caravana to reach Latino Voters by using the "Neighbor to Neighbor" Application in this website to call Latino Voters in Nevada.

http://my.barackobama.com/page/votercontact/campaign_overview?campaign_id=3YL

It's easy to use, give it a try

fa!

Volunteering in Reno, my experience

Eve from Oakland, CA — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 16:53:57 EDT

I did voter canvassing in Reno this weekend. It was a good experience. We called at homes, with the goals of gauging voter sentiment, winnowing out McCain supporters and incorrect residential data, and when possible, discussing issues and trying to increase support.

The Reno coordinators say they need the help and they are pretty well organized and very hard-working. The only thing lacking is lawn signs, which people kept asking for.

If you live in or near a swing state, and feel ok about knocking on doors, I would encourage you to try this. They can line you up with housing with Obama supporters. (Our host was lovely to us.)

My advice, based on this experience: be respectful and listen to peoples' concerns; don't necessarily walk away in a flash if someone is not enthusiastic - sometimes they want to get stuff off their chest and you may have common ground; carry lots of water if you come to Nevada! and don't be discouraged if people are not home or have moved or are not Obama supporters; this is all important information that makes future efforts more efficient.

Camp Obama!

Tim — Sun, 21 Sep 2008 01:28:54 EDT

Just got back from Camp Obama in San Francisco. What an experience! This campaign, in addition to being inspiring, is very well organized. Never a dull moment from 7:30 AM to 8:00 PM! Met lots of great motivated volunteers who, like me, will be heading to Nevada over the next three months to support the Nevada Obama campaign.

Fired up and read to go!

Ready to Go!

California Hoper — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 23:48:32 EDT

Phone banking, canvassing, recruiting volunteers and raising funds. That’s the game plan to get Senators Obama and Biden into the White House. All aboard!

Last weekend I attended Camp Obama and learned about the People Centered, Numbers Driven Campaign for Change. With the negative press that’s floating on the airwaves, what a joy it was to hear more about the incredible ground game that is working at full capacity across the country. In California Districts there are so many volunteers that Camp Obama graduates were immediately put to work managing teams. Next weekend’s trip to Nevada to canvass has already maxed out.

I’m making phone calls each week even though it’s uncomfortable. I’m sending emails to my friends to solicit donations and recruit volunteers even though that’s uncomfortable too. I’ll be knocking on doors in Nevada next weekend although I am one who doesn’t open my door when a stranger comes by. I do these things because I must. This election is critical.

In Nevada, registered Democrats now outnumber Republicans by almost 61,000. 500,000 new voters were registered nationwide in August. There are 11 million more registered Democrats than Republicans in the country. Add in the Independents and Green Party candidates that will vote for the Obama/Biden ticket and putting Senator Obama in the White House is within our grasp.

We still have 6 weeks to go in this campaign. Each door knock matters. Each phone call matters. We’re gathering volunteers, funds and most important—votes for Senator Obama’s Presidency at an incredible rate. November 4 is in sight.

Let’s stay Fired Up!

Latest favorite Obama quote....

Christine — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 11:58:49 EDT

... from yesterday's speech in Nevada:

"Yesterday, John McCain actually said that if he’s president he’ll take on, and I quote, 'the old boys’ network in Washington.' I’m not making this up. This is somebody been in Congress for 26 years, who put seven of the most powerful Washington lobbyists in charge of his campaign. And now he tells us that he’s the one who’s gonna take on the old boys' network," he said. "In the McCain campaign that’s called a staff meeting!"

It's even better if you watch it on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d4avFVDKCIA

Say it Loud! Barack in Nevada

Pamela from Las Vegas, NV — Wed, 17 Sep 2008 23:18:40 EDT

Barack has finally stepped up his tone and bit back hard this evening in Las Vegas. Admist a packed crowd at Cashman Stadium, Barack lit up the stage.

As we all have been speaking about lately, Barack needs to come out NOW and swing hard at the GOP. Barack we desperately needed to HEAR you speak up and stand bold and strong against the media attacks and set the record straight.

Not only did Obama energize the diverse crowd, but laid out his clear plans on bankruptcy laws, educational plans, economic restructuring of various industries. At the end of the night, the night i left with a renewed since of pride in this campaign and the strengh of our next President, Barack Obama.

You Ignorant Liberal...

Shane — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 20:48:20 EDT

Obama is everything the Democrats have been waiting for, and we're all right to feel empowered, enthused, and confident about our candidate. BUT WE ABSOLUTELY, IN NO WAY SHAPE OR FORM, HAVE THE RIGHT TO BELIEVE HE WILL ACTUALLY MAKE IT INTO OFFICE. You think the average American has had enough of Bush's lies? Well, you're lying to yourself.

Just like Gore and Kerry before him, Obama is having to battle the deception and manipulation that the Republican party exerts over the American people. Moreover, obstacles like voter caging http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caging_list, voting location inaccessibility, and voter count manipulations http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Florida_election_recount will make it even more difficult for Obama to get elected.

Like the 2000 and 2004 elections preceding it, this presidency will be decided by a narrow margin. In order to make sure Obama not only gets the votes he needs to legally win, but gets enough votes to beat the "Republican spread," we HAVE to get involved. There is no exception. If we don't, we WILL NOT win.

Recap: Drive for Change Day Trip

Sarah Gallagher — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 19:12:44 EDT

Crowds gathered early at meeting places in cities across California as volunteers set off on the first big Drive for Change of September.

Kicking off at 5AM on Saturday, teams hit the ground Saturday morning and got to work.

Teams started the day registering people to vote, and finished the afternoon talking with supporters and undecided voters.

The best answer I got all day was when I asked a booster what his level of support is. The reply was worthy of the casinos visible from his neighborhood: "I'm all in!" - Cheyney, Volunteer

The teams wrapped up the Drive for Change Day Trip by jumping back on the bus to escape the 90-plus-degree weather and driving back across the Mojave Desert to California.

First-Time Phone Banker

Kat — Sat, 13 Sep 2008 20:49:19 EDT

I volunteered at my first-ever Obama/Biden phone bank this afternoon. We were calling voters in Nevada to try and discuss the election with them, and see if they had any questions. It was a great experience to meet the organizers and the other volunteers, and get to know new people who are really excited to get our Democrats into the White House!

I was a little nervous at first about calling people, but the organizers made the process really simple and provided me with a call script. After the first few calls I hit my stride, and three hours of volunteering were over in a flash.

For all you Obama/Biden supporters out there who want to volunteer but are afraid to make calls or knock on doors, give phone banking a try! I was nervous at first too, but it’s not bad at all -- and now I’m feeling more confident about going around my neighborhood with the “Neighbor to Neighbor” program and getting into some real-life conversations with people about voting.

Lots of local organizer groups are setting up phone banks as the election draws near. Try volunteering at one -- it’s fun and it’s for a great cause.

Help In Other/Swing States by Phone

MJ from Los Angeles, CA — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 12:27:35 EDT

I am trying to initiate the option for out of state callers in states like mine, CA, that are solid, to help in the swing states through calls.
Here's a suggestion!

Perhaps we can get involved by making calls in on behalf of/ in connection with swing states' local events, like phone banks, and have access to the call lists from elsewhere? (Outside of our own state.)

I would suggest promoting this feature if it can be allowed. I would be more motivated to call Virginians, for instance, than Californians.

It seems like a way to get an army of loyalists to work remotely to the zones that need work. You could even link it to Skype so it's cheaper than normal calls.

We're computer saavy! Let's use the net to join forces and hit the swing states!

Thoughts? Other ideas?

Meredith Offen
mjoffen@yahoo.com

Let's Go to Vegas!

Wed, 10 Sep 2008 20:45:50 EDT

No, not to gamble, to knock on doors. Ok, you can gamble if you want. But the point here is to make sure that Nevada votes for Obama on Nov. 4. Can you help?

heading to Nevada

Beth M — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 01:45:48 EDT

I am looking forward to traveling to Reno to help register new voters and to help identify potential voters for Obama. We all need to help people register by October 4th so they can register by mail. See http://sos.state.nv.us/elections/voter/registration.asp for more information.

http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2008/9/6/205910/4053 is an excellent write-up about one woman's experience canvassing in Reno for her first time. It has made me feel much more comfortable about my first trip.

South SF Camp Obama - Scattered Reflection

Raider Spence — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 04:00:40 EDT

Saturday.....

Tired.....Akili.......Alive......New Energy......Learning.......

People together.....similar values......dreams........beliefs......different histories.......races.....religions

UNITY!

Sunday

Real Tired......Akili......Strugeling to lift soul on Sunday........Barack Race Speech.......ALIVE....NEW ENERGY

MyBO!!......Intern in Nevada....JUST DO IT!!!......for your furture........take control.....DONT FOLLOW--->>>LEAD!!

East Bay Mission!! .......Make it happen!!

FIRED UP!! ---->>> READY TO GO!! ---->>> TO?!?! ---->>> NEVADA!!

Bob's first phone bank

JeffW — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 02:17:51 EDT

I was talking to my brother-in-law, Bob, today about his experience as a first time phone bank volunteer. He stopped by the Berkeley Obama office, asked what he could do to help, and spent a couple of hours calling people in Nevada. Hey, Nevada is much more in play than California. Anyone wanting an excuse to go to Nevada should visit the Obama site to find more info.

He said the phone calls are very low key. All the campaign wants is to know is how the person feels about Obama. If they have any special issues, that gets recorded and if they turn out to be big supporters that gets recorded too. Another group types in the notes into the campaign's database while yet another group follows up by mailing position papers or making sure the person has a ride to the polls on election day. He said doing cold calls isn't his favorite activity but he did get a buzz from seeing all the people streaming in and asking how they can help.

So this is part of what they call the ground-game. As a former community organizer, Obama clearly understands that you've got to do a lot of unglamorous work. Karl Rove broke in by designing very targeted mass mailing campaigns. Right-wing evangelical volunteers worked hard to to get their word out in Ohio, Pennsylvania and elsewhere. That's how elections are won.

Nevada

Elizabeth Hall — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 21:48:54 EDT

California, if you're anything like me you've been a little unmotivated. Hey our state is a gimme, registering voters, knocking on doors, making phone calls - eh why? Well you're right if you stick to California. But California Obamians have adopted a our sister to the East.

The battle cry has been sounded, we are turning up in record numbers in Reno, Carson City, Tahoe, Vegas. If you live in CA and have time you can allocate to travel to Nevada please do. If that's just not an option you can still heed the cry by phone banking (Not as terrible as it seems!) You can get more information at http://my.barackobama.com/page/s/nvdfcsept12

If you live in another state find out if you're a battle ground (New Mexico I'm talking to you;) and if it's not find out what the goals are in your area. There are volunteers donating flights and hotel rooms etc so you aren't required to fund yourself, though if you can fantastic! So don't get comfortable if your state is firmly democrat - CA may have 55 electoral votes but the 5 in Nevada will make or break us!

Liz

The time is NOW!

Penna Omega — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 13:14:56 EDT

We have less than 60 days until Election day.

More importantly, we have less than 35 days to register people to vote!

I did not know during the primaries that when I moved, I would have to re-register. I had to fly to Los Angeles from San Francisco on Super Tuesday to vote for Barack Obama! My friend drove 45 minutes to her polling place from work, only to find out that she had been removed from the voter list because she didn't vote in the last election! WE CANNOT LET THIS KIND OF THING HAPPEN, NOT THIS YEAR!!!

I have created a .jpg image of some of the key swing states that we need (Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, etc.) with the deadlines for each for registering to vote. It's called REGISTER.jpg

Please download it ( http://www.pennaomega.com/obama ) and send it to EVERYONE you know, not only in those states, but to everyone... and ask them to send it on to all their friends and family who are supporting Obama/Biden who may not know if they are registered or not.

If you have any questions about the image or want me to make one for one specific state not shown, please post here and I will answer any questions and make one for you!

Penna

P.S. Going to Denver next week to register voters and going to Nevada 1st week of Oct. for the same!

Amazing Crowd Packs SoCal Headquarters

Jeremy D. Thompson — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 12:10:15 EDT

Boosted by Barack’s powerful speech in Denver, and girded against continuing baseless attacks from St. Paul; grassroots activists and community organizers arrived in awe inspiring numbers at the opening of the Southern California headquarters of the Obama/Biden campaign.

With the office packed to capacity and supporters lined up for blocks down the street; the program, stage and crowd moved to the parking lot to accommodate not only the size but also the energy of a California campaign not content to win just one state, but dedicated to delivering victories across the West.

The bottom up coalition that grew from organic groups to a well-trained, well-oiled machine capable of making hundreds of thousands of volunteer calls each day never rested between Super Tuesday and now. In the months since February 5, Barack’s supporters have continued to train and organize new voices committed to bringing California (and America) the change it needs.

Those voices - old and new - cheered along with rousing speeches from early Obama supporters Maria Elena Durazo, Eric Garcetti, Mark Ridley Thomas and Rocky Delgadillo before Field Director Mary Jane Stevenson jumped in to give marching orders on how Californians can continue to make a difference in the Golden State and beyond.

While there is much to do to assure success up and down the ballot here, another huge part of our effort will be to effect change in neighboring Nevada. Nevada is a crucial battleground for November, and Barack needs support not just from all Nevadans, but also their neighbors - especially from California. To that end, the California campaign is recreating its “Drive for Change” program that was so successful during the Nevada caucuses in January.

Eventually, the excitement of the event had to end and the work needed to resume. For those who couldn’t attend, here’s how to jump in on the action:

First - if you haven’t already - sign up to be a part of the California team at http://my.barackobama.com/page/s/casignup.

Then, head to http://my.barackobama.com/page/s/CampObamaCA to enroll in an upcoming Camp Obama, where you can develop your skills as an organizer.

Most importantly, volunteers can participate in the Drive for Change program into Nevada at http://my.barackobama.com/page/s/nvdfcsept12. If you’re a student, consider a Nevada internship with the campaign (http://my.barackobama.com/nvoosintern).

The other party can mock Barack’s time as a community organizer. They can scoff at the dedication of volunteers committed to creating change in America. But come election day, it will be the voices of this overflow crowd in a Culver City parking lot, and millions more across this nation whose familiar chant of “Yes, we can!” will ring out in a resounding “Yes, we did!”

Make this America the one you want to see.

WE NEED ALL HANDS ON DECK FROM NOW THROUGH ELECTION

Nevada County For Obama-Curtis Walker — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 09:04:28 EDT

OUR TIME IS NOW

WE NEED FOLKS TO MAKE CALLS TO NEVADA AND HAVE A NEED FOR FOLKS TO GO TO NEVADA TO CANVAS AND SUCH ON THE WEEKENDS.

PLEASE CONTACT SHERRI WALKER AT 530-272-9696 IF YOU ARE IN NEVADA COUNTY AND CAN GIVE US SOME TIME.

SHARE WITH YOUR CONTACTS WHO HAVE NOT PREVIOUSLY BEEN INVOLVED IN THIS HISTORIC ELECTION!

WE ARE ALMOST THERE, FOLKS. THANKS FOR ALL YOU DO!

volunteering

skampy — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 21:17:53 EDT

i'm toying with the idea of doing one of the "drive to nevada" volunteer weekends for the campaign out of southern california. has anyone else done one of these? is door-to-door campaigning as brutal as it seems? i think i'm actually up for the challenge, but would love to hear from people who've already done it to learn more about it.

Nevada Democrat Voter Registration Up - News Update

Bobi McBratney - AD 13N Neighborhood Leader Las Vegas, Nevada — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 03:22:14 EDT

Las Vegas - Channel 8

Nevada Democrats now have a voter registration edge of more than 76,000 over Republicans, according to figures released Tuesday by the secretary of state's office.

The registration totals through the end of August show that the 1.3 million total of registered voters, both active and inactive, includes 565,855 Democrats and 489,802 Republicans.

