This is going to be a 2-part and evolving dialogue about the outreach strategy of Obama 2012. Although this campaign has been highly effective at rapid response and opposition research on women's issues, Mitt's tax returns and other hot topics, is a fundraising juggernaut and has an unprecedented field ground game we still need to take a step back to see the FOREST beyond all these impressive trees. The "big picture" is the forest lacks deep roots in MESSAGE and ENGAGEMENT through the mediums chosen to disseminate that message which are the keys to any communications initiative.
FULL DEBATE:
http://www.youtube.com/...
(CBS Poll: Obama wins Debate http://thebea.st/...)
Obama hit a home run on engaging the audience, social issues and Mitt's tax plan but repetition and clarity is needed on the economy. This is obviously the focus of the country and GOP talking points for moderate undecideds as Mitt Romney spent a lot time discussing sad economic statistics and what Obama promised but it has taken 3 1/2 years to clean up the Republican economic mess and this is what we have accomplished way beyond saving the auto industry.
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5 Key Economic Facts Under Barack Obama as President:
#1 WE DOUBLED THE VALUE OF THE STOCK MARKET:
The Dow Jones Average has returned to 2008 levels (13,000+ from 6,500) which has saved folks in 401Ks and other investments of people in all income levels BILLIONS of dollars.
#2 WE CREATED 5 MILLION PRIVATE SECTOR JOBS IN LAST 31 MONTHS:
Despite being stuck with over 4 million lost through his first year (800K in the first month) the unemployment rate is back to the level when he became President:
http://www.examiner.com/...
(with 4-Year Graph)
#3 WALL STREET REFORM & JOB CREATION MEASURES HAVE BEEN REJECTED BY “TEA PARTY” GOP CONGRESS:
The President has tried to prevent another Great Recession with new regulations that end "Too Big Too Fail" banks and creating the Consumer Financial Protection Agency while offering bills like the the 2011 Americans Jobs Act with billions of dollars of middle class tax cuts, incentives to hire veterans and spend on long-term investments like teachers and infrastructure that the GOP Congress rejected over and over since taking over in 2011.
#4 THE DEFICIT HAS BEEN REDUCED BUT NOT AT THE EXPENSE OF REDUCING ECONOMIC GROWTH:
Under emergency financial situations the government is the only entity that can afford to spend money to keep the economy alive, as it had to do with the bank bailout (which mostly is paid back) and STIMULUS (which mostly was tax cuts and aid to states) to save us from the Great Recession. Regardless, federal government spending is at the lowest level since Dwight Eisenhower. Yet GOP-led efforts almost derailed deficit-reducing Health Care Reform and caused over 600,000+ layoffs of public servants like teachers and fire fighters which hurts the growth of the economy.
#5 TAX RATES ARE AT HISTORIC LOWS AND ITS TIME FOR THE RICH TO PAY THEIR FAIR SHARE:
President Obama not only renewed the Bush middle class tax cuts, he instituted the Payroll Tax Cut as well which benefits working people the most because you only pay into Social Security for your first $87,000 of salary. Obama would like to allow the Bush tax cuts on people making $250,000 to return to Clinton-era levels....when we created 23 MILLION JOBS.
The bottom line of why this “Middle-Out” approach is better than “Trickle-Down” from the rich:
The best way to grow the economy is through DEMAND leading SUPPLY. If the government has $6,000 of tax cutting/spending to offer 10 people what do you think creates more jobs....giving one of them $6,000 dollars worth of tax cuts or benefits so they can buy one iPad and put the rest in the bank for more SUPPLY to offer companies or giving all 10 of them enough to get an iPad. Then all $6,000 goes to Apple which increased DEMAND 900% and needs to hire more workers to create more SUPPLY?
Mitt’s “Tricke Down” plan to further cut rates on the rich will only balloon the deficit and causes massive cuts in spending that hurt the Middle Class (including turning Medicare into a voucher) while reducing exemptions and deductions that would cost the average middle class family about $2,000 per year:
http://www.politifact.com/...
And as President Obama said, from economic issues (tax cuts) to social issues (Medicare, immigration, Planned Parenthood) to even foreign policy issues (hostility to peaceful solutions with Iran and people like muslims or even our closest ally Great Britain at the Olympics) the fact remains that “Tea Party”-pandering Mitt Romney would be MORE EXTREME THAN GEORGE W. BUSH.
President Obama needs to make the case or the case will make HIM. Even if his base needs this message so they increase their confidence and are inspired to help spread that confidence to other voters.
Right now, the base is too focused on shiny objects like Binders and Big Bird....and the economic message above is not getting hammered home enough by the President and his grassroots supporters.
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What other economic points or sourcing are we missing? Email me at forwardprogressive@gmail.com and follow me at http://www.twitter.com/... or http://www.facebook.com/....
ABOUT "FWDPROGRESS" AUTHOR:
Jim McBride is President of Network For Progress (http://www.networkforprogress.com), host of “1st Thursday” Progress Parties and other social and media-savvy Movement-building communications and outreach activities in the VA/DC/MD-metro area with a network of over 10,000 supporters.
He has spent over twenty years working in Communications, from radio to TV to public relations from the high-tech sector (Checkpoint Software, OfficeDepot.com) to being the first media staffer hired at the International Association of Fire Fighters after 9/11 who managed Fire Fighters for Kerry press outreach.
McBride has been an active grassroots acitvist since 2004, previously serving as President of the Arlington Young Democrats (Virginia Young Democrats’ 2007 Club of the Year), Vice Chair of Precinct Operations for Arlington Democrats, Virginia for Obama Volunteer Database Coordinator (2008 Primary), Founder of Generation Webb and the Generation Obama-DC community he still engages as one of the DNC’s top Gen44 young professional fundraisers for the Obama Victory Fund.