I was out yesterday doing my door to door canvassing in Jersey, when I was presented with something that Im sure people like me, canvassing for Obama, have met up wth before. The most vocal, though rarely visible, PUMA supporter. Normally you can still smell them a mile away by the still posted Hillary 08 lawn signs, Obama lawn signs crossed out, or the now fashionable Women for McCain lawn sign. This house had neither. Just a plain lawn, no adornments. Follow me, below the fold for more
There has been a lot written in recent weeks about the "ground game" in this election campaign and its potential importance in key November races.
I have been canvassing for Darcy Burner in the East side suburbs of Seattle for the past two weeks. Today was primary day in Washington state. With our new "top two" primary system, the candidates (Democrat and Republican) were running directly against each other even in the primary. If there were two strong Democrats running in one district, it would be possible to have them push the Republican off the November ballot.
Well, we just had a very interesting visit that fired me up a bit. We're a gay couple who are about to get married soon, so the two visitors that knocked on our door this morning were more than a little caught off guard when I opened the door with my Obama shirt on & things got interesting...
Some of you came through, yay! So my bragging about our community here wasn't in vain ;-)
We could still use some more help, so if you or someone you know can spare space for a weary campaigner to rest, please email me at my profile and I'll put you in touch with the team leader.
Thanks for your help so far. Over the fold, the rest of the diary is from Melodi, our team leader... I'm posting this as her thank you.
I live in Illinois, but my father has a summer home in western Michigan about 20 miles north of Muskegon. Before I got up there, I was interested in helping out the Obama campaign up there. I was talking with my sister, who was up there as well, and she said that she wanted to help too when I got there. This was surprising since my sister has never been very interested in politics and certainly not interested about a presidential candidate as long as I remember. BTW, I'm 43 years old so my memory goes back to at least Nixon-McGovern in 1972. Needless to say, I was happy to hear about her interest, so I contacted the campaign at their local office in Muskegon Heights to see what we could do.
I'm used to canvassing door-to-door, so I was up for doing that and again I was surprised when my sister said she was willing to do that too. For someone who has not been involved in politics to not only volunteer, but also have the nerve to go door-to-door, was truly astonishing and obviously a testament to Barack Obama and his campaign that inspired her to do this.
A neighbor and I were out canvassing our neighborhood tonight, in the first blast into our precinct since the primaries. I am tired and wanted to get to sleep, but this is bothering me so much that I thought perhaps I could get some help, via all of the experience represented at here at DailyKos.
I live in a low-income area of a relatively liberal Oregon town. I believe we are still considered a swing state, as Obama's majority may be well under 10%. It is polling under 7% right now, and with all the smears, it could get close.
So, now I come across people who are too progressive to vote for Obama, and a couple of mellow but firm republicans, and I can't sleep. I don't know what to say to convince them to help us to get this thing done. I watched the video about McCain promising more wars, and I can't sleep without asking for your help. More below...
One week ago, when the McCain attacks were hitting their hardest, I was discouraged to see McCain's poll numbers going up.
My conclusion from this was that dumb America was interpreting these false attacks as truth and responding accordingly.
After a day on the ground in Waukesha, Wisconsin talking to real Americans, I find that my assumption may be wrong.
What I did hear and experience was encouraging. Follow after the flip for more...
Our trips to Reno for the caucus on January 19 made a huge difference getting Sen. Obama extra delegate to win the delegates when he didn't win the caucus total. It was northern Nevada that came through for him. The trips and work we do for the general election will make an even bigger difference in the general election.
--Melodi of Sunnyvale for Obama
Hello all, I'm posting this (again, with feeling) on behalf of our local Obama group... we are Sunnyvale for Obama (website coming soon) from Sunnyvale, California! We're an active bunch, out registering voters for several months now, doing community service projects, fundraising (our Unity for Change BBQ brought in 85+ people and over $1200!), phonebanking, and outreach to others in the area.
This is my first entry in what will be a weekly series of Canvass diaries. Like many of you, I spent my time during the primaries glued to the television, surfing channels between MSNBC, CNN, and CSpan. I listened to the pundits and yelled at them in outrage. I constantly checked the polls, surfed the web for information, and quckly became an election media junkie. I realized the power of financial contributions, maxed out my donations, and even canvassed a few times. Now we're in the general election and the frustration is starting again. I find myself taking personal offense when someone with an ego like Joe Scarborough actually thinks it's appropriate to call Barack Obama arrogant. I feel my blood boil when the media has the nerve to brand the Obama campaign as players of the race card. I feel so passionately about this election and I've decided not to let my frustration with the media and the arrogance of the McCain campaign turn me into a wreck again. I'm taking my Obama energy to the streets.