The new total is an increase of nearly 9 percent over August 2007, and a nearly 29 percent increase over the voter total at the same point in 2004."

http://www.lasvegasnow.com/global/story.asp?s=8941413

Labor Day Weekend Results

Bobi McBratney - AD 13N Neighborhood Leader Las Vegas, Nevada — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 19:54:30 EDT

Assembly District 13 North did an outstanding job this weekend with unbelievable volunteer turn-out. Thank you to all of you that endured the heat, sweat and slightly sore feet to help with our voter registration drives on Saturday, Sunday and Monday.

Thanks to everyone's efforts, we set statewide records with the registration numbers, as well as, everyone that is continually coming out to "make a change" in this country.

Barack was absolutely correct when he said this election is about all of us and not just him. We are strong in numbers and the grass roots effort is gaining more and more momentum and enthusiasm every day. YES we will turn the State of Nevada BLUE in 2008!

If you are new or a veteran to this website and want to get involved with the "Campaign for Change", I encourage you to look up the events in your area or you can contact me directly at 702-266-2848.

Like Making Crank Calls, Only Better

juliesoller — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 17:37:34 EDT

On Sunday I volunteered to do phone banking with "California CD36 for Obama."

Phone banking means making phone calls to a list of people -- kind of like telemarketing, only you aren't selling anything. That should suck, right? Everybody hates getting phone calls from telemarketers. But we were actually looking for supporters of Obama in Nevada, so that we could help the canvassers there. So actually it was a lot of fun because you're surrounded by upbeat, fired up Obama supporters like R.J., Nancy and Geoff. Afterwards, beers in Venice Beach! What a fun way to volunteer to change the world!

Santa Cruz County Fair – September 9 to 14 - Volunteers Needed

Team / Area Leader - CD17 — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 12:12:04 EDT

Santa Cruz County Fair – September 9 to 14 – Volunteers Needed The Democratic Party has a booth at the County Fair and is need of volunteers to staff the booth. The link to the Fair Booth sign-up page is on the Santa Cruz Democrats website: www.cruzdemocrats.org Each year the Santa Cruz Democratic Party has a booth at the Santa Cruz County Fair in Watsonville. The Fair runs from Tuesday September 9 through Sunday September 14. If you can help by covering a two-hour shift to provide information about Obama and other Democratic Candidates and register Democratic Voters. Your Democratic Party Needs You -- To Help In Our Fair Booth. Sign yourself up. Tell your friends.

Week of August 28 - You Make the Call

Team / Area Leader - CD17 — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 01:38:22 EDT

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….Make the Call to Win in Nevada and New Mexico Nevada and New Mexico are two very important swing states where our out-of-state voter outreach efforts can make a difference in electing Barack Obama. The Obama Campaign is asking California to support the NV and NM campaigns with phonebanks and travel teams. Aptos Phone Bank – Winning the West – Saturday, August 23Time: Saturday, August 23, at 9:00am to 1:00pmLocation: Palm Terrace Mobile Home Park Conference Room, 2711 Mar Vista Drive, Aptos, CA 95003Directions: South on Soquel Dr. take the second right past the Aptos Fire Station on Mar Vista Dr. The park is halfway down the block, on your right. North on Soquel Dr. take the third left past Ages Assisted Living facility.Contact Phone: Dennis Connors / 831-428-2783 RSVP: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/phonebank/gpgbj8 Felton Phone Bank – Win the West -- Saturday, August 30thPlease join your felton neighbors at nancy's home. We'll call nevada or new mexico to help obama win the western states. If you haven't been in a phone-bank before, we'll be happy to show you what to do! PLEASE BRING YOUR CELL PHONE a beverage of your choice, and a snack to share. Check with your cell phone service provider to see if you get a large number of free minutes on the weekend. Time: Saturday, August 30 at 1:00pm to 5:00pmLocation: Nancy’s Home, 5401 Taylor Way, Felton, CA 95016Directions: Take hwy 9 in Felton to "bigfoot" museum, turn up san lorenzo, turn left on jackson, right on prospect, left on taylor way. Look for Obama sign!Contact Phone: Nancy Baker / 408-306-1088 RSVP: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/phonebank/gpg4vp Capitola Phone Bank – Saturday, August 30th and Sunday, August 31st – Obama Santa Cruz is coordinating with NV and M Obama Field Teams to provide phonebank support each weekend through the election. PLEASE BRING YOUR CELL PHONE. Check with your cell phone service provider to see if you get a large number of free minutes on the weekend. Time: Saturday, August 30 and Sunday, August 31st at 1:00pm to 5:00pmLocation: Thunderbird Real Estate, 3555 Clares Street, Capitola (next to Kinko's) Contact: Wes Swift at 831-476-4113 or wswift@ebold.com Boulder Creek Phone Bank – Win the West -- Sunday, August 31stPlease join your felton neighbors at nancy's home. We'll call nevada or new mexico to help obama win the western states. If you haven't been in a phone-bank before, we'll be happy to show you what to do! PLEASE BRING YOUR CELL PHONE a beverage of your choice, and a snack to share. Check with your cell phone service provider to see if you get a large number of free minutes on the weekend. Time: Sunday, August 31 at 1:00pm to 5:00pm Dorrie Kennedy'sLocation: Dorrie Kennedy’s Home, 13481 Highway 9 (100 yds past Bear Creek on left)Boulder Creek Contact Phone: Dorrie at 831-703-4141 Obama Volunteers NeededVolunteers Needed for Phonebank Callers – SignUp at www.obamasantacruz.com

Convention Watch Events – Santa Cruz Californai

Team / Area Leader - CD17 — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 01:26:45 EDT

Convention Watch Events – Monday through Thursday Evenings

Week of August 21 - Working to Win the Western States

Team / Area Leader - CD17 — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 01:24:03 EDT

Obama 08 Santa Cruz County

August 21, 2008

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………HIGHLIGHTS

Barack Obama to Announce Vice President - Saturday
Convention Watch Parties – Starting Monday through to Thursday Evening
Volunteers Needed Help Barack Obama Win the West
Phonebanks Supporting Nevada and New Mexico Campaigns - Weekends
Out-of-State Travel Volunteers Needed for Reno Travel Teams
Obama Visibility and Voter Registration -- Weekends
Camp Obama Training – September 13th and 14th
Santa Cruz County Fair – Visibility Booth – September 9 to 14th

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. Barack Obama to Announce Vice President EMPORIA, Va - Barack Obama said Thursday he's chosen his running mate and planned a major rally to present the Democratic ticket Saturday in Springfield, Illinois. Obama refused to say whether he'd notified his pick or when exactly he would send cell phones buzzing with the answer delivered via text message. He seemed to relish the frustrations of scores of reporters following him this week in anticipation of the announcement.Obama planned to appear with his pick Saturday at the Old State Capitol in Springfield, Ill., where he launched his presidential campaign in February 2007. Obama then planned to travel to the battlegrounds of Wisconsin, Iowa, Missouri and Montana before arriving in Denver to accept his party's nomination Thursday.………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Convention Watch Events – Monday through Thursday Evenings

Join Us Monday through Thursday Evenings Starting at 5pm to Watch the Convention The Santa Cruz Democratic Party is hosting Watch Events Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday evenings at the Santa Cruz HQ office. Please join with fellow supporters to watch each of the evenings the keynote speeches from Democratic Leadership and the Democratic Party platform. Monday, August 25th starting at 5pm – Michelle Obama and Tribute to the KennedysLocation: Santa Cruz Unified Democratic Campaign HQ -- 740 Front Street, Suite 250 (2nd floor in the Galleria building), Santa Cruz, CA, 95060 Tuesday, August 26th starting at 5pm – Senator Hillary Clinton and former Virginia Governor Mark WarnerLocation: Santa Cruz Unified Democratic Campaign HQ -- 740 Front Street, Suite 250 (2nd floor in the Galleria building), Santa Cruz, CA, 95060 Wednesday, August 27th starting at 5pm – Bill Clinton and the Vice President nominee Location: Santa Cruz Unified Democratic Campaign HQ -- 740 Front Street, Suite 250 (2nd floor in the Galleria building), Santa Cruz, CA, 95060 Acceptance Speech by Barack Obama – Thursday, August 28th Thursday, August 28th starting at 5pm - Democratic nominee Senator Barack Obama Join us for the final evening of the Democratic National Convention and watch the Senator Barack Obama deliver his acceptance speech Thursday evening in front of 80,000 at Mile High Stadium in Denver. This will prove to be a historic evening and event. Santa Cruz Event: Woodstock Pizza, 710 Front Street, Santa Cruz, CA, 95060 (no host bar and food)RSVP: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/conventionwatchparty/gpg9bv Aptos/Seascape Event: Seascape Golf Clubhouse Lounge, 610 Clubhouse Drive, Aptos, CA 95003 RSVP: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/conventionwatchparty/gpg9qx Pleasure Point Neighborhood Watch Event Neighborhood Watch Event in the Pleasure Point area. Show your enthusiasm as we Barbecue and socialize at our house just near the Hook/Pleasure Point. Location: Home at 631 #2, 41st Avenue, Santa Cruz, 95062Host: Kellie DockendorfRSVP: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/meeting/44g29 Watsonville - Cilantro's, 1934 Main Street, Watsonville (no host bar, no host food, etc)RSVP: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/conventionwatchparty/gpg93q Watsonville Jalisco's Restaurant, 618 Main Street in Watsonville (PV Cesar Chavez Democratic Club)RSVP: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/conventionwatchparty/gpgyfz Contact: Danny Dodge at 831-761-5428 ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….Volunteers Needed – Winning the West to Elect Barack Obama Volunteers Needed for Phonebank Callers – SignUp at www.obamasantacruz.com Volunteers Needed for Data Entry – SignUp at www.obamasantacruz.comVolunteers can provide assistance with our weekend data entry working with our phonebank teams are invaluable and good way for people to contribute. Volunteers Needed for Travel – Contact Cori Gurlach - cgerlach@smallplanetbrewery.com Volunteers interested in supporting the voter outreach in Reno, NV and can travel for weekend are encourage to join our Reno for Obama Travel teams to provide voter-outreach in Sept and Oct. Please contact our local Obama Travel Coordinator Cori Gurlach. Volunteers Needed to Assist with Lunch – Contact Susan Drake at 831/462-1889Each weekend our volunteers working phonebanks are in need of lunch and snakes to keep their energy high and phonebanking productive. This is a great way for volunteers to support one of our valuable contributions to Winning the Western states. You can donate your time and food to help the campaign if you're not into facing the public. If you're not connected with a neighborhood team already or don't know where your team is phone-banking, to learn where food is needed, please contact Susan at sdrake2@cruzio.com and put "Obama food" in the Subject line or 831/462-1889 10 a.m.-9 p.m. Volunteers Need for the Democratic Party Office - volunteers are needed to staff and support state and local campaigns at the Santa Cruz Democratic Party Office. Volunteer Information: 831-427-2516 ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….Make the Call to Win in Nevada and New Mexico Nevada and New Mexico are two very important swing states where our out-of-state voter outreach efforts can make a difference in electing Barack Obama. The Obama Campaign is asking California to support the NV and NM campaigns with phonebanks and travel teams. Aptos Phone Bank – Winning the West – Saturday, August 23Time: Saturday, August 23, at 9:00am to 1:00pmLocation: Palm Terrace Mobile Home Park Conference Room, 2711 Mar Vista Drive, Aptos, CA 95003Directions: South on Soquel Dr. take the second right past the Aptos Fire Station on Mar Vista Dr. The park is halfway down the block, on your right. North on Soquel Dr. take the third left past Ages Assisted Living facility.Contact Phone: Dennis Connors / 831-428-2783 RSVP: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/phonebank/gpgbj8 Felton Phone Bank – Win the West -- Saturday, August 30thPlease join your felton neighbors at nancy's home. We'll call nevada or new mexico to help obama win the western states. If you haven't been in a phone-bank before, we'll be happy to show you what to do! PLEASE BRING YOUR CELL PHONE a beverage of your choice, and a snack to share. Check with your cell phone service provider to see if you get a large number of free minutes on the weekend. Time: Saturday, August 30 at 1:00pm to 5:00pmLocation: Nancy’s Home, 5401 Taylor Way, Felton, CA 95016Directions: Take hwy 9 in Felton to "bigfoot" museum, turn up san lorenzo, turn left on jackson, right on prospect, left on taylor way. Look for Obama sign!Contact Phone: Nancy Baker / 408-306-1088 RSVP: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/phonebank/gpg4vp Capitola Phone Bank – Saturday, August 30th and Sunday, August 31st – Obama Santa Cruz is coordinating with NV and M Obama Field Teams to provide phonebank support each weekend through the election. PLEASE BRING YOUR CELL PHONE. Check with your cell phone service provider to see if you get a large number of free minutes on the weekend. Time: Saturday, August 30 and Sunday, August 31st at 1:00pm to 5:00pmLocation: Thunderbird Real Estate, 3555 Clares Street, Capitola (next to Kinko's) Contact: Wes Swift at 831-476-4113 or wswift@ebold.com Boulder Creek Phone Bank – Win the West -- Sunday, August 31stPlease join your felton neighbors at nancy's home. We'll call nevada or new mexico to help obama win the western states. If you haven't been in a phone-bank before, we'll be happy to show you what to do! PLEASE BRING YOUR CELL PHONE a beverage of your choice, and a snack to share. Check with your cell phone service provider to see if you get a large number of free minutes on the weekend. Time: Sunday, August 31 at 1:00pm to 5:00pm Dorrie Kennedy'sLocation: Dorrie Kennedy’s Home, 13481 Highway 9 (100 yds past Bear Creek on left)Boulder Creek Contact Phone: Dorrie at 831-703-4141 Obama Volunteers NeededVolunteers Needed for Phonebank Callers – SignUp at www.obamasantacruz.com ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….Travel to Reno, Nevada Volunteers Needed for Travel – Contact Cori Gurlach - cgerlach@smallplanetbrewery.com Volunteers interested in supporting the voter outreach in Reno, NV and can travel for weekend are encourage to join our Reno for Obama Travel teams to provide voter-outreach in Sept and Oct. Please mark your calendars now for these very important travel events and dates. The Obama NV needs weekend coverage to ensure voter turn-out. Native Spanish speakers are very much needed for these weekends. Please contact our local Obama Travel Coordinator Cori Gurlach. Phase 1: NV Voter Registration- Now through Aug 28th- Voter registration Phase 2: NV Voter Persuasion— Travel Key Event – Weekend of Sept 26th. Details to follow. Phase 3: NV Early Vote GOTV- Travel Key Event- Weekend of Oct 17th. Details to follow. Phase 4: NV Voting Day- Nov 1st through 4th. Visibility and GOTV in Nevada. Details to follow. Nevada Voter Registration Weekends in Reno, Nevada – August 22nd, 29th Obama San Francisco, Oakland/Berkeley and San Jose are organizing weekend carpools to Reno, Nevada and pre-trip training efforts. California volunteers can help win the state by canvassing to identify and persuade undecided voters to support Senator Obama. Weekly trips to Reno are scheduled to leave Friday afternoon and returning Sunday afternoon.SF Organizers: Kenya Wheeler at kenyaw@gmail.com and Ellen Kamoe at travel4barack@gmail.com San Jose Organizer: Eric Orque at eorque@musd.org or 408.891.4024. August 22th-24th: Trip leaving Friday, August 22th @ 2pm, returning Sunday, August 24th at 6pm. San Francisco RSVP: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/canvass/4wx52 August 29th-September 1st: Trip leaving Friday, August 29th @ 2pm, returning Sunday, August 31st at 6pm or Monday, September 1st in the afternoon. Berkeley: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/voterregistrationdrive/444rc San Francisco: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/44qm4

