Obama Campaign Continues "Without Any Hint Of Internal Upheaval"

After Sen. Barack Obama's third major primary loss and endless media coverage dedicated to dissecting the apparent weaknesses of his candidacy, one of the most striking elements of his campaign this week was what's missing: any hint of internal upheaval.

At Obama headquarters in Chicago, hundreds of miles removed from the Beltway bubble, advisers held steadfast in their adherence to The Plan, a blueprint devised 15 months ago by the same inner circle that runs the campaign today, supported by the candidate and carried out by a tight-knit staff.

Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's operation could not be more dissimilar. Her campaign, ensconced in a Washington suburb, has experienced two major staff shakeups fueled by high-level staff rivalries, shifting strategies and an unusual degree of finger-pointing.

The contrast raises the question: How has the Obama campaign managed to maintain an island of comparative calm?

Read the whole story here.

Comments

[starrianna]

Obama is folding like a house of cards.

We do not need another wimp as President. We need a real fighter who can win and work hard.

Obama cannot win a fight. He can only try to talk his way out of it.

And Hillary beat him in the debates pretty much 21 times out of 21.

Sad really.

[mesuki]

Hillary Clinton is a known liar and has bought more scandals to the whitehouse then any other first lady.She maybe good at debates,but that's to be expected,all con artist are good at fooling people,......people like you!

[MissingAmerica]

The answer is simple. Obama gets it! He is an educated, articulate and spiritual (not religious) man who believes in unity rather than division. He has planned what he will do, how and why.

[andyg]

not religious what about rev wright.

[Vern58]

Get over Jeremiah Wright. He is not the decider of the politics of Barack Obama.
Obama is not in lockstep with the theology that Wright espouses. Anyone who has done their homework knows this.

[mesuki]

What about him?

[Fitzy]

I read many of the comments on this thread and find them to be very refreshing. No hostility, no bitterness, no anger. This is what America needs...a well run business. It's time for a United States where the government works together for the people. A United States that works with the rest of the world. I remember the days when I was proud to be an American and I'd love to feel that way again. I think an Obama administration would make me proud of my country again.

[Krikkit]

In contrast to Hillary's near constant campaign troubles, I think this says it all:

"The contrast raises the question: How has the Obama campaign managed to maintain an island of comparative calm?

A winning record undoubtedly aids the cohesion, Obama advisers and unaffiliated Democratic strategists said, but so do other key dynamics: a candidate intolerant of infighting, a clear line of authority and a healthy distance from the city they want to take over."

I'll take THAT guy for president, please.

[Countdown09]

Last year the NYTimes report Ben Wallace did profile of piece on David Axelrod - amazing man! Also spotlighted in the article was what I think is a good insight into Obama style of management. Here's a quote from that article :

"One senior campaign adviser told me: "Barack is a no-drama kind of guy. He"s not looking for a person or a group of people that bring their own set of dramas to the operation. What [Obama] gets from David is no nonsense."

I also read a quote about a person in the campaign that said -- everyone who came to this campaign knows you had to check you ego at the door.

Here's the link to Wallace article very interesting : http://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/01/magazine/01axelrod.t.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1

[RadCenter]

"How has the Obama campaign managed to maintain an island of comparative calm?"

It's being run by a sane person.

[YankeeCanuck]

My favored candidate is not in the running, but it seems to me that the difference between the two campaigns is that Obama's is strategic,to be adjusted as needed, and Clinton's is tactical, constantly changing with the wind.

Personalities aside, there is a philosophical underpininng in the Obama campaign which is closer to the spirit in which our country was founded. That is the only explanation I can think of for the fact that Obama came out of (almost) nowhere to capture the imagination of so many Americans. Imagination and serious thought is something that has been lacking in the present junta that is running things.
Don't get me wrong, I'll support HRC if she wins the nomination, fairly or not, because a Mc Cain presidency looks like the end to me.
But Obama's campaign looks like a more rational, as well as a more heartfelt choice.

[milo9]

Calm, like the frog in a pot of water that's being heated. At some point he has to go on the offensive.
McCain and Clinton offer up too many legitimate targets that could be addressed and wouldn't be considered hitting below the belt.

[mesuki]

He doesn't need to go on the offensive.Obama will not sink to the gutter level of Hillary .Even McCain wouldn't stoop to her level. ...She's a pig!

[wm1066]

The people that don't get what Obama is all about are like the brother in law in Field of Dreams that can't see the baseball players, they just don't see it. Too bad for them, they are missing out on being apart of a new generation in politics.
This guy at politico doesn't get it. too bad.

[nerakami]

Don't we need a sense of calm back in the Administration of this country. Haven't we had enough of the chaotic whirlwind constantly sinking us deeper and deeper into "depression"? Let the breath of fresh air sweep through the White HOuse and bring us back to a place of calm.