Our trips to Reno for the caucus on January 19 made a huge difference getting Sen. Obama extra delegate to win the delegates when he didn't win the caucus total. It was northern Nevada that came through for him. The trips and work we do for the general election will make an even bigger difference in the general election.
--Melodi of Sunnyvale for Obama
Hello all, I'm posting this on behalf of our local Obama group... we are Sunnyvale for Obama (website coming soon) from Sunnyvale, California! We're an active bunch, out registering voters for several months now, doing community service projects, fundraising (our Unity for Change BBQ brought in 85+ people and over $1200!), phonebanking, and outreach to others in the area.
Here is the 50 state strategy in action as it breaks down on the county level.
Ryan, a young Waukesha organizer for Obama registering voters in record numbers in heavily republican Waukesha CO, WI, the bastion of conservativism, the home county of James Sensenbrenner. I bumped into his group on Saturday in New Berlin on the Farmers Market. He is the type of guy who's inspiring thousands and making republicans sweat precious dollars for every vote they used to getting by default as they start to lose even their most devoted following.
The main purpose of this series is to raise awareness of Progressive Future among progressive activists, because many we canvas are with us on the issue, but haven't heard of us before. We want to encourage people to join us through the canvas, not online, because the point is to build a real-world (rather than a 'virtual') network of progressive Americans-- i.e. to take the networking offline and out onto the street corners and door to door in the neighborhoods of America.
Follow me under the fold for a brief recap, a quick update on where you can find Progressive Future canvassers in San Francisco today, and a few further thoughts!
I recently blogged on who and what is Progressive Future, and why and where you could get more information, contribute to the cause, or even consider working for it. Since then the diary has been rescued, and lively debate has ensued. So, we've had some fun, and you might still want to check that out.
This diary is something of an update to that one. If you'll follow me under the fold, you can find out where today's canvas team is in San Francisco, where else Progressive Future is currently canvassing in the USA, and where to watch for more information and good times-- directly from Progressive Future!
However it best works for you, don't miss these chances for getting involved in taking our netroots-type organizing offline, and into the heart of America's neighborhoods!
I spent the last several days canvassing with the Fund For Public Interest Research, on behalf of a most interesting effort to organize a large network of progressive Americans. Called Progressive Future, it aims to use the canvassing model to articulate a shared set of core progressive values, to build a mobilizable and national network of progressives, and to train an awful lot of 20-somethings (and the rest of us :-) to go door to door spreading the message and to stand on street corners initiating political conversations with strangers, all for the sake of our cause.
Are you with us on this issue? Then please, follow me under the fold to 1. find out more about this new organization; 2. find out how you can support these efforts; and 3. help us with more and information and feedback.
Sunday evening found me knocking balls around with my old man at our favorite pool hall...but my thoughts kept wandering back. For 4 days, I was cradled in the warmth of progressive Democrats. I made promises. Promises to myself and to others. As a socially awkward cube dweller, I am hoping to be up to the challenge. I am signed up here.
We had the biggest canvass Dems have ever had in IL-13 today organized by Scott Harper's campaign. We canvassed in all 13 townships in IL-13 thus it was named "13 for the 13th".
Read on for more details and a not so gentle exhortation to get to work.
I co-lead a local group of Obama supporters preparing to canvass in New Hampshire, the swing state closest to us. (For those unfamiliar with the term, "canvassing" means going door-to-door for a candidate, putting yourself in touch with voters and the canvass on your sneakers in contact with the sidewalk.) One member sent me this question:
How does one prepare for canvassing? My support for Obama is largely subjective based on his handling of various situations. I don't think that will help me to be an effective canvasser - suggestions?
I'd like to point her to a nice succinct "elevator pitch," and any links or suggestions would be welcome. But I also want to use this as an opening to hold forth on what canvassing is about, how to enjoy it, and why (to paraphrase Woody Allen) ninety percent of success in canvassing is just showing up.
Mad as I was about Obama's FISA vote, I kept my promise to canvass in New Hampshire today, and I'm glad I did. The night before, I laid awake thinking about a McCain presidency and the fate of the Supreme Court, and the war we're in and all the wars we could be in under another reckless Republican. I write this in the hope that it will shake other angry critics of Obama into re-thinking the "I'm sitting this one out" mentality.