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Obama Visibility and Voter Registration – Volunteers NeededVolunteers needed to support our local Voter Registration efforts that are a primary focus this summer. We ask volunteers to offer as little as 1 hour of their time to help register new voters and answer questions about our candidate as well as to offer buttons, bumper stickers. Volunteers are needed to staff the table and answer questions. This a great opportunity to get involved in support Obama and increasing voter registration. Santa Cruz – Bookshop Santa Cruz – Saturday, August 23rd 11am to 3pm1520 Pacific Avenue, Santa Cruz, 95060RSVP: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/voterregistrationdrive/gpg4vm Information: David Gripton at dag1951@cruzio.com / 831-238-4971 Capitola Book Cafe – Saturday, August 23rd 1pm to 4pm41st Avenue, Capitola, Information: Santa Cruz – Bookshop Santa Cruz – Saturday, August 30th 11am to 3pm1520 Pacific Avenue, Santa Cruz, 95060Information: David Gripton at dag1951@cruzio.com / 831-238-4971 Live Oak Farmers Market Voter Registration – August 31st 11am – 2pm East Cliff Village Shopping Center, 21564 East Cliff Drive, Santa Cruz, CA 95062RSVP: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/voterregistrationdrive/4wkt9 Capitola Begonia Festival – August 31st 11am Should be huge crowds at this family event in Capitola that lasts all Labor Day weekend long. Sign up for a 4 hour shift on Sunday. We will provide the training and materials.Location: Capitola VillageRSVP: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/voterregistrationdrive/gpgdxg Cabrillo College Regisration Drive – Sept 2nd at 11am6500 Soquel Drive, Aptos, CA 95003RSVP: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/voterregistrationdrive/gpgd7s Skyview Flea Market Voter Registration – Sept 2nd at 10am – 3pmSkyview Flea Market, 2260 Santa Cruz, CA 95065RSVP: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/voterregistrationdrive/gpgdm8 Santa Cruz County Fair – Tuesday, Sept 9 to Saturday, Sept 13th, 12noon to 4pmThis will be a huge event for us. We need help tabling and talking to voters. A lot of people will be at the fair and we need help on all days and for all shifts. Don't worry, you can sneak off and get a fried twinkie and we won't tell! What happens at the fair, stays at the fair!Location: Santa Cruz County Fairgrounds, WatsonvilleInformation: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/voterregistrationdrive/gpgd55 …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. Obama Fundraisers – Convention Fundraising EventsTwo fundraisers taking planned in Santa Cruz for Barack Obama’s Acceptance Speech Evening on Thursday, August 28th. Many thanks to the families opening their homes for Watch Party Events. Watch Party Fundraiser for Obama Campaign Local fundraiser and convention watch party is planned for Thursday, August 28th from 4pm to 8pm on the West Side of Santa Cruz. Watch the acceptance speech while enjoying appetizers, wine and entertainment throughout the evening. Generous Donations will be accepted at the event. Time: 4pm to 8pmSuggested Donation: $50 • $100 • $200 • $500 (checks payable to Obama For America)Hosted by: Patrice and Bob KeetRSVP by Aug 25th: Angela Chesnut at amc7@mail.com / 831.425.7788 Convention Celebration Dinner (Fundraising)Local fundraiser will be hosted by the MacDonald family in Santa Cruz on August 28, the night of the Democratic National Convention, to watch the proceedings, share food, and raise money for Obama.Time: Thursday, August 28 at 5:00 PM to 8:00 PMLocation: 1045 Nobel Dr., Santa Cruz, CA 95060Host: James Macdonald RSVP : http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/fundraising/4gj3j Obama Year at the Movies Raffle (Fundraiser)'Year at the Movies' Raffle is a local Obama 08 fundraiser providing supporters an opportunity to win a series of movie tickets at the Del Mar, Nick or Aptos theaters as the grand prize. Tickets are $10 each and can be obtained at various tabling events that will be staged around Santa Cruz County all summer long or by contacting Harvey or David below. Raffle winners will be determined on Election Day 2008. Contact: Harvey Dosik at 831-420-1567 / David Gripton at dag1951@cruzio.com / 831-238-4971Information: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/4jyt ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. Camp Obama Volunteer Training – Sept 13th and 14th Camp Obama Training is coming to the central coast September 13th and 14th. We will be hosting the Camp which is a TWO DAY training for our Area Leaders, Precinct Captains, Phonebank volunteers and Travel volunteers. The campaign is sponsoring the training and providing HQ trainers to provide us with the latest campaign strategies, objectives, out-of-state information, voter-out-reach methods, voter persuasion, phone banking, canvassing and get-out-the-vote activities. Training includes the use of our online Vote Builder system, phonebank and travel information. Please reserve one of these dates. Location details will follow in our next Newsletter. Area Leads are encouraged to attend with their Precinct Captains to maximize their team’s training experience. The training is very interactive and group oriented. Training for all our neighborhood and precinct volunteers will follow the Mini-Camp Obama during the September and October. ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. Santa Cruz County Fair – September 9 to 14 – Volunteers Needed The Democratic Party has a booth at the County Fair and is need of volunteers to staff the booth. The link to the Fair Booth sign-up page is on the Santa Cruz Democrats website: www.cruzdemocrats.org Each year the Santa Cruz Democratic Party has a booth at the Santa Cruz County Fair in Watsonville. The Fair runs from Tuesday September 9 through Sunday September 14. If you can help by covering a two-hour shift to provide information about Obama and other Democratic Candidates and register Democratic Voters. Your Democratic Party Needs You -- To Help In Our Fair Booth. Sign yourself up. Tell your friends. ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. Santa Cruz Democratic Party Office Open The Santa Cruz Democratic Party Grand Opening is Wednesday, August 13th. Everyone is welcomed and encouraged to attend. Located: 740 Front Street, Suite 250 (2nd floor in the Galleria building), Santa Cruz, CA, 95060Office: 831-427-2516 ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Week of August 7 - Working to Win the Western States

Team / Area Leader - CD17 — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 01:16:30 EDT

Obama 08 Santa Cruz County

August 7, 2008

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Santa Cruz Democrat Party Open Headquarters – August 13
Volunteers Needed to Staff Democrat Party Headquarters
Phonebanks Supporting Nevada and New Mexico Campaigns - Weekends
Obama Visibility and Voter Registration -- Weekends
Obama Fundraisers – Book Sale - Acceptance Speech – Senator Obama in SF
Convention Watch Parties – Acceptance Speech - August 28th
Obama Volunteer Training and Organizing – September 6 and 13th
Santa Cruz County Fair – Visibility Booth – September 9 to 14th
Support Our Convention Delegates
Obama Local Entrepreneurs

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. Wharf-to-Wharf Race a Success and Thank YouObama runners finished the race in true Obama fashion and created visibility for the campaign along the route. We had a good showing on the beach in Capitola and recruited 20+ volunteers. Thank you to race organizers June Gorman, Dennis Connors, Susan Drake and Angela Chesnut. ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….Santa Cruz Democratic Party Office Opening – August 13th The Santa Cruz Democratic Party Grand Opening is Wednesday, August 13th. Everyone is welcomed and encouraged to attend. When: Wednesday, August 13 between 5:30 pm to 7:00pm. Where: 740 Front Street, Suite 250 (2nd floor in the Galleria building), Santa Cruz, CA, 95060RSVP: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/meeting/44sgwInformation: 831-427-2516 or Leslie Steiner 831-335-4765 Sam Farr, U.S. Representative for CD 17, California State Senator Simitian, California Assembly Members Laird and Caballero together with local and state Democratic leaders and candidates will be on-hand for the headquarters opening. The United Democratic Campaign headquarters is organized to support local, state and federal democrat candidates. The headquarters represents the unified focus of the Democrat campaign that welcomes all supporters and volunteers from the Obama, Clinton, Edwards and state and local campaigns. The Santa Cruz Democratic Central Committee welcomes everyone to join us for the Grand Opening and celebrate the start of an exciting and successful campaign season. Music will be provided by Wildsang ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….Volunteers Needed for Democratic Party OfficeVolunteers are needed to staff and support state and local campaigns at the Santa Cruz Democratic Party Office. Volunteer Information: 831-427-2516 Office Supplies & Equipment Needed: Laptops, Inkjet printer, Lightweight folding tables, floor lamps, general office supplies, 18-gal tubs/containers and a Cash box (which locks). Items can be dropped off at Headquarters M/W/F from noon - 4pm. Please Call: 831-427-2516 ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….Nevada and New Mexico Swing State SupportNevada and New Mexico are two very important swing states where our out-of-state voter outreach efforts can make a difference in electing Barack Obama. The Obama Campaign is asking California to support the NV and NM campaigns with phonebanks and travel teams. Santa Cruz to New Mexico Phone Bank – Sunday, August 10thObama Santa Cruz is coordinating with the New Mexico Obama Field Team to provide phonebank support each weekend through the election. We will be making calls to New Mexico. PLEASE BRING YOUR CELL PHONE. Check with your cell phone service provider to see if you get a large number of free minutes on the weekend. Time: Sunday, August 10 at 4:00pm to 6:00pmLocation: Wes Swift’s Home, 4515 Bain Ave., Santa Cruz, CA 95062Contact Phone: Keven Cook / 408-306-1088 RSVP: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/phonebank/44bdf Nevada Voter Registration Weekends in Las Vegas, Nevada – August 16th The Obama San Jose team is coordinating with the Obama Nevada campaign in Las Vegas to provide voter registration and voter out-reach support the weekends of August 9th and August 16th.Organizer: Eric Orque at eorque@musd.org or 408.891.4024Information August 16th: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/voterregistrationdrive/4gdkk Nevada Voter Registration Weekends in Reno, Nevada – August 8th, 15th, 22nd, 29th Obama San Francisco, Oakland/Berkeley and San Jose are organizing weekend carpools to Reno, Nevada and pre-trip training efforts. California volunteers can help win the state by canvassing to identify and persuade undecided voters to support Senator Obama. Weekly trips to Reno are scheduled to leave Friday afternoon and returning Sunday afternoon.SF Organizers: Kenya Wheeler at kenyaw@gmail.com and Ellen Kamoe at travel4barack@gmail.com San Jose Organizer: Eric Orque at eorque@musd.org or 408.891.4024. August 8th-10th: Trip leaving Friday, August 8th @ 2pm, returning Sunday, August 10th at 6pm. San Francisco RSVP: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/44jqkSan Jose RSVP: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/voterregistrationdrive/4gdcc August 15th-17th: Trip leaving Friday, August 15th @ 2pm, returning Sunday, August 17th at 6pm. San Francisco RSVP: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/canvass/4wx54San Jose RSVP: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/voterregistrationdrive/4gdkk August 22th-24th: Trip leaving Friday, August 22th @ 2pm, returning Sunday, August 24th at 6pm. San Francisco RSVP: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/canvass/4wx52 August 29th-September 1st: Trip leaving Friday, August 29th @ 2pm, returning Sunday, August 31st at 6pm or Monday, September 1st in the afternoon. Berkeley: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/voterregistrationdrive/444rc San Francisco: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/44qm4 New Mexico Voter Outreach - Obama Palo Alto/Silicon Valley The Obama Palo Alto office has is coordinating with the Obama state campaign in New Mexico and will be providing phone bank support beginning this month on Saturday and Sundays from the Palo Alto office. Those interested can contact the Obama Palo Alto office directly:Location: Silicon Valley for Obama Field Office, 3898 El Camino Real, Palo Alto, CA 94306Information: (650) 852-9401 / (650) 852-9527

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Obama Visibility and Voter Registration – Volunteers NeededVolunteers needed to support our local Voter Registration efforts that are a primary focus this summer. Locations are in Santa Cruz on Pacific Avenue in front of Bookshop Santa Cruz; in Capitola on 41st Avenue in front of Safeway; and in Watsonville. We ask volunteers to offer as little as 1 hour of their time to help register new voters and answer questions about our candidate as well as to offer buttons, bumper stickers and signs to interested parties. Volunteers are needed to staff the table and answer questions. This a great opportunity to get involved in support Obama and increasing voter registration. Santa Cruz – Bookshop Santa Cruz – Saturday, August 16th 11am to 3pm1520 Pacific Avenue, Santa Cruz, 95060RSVP: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/voterregistrationdrive/44b5k Information: David Gripton at dag1951@cruzio.com / 831-238-4971 Capitola Information: Dennis Connors at squenix@sbcglobal.net / 831-685-8553Watsonville Information: Luis Alejo at laalejo@msn.com / 831-726-6032…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. Obama Fundraisers – Book Sale – Convention Events - Barack in SFWe have 5 fundraisers taking place in August locally. Many thanks to the families opening their homes for Watch Party Events, our book-sale friends, our raffle team and the friends in San Francisco hosting Senator Obama for a major fundraiser. Book Sale for Obama – Saturday, August 16th at 8:30amHuge book sale, something for everyone.......... Saturday, August 16, 2008 8:30 am to 12:30 PM Time: Saturday, August 16 at 8:30 AM to 12:30 am Location: 228 Martin Dr., Aptos, CA 95003Take the Rio del Mar exit, go towards the beach, Martin Drive is one block past Aptos Beach drive. Make a right on Martin, first house on the left.Host: Teri HandzelRSVP: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/fundraising/44w4z Barack Obama in San Francisco for Fundraiser – August 17thBarack Obama will be back for a very special fundraiser in San Francisco on Sunday, August 17. It is a private fundraising event for those supporters interested in donating to the Obama For America campaign and seeing Senator Obama speak. The event is not open to the public.When: Sunday, August 17th, 2008Time: 5:30PM - General ReceptionRSVP: Angela Chesnut at amc7@mail.com / 831.425.7788 to RSVP or more information Watch Party Fundraiser for Obama Campaign Local fundraiser and convention watch party is planned for Thursday, August 28th from 4pm to 8pm on the West Side of Santa Cruz. Watch the acceptance speech while enjoying appetizers, wine and entertainment throughout the evening. Generous Donations will be accepted at the event. Time: 4pm to 8pmSuggested Donation: $50 • $100 • $200 • $500 (checks payable to Obama For America)Hosted by: Patrice and Bob KeetRSVP by Aug 25th: Angela Chesnut at amc7@mail.com / 831.425.7788 Convention Celebration Dinner (Fundraising)Local fundraiser will be hosted by the MacDonald family in Santa Cruz on August 28, the night of the Democratic National Convention, to watch the proceedings, share food, and raise money for Obama.Time: Thursday, August 28 at 5:00 PM to 8:00 PMLocation: 1045 Nobel Dr., Santa Cruz, CA 95060Host: James Macdonald RSVP : http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/fundraising/4gj3j Obama Year at the Movies Raffle (Fundraiser)'Year at the Movies' Raffle is a local Obama 08 fundraiser providing supporters an opportunity to win a series of movie tickets at the Del Mar, Nick or Aptos theaters as the grand prize. Tickets are $10 each and can be obtained at various tabling events that will be staged around Santa Cruz County all summer long or by contacting Harvey or David below. Raffle winners will be determined on Election Day 2008. Contact: Harvey Dosik at 831-420-1567 / David Gripton at dag1951@cruzio.com / 831-238-4971Information: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/4jyt …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. Watch Parties August 28th – Democratic National Convention On Thursday, August 28th, Barack Obama, the assumed Democrat nominee, is scheduled to formally accept the Democratic nomination in a speech in front of the assembled delegates and what is expect to be an audience of 75,000 in Denver. 3 Convention Watch Parties Planned in Santa Cruz CountyThe Santa Cruz Democratic Party is organizing three Democratic National Convention Watch Events across Santa Cruz County on the evening of Thursday, August 28th starting at 5pm. Join us the final evening of the Democratic National Convention and watch the presumed Democratic nominee Senator Barack Obama deliver his acceptance speech on Thursday evening. When: Thursday, August 28th starting at 5pm. Santa Cruz Event: Woodstock Pizza, 710 Front Street, Santa Cruz, CA, 95060 (no host bar and food)Aptos/Seascape: Seascape Golf Clubhouse Lounge, 610 Clubhouse Drive, Aptos, CA 95003 (no host bar)Watsonville: Location to be announced Event Information: Leslie Steiner 831-335-4765 ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….Obama Volunteers Organizing and Training Live Oak Area Obama Volunteers MeetingAndrew & Rena's House (Santa Cruz, CA) Time: 4:00pm to 6:00pmLocation: 1200 Capitola Rd. #18, Santa Cruz, CA 95062Contact Phone: Andrew Longsworth - andrew@longsworth.com or call 831-465-9447 RSVP: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/organizing/44jv4 ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. Mini-Camp Obama Volunteer Training – Reserve the DatesMini-Camp Obama Training is coming to the central coast in September. We will be hosting the Mini-Camp which is a one-day session for our Area Leaders and Precinct Captains on September 6th in San Francisco and Sacramento and September 13th in Santa Cruz. Our Area Leaders and Precinct Captains are welcome to attend either the Monterey or Santa Cruz session. This one day session provides hands-on training covering neighborhood and team organization, campaign objectives and strategies, voter-out-reach methods, voter persuasion, phone banking, canvassing and get-out-the-vote activities. Training includes the use of our online Vote Builder system. Please reserve one of these dates. Details will follow in our next Newsletter. Area Leads are encouraged to attend with their Precinct Captains to maximize their team’s training experience. The training is very interactive and group oriented. Training for all our neighborhood and precinct volunteers will follow the Mini-Camp Obama during the September and October. ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. Santa Cruz County Fair – September 9 to 14 – Volunteers Needed The Democratic Party has a booth at the County Fair and is need of volunteers to staff the booth. The link to the Fair Booth sign-up page is on the Santa Cruz Democrats website: www.cruzdemocrats.org

Each year the Santa Cruz Democratic Party has a booth at the Santa Cruz County Fair in Watsonville.