The energy behind chaos is ...out of control, unfocused and potentially destructive

[MegHK]

A big "shout out" to the Obama Allentown campaign office. I have volunteered for political candidates for 15+ years and Allentown was, by far, the most rewarding experience I have ever had on a campaign.

Front office volunteers were calm, friendly and extremely organized. No shouting, no hysterics. Just like our candidate of choice. To all the Obama volunteers I had the pleasure to meet and work with - great job! Look forward to traveling back to Pa. for the general election.

[HouseOfRoberts]

Obama is doing well where he is expected to do well, and closing the gap where he is behind. Every time he campaigns in a state he picks up support. He and his people have taken nothing for granted.
He is dead even in Indiana and way ahead in North Carolina. He is on track to win the nomination, albeit by a slim margin, when the superdelegates have all voted.

[motherfather]

I agree...I think that once Senator Obama is done fighting this three pronged war of words with Senator Clinton, Senator Mccain and former Pres Bill Clinton ( oh ya, I should also add MSM), and he is pitted against the republicans, America will choose Barack and I think it will be by a lot more than a slim margin.

[gomonkeygo]

Hillary says to think of this primary season as a job search and that we the voters are simply hiring the best qualified candidate to do a job.

I know, as a potential employer, which "job" candidate's work record I'd prefer, don't you?

VOTE OBAMA!

[marthainaz]

I agree, Obama is the only way to go!
It should be a no brainer to choose the most qualified. Hillary's campaign has been mired in financial problems, insiders working against her stand (if it can be believed), and having to resort to childish accusations to try to get ahead. We already have a hard headed and often childish president and we sure don't need another one. Obama will choose to fill positions with people that work together and are dependable and not extreme as he has done with his campaign, while Hillary's White House would be a continual soap opera and more of what we see in her campaign. The soap opera part is what I don't miss from Bill Clinton's years.

[GunneraGirl]

i agree. i don't think i could bear the soap opera for another 4 or 8 years.

[Shelly1970]

"Hillary says to think of this primary season as a job search and that we the voters are simply hiring the best qualified candidate to do a job."

She is asking voters to not vote for her? I don't get it.

[RanTheMan]

I would never hire someone that packed their "interview" with lies.

Sorry Hil...We're gonna go in another direction.

[kipmartin]

because Obama isnt a hysterical power hungry manipulator who would slit the throat of her staff if things didnt go her way. and Obama knows what the MSM knows but wont speak to--she's lost.

good thing Bill is stepping in to lend some credibility and stability. kidding!

[Grunty1]

Given their track record, why in the world would there be upheaval? Just because every time Hillary loses a state there are stories of their comment tossing expletives at everything that moves doesn't mean that Obama's campaign behaves the same way.

[RanTheMan]

Who would YOU prefer?

Someone that can assemble and oversee an efficient, dignified, tightly run organization?

OR

Someone that has hired people that work directly against her stated policy (Penn/Colombia), hasseen constant infighting, and has bankrupted their coffers so badly that they're leaving unpaid bills owed to regular Americans all across the country, AND, has had to resort to "kitchen sink" smear tactics to keep their campaign alive?

Common sense, folks.

[w8aminute]

I believe a better question would be: Would you like your country to be run the same way the campaign has been run?

[independentrepublicrat]

Obama won Texas but truth doesn't fit easily in media narratives designed to keep this contest afloat so they can make the big bucks as Americans anxiously tune in to see what is going on now.

[drzoon]

how would the media (of which i was part of for a long time) ever undue their "texas call" that Hilary won that state.

its just not what they do. they don't say "we didn't know what we were doing"

[Charmed]

We are not infighting in our camp because we believe in "The Truth". We don't feel entitled, we know we have to continue to work everyday and nothing is going to come easy.

[NC4Obama]

They are calm because they are winning.

[Benton]

But they were just as calm when they were losing.

[InfoGiant]

Or maybe it would be better put to say, they have WON. The race was over after Wisconsin. Now it's just about trying to steal the election.

http://infogiant.wordpress.com/

[VSamuels]

Also interesting are those who like to spin that Obama is this black radical who wishes to appoint Farakhan and Wright to punish white America, they do not however explain why his predominately white inner circle would be complicit in the plot. Wright's comming out may be the best thing since slice bread, as those who continue to try to make this a noose around Obama neck, will at some point have to actually confront the simple 'truths' proffered by him.

And, I suspect that this will make Obama's staffers ultimately calm, as they come to realize that Wright himself has made and is making the MSM punditry case difficult to pin his words and beliefs upon Obama.

[maxwellinformed]

Great post!

[atienne]

Excellent point, VSamuels. I hope these same people see your post and comment on it. I don't think they realize how paranoid and prejudice they really sound. I wrote at length about that on the Fox website and just as suspected, none of the cowardly beings challenged me about it!