SEE RELATED:
Barack Obama’s campaign manager David Plouffe solicits donations today by warning the Republicans and John McCain are “bragging about” having more money than the Democrats. He outlines Team Obama’s strategy in this Web video — the notoriously shy official’s second to supporters in the last month — complete with bar graphs.
Here’s his note to supporters:
The McCain campaign is bragging that they are out-raising and out-spending us.
They had their best month ever in June, and combined with the Republican National Committee, they now have more than $95 million in cash on hand.
With this massive fundraising effort, they claim they’ve been out-spending us 3-to-1 on TV ads over the past couple months.
Unfortunately, when it comes to collecting giant checks from Washington lobbyists and special interest PACs, McCain and the RNC do have a lot to brag about.
They are raking in huge donations from those who want to keep Washington just the way it is. And they are pulling ahead in the money race.
To compete against these big money interests in all 50 states, this campaign is relying on you.
We need to respond to the McCain campaign and show them how presidential campaigns should be funded — by ordinary people like you giving only what you can afford.
I recorded a short video in my office about what we are up against and why now is the time to step up and make your first donation.
Watch the video and make a donation of $25 now:
https://donate.barackobama.com/stepup
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It’s going to take unprecedented resources and organization to compete against this broken, entrenched system.
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Together, we have already accomplished so much in this campaign. But we cannot take it for granted.
This grassroots movement won’t just happen on its own. It’s up to you to make it happen.
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Thanks,
David Plouffe
Campaign Manager
Obama for America
Plouffe — and his love of the ‘f’ word — make a cameo in this week’s issue of Rolling Stone.
The glowing Jann Wenner Obama interview and grinning photo of Obama attracted most of the attention from the press, but Tim Dickinson’s piece on “Obama’s Brain Trust” is well worth the read.
A key paragraph that no doubt irritates Team Clinton:
The drama-free approach proved to be in sharp contrast to the Clinton campaign, which was beset by leaks and infighting among factions of overbearing strategists (Mark Penn), know-it-all advisers (Harold Ickes), egotistical flacks (Howard Wolfson) and self-important campaign managers (Patti Solis Doyle) who battled noisily — and publicly — over message, budget, access to the candidate and prestige. From Day One, Obama was determined that his campaign would be different. In the winter of 2007, when senior staffers gathered for one of their first meetings in Chicago, the candidate laid out his expectation. “Most campaigns are chaotic,” Obama told them. “I want a campaign that is buttoned up like a business. If people have problems, they work it out. It’s not a ‘we’re gonna work this out on page 2 of The Washington Post.’ “
Another great detail:
The Obama campaign office occupies the entire 11th floor of a high-rise. You would expect the campaign manager’s office to be an extravagant corner-window affair, or at least afford a righteous panorama of the Chicago River. But David Plouffe’s office is a nondescript glass-enclosed box with a sh*tty view. Unlike Axelrod’s suite across town, there’s nothing on the walls but a map of the country divided by media markets and a sheet of white poster paper with a cryptic series of numbers scrawled in Sharpie.
Finally, while I’m mentioning excellent political stories, check out Virginia reporter Gary Emerling’s detailed look at Gov. Tim Kaine, long a close friend of Obama.
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2008/jul/13/kaine-states-last-hope-for-role-in-obama-ticket/
— Christina Bellantoni, national political reporter,
The Washington Times
Bookmark my blog at
http://www.washingtontimes.com/weblogs/bellantoni
and visit my YouTube page at
http://youtube.com/bellantoniwashtimes