The Fair runs from Tuesday September 9 through Sunday September 14. If you can help by covering a two-hour shift to provide information about Obama and other Democratic Candidates and register Democratic Voters. Your Democratic Party Needs You -- To Help In Our Fair Booth. Sign yourself up. Tell your friends.

Week of July 24th - Working to Win the Western States

Team / Area Leader - CD17 — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 01:02:24 EDT

Obama 08 Santa Cruz County

July 24, 2008

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………HIGHLIGHTS

Barack Obama in Europe and the Middle East
Wharf-to-Wharf Runners and Obama Supports – July 27th
Listening to America - Democrat Platform Events to Solicit Your Input
Convention Watch Parties and Fundraiser – August 28th
Santa Cruz Campaign Office Opening in August
Supporting Nevada and New Mexico Campaigns
Camp Obama Volunteer Training Coming to Santa Cruz
Support Our Convention Delegates
Obama 08 Fundraiser - Movie Raffle Tickets Now on Sale (fundraising)

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Barack Obama in Europe and the Middle EastAs you have heard, Barack has been in Europe and the Middle East this week. Today, he spoke in Berlin, Germany. In a city where a wall once divided the free from the oppressed, he talked about tearing down the walls that divide all peoples so we can address our common problems -- the threats of terrorism and nuclear weapons, global warming and genocide, AIDS and poverty. "I come to Berlin as so many of my countrymen have come before," Mr. Obama told the crowd, confronting the delicate issue of campaigning abroad. "Tonight, I speak to you not as a candidate for president, but as a citizen – a proud citizen of the United States, and a fellow citizen of the world." Senator Barack Obama waved to the crowd gathered at the Victory Column at Tiergarten Park in Berlin on Thursday. An estimated 200,000 Germans gathered to watch Mr. Obama's speech. Barack Obama met for about an hour with Chancellor Angela Merkel at the Federal Chancellery. A German diplomat said the discussions went very successfully, saying: "They quickly found themselves on the same page. It was not superficial at all."

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Runners for Obama at Wharf-to-Wharf - This Sunday

How cool is it to represent the next President of the United States at the 36th Annual Wharf to Wharf race run on Sunday, July 27th. The race starts at 8:30 and runs from the Santa Cruz Pier (near downtown) to the Capitola Pier (in Capitola Village) and is considered the "Best Little Roadrace in California". The 10K, six mile race, is festive and fun rather than deadly serious.

Event Date: 8:30AM Sunday, July 27th. Obama Shirts: order your *T-shirts at: BarackObama.com and join us for a "Race to Change".Information: June Gorman at june_gorman@sbcglobal.net Volunteers Needed at the Race:Volunteers needed at the starting point in Santa Cruz and at the finish area in Capitola to provide Obama information, sign-up volunteers and sell Obama gear. Pre-Race Obama Crew at the Starting point in Santa Cruz will meet in front of Ideal Fish Restaurant near the Santa Cruz Wharf at 7:15 am to 9:15 am. If you arrive that early you might actually find parking! But bring lots of quarters for the couple of hours. Otherwise, Shuttle parking lot is at Ocean Street Government Center and shuttle starts at 6:30am. Look for Obama shirts and hats!Time: 7:15 am to 9:15 amLocation: Ideal Fish Restaurant near the Santa Cruz WharfContact: Susan Samuels Drake at sdrake2@cruzio.com Post-Race Obama Crew at the Finish area in Capitola will meet on Capitola Beach at "Obama" space 9:15 am. Beach "Obama" station set-up, plus "milling" crew at the Finish line/ Bridge working with "waiting" spectators. Look for Obama table, signage, shirts and hats!Time: 9:15 am to 11:15 amLocation: Meet at on Capitola Beach at "Obama" space Contact: Dennis Connors at squenix@sbcglobal.net / 831-685-8553 ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….Listening to America - Democratic Platform Events & Your Input The Democratic Platform for Change – Forums to Solicit Your InputEvery four years, the Democratic Party assembles a platform that outlines the party's position on a number of issues. Traditionally, the drafting of the platform is not open to ordinary people. This year, that's going to change. From July 19 to July 27, people all across America will hold Platform Meetings in their own communities. People all across America will hold Platform Meetings in their own communities and homes to discuss the issues and share their input. The input obtained from these meetings will help shape the platform at the Democratic Convention in August. The outcome of these meetings will be reviewed by the Drafting Committee as it creates the final Platform. Platform Meetings are a great way to connect with fellow supporters and help write the next chapter in the history of the Democratic Party. No political experience is required. Your thoughts and experiences are all that matter, and they will shape a platform that -- like this campaign -- is owned by the people. Attend one of the Santa Cruz County Platform Events listed below. Saturday, July 26th -- Downtown Santa Cruz Democratic Platform EventA Great Idea, A Great Opportunity to Get Involved. A Saturday Afternoon Brainstorming Event of Getting Whats in Our Heads Out & Heard! Join Us, Some Appetizers Provided.Time: 3:00pm to 5:00pmLocation: Fusion Restaurant & Lounge, 110 Pearl Alley, Santa Cruz, CA 95060 Contact Phone: Jamaka Johnson / 831-600-7417 RSVP: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/platformmeeting/442x9 Sunday, July 27th -- SLV / Boulder Creek Democratic Platform EventMark your calendar for Sunday July 27th for an afternoon of sharing good food, and conversation with community members that want to have their voices heard. Bring your ideas for change and a dish or some wine to share with others. All ages welcome to attend!Time: 12noon to 200pmLocation: Ellis Residence, 14395 West Park Ave., Boulder Creek, CA 95006Directions: Take Hwy 9 in Boulder Creek to West Park. We are located about one mile up West Park on the left. RSVP: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/platformmeeting/4gwg9 Host a Platform Meeting Event You can also host an event in your own community. We’ve prepared all the materials that you need to host. Or, if you’d prefer, find an event near you.Sign up to host or attend a Platform Meeting in your neighborhood: http://my.barackobama.com/listening

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Voter Registration Drive – Volunteers NeededVolunteers needed to support our local Voter Registration efforts that are a primary focus this summer. Locations are in Santa Cruz on Pacific Avenue in front of Bookshop Santa Cruz; in Capitola on 41st Avenue in front of Safeway; and in Watsonville. We ask volunteers to offer as little as 1 hour of their time to help register new voters and answer questions about our candidate as well as to offer buttons, bumper stickers and signs to interested parties. Volunteers are needed to staff the table and answer questions. This a great opportunity to get involved in support Obama and increasing voter registration. Santa Cruz – Bookshop Santa Cruz – Saturday, July 26th 11am to 3pm1520 Pacific Avenue, Santa Cruz, 95060Information: David Gripton at dag1951@cruzio.com / 831-238-4971 Capitola Information: Dennis Connors at squenix@sbcglobal.net / 831-685-8553Watsonville Information: Luis Alejo at laalejo@msn.com / 831-726-6032………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….Santa Cruz Campaign Office Opening in AugustA Santa Cruz Campaign Office is in the works and tentatively planned to open mid-August. The office is located in the Galleria Plaza between River and Front Streets in downtown Santa Cruz. This office will support the Obama campaign efforts in Santa Cruz County along with state and local Democratic candidates and ballot measures. An office opening event is planned, stay-tuned for more information. Volunteers are needed to staff the office. ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….Out-of-State Voter Efforts – Nevada and New MexicoNevada and New Mexico are two very important swing states where our out-of-state voter outreach efforts can make a difference in electing Barack Obama. We will continue to announce out-of-state voter efforts for those who have the time and ability to support these activities. Nevada Voter Registration Weekend in Reno, Nevada – July 25 and 26th You may be aware that Nevada is one of the swing states and very critical to November's results. We have to get out the vote for Barack Obama in Nevada but in order for people to vote they have to be registered to vote so our sister state is asking for our help with voter registration by traveling to Reno for a weekend. We will leave on Friday evening at 5:30PM on July 25 and return on Sunday evening, July 27th. When you sign up please include your telephone number, only the event organizer can see that information, and we will call you to confirm. The ask is of all of Northern California - our goal is to get at least 100 of us. The sooner we know the sooner we can try to pool our money for buses and/or set up carpools. There will be some supporter housing available.Organizer: Kim Mack 916-400-3252 / Sacramento Obama OfficeInformation: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/4gt5z Nevada Voter Registration Weekends in Las Vegas, Nevada – August 9th and August 16th The Obama San Jose team is coordinating with the Obama Nevada campaign in Las Vegas to provide voter registration and voter out-reach support the weekends of August 9th and August 16th.Organizer: Eric Orque at eorque@musd.org or 408.891.4024Information August 9th: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/voterregistrationdrive/4gdcc Information August 16th: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/voterregistrationdrive/4gdkk Nevada Voter Registration Weekends in Reno, Nevada – Weekly Carpools from SF Obama Ellen San Francisco and Oakland are organizing weekly carpools to Reno, Nevada and pre-trip training efforts. Ellen has also setup a google docs spreadsheet to track volunteers who are traveling on a specific week. We are sharing this information with Obama for Nevada staff to assist their planning efforts for canvassing and voter registration plans and to find supporter housing for usOrganizer: Kenya Wheeler at kenyaw@gmail.com and Ellen Kamoe at travel4barack@gmail.com New Mexico Voter Outreach - Obama Palo Alto/Silicon Valley The Obama Palo Alto office has is coordinating with the Obama state campaign in New Mexico and will be providing phone bank support beginning this month on Saturday and Sundays from the Palo Alto office. Those interested can contact the Obama Palo Alto office directly:Location: Silicon Valley for Obama Field Office, 3898 El Camino Real, Palo Alto, CA 94306Information: (650) 852-9401 / (650) 852-9527 New Mexico Voter Outreach - Obama Los GatosBring your lap top, cell phone, or mic and skype account and join us in calling New Mexico Independent Voters. We have a couple of computers in the office. When you RSVP, please let me know if you are brining your own lap top or need to use one of our computers.Time: Saturday, July 26 at 10:00 AM to 12noonContact Phone: Yeffi Vanatta / 408-406-5309 Location: LG Obama Office, 15495 Los Gatos Blvd Suite 4 (Above Erik's Deli), Los Gatos, CA 95032 …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. Watch Parties August 28th – Democratic National Convention On Thursday, August 28th, Barack Obama, the assumed Democrat nominee, is scheduled to formally accept the Democratic nomination in a speech in front of the assembled delegates and what is expect to be an audience of 75,000 in Denver. 3 Watch Parties Planned in Santa Cruz CountyLocally we are organizing 4 Watch Parties for Thursday, August 28th to bring supporters and volunteers together throughout Santa Cruz County. Watch Parties are planned for Watsonville, Mid-County and Santa Cruz. Reserve the evening of August 28th for this historic event and celebrate with local supporters. These events are open to all. More information in our August newsletters. Watch Party Fundraiser for Obama Campaign Additionally, we have a local fundraiser and watch party planned for Thursday, August 28th from 4pm to 8pm on the West Side of Santa Cruz. Watch the speech while enjoying appetizers, wine and entertainment throughout the evening. Generous Donations will be accepted at the event. Time: 4pm to 8pmSuggested Donation: $50 • $100 • $200 • $500 (checks payable to Obama For America)Hosted by: Patrice and Bob KeetRSVP by Aug 25th: Angela Chesnut at amc7@mail.com /l 831.425.7788 ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. Camp Obama Volunteer TrainingIn August and September we will host Camp Obama Volunteer Training to prepare people for the General Election campaign voter-outreach efforts. We are tentatively planning to hold a number of sessions on Saturday’s -- August 23, 30, Sept 6, and Sept 13th. More information to follow.

Welcome to 30 Barack

Aditya — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 18:16:05 EDT

It was great seeing all of you yesterday. We were expecting 5 people, and to see 48 people turn out was really something amazing.

By the way, the link that I sent in the email regarding the latest Nevada poll was broken.

This link will take you to the actual story: http://tinyurl.com/6j86no

A new RGJ/KTVN Channel 2 poll being released today shows Nevada continues to be a true toss-up in the presidential race. In the poll of 600 likely Nevada voters, 44 percent favor U.S. Sen. Barack Obama and 43 percent favor U.S. Sen. John McCain.

Greg Palast says Barack needs to start sweating....

Mon, 28 Jul 2008 14:13:23 EDT

Obama Doesn't Sweat. He should. just got this email from Greg Palast. He's the one that wrote that "little yellow book" the young man was tasared for talking about at the Kerry rally. He's the one who REALLY broke the story about fly-boy bush' history (or lack thereof) in the military. I have a couple of his DVDs and a couple of his books. This is serious business; take a read (i kept the email intact, but wanted to warn those in the states that are cited as well as all the rest of us!!) YOUR VOTE IS AT RISK!!!
by Greg Palast In swing-state Colorado, the Republican Secretary of State conducted the biggest purge of voters in history, dumping a fifth of all registrations. Guess their color. In swing-state Florida, the state is refusing to accept about 85,000 new registrations from voter drives - overwhelming Black voters. In swing state New Mexico, HALF of the Democrats of Mora, a dirt poor and overwhelmingly Hispanic county, found their registrations disappeared this year, courtesy of a Republican voting contractor. In swing states Ohio and Nevada, new federal law is knocking out tens of thousands of voters who lost their homes to foreclosure.

Native American Navajo Indians targeted by McCain and greedy senators

Marion Young — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 16:17:01 EDT

The "Straight Talk Express" in action...

Native Americans: Navajo Indians Targeted for Brutal Genocide, in Arizona, USA ...by Sen. John McCain & a Few Greedy Senators

http://www.care2.com/news/member/691012399/815662

Native American Navajo Indians targeted by McCain and greedy senators

Marion Young — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 16:08:37 EDT

Week of July 10 -- Summer Activities in Santa Cruz, CA

Team / Area Leader - CD17 — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 20:21:50 EDT

Obama 08 Santa Cruz County
Newsletter distributed 2nd and 4th Thursday during July and August
July 10, 2008

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HIGHLIGHTS

Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton speak at Women's Event in NYC

Dr. Maya Soetoro-Ng Speaks in NYC and Santa Cruz
Fourth of July Aptos Parade – An Obama Success
Democrat Unity Event - A Democrat Success
Listening to America - Democrat Platform Events to Solicit Your Input
Voter Registration this Weekend - Volunteers Needed
Aptos Volunteer Kickoff Event – Saturday, July 19
Nevada and New Mexico Out-of-State Voter Outreach
Wharf-to-Wharf Runners and Obama Supports – July 27th
Support Our Convention Delegates
Obama 08 Fundraiser - Movie Raffle Tickets Now on Sale (fundraising)
SAVE the DATE -- August 28th for the Acceptance Speech Watch Party

Week of June 13 - "Unite For Change" – Welcome All Democrats and Supporters

Team / Area Leader - CD17 — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 20:14:11 EDT

Obama 08 Santa Cruz County
June 13, 2008

"Unite For Change" – Welcome All Democrats and Supporters

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HIGHLIGHTS

·         Special Guest Maya Soetoro-Ng – Senator Obama's sister – June 19th and June 20th

·         Voter Registration in Santa Cruz County – Volunteers Needed
·         Unite For Change – Welcome to All Democrats and Supporters
·         FightTheSmears.com - Launched by Obama 08 Campaign
·         Fourth of July Parade – Show Your Support for Obama
·         Wharf-to-Wharf Runners and Obama Supports – July 27th
·         Support Our Convention Delegates
·         Obama 08 Fundraiser - Movie Raffle Tickets Now on Sale (fundraising)

Got Travel Plans for Obama?

Kenya Wheeler — Sun, 29 Jun 2008 21:24:31 EDT

I am the San Francisco for Obama Northern California | Nevada coordinator. My role is coordinating trips for San Francisco volunteers who are interested in traveling to the Central Valley and Nevada to support the Obama campaign. If you are interested please contact me. Also, if you are interested in traveling to other swing states, let me know and I will connect you with Jay Cash, Out of State Travel Coordinator.

Kenya Wheeler
kenyaw@gmail.com

McCain's running ads during my soaps.

Jillian — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 18:07:28 EDT

It's his ad about how he hates war.

Looking to carpool from NV to MT

ThatPoshGirl — Sun, 25 May 2008 17:02:22 EDT

Hey everyone,

I'm hoping to get to Montana next weekend to help campaign for Barack. I can go from Friday to Monday, but I don't have a car that will get me there. I only have about $60 to contribute to the trip, I know that is not much but if anyone is thinking about heading that way and wants company please let me know.

Nevada gives Obama 14, Clinton 11

Chinni — Sun, 18 May 2008 11:52:03 EDT

Nevada gives Obama 14, Clinton 11

RENO -- Barack Obama received 14 national convention delegates at Saturday's state Democratic convention, while Hillary Clinton received 11 as Obama's support increased from the Jan. 19 caucuses.

Obama had the support of 55 percent of the 2,510 state convention delegates who gathered at the Grand Sierra Resort for the convention, while Clinton had 45 percent.

That compares to 51 percent for Clinton and 45 percent for Obama on Jan. 19, a result that would have given Obama 13 national delegates and Clinton 12. Saturday's results seem to indicate the enthusiasm of Clinton's supporters has waned as her hopes for capturing the nomination have dimmed...

The Math

jordarundt — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 21:26:08 EDT

According to Howard Wolfsson, "the road to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue goes through Pennsylvania.". I have done some calculations, and gone through the map, and i found that we don't have to win Pennsylvania to win the GE.

In the map below, the states that Kerry won are marked with blue. The states Bush won by a wide margin are colored red. Swing states are colored green. Kerry won PA,but I have colored it red to prove my point.

The blue states are the states Kerry won in 2004, green states was close and red states was Bush states.

I will give a small explanation. I will assume that a combination of Bushs record low approval rating, along with 8 years of republican rule will get democratic voters out in droves, hence securing the Kerry states quite easy. I have chosen to use a very conservative prediction, keeping both Florida and Ohio in red. That leaves Colorado, Iowa, Missouri, New Mexico, Nevada and Virginia as swing states. Usually Arizona would be among the swing states, but considering Senator McCain is from Arizona, I have put it in the red column. Assuming that we lose Ohio, Florida and Pennsylvania we will have to win all 6. If we win those 6 states, it will be a draw. Giving each candidate 269 electoral votes. If that happens, the house of representatives will elect the President (we better do what we can to help the dems keep the majority).

Popular Vote Count & Addressing Clinton Supporters

Obamanizer — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 14:17:04 EDT

As Senator Clinton is now claiming to have the lead in the popular vote (including Florida and even Michigan), it's surprising that Senator Obama is not trying to shift the conversation to the Caucuses that didn't release popular vote counts.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22425001/vp/24270562#24270562

Week of March 27, 2008 -- California Democratic Party State Convention

Team / Area Leader - CD17 — Sat, 29 Mar 2008 16:08:04 EDT

Obama 08 Santa Cruz County
March 27th, 2008

We have two events taking place in the coming week – the California Democratic Party State Convention this weekend and our General Meeting / Delegate Open Forum on Tuesday.

HIGHLIGHTS
Obama Visibility at the California Democratic Party State Convention -- March 28th to 30th
Obama Fundraiser Parties in San Jose – Friday, March 28th following the Convention
Obama 08 Santa Cruz Delegate Open Forum and General Meeting – Tuesday, April 1st, 630pm
Obama 08 Fundraisers – April 6th and April 22nd
Phone Calls – Winning Voters in Pennsylvania – April 6th/7th, April 13th/14th, April 20th/21st
California District Level Delegate Election Meeting -- April 13th
Pennsylvania Debate Watch Party – April 16, 5pm
Pennsylvania Election Night Watch Party – April 22nd,
Latest Gallop Poll Results Show Obama Takes the Lead
Delegate Math – Obama Adds More Delegates
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California Democratic Party State Convention March 28-30 – Obama Visibility

Show Super-Delegates Visible Support for Barack Obama
Join with fellow California Obama Democrats to show our support for Obama 08 by increasing visibility at this event with Obama 08 signage.   We will join with our Obama 08 Bay Area teams to provide visibility support throughout the day with signage walking activities at the front of the San Jose Convention Center, 408 Almaden Blvd at the opening Friday, March 28, Saturday March 29 and Sunday March 30th.

Many have asked how we can influence Super-Delegates, this is your opportunity to join Obama supporters in mass to show Super-Delegates the significance of our support for Barack Obama. We are joining with the Obama Bay Area teams from San Jose, Palo Alto/Silicon Valley, Oakland, San Francisco and Marin.   Let's show our strength in numbers.

Visibility Walking Times:
- Friday, March 28th – 10am, 1130am, 430pm
- Saturday March 29th – 800am, 1130am, 430pm
- Sunday March 30th -- 800am, 1130am, 330pm

Meet Location:
We will meet at the UCFW Hall, 230 South Market Street, San Jose, CA 95123.
The Convention Center is within a block of the UCFW Hall. The Obama San Jose team has setup the UCFW Hall as the Obama HQ during the convention. The UCFW Hall is next to the Fairmont Hotel at 230 So. Market St.

Parking: Park at the Light rail station or get validated at the 2nd. St/ San Carlos lot.

Equipment Required: Bring Your Obama Signs and any other creative form of visibility

RSVP for Saturday:   http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/organizing/4xqk

RSVP for Sunday:    http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/organizing/4xpc

Convention Information and schedule: http://www.cadem.org/site/c.jrLZK2PyHmF/b.3904469/
While the general session is only open to elected delegates to the state party, caucuses and hospitality suites are open to everyone.

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Obama Party and Fundraisers – Friday, March 28th
Two events taking place on Friday evening following the California State Democratic Convention in San Jose.

Obama Party and Fundraisers at the Tied House Party and Fundraiser – Friday at 8pm
Join Obama supporters following on Friday evening, March 28th at 8pm following the California State Democratic Convention at the Tied House in downtown San Jose. An evening of OBAMA Mania, Music and Fun following the Convention.
Time: Friday March 28, 8PM to 12 PM
Location: San Jose Tied House, 65 N. San Pedro St. (off Santa Clara Street), San Jose

Obama Party and Fundraisers at the Miros – Friday at 7pm
Come Join Fellow Obama Supporters for Networking and Socializing at Miro's Lounge following on 7pm, Friday evening, March 28th. We will Meet in Miro's Lounge located in the Crowne Plaza Hotel, which is across the street from the Convention Center.
Time: Friday March 28, 7 PM
Location: Crowne Plaza Hotel, 282 Almaden Blvd., San Jose, CA 95113
RSVP: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/meeting/4rw5g

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Obama 08 Santa Cruz General Meeting – April 1st, 630pm
Tuesday, April 1st starting at 6:30pm Zuniga's Restaurant

We welcome everyone and especially our volunteers to join us for the Obama 08 Santa Cruz County General Meeting being held on 6:30pm, Tuesday, April 1st at Zuniga's Restaurant.    Meet other volunteers and supporters and their campaign experiences. Hear about the campaign and our upcoming plans for the Pennsylvania primary and upcoming Obama events.

Open Forum to Hear from CD17 Delegate Candidates – April 1st, 630pm
At our general meeting on April 1st we are hosting a District Level Delegate Candidate Forum beginning at 6:30pm. Our goal is to provide an open forum for our campaign volunteers and supporters to hear from the CD17 District Level Delegate Candidates.

We welcomed all CD17 District Level Delegate Candidate to join us at this event. All CD17 Obama Delegate candidates listed on the California Democratic Party website are invited to participate. Candidates that cannot attend this meeting can appoint a person to speak in their place if they so desire. This is an open forum providing all delegate candidates an opportunity to speak and meet Obama Santa Cruz volunteers and supporters. We will summarize the Open Forum results in the Obama 08 Santa Cruz email newsletter.

Meeting Agenda and Format:
-          630pm to 700pm -- social greet and meet the candidates
-          700pm to 800pm – District Level Candidate Talks limited to 3 minutes per Candidate. Candidates that RSVP selected in random order (based on the California State Education random order alphabet)
-          800pm to 830pm -- Supporters sign the Candidate's Supporter List to acknowledge their support for candidates. Supporters can sign as many candidates Supporter Lists as they deem appropriate.
-          830pm to 900pm -- Obama Santa Cruz Volunteer announcements and events and organizing for Pennsylvania Calling

Meeting: Obama 08 Santa Cruz County General Meeting
Date/Time: 6:30pm, Tuesday, April 1st.
Location: Zuniga's Restaurant, 100 Aviation Way, Watsonville, CA, 95076.
Directions:   Take Highway 1 to Airport Blvd in Watsonville, proceed on Airport Blvd (east) toward Watsonville Airport and take a left on Aviation Way.   http://www.zunigas.net/

Candidate Information/Questions: Bill Malone at billmalone@pacbell.net or 831-420-1133.

RSVP:   http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/meeting/4xqb

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Obama 08 Fundraising Events - Sunday, April 6
Three fundraising events are taking place on Sunday, April 6th in Atherton, Marin, and San Francisco. Senator Barack Obama will be present at each of these private events for donors. The donation for these events ranges from $1,000 to $2,300 per person.   Donations contributed at these events to benefit Obama for America.

Contact: Please contact Angela Chesnut if you are interested in donating and attending one of these events.

The April 6th events are Northern California's major fundraiser to contribute the financial support required for the remaining primaries. To our knowledge there are no public events planned for this trip with the Senator's need to return to Pennsylvania. This trip is likely Barack's last to the Bay Area prior to the Democratic National Convention.

Obama 08 Santa Cruz Fundraising Event - April 22nd
Join the Obama 08 Santa Cruz team for a local fundraiser on April 22 starting at 5:30 pm. The event is being held at Hula's Island Grill and Tiki Bar. Come and watch the PA primary returns over mai tai's and light fare while you enjoy music provided local musician Terry Riversong.

Location: Hula's Island Grill and Tiki Bar, 221 Cathcart St. Santa Cruz, CA 95060

Donation: $35.00 or more much appreciated

RSVP: First 100 RSVP's only –donation.

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California District Level Delegate Election Meeting -- April 13th
Please mark your calendars to attend the District-Level Delegate Election Meeting on April 13 (3pm. Location: TBA somewhere in the Santa Cruz / Monterey area) where you, as a local Democrat, can vote for the 2 Barack Obama local delegates and 1 alternative that will represent CD17 at the Democratic National Convention in Denver, Colorado on August 25-28, 2008. There will be a separate meeting on this day for the 3 Clinton delegates. Location: TBA. We encourage everyone to make an appearance.
Currently, there are 20 District-Level Delegate candidates that have registered their interest to represent CD17 for Obama at the convention.
CD17 Delegate Candidates Registered: http://www.cadem.org/site/apps/kb/cs/contactsearch.asp?c=jrLZK2PyHmF&b=3919701&raw
To become a District-Level Delegate to the Democratic National Convention, you must fill-out and submit Form A and then be elected (most votes by gender) at your Congressional District (CD) Caucus held on April 13, 2008. There are 3 to 6 Delegates allocated in each of California's 53 Congressional Districts; 40 CDs will each get 1 Alternate Delegate. Wednesday, April 2 at 5:00 pm
For more info: http://www.cadem.org/site/c.jrLZK2PyHmF/b.3643973/
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Pennsylvania Debate Watch Party – April 16 starting at 5pm
Join Obama Santa Cruz supporters to watch the crucial Pennsylvania debate on the plasma high-definition big screen. You'll be able to see Hillary sweat - excuse me - sparkle. Our host Nick Lefevre will be serving refreshments. Humorous commentary is welcomed and encouraged.

The time for this debate's broadcast has not been announced. It will probably air live at 5:00pm local time. I will watch it live AND time delay it. Sign up here to be notified of more specifics.

Location: Nick Lefevre's New House, 345 Lee Street, Santa Cruz, CA 95060
Lee Street is immediately north of Hwy 1 and to the east of Ocean street. It is reached by taking Emeline under Hwy 1 and take an immediate right.

RSVP: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/4rwwd

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Pennsylvania Phone Banking
The next election is Pennsylvania – we'll need to work to close the gap – latest Rasmussen survey in Pennsylvania shows Hillary Clinton leading Barack Obama 51% to 38% with 11% undecided. There are 151 delegates at stake.

Santa Cruz Phone Banks
We will organize phone banks in Santa Cruz to support the Pennsylvania calling efforts the weekends of – April 6th/7th, April 13th/14th, April 20th/21st. Stay tuned for locations.

Calls from Home
You can call Pennsylvania voters from home. Volunteers without accounts can sign-up now to use the online calling tool, and make calls from your own home today: http://my.barackobama.com/page/contact/splash/callpa .

Pennsylvania Local Campaign
If you have friends and family in Pennsylvania, please encourage them to get involved to help organize their local community by signing-up to join a Neighborhood Obama Team. These teams will lead our grassroots efforts. Sign up to join a Neighborhood Team at http://my.barackobama.com/page/content/pahome
The latest Rasmussen Reports telephone survey in Pennsylvania shows Hillary Clinton leading Barack Obama 51% to 38%. Those numbers are little changed from a week ago. More voter demographic information from the survey is available: http://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/politics/election_20082/2008_presidential_election/pennsylvania/pennsylvania_democratic_presidential_primary
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Obama Bounces Back - Latest Gallop Poll

Latest Gallop Poll Results Show Obama Takes the Lead
The first major national poll taken since Sen. Barack Obama's speech on race in America shows Obama and Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton in a virtual tie, reversing Obama's slide in the polls after the wide airing of controversial remarks made by his pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright.
"It's hard to disentangle the impact of (Obama's) speech," Gallup Poll Editor in Chief Frank Newport said Tuesday. The latest Gallup Poll, taken March 22, showed the Illinois senator with 47 percent of the national Democratic vote and Clinton with 46. On March 18 - the day of Obama's speech - after clips of Wright's sermons had permeated the media, Clinton held a seven-point lead over Obama.
Said Newport: "All we know is that he made a speech, and a couple of days later, he was tied with Hillary when a couple days before he was down seven points. It's not insignificant."
Obama's much-praised speech called on Americans to break the racial stalemate that has long divided the country, frankly addressing the prejudices and fears of both blacks and whites. But critics said Obama should have criticized his pastor and mentor more forcefully instead of saying he could no more disown Wright for his remarks than he could his own white grandmother.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/03/26/MN9NVQGO2.DTL
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The Delegate Count and Math – Obama Wins Iowa Again !
Senator Barack Obama saw his delegate lead over Sen. Hillary Clinton, continue to grow this week by another 10 delegates on Saturday when Iowa Democrats took the second step in picking national convention delegates.

Obama's gains at Saturday's county conventions came from successfully wooing Iowa Democratic Party activists who had previously backed former Sen. John Edwards, D-N.C., as well as picking up the support of some Iowans who had backed Clinton during the Jan. 3rd precinct caucuses.

As a result of Saturday's county conventions, Obama gained nine delegates, Clinton lost one, and Edwards lost eight delegates. Moving up by nine while Clinton moved down by one gave Obama a net gain of 10 over his rival for the Democratic presidential nomination.

This Week's Delegate Count:
+ Obama continues to lead the delegate count with 1,418 delegates to Clinton's 1,251.
+ Obama continues to lead the contest count – 30 Obama wins to 14 Clinton
+ Obama continues to lead the popular vote count (realclearpolitics.com) by 702,000 votes
+ (Obama: 13,278,372 votes or 49.5% vs. Clinton: 12,576,210 votes or 46.9%)

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Week of March 20, 2008 -- Three Great Speeches ... Race, Economy, Iraq War

Team / Area Leader - CD17 — Sat, 29 Mar 2008 16:01:47 EDT

Obama 08 Santa Cruz County
March 21st, 2008


FAYETTEVILLE, NC—On the fifth anniversary of the war in Iraq, Senator Barack Obama offered
a clear contrast between his foreign policy vision and that of John McCain, emphasizing the
need to end the war in order to confront the emerging national security challenges of the 21st Century.

HIGHLIGHTS

Three Major Speeches Confronting the Issues – Race, War, Economy
Obama Visibility at the California Democratic Party State Convention -- March 28th to 30th
Obama 08 Santa Cruz Delegate Open Forum and General Meeting – Tuesday, April 1st, 630pm
Obama 08 Fundraisers – April 6th and April 22nd
Phone Calls – Winning Voters in Pennsylvania – April 6th/7th, April 13th/14th, April 20th/21st
California District Level Delegate Election Meeting -- April 13th
Debate Watch Party (Pennsylvania) – April 16, 5pm
Pennsylvania Election Night Watch Party – April 22nd,
Delegate Math – Obama Adds More Delegates
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Three Major Speeches Confronting the Issues – Race, War, Economy
Yesterday, Barack laid out a clear plan to make America more secure and end the war in Iraq. Today, he laid out the economic costs of the war that Senator Clinton and Senator McCain supported.

In both speeches -- and in his speech on race in America earlier this week -- Barack Obama demonstrated that he is the candidate with the courage and judgment to tackle the challenges we face.
The choice Americans have in this election is clear -- and your support right now sends a message to those who support the status quo that it is time for a new kind of leadership. – David Plouffe, Campaign Manager, Obama for America

Barack Obama delivered a major speech this week on race in America and building a more perfect union. You should see it and read it for yourself. Please forward this message to everyone you know.
Here's the video and full text:
http://my.barackobama.com/hisownwords
http://my.barackobama.com/page/content/hisownwords
http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/03/18/obama.transcript/index.html

The speech made earlier this week by Barack Obama addressing the Iraq War and the Economy. Barack delivered a major speech on the 5th anniversary of the Iraq war today in Fayetteville, North Carolina. Barack outlines the clear contrast and gaps on Iraq between him and John McCain.
http://my.barackobama.com/page/community/post/samgrahamfelsen/gGBFcW
http://my.barackobama.com/page/community/post/samgrahamfelsen/gGBH8j

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California Democratic Party State Convention March 28-30 – Obama Visibility

Show Super-Delegates Visible Support for Barack Obama
Join with fellow California Obama Democrats to show our support for Obama 08 by increasing visibility at this event with Obama 08 signage.   We will join with our Obama 08 Bay Area teams to provide visibility support throughout the day with signage walking activities at the front of the San Jose Convention Center, 408 Almaden Blvd at the opening Friday, March 28, Saturday March 29 and Sunday March 30th.

Many have asked how we can influence Super-Delegates, this is your opportunity to join Obama supporters in mass to show Super-Delegates the significance of our support for Barack Obama. We are joining with the Obama Bay Area teams from San Jose, Palo Alto/Silicon Valley, Oakland, San Francisco and Marin.   Let's show our strength in numbers.

Visibility Walking Times:
- Friday, March 28th – 10am, 1130am, 430pm
- Saturday March 29th – 800am, 1130am, 430pm
- Sunday March 30th -- 800am, 1130am, 330pm

Meet Location:
We will meet at the UCFW Hall, 230 South Market Street, San Jose, CA 95123.
The Convention Center is within a block of the UCFW Hall. The Obama San Jose team has setup the UCFW Hall as the Obama HQ during the convention. The UCFW Hall is next to the Fairmont Hotel at 230 So. Market St.

Parking: Park at the Lightrail station or get validated at the 2nd. St/ San Carlos lot.

Equipment Required: Bring Your Obama Signs and any other creative form of visibility

RSVP for Saturday:   http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/organizing/4xqk

RSVP for Sunday:    http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/organizing/4xpc

Convention Information and schedule: http://www.cadem.org/site/c.jrLZK2PyHmF/b.3904469/
While the general session is only open to elected delegates to the state party, caucuses and hospitality suites are open to everyone.

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Obama 08 Santa Cruz General Meeting – April 1st, 630pm
Tuesday, April 1st starting at 6:30pm Zuniga's Restaurant

We welcome everyone and especially our volunteers to join us for the Obama 08 Santa Cruz County General Meeting being held on 6:30pm, Tuesday, April 1st at Zuniga's Restaurant.    Meet other volunteers and supporters and their campaign experiences. Hear about the campaign and our upcoming plans for the Pennsylvania primary and upcoming Obama events.

Open Forum to Hear from CD17 Delegate Candidates – April 1st, 630pm
At our general meeting on April 1st we are hosting a District Level Delegate Candidate Forum beginning at 6:30pm. Our goal is to provide an open forum for our campaign volunteers and supporters to hear from the CD17 District Level Delegate Candidates.

We welcomed all CD17 District Level Delegate Candidate to join us at this event. All CD17 Obama Delegate candidates listed on the California Democratic Party website are invited to participate. Candidates that cannot attend this meeting can appoint a person to speak in their place if they so desire. This is an open forum providing all delegate candidates an opportunity to speak and meet Obama Santa Cruz volunteers and supporters. We will summarize the Open Forum results in the Obama 08 Santa Cruz email newsletter.

Meeting Agenda and Format:
-          630pm to 700pm -- social greet and meet the candidates
-          700pm to 800pm – District Level Candidate Talks limited to 3 minutes per Candidate. Candidates that RSVP selected in random order (based on the California State Education random order alphabet)
-          800pm to 830pm -- Supporters sign the Candidate's Supporter List to acknowledge their support for candidates. Supporters can sign as many candidates Supporter Lists as they deem appropriate.
-          830pm to 900pm -- Obama Santa Cruz Volunteer announcements and events and organizing for Pennsylvania Calling

Meeting: Obama 08 Santa Cruz County General Meeting
Date/Time: 6:30pm, Tuesday, April 1st.
Location: Zuniga's Restaurant, 100 Aviation Way, Watsonville, CA, 95076.
Directions:   Take Highway 1 to Airport Blvd in Watsonville, proceed on Airport Blvd (east) toward Watsonville Airport and take a left on Aviation Way.   http://www.zunigas.net/

Candidate Information/Questions: Bill Malone at billmalone@pacbell.net or 831-420-1133.

RSVP:   http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/meeting/4xqb

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Obama 08 Fundraising Events - Sunday, April 6
Three fundraising events are taking place on Sunday, April 6th in Atherton, Marin, and San Francisco. Senator Barack Obama will be present at each of these private events for donors. The donation for these events ranges from $1,000 to $2,300 per person.   Donations contributed at these events to benefit Obama for America.

Contact: Please contact Angela Chesnut at 408-712-0193 / amc7@mail.com if you are interested in donating and attending one of these events.

The April 6th events are Northern California's major fundraiser to contribute the financial support required for the remaining primaries. To our knowledge there are no public events planned for this trip with the Senator's need to return to Pennsylvania. This trip is likely Barack's last to the Bay Area prior to the Democratic National Convention.

Obama 08 Santa Cruz Fundraising Event - April 22nd
Join the Obama 08 Santa Cruz team for a local fundraiser on April 22 starting at 5:30 pm. The event is being held at Hula's Island Grill and Tiki Bar. Come and watch the PA primary returns over mai tai's and light fare while you enjoy music provided local musician Terry Riversong.

Location: Hula's Island Grill and Tiki Bar, 221 Cathcart St. Santa Cruz, CA 95060

Donation: $35.00 or more much appreciated

RSVP: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/4rwd7 First 100 RSVP's only

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California District Level Delegate Election Meeting -- April 13th
Please mark your calendars to attend the District-Level Delegate Election Meeting on April 13 (3pm. Location: TBA somewhere in the Santa Cruz / Monterey area) where you, as a local Democrat, can vote for the 2 Barack Obama local delegates and 1 alternative that will represent CD17 at the Democratic National Convention in Denver, Colorado on August 25-28, 2008. There will be a separate meeting on this day for the 3 Clinton delegates. Location: TBA. We encourage everyone to make an appearance.
Currently, there are 20 District-Level Delegate candidates that have registered their interest to represent CD17 for Obama at the convention.
CD17 Delegate Candidates Registered: http://www.cadem.org/site/apps/kb/cs/contactsearch.asp?c=jrLZK2PyHmF&b=3919701&raw
To become a District-Level Delegate to the Democratic National Convention, you must fill-out and submit Form A and then be elected (most votes by gender) at your Congressional District (CD) Caucus held on April 13, 2008. There are 3 to 6 Delegates allocated in each of California's 53 Congressional Districts; 40 CDs will each get 1 Alternate Delegate. Wednesday, April 2 at 5:00 pm
For more info: http://www.cadem.org/site/c.jrLZK2PyHmF/b.3643973/
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Pennsylvania Debate Watch Party – April 16 starting at 5pm
Join Obama Santa Cruz supporters to watch the crucial Pennsylvania debate on the plasma high-definition big screen. You'll be able to see Hillary sweat - excuse me - sparkle. Our host Nick Lefevre will be serving refreshments. Humorous commentary is welcomed and encouraged.

The time for this debate's broadcast has not been announced. It will probably air live at 5:00pm local time. I will watch it live AND time delay it. Sign up here to be notified of more specifics.

Location: Nick Lefevre's New House, 345 Lee Street, Santa Cruz, CA 95060
Lee Street is immediately north of Hwy 1 and to the east of Ocean street. It is reached by taking Emeline under Hwy 1 and take an immediate right.

RSVP: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/4rwwd

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Pennsylvania Phone Banking
The next election is Pennsylvania – we'll need to work to close the gap – latest Rasmussen survey in Pennsylvania shows Hillary Clinton leading Barack Obama 51% to 38% with 11% undecided. There are 151 delegates at stake.

Santa Cruz Phone Banks
We will organize phone banks in Santa Cruz to support the Pennsylvania calling efforts the weekends of – April 6th/7th, April 13th/14th, April 20th/21st. Stay tuned for locations.

Calls from Home
You can call Pennsylvania voters from home. Volunteers without accounts can sign-up now to use the online calling tool, and make calls from your own home today: http://my.barackobama.com/page/contact/splash/callpa .

Pennsylvania Local Campaign
If you have friends and family in Pennsylvania, please encourage them to get involved to help organize their local community by signing-up to join a Neighborhood Obama Team. These teams will lead our grassroots efforts. Sign up to join a Neighborhood Team at http://my.barackobama.com/page/content/pahome
The latest Rasmussen Reports telephone survey in Pennsylvania shows Hillary Clinton leading Barack Obama 51% to 38%. Those numbers are little changed from a week ago. More voter demographic information from the survey is available: http://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/politics/election_20082/2008_presidential_election/pennsylvania/pennsylvania_democratic_presidential_primary
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The Delegate Count and Math – Obama Wins Iowa Again !
Senator Barack Obama saw his delegate lead over Sen. Hillary Clinton, continue to grow this week by another 10 delegates on Saturday when Iowa Democrats took the second step in picking national convention delegates.

Obama's gains at Saturday's county conventions came from successfully wooing Iowa Democratic Party activists who had previously backed former Sen. John Edwards, D-N.C., as well as picking up the support of some Iowans who had backed Clinton during the Jan. 3rd precinct caucuses.

As a result of Saturday's county conventions, Obama gained nine delegates, Clinton lost one, and Edwards lost eight delegates. Moving up by nine while Clinton moved down by one gave Obama a net gain of 10 over his rival for the Democratic presidential nomination.

This Week's Delegate Count:
+ Obama continues to lead the delegate count with 1,418 delegates to Clinton's 1,251.
+ Obama continues to lead the contest count – 30 Obama wins to 14 Clinton
+ Obama continues to lead the popular vote count (realclearpolitics.com) by 702,000 votes
+ (Obama: 13,278,372 votes or 49.5% vs. Clinton: 12,576,210 votes or 46.9%)

Weee of March 13 -- Delegate Count and PA Efforts

Team / Area Leader - CD17 — Sat, 29 Mar 2008 15:59:32 EDT

Obama 08 Santa Cruz County
March 13th, 2008

On the night before the big day in Mississippi, Barack fired up the crowd and made it clear that he's in this race to become President of the United States.

HIGHLIGHTS

Wyoming and Mississippi Results
California Democratic Party State Convention -- March 28th to 30th
Obama 08 Santa Cruz General Meeting – Tuesday, April 1st, 630pm
Phone Calls – Winning Voters in Pennsylvania – April 6th/7th, April 13th/14th, April 20th/21st
California District Level Delegate Election Meeting -- April 13th
Delegate Math – Obama Leads by 161 Delegates
Irish for Obama – St Patrick's on March 17th
Sing for Obama! Sing for America! Music Video on YouTube
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Winning Wyoming and Mississippi – 26 Delegates
Barack Obama won Wyoming on Saturday and won Mississippi on Tuesday by a large margin.   Between those two states, Obama picked up 26 delegates to erase the gains by Senator Clinton last Tuesday and add to our substantial lead in earned delegates. In total 26 more delegates resulting from these two states to Clinton's 19 delegates.    This brings the national total to 1,411 delegates supporting Obama vs. 1,250 Clinton.   Barack Obama has won 30 contests to Clinton's 14.   Also, the Obama vote count in the "big states" in fact rivals Clintons.
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California Democratic Party State Convention March 28-30 – Obama Visibility
Join with fellow California Obama Democrats to show our support for Obama 08 by increasing visibility at this event with Obama 08 signage.   We will be meeting in front of the San Jose Convention Center, 408 Almaden Blvd. at the opening Friday, March 28, Saturday March 29 and Sunday March 30th.

We will meet at 900 am each morning and assemble again during the lunch hour and at 5pm. We will join with our Obama 08 Bay Area teams to provide visibility support throughout the day with signage walking activities at the front of the San Jose Convention Center.

Location:
San Jose Convention Center
408 Almaden Blvd.,
San Jose, CA, 95010

RSVP for Saturday:   http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/organizing/4xqk

RSVP for Sunday:    http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/organizing/4xpc

Convention Information and schedule: http://www.cadem.org/site/c.jrLZK2PyHmF/b.3904469/
While the general session is only open to elected delegates to the state party, caucuses and hospitality suites are open to everyone.

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Obama 08 Santa Cruz General Meeting – April 1st
Tuesday, April 1st starting at 6:30pm Zuniga's Restaurant

We welcome everyone and especially our volunteers to join us for the Obama 08 Santa Cruz County General Meeting being held on 6:30pm, Tuesday, April 1st at Zuniga's Restaurant.    Meet other volunteers and supporters and their campaign experiences. Hear about the campaign and our upcoming plans for the Pennsylvania primary and upcoming Obama events.

Location: 100 Aviation Way, Watsonville, CA, 95076.

Directions:   Take Highway 1 to Airport Blvd in Watsonville, proceed on Airport Blvd (east) toward Watsonville Airport and take a left on Aviation Way.   http://www.zunigas.net/

RSVP:   http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/meeting/4xqb

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California District Level Delegate Election Meeting -- April 13th
Please mark your calendars to attend the District-Level Delegate Election Meeting on April 13 (3pm. Location: TBA somewhere in the Santa Cruz / Monterey area) where you, as a local Democrat, can vote for the 2 Barack Obama local delegates and 1 alternative that will represent CD17 at the Democratic National Convention in Denver, Colorado on August 25-28, 2008. There will be a separate meeting on this day for the 3 Clinton delegates. Location: TBA. We encourage everyone to make an appearance.
Currently, there are 20 District-Level Delegate candidates that have registered their interest to represent CD17 for Obama at the convention.
CD17 Delegate Candidates Registered: http://www.cadem.org/site/apps/kb/cs/contactsearch.asp?c=jrLZK2PyHmF&b=3919701&raw
To become a District-Level Delegate to the Democratic National Convention, you must fill-out and submit Form A and then be elected (most votes by gender) at your Congressional District (CD) Caucus held on April 13, 2008. There are 3 to 6 Delegates allocated in each of California's 53 Congressional Districts; 40 CDs will each get 1 Alternate Delegate. Wednesday, April 2 at 5:00 pm
For more info: http://www.cadem.org/site/c.jrLZK2PyHmF/b.3643973/
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Pennsylvania Phone Banking
The next election is Pennsylvania – we'll need to work to close the gap – latest Rasmussen survey in Pennsylvania shows Hillary Clinton leading Barack Obama 51% to 38% with 11% undecided. There are 151 delegates at stake.

Santa Cruz Phone Banks
We will organize phone banks in Santa Cruz to support the Pennsylvania calling efforts the weekends of – April 6th/7th, April 13th/14th, April 20th/21st. Stay tuned for locations.

Calls from Home
You can call Pennsylvania voters from home. Volunteers without accounts can sign-up now to use the online calling tool, and make calls from your own home today: http://my.barackobama.com/page/contact/splash/callpa .

Pennsylvania Local Campaign
If you have friends and family in Pennsylvania, please encourage them to get involved to help organize their local community by signing-up to join a Neighborhood Obama Team. These teams will lead our grassroots efforts. Sign up to join a Neighborhood Team at http://my.barackobama.com/page/content/pahome
The latest Rasmussen Reports telephone survey in Pennsylvania shows Hillary Clinton leading Barack Obama 51% to 38%. Those numbers are little changed from a week ago. More voter demographic information from the survey is available: http://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/politics/election_20082/2008_presidential_election/pennsylvania/pennsylvania_democratic_presidential_primary
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The Delegate Count and the Math – Obama Leads !
+ Obama continues to lead the delegate count with 1,411 delegates to Clinton's 1,250.
+ Obama continues to lead the contest count – 30 Obama wins to 14 Clinton
+ Obama continues to lead the popular vote count (realclearpolitics.com) by 702,000 votes
+ (Obama: 13,278,372 votes or 49.5% vs. Clinton: 12,576,210 votes or 46.9%)

Wyoming:    Obama Gain 2 Delegates
Obama won by a sizable margin and won 7 delegates to Clinton's 5.

Mississippi: Obama Gain 5 Delegates
Obama won by a sizable margin and won 19 delegates to Clinton's 14.

Texas Update: Obama Net Gain 5 Delegates -- 99 Obama delegates to 94 Clinton delegates
Clinton won the delegate count by 4 (65 to 61 source: barackobama.com).
Obama won the Caucus count by 9 delegates (38 Obama to 29 HRC).

The National Delegate Count and Sources – It's Barack Obama
CNN – Obama 131 delegate lead – 1,611 vs. 1,480 HRC with (no Texas caucus results in the CNN count)
http://www.cnn.com/ELECTION/2008/primaries/results/scorecard/#D

CBS – Obama 127 delegate lead -- 1,599 Obama vs. 1,472 HRC
http://election.cbsnews.com/campaign2008/d_delegateScorecard.shtml

NYTimes – Obama 112 delegate lead -- 1,529 Obama vs. 1,417 HRC
http://politics.nytimes.com/election-guide/2008/results/delegates/index.html

Washington Post – Obama 105 delegate lead – 1,602 Obama vs. 1,497 HRC
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/interactives/campaign08/primaries/

Realpolitics.com -- Obama 124 delegate lead -- 1,618 Obama vs. 1,494 HRC   http://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/2008/president/democratic_delegate_count.html

Big States.............
So, Hillary "won" the "big" states. Lets look at who won the popular vote as well as the delegate count!

Consider the "Big" States that have voted so far:
State . . . . . . . . . . Obama . . . . . . . .Clinton
California . . . . . . 2,126,000 . . . . . .2,553,000
Texas . . . . . . .. . . 1,358,000 . . . . . .1,459,000
New York. . . .. . . . 698,000 . .. . . . .1,003,000
Illinois. . . . . . . .. . 1,302,000 . . . . . . . .662,000
Ohio . . . . . . . . . . . .982,000. . . . . . 1,212,000
Georgia . . . . . . . . . .704,000. . . . . . . .330,000
New Jersey. . . . . . . 492,000 . . . . . . . .603,000
Virginia . . . . . . . . . 627,000 . . . . . . . .350,000
Washington . . . . . 354,000 . . . . . . . .316,000

Total . . . . . . . . . . .8,643,000 . . . . . . 8,487,000

Consider the "Big" States Delegate Counts:
State . . . . . . . . . . Obama . . . . . . . .Clinton
California …………………167……………….203
Texas ………………………..99………………….94
New York………..………..93………….…….139
Illinois…………………….. 104………………….49
Ohio ………..……………….66…………………..75
Georgia ………..………….60………..………..27
New Jersey………..…….48 ………..………..59
Virginia………..…………..54………..…………29
Washington………..……53 ………..………..25

Total………..……………..744………..………700

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"Irish for Obama" – St Patrick's Day March 17th
The perfect party gift for your local bartender or St Pat's party. Here are ready-to-print 8½ by 11 inch "Irish for Obama" signs. Print some out and tape them up in your car, in your house, give them to other supporters or use them as signs! Email your friends and family asking them to do the same!

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http://obamamedia.wordpress.com/2008/03/11/printable-irish-for-obama-signs/
http://obamamedia.wordpress.com/2008/03/11/printable-st-patricks-day-signs/

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Sing for Obama!, Sing for America! – 4,600 Viewers on YouTube
Here's the YouTube link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4q9nTfXh1eQ
Watch the video, rate it and comment on it. Forward this message far and wide to all your contacts, family and friends. Then ask them to forward it to their contacts, family and friends, etc... etc.... Use your online networks and blogs to get the word out! We want to get this video challenge to as many people as possible and get the YouTube ranking we need to get noticed.
Go to http://singforobama.org for more information about the video, to download music and lyrics, and to learn more about our challenge to you to post your own versions on YouTube. Thanks for your help!!!
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TEAM LEADERS – Contact Information
For local neighborhood information please contact your team leader. Event sign-ups are listed in the event section of this newsletter.

Santa Cruz
Nick LeFevre
nlefevre@pacbell.net

Pleasure Point / Live Oak
Dana Scruggs
dana@csfwlaw.com / 831-246-1572

Capitola
Bruce Abt
abt@jps.net / 831-247-0638

Mid-County
Gary Laskey
data.nation@earthlink.net / 831-476-5702
Dennis Connors
squenix@sbcglobal.net / 831-685-8553

San Lorenzo Valley/Scotts Valley
Deirdre Des Jardins
campaign@mbaysav.org / 831-423-6857

Watsonville
Luis Alejo –
laalejo@msn.com / 831-726-6032
Tory Beale
rtsg@got.net

UCSC Campus
Andrea Miguel
asanmiguel@studentsforbarackobama.com

Events
Angela Chesnut
Amc7@ / 408-712-0193

Communications
Don Morrison
donjmorrison@gmail.com / 408-483-8258

Real Clear Politics updates Popular Vote totals to include Estimates from 4 Caucus states

Thatcher — Sun, 16 Mar 2008 15:50:55 EDT

As of today, Real Clear Politics (RCP) is reporting the popular vote estimates in the four caucus states that have not released the actual voter breakdowns from the original caucuses.

Iowa, Nevada, Washington and Maine release total voter counts for their caucuses (or close estimates), but do not release what each candidate receives, just percentages of delegates chosen and/or hard caucus delegate counts.

I've been in email contact for about 1 week with the folks at RCP about trying to show a more accurate computation of the popular votes for Obama and Clinton (since Clinton is thinking about using an argument for Popular Vote to sway Super Delegates if she can get a win in PA and if she would win in a revote in Michigan and Florida primaries).

And now, today, RCP has published on their site their estimates!

http://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/2008/president/democratic_vote_count.html

Including these estimates - it now givs Obama an 813,747 lead over Clinton in the popular vote.

YES WE CAN!

Turning Glare Into Watts (New York Times)

Glenn Lieding — Mon, 10 Mar 2008 04:02:19 EDT

(Thanks to Birdalone for suggesting this article.)

"... the world appears to be on the verge of a boom in a little-known but promising type of solar power.

It is not the kind that features shiny panels bolted to the roofs of houses. This type involves covering acres of desert with mirrors that focus intense sunlight on a fluid, heating it enough to make steam. The steam turns a turbine and generates electricity.

The technology is not new, but it is suddenly in high demand. ..."

Turning Glare Into Watts (The New York Times):
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/06/business/06solar.html

See also:

Bill Foster wins Congress seat; physicist, solar thermal energy supporter
my.barackobama.com/page/community/post/glennlieding/gGBbxP
By Glenn Lieding - Mar 19th, 2008 at 10:00 pm EDT

BARACK OBAMA - ROAD TO THE WHITE HOUSE

WEBMASTER — Sat, 08 Mar 2008 11:23:04 EST

BARACK IS A UNIVERSAL WORD MEANING TO BRING A BLESSING.

ACCORDING TO HOSEA 4:6 WITH A VISION WE HAVE THE ETERNAL RIGHT TO SPIRITUAL LEADERSHIP, GUIDANCE and HOPE FOR A BETTER FUTURE.

In 1999, the Federal Communications Law Journal revealed how Bill and Hillary Clinton were put in a compromising position. see PLAYING THE NAME GAME - A GLIMPSE AT THE FUTURE / page 411

In this digital age we need courage, leadership and true vision. Obama has shown such in the proper use of political blogging. It is my belief that the message of HOPE spoken by Obama is a God given word and that the vision must not slip from the grasp of the American people or the other nations, peoples and tongues that support Barack Obama around the world.

This is a day the Lord has made. Barak Obama is on his way to the THE WHITE HOUSE . . . .

and I am humbly honored to finish this message with the closing remarks of the world famous CIVIL RIGHTS leader, DR MARTIN LUTHER KING, born 15 JAN 1929, who proclaimed to the world at the LINCOLN MEMORIAL on 28 AUG 1963 in his famous freedom speech:

I HAVE A DREAM

And so let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of New Hampshire.
Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New York.
Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of Pennsylvania.
Let freedom ring from the snow-capped Rockies of Colorado.
Let freedom ring from the curvaceous slopes of California.
But not only that: Let freedom ring from Stone Mountain of Georgia.
Let freedom ring from Lookout Mountain of Tennessee.
Let freedom ring from every hill and molehill of Mississippi.
From every mountainside, let freedom ring.
And when this happens, when we allow freedom to ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual:
Free at last! Free at last! Thank God Almighty, we are free at last!

THAT DAY IS HERE - YOU ARE FREE

UPDATE: OBAMA MAKES HISTORY as FIRST BLACK PRESIDENT and YES HE DID

HONOR PRESIDENT ABRAHAM LINCOLN 1861-1865

Make One Million Calls

Sarah Ramey — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 17:48:50 EST

The wonderful thing about this campaign is: you can set the bar high.

One million donors? No problem.

A politics of hope after years of cynicism? Yes please.

One million calls to voters in Texas, Ohio, Rhode Island and Vermont?

Yes we can:

Please join thousands of other volunteers who are picking up the phone and reaching out to voters all over the country. That's how this movement has been built -- one person, one conversation at a time. This is your chance to be a part of history.

And speaking of historic, here are a few more of the million donors to this campaign...

Meet Michelle and Vic from California, with their three children Dakota, Kai and Emma:

We are proud to be part of the 1,000,000! My husband is a retired Navy Officer and veteran of the Iraq war. Just as important -- this is his first time supporting a Presidential candidate and his first year EVER as a registered voter! He never believed in the political election process, that his vote would count or that his voice would be heard. Barack Obama changed that. He proudly wears his Obama pin to work, engages his peers at the hospital in conversation about him, is buying shirts and donating to the campaign -- something I never dreamed he would do. Thank you, Barack, for bringing hope to our home, too!

And please meet Carolyn in Nevada:

I was one of the "Greeters" for Barack's visit to Henderson on Jan. 16th (I was a precinct captain for Barack Obama and a caucus chair at the Jan 19th caucus).
As a member of the Baby Boom generation I remember how it was when people cared about a cause.
I also remember how hopeful we were about a future of not only peace and prosperity, but a world where everyone in this country would be equal an live in one united country.
Well despite some gains, as far as I can see we still have many of the same problems as we did back then.
What Barack Obama has done has gotten people to care again. He has gotten people to believe again. He has gotten people to hope again. More importantly, he has gotten people of all ages, genders, races and cultures to unite.
He has shown by his past experience that he can get legislators to unite as well to pass legislation that might have otherwise languished and died.
...He has the wisdom to lead -- he opposed the Iraq war from the beginning -- and the vision and the intelligence to come up with real solutions to real problems. He is a man of character and real integrity and makes me proud to be an American.

Now we want to hear the stories of the thousands of volunteers making calls to voters right now -- send us a short statement of why you support Barack Obama, why you make calls, and a digital photo to Blog@BarackObama.com so we can show this community what the phonebanking movement looks like!

Let's make some calls.

Clark County Nevada Convention

Ruth in Vegas — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 00:22:55 EST

Many of you have heard that there was a problem with the Clark County Convention in Las Vegas on Saturday. I received this email to explain what happened and a link to a youtube video.

Here is a video of our meeting with campaign surrogates and Chairs... I believe we did the right thing yesterday. My major concern about yesterday was when i saw those unsecured voting boxes floating around the room collecting our votes...(big red flag)

I must say that we made the right decision to postpone the voting and I will also add what a great turn out.

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

Clark County (Nevada) Democratic Convention

thebiggestdog — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 19:31:07 EST

I am an elected delegate for Obama (precinct 1404). Yesterday's Clark County Democratic Convention was a lot of things: exhilirating, confusing, uplifting, disappointing and tiring, to name a few.

Although it was disheartening that we were ultimately unable to do what we came to do - elect Obama delegates to the Nevada state convention - I am personally glad the party finally decided to start over.

From the very beginning, it was obvious this was not properly organized. I don't understand why I, as an elected delegate, and preregistered by mail to boot, was in a line with alternates, guests, etc. I was told we would be seated by precinct- then there was open seating on the convention floor.

The most disturbing thing I observed happened during the first alignment. Convention staff members starting milling through the hall and collecting our votes in hand-carried cardboard boxes. There was no control, in my opinion, of this voting process. I felt compelled to make sure I at least cast my vote is a box carried by someone weraing an Obama shirt! Of course, anyone can wear a shirt... the whole thing was scary.

A woman seated next to me saw a Hillary supporter carry ballot boxes into the restroom! With this utter lack of control, how could we have had in confidence in that vote? I wish I wasn't so suspicious, but we all saw the dirty tactics that marred our caucuses... now the same group of county Democratic leaders (most of them Hillary supporters) running the chaos of this convention makes me wonder if the confusion is part of someone's plan.

Bottom line: I'll go back as many times as I need to to vote for Obama. PLEASE! help ensure we have a solid, controlled vote the next time. I'm having trouble convincing undecideds Democrats are capable of running the nation when some of us can't even run a fair conventiion!

I WANNA LEARN SPANISH

Julie Hensley — Tue, 19 Feb 2008 00:36:36 EST

I've been wanting to learn Spanish for awhile (have an interest in perhaps working in Immigration Law once I pass the bar) and this campaign has only upset me as I saw the pleas for Spanish speakers to step up and help with calls. Oh, I've called and I've called in Texas where I reached 10 people in a row only to realize my Spanish and their English wouldn't get the job done!

I just ordered a Spanish course on CD.. and while I doubt I'll be able to get it and learn it fast enough to help with Texas. I will be ready if another state comes up where it's an issue and I'll also be ready to jump in and help (to some minimal Spanish speaking degree) during the ELECTION.

Whistle While You Work...

Julie Hensley — Mon, 18 Feb 2008 21:33:24 EST

I dunno who is scared but is SOMEONE ever scared... would you please look at this (ok, if you are depressed about something don't cause it's AMAZING how stupid it is) BUT if you can look at it and read it and watch it with one thing in mind.

What does someone have to be feeling to find this offensive?

Michelle Obama had an appearance today.. and stumbled. Yes folks, it's a fact. And the news media was on it! They can sniff out a story. This one is a stinker. I can only imagine the editor who said - Yea boys, we got our front page taken care of!-

So think about how desperate has to be to find something wrong with the picture of the Obamas in order to have an issue with this. Then you can only be gratified in the sense that this is the best they got??

And if any apology is due it is to South Carolina...but I think it would not come as a surprise to them that they have a very flowing, smooth accent that is inclined to causing one to make their vowels softer.

http://embeds.blogs.foxnews.com/2008/01/18/michelle-obamas-faux-pas/#comment-28988

I Can't Believe It, I Actually Like a Politician.

Timothy O'Neill — Mon, 28 Jan 2008 05:23:36 EST

I didn't get excited about Barack Obama at first. As a matter of fact, I figured he was a just another politician—ready to pander to the interests of Illinois agribusiness giants, all flash, and no substance. Yet every time I've heard the man speak, (I can barely bring myself to admit it) I've been inspired. To inspire someone as cynical and iconoclastic as I am is no small task. And it's no small matter that Obama opposed the invasion of Iraq from the very beginning. I don't agree with every word that comes out of the man's mouth, but for someone with real potential to become the next President of the United States of America, he's pretty fantastic. This isn't just a post-Bush "anyone but Dubya" head rush. Nor is it a fairy tale. Obama has shown us twice now that he can win. He won in an overwhelmingly white state (Iowa) and a majority black state (South Carolina). And the Clintons have been behaving terribly (lying a lot!) in this campaign. It's no wonder that Caroline Kennedy (JFK's daughter) and Sen. Edward Kennedy (JFK's brother) have decided to endorse Obama. And now I'm jumping on the bandwagon, at least publicly. I've been liking Barack Obama a little more each time I've heard him speak.

Even in New Hampshire, a state where most residents haven't seen a black man since Family Matters went off the air, Hillary Clinton only beat Obama by two measly percentage points. In Nevada, Clinton's popular vote win still netted her one less delegate than Obama—and delegates are what matter. On top of all that, on Saturday, Obama completely pwn3d Clinton in the South Carolina Democratic primary. Yes, that sealed the deal, and inspired me to write this post. Let's get ready for Super Tuesday.

So I just made my second contribution to his campaign. It was only $25, but hey. Every little bit helps. And if a politician (even one with a funny name) can convince a guy like me to donate to his campaign, he may just have a shot at winning this thing. I set up a personal fundraising goal on his website, so if you're considering donating, I urge you to donate here.

Truth, Politics and the American Way

New York for Obama — Sat, 26 Jan 2008 16:55:02 EST

(Originally written on January 18th at newyorkforobama.org)
In the Nevada debate the candidates were asked what is you greatest weakness. Senator Edwards stated that he cares too much; Senator Clinton stated that she was impatient; and Senator Obama gave the only truthful answer and stated that he wasn’t the most organized. I find it disturbing that Senator Edwards and Clinton could not be frank with American public on such straightforward question. What’s happens the day they have to face the American public on issues dealing with our security or economy? How can I trust anything they have to say from this point forward? This was an opportunity to just give a plain simple honest answer and trust that the voters are smart enough to put it in the right context.

Obama Camp's Response to Clinton Antics in Nevada

Anton — Sat, 26 Jan 2008 11:00:45 EST

Check out the following websites:

1. Obama Campaign counsel's letter to Nevada Democratic Chair on the Clinton Machine's attempts to throw the caucus: (copy and past website address if link fails to work)

http://www.time-blog.com/swampland/NV001.PDF

2. The Clinton camp's response:

http://marcambinder.theatlantic.com/NV%20State%20Letter%20(2)%201%2023%2008.pdf

3. This is a DailyKos article on the above dispute:

http://www.dailydos.com/story/2008/1/23/164530/670/481/441908

SC Diary: Vote For Hope

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

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

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

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

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

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

Did Clinton really overhear...in Nevada?

Connie — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 23:39:26 EST

As usual, Jon Stewart asked the right question:

Did Bill Clinton and Chelsea really "overhear" a conversation between union members in Nevada?

http://www.thedailyshow.com/video/index.jhtml?videoId=148079

Can we let such tactics stay in Vegas?

The Clintons Are Getting Scarier

Mayank — Mon, 21 Jan 2008 15:28:01 EST

Barack did a great job of responding to Bill Clinton's allegations of voter coercion in Nevada in this video. The word he chose to describe the former President's activity, "troubling," is a perfect descriptor in that it relates not only that Bill's acting like an ass, but that we all expected better...at least, I did. Troubling, disappointing, disturbing.

What really sickened me about the video above is the Clinton Campaign's response at the end. If you can't come up with a counterargument, attack the speaker. It's a childish tactic, but unfortunately these tactics are so often effective.

Student Rewind: Lending a Helping Hand

Marc R. Peters — Mon, 21 Jan 2008 14:22:03 EST

Saturday, January 19 was an impressive day in South Carolina for the Students for Barack Obama program. On the 27,000-strong campus of the University of South Carolina, more than 125 hard-charging students spent the afternoon making phone calls to young voters across the state, encouraging them to get out and vote for Barack Obama. Here’s the scene from USC, where the Gamecocks for Obama were joined by students from the Georgia colleges of Clark Atlanta, Morehouse, Spellman, organized by our Georgia Students for Barack Obama and our national HBCU Student program. They used their cell phones to make thousands of calls in one afternoon. Many of these students then spent Sunday morning visiting South Carolina churches on behalf of the campaign.

Students from California headed down to Nevada to canvass and organize before the caucus and also to lend a helping hand on the day of the caucus.

In Other News

Arizona State University's SFBO chapter gets noticed by AZCentral.com.

For more on Students for Barack Obama visit Students.BarackObama.com

Delegate Math: Who Won Nevada?

Pat Kohler — Mon, 21 Jan 2008 02:09:22 EST

This is in response to an article from the Washington Post titled 'Delegate Math: Who Won Nevada?'.

The reason why people in the United States have no faith in the voting process, is that elite politicians have the opportunity to choose the person who will run for president in this country. After that, a system that allows the majority vote to not actually matter due an old and failed system of appropriating Electoral votes based on population that can be won by a simple majority in each state.

Miraculously, people are so fed up with the current government that they are willing to go out and participate in primaries and caucuses. If the Clinton's and the Nevada Democratic Party can not let the system that voters thought they were voting for work, then what is the point of voting? Why should I caucus on February 5th, if it does not really matter anyway? It is probably the only time I will be able actually have a vote in how this country is run.

Here in Kansas, it is generally going to the Republicans. A simple majority win gives the candidate the electoral votes. At least the delegate system that I, and probably many people, thought was nice, in that at least the delegates were appropriated by the percentage of votes that the candidate won.

Now that I know that I can not even get that in choosing a candidate in the political party that is most aligned with my views of how the country should run, I may not even caucus.

All I want is a simple majority to say who wins and who loses. Not in just the caucuses and primaries, but also in the National Election coming on November 4th.

Why take the power away from the people? Before folks may not have been able to go to see all the candidates, and that made the Electoral College system justified. In this century we have the media, the internet, telephones, automobiles, airplanes, and whatever else people may use to make an informed decision about a candidate.

In some ways the primary and caucus system works in that it has in some part weeded out some candidates. Yet, here we are with Nevada Democratic Party and the Clinton campaign out there trying to play down the fact that even though Clinton won the majority, she lost where it supposedly counted, with the delegates. But no. A convention on April 19th determines the actual delegates appropriated to the candidates. They are not really appropriated by proportion of votes, but by people in the party who will choose who they feel should be candidate.

Hullabaloo from Digby's Blog

Chip Roberson in Sonoma, CA — Mon, 21 Jan 2008 00:06:11 EST

Here is a great first-hand recounting and analysis of some of the Nevada caucus events:

http://digbysblog.blogspot.com/2008/01/las-vegas-and-its-discontents-by-dday.html

It seems very even-handed and makes a compelling case for cooler heads to prevail. I think everyone should read it. For me, the leason for me is that organization and preparedness is fundamental.

Proud of Obama in Nevada

thebiggestdog — Sun, 20 Jan 2008 17:30:14 EST

It was a great privilege to caucus for Senator Obama in Henderson on January 19th. Not only was I proud of how well he did thoughout our state, I was particularly proud of the way his supporters behaved when confronted by a larger Hillary representation in our precinct.

On the news yesterday, they kept repeating the "controversy" over some remarks Senator Obama made about Ronald Reagan. This demonstrates very clearly why I am supporting him!!!! Have we really come to a place in our politics where even the hint of praise for a Republican is cause for the current "democratic machine" to chastise Senator Obama? He really is above and so far beyond all that!! His vision of hope for the future, not settling petty political scores of the past, is what will move this country forward!

RoboCall in Nevada trashes Barack Hussein Obama

Chip Roberson in Sonoma, CA — Sun, 20 Jan 2008 16:36:38 EST

This is a story in Politico about a very disappointing message that was going out to Nevada voters before the Nevada caucus:

http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/0108/Robocall_trashes_Barack_Hussein_Obama.html

As a good friend, who sent me the link said, "Nice, huh? With Democrats like these, who needs Republicans?"

2008-Primaries and Caucuses -Delegate Count

Troy from Boston, MA — Sun, 20 Jan 2008 02:42:41 EST

Some information for anyone interested.

Troy

MSNBC
National overview- 2008 Primary - Delegates

Link

NYTIMES
The Primary Season: 2008 Democratic Calendar

Link

http://politics.nytimes.com/el ection-guide/2008/results/dele gates/index.html

CNN Election Center 2008-Primaries and Caucuses
Link

Obama may have been the real winner in Nevada

Jason — Sun, 20 Jan 2008 00:22:06 EST

Now before you ask "How is this possible?" Consider this article in The Nation that was publish a few hours ago that states that Barack Obama won the most of Nevada's delegates. (Thanks to Ian M. for pointing that out.)

The news media strikes out again!

Delegate for Delegate, Obama Is Still Ahead of The Clintons

OLU OGUIBE — Sun, 20 Jan 2008 00:19:52 EST

There is a little known fact among voters nationwide, even among volunteers on the Obama Campaign. And that fact is that even after the announced results in New Hampshire and most recently Nevada, Senator Obama is still ahead of Hillary Clinton in terms of delegates won to the Democratc National Convention. Voters out there who may be discouraged by thinking that Senator Obama may not be able to win the primaries ought to know this fact. In terms of delegates won, Obama is in fact still the front-runner in this race. The senator himself and the campaign ought to put that word out.

From his win in the Iowa Caucuses Senator Obama earned 16 delegates to the national convention as opposed to Hillary Clinton's 15.

In New Hampshire, despite coming a few percentage points behind Clinton in the annoucend polls, Senator Obama still gained the same number of elected delegates as Hillary Clinton, 9. That meant that Senator Obama left New Hampshire still ahead of Clinton regarding elected delegates won for the national convention: 25 delegates to her 24. That is probably why Bill Clinton felt so frustrated that he decided to support suppressing the casino workers' vote in Nevada.

And now, even after the Nevada results, again Senator Obama has come out with more delegates won in Nevada than Hillary Clinton, 13 delegates to her 12, giving him a total of 38 delegates won in the caucuses so far to her 36.

The Clintons must be super-frustrated and uber-furious! They will most probably get nastier than ever. But more importantly, it is critical that Obama supporters know that we haven't lost this race; quite the contrary, the campaign is in fact still ahead.

This is critical because if people begin to perceive the campaign as a flagging one without chances of success, many will turn away, and many more may feel disappointed and despondent enough to stay home and not bother going to the polls. This would hurt.

On the other hand, I believe that if enough people in the critical states remaining know that this is the case, that is, that the Obama campaign is in fact still ahead, it will give them encouragement to stay on and see the battle through, rather than lose courage.

So, I say, let's get out the word. Let the Senator mention this on national television on Monday during the debates. It will re-energize supporters and undecided voters who now need encouragement more than ever. There is no reason to be shy of this fact. In fact, to leave supporters and others with the impression that the campaign is on a losing trail does more harm and that harm is incremental and cumulative.

Now is the time to put this fact to good use and re-propel the national movement to further victories.

I notice that other list members have commented on this. I can only add that those who have the ear of the Senator and the Chief Campaign Strategist should put it to them soon that this message ought to become part of the stump speeches and press as quickly as possible. Perceptions matter, and no place would they matter more than in South Carolina where many voters are still watching to see whether it is worth their while throwing their support and caucus vote behind Obama or whether things remain the way they've always been, i.e., no faint chance for a Black candidate. If you have a line to the Senator, get the word to him. It will be worth it.

By the way, we must do better in getting people to reject President Clinton's dirty and divisive role in this race. It is time to make it a topic; to ask, why does Bill Clinton think that he has a duty to soil the Democratic primaries process with his lying and mud-slinging politics of the past? Why does he think that it is proper that he should be the first ever ex-President to actively campaign against a candidate, and to do so with such viciousness and hatred? It is a legitimate question to pose to the American people.

Very Important request re Nevada Caucus

Peace Now - Roseville, CA — Sat, 19 Jan 2008 23:57:52 EST

Dear Friends,

---------

This is off the main site. At the end of Barack Obama's statement is an important request from Obama campaign manager David Plouffe asking for your feedback!!!!!!

Much Love.

---------

Obama Campaign Statements on Nevada CaucusesLas Vegas, NV | January 19, 2008

Las Vegas, NV- The Obama campaign released the following statement from Barack Obama:

"We're proud of the campaign we ran in Nevada. We came from over twenty-five points behind to win more national convention delegates than Hillary Clinton because we performed well all across the state, including rural areas where Democrats have traditionally struggled. The reason is because tens of thousands of Nevadans came out to say that they're tired of business-as-usual in Washington and ready for a President who can bring this country together, take on the lobbyists and special interests, and end the politics of saying and doing whatever it takes to win an election. It is the kind of politics that feeds our cynicism and distracts us from taking on the real challenges facing America - an economy that's left working families struggling, a broken health care system, and a war in Iraq that must end.

"We ran an honest, uplifting campaign in Nevada that focused on the real problems Americans are facing, a campaign that appealed to people's hopes instead of their fears. That's the campaign we'll take to South Carolina and across America in the weeks to come, and that's how we will truly bring about the change this country is hungry for."

The Obama campaign released the following statement from Obama campaign manager David Plouffe:

"We currently have reports of over 200 separate incidents of trouble at caucus sites, including doors being closed up to thirty minutes early, registration forms running out so people were turned away, and ID being requested and checked in a non-uniform fashion. This is in addition to the Clinton campaign's efforts to confuse voters and call into question the at-large caucus sites which clearly had an affect on turnout at these locations. These kinds of Clinton campaign tactics were part of an entire week's worth of false, divisive, attacks designed to mislead caucus-goers and discredit the caucus itself.

"We will investigate all of these thoroughly and would encourage anyone who had concern about actions at the caucus sites to call (866) 675-2008."