Obama's Firewall: An Old Fashioned Grassroots Army Equipped with New Media Tools

In these final 3 days before America elects our next President, Barack Obama is under attack from a concerted right-wing attack - but this time we have Barack Obama's firewall: an old fashioned grassroots army equipped with new media tools.

Now is the time in the GOP playbook for the late hit. True to script, the McCain-Palin, RNC, Freedom's Watch, Let Freedom Ring, GOP Trust PAC (a Dick Morris affiliate) and assorted others are spending hundreds of millions of dollars throwing everything - including an illegally leaked Homeland Security document - in the hopes that something sticks. It won't.

Why? 3 reasons:

First off, some late hits just don't work. Someone leaked George W. Bush's DUI records in the final days of 2000. Remember how the leaker mistakenly thought it would help Gore? It didn't - instead it took him off message. As recounted in my book, Campaign Boot Camp :

On the Friday morning before the 2000 election, at a time when candidates Al Gore and George W. Bush were running even in the polls, news broke about Bush's 1976 drunk-driving criminal conviction in Maine. The Bush team had a three-pronged rapid response: put Bush in front of the cameras, push back on unsavory elements of the story, and blame the leak on Gore supporters. First, Bush said: "Obviously there's a report out tonight that twenty-four years ago, I was apprehended in Kennebunkport, Maine, for a DWI. That's an accurate story. I'm not proud of that." Second, when a dispute arose as to whether or not Bush had lied to Texas reporter Wayne Slater by not revealing the DWI conviction when Slater asked if Bush had ever been arrested, Bush adviser Karen Hughes, who had been present at the interview, maintained that she had "stopped the conversation" before the issue could arise. Third, Bush supporters hit Gore, blaming him for the leak.

Not only did the Gore campaign not know of Bush's conviction (so they obviously were in no position to leak it), they found the leak to be a distraction to their candidate. The Gore campaign found out who the leaker was and told the press. "The Bush people were very good about saying this is a dirty trick (even when, as in the earlier case of the leaked Bush practice debate tapes, it was not a Gore campaign leak)," remembers Donnie Fowler who served as Gore's 2000 field director. "While Gore advisers spent precious time trying to track down the leaker, " Fowler recalls, "Bush advisers went on the attack, blaming Gore anyway, and further putting the Gore campaign back on its heels with only four days to go."

Second, some late hits can be predicted and counterpunched. After all, everyone saw how John Kerry was damaged by the al qaeda tape in the waning days of 2004 because he lacked the capacity to reach every voter inundated with these and other swiftboat attacks. This time, Barack Obama knew the late hits would come and built a firewall: an old fashioned grassroots army equipped with new media tools. These millions of volunteers can immediately take to the phones and the streets to counter any attack with the truth, equipped with a multimedia toolkit to let voters see the truth for themselves:

Attacks on taxes? Look on the Obama website and point people to the calculator - families earning less than $250,000 will not see a tax increase.

Attacks on national security?
Check out the youtube video of Colin Powell's endorsement of Barack Obama as the steady leader we need to unite or nation and confront security threats.

Attacks on patriotism? Check out the details on Truth Fights Back here.

Third, sometimes the hunger for positive change is too great a momentum to stop even the most negative of attacks. People have expressed over and over a desire to rise above the negativity and work for positive change. This was evident on election day 2006 when Democrats won back the Congress, and has been evident in the long lines of early voting we see on the eve of election 2008.

Rather than come up with one more dirty trick, or lower the debate in countering the attack, all would be advised to listen to what the American people are telling us and to act in these last 3 days as the best ambassadors we can be for the positive change we need.

Follow Christine Pelosi on Twitter: www.twitter.com/sfpelosi

Comments

[KathyinCT]

Obama managed to combine the best of all types of campaigning -- boots on ground, yes; but also fingers on keys (NETROOTS) and voices on cell phones (dial from home, no need to come to an office). He used the very traditional local validiators as a first step into communities, but then ramped it up to 2008 with online communications. He used word of mouth at personal level in communities, and then created an Internet-based word-of-mouth via keyboard that could and did go viral in minutes.

Why does this matter so much?

It shows that he is a smart, smart guy who knows how to ask questions and seek info from the specialists in their disciplines, and then have strong managers who can assemble it into a plan.

If he tackles the economy and all of its pieces-parts, and health care in this way, solutions may actually be found.

[CaptainStormfield]

Thanks Christine, I saw you on CNN the other day and you are a wonderful advocate.

You kicked ass :)

[STILJON]

There is only one thing anyone should be saying in these comments. GO VOTE!!! The polls mean nothing unless everyone votes. Give one day if it takes that and work for our future by voting for Senator Obama and he will continue to spend every day working for you. The polls are so wide in large part because of new voters. It’s up to all of us to stand in line for as long as it takes and vote. This is the largest effort ever to bring in new voters so if you don’t vote you will permanently prove the belief that first time voters do not go to the polls and ensure your concerns are never pursued or listened to again. Make this time different. You could finally change the landscape of the electorate and force your ideas to be considered, expanding policies beyond the base of both parties. Every single vote counts and we cannot afford to wake up Wednesday and find out democrats lost by only a few votes again, because we thought it would be a blowout. Let’s make it a landslide and prove the polls right!! Everyone take a day and change the world!!! VOTE!!!!!!!!

[karmagirl1061]

Great post! This proves once again, that Obama is the change we need! Enough with the dirty tricks, lies and deceit! Enough! I worked my birthday so I can take election day off so that I can be a part of this. This is too important!

[greendogdemo]

You rock Christine. This is so true. Sometimes the spaghetti is just too greasy to stick to the wall.

Slime will find its own level.

GO Bama!

[TRYKER]

Sometimes the spaghetti is just too greasy to stick to the wall."

Exactly! And their is a decided stench that is such a clue.

[TRYKER]

Correction: ...there not their, sorry.

[carrieanna]

Also another reason to take advantage of absentee or early voting. It nulls and voids any sneaky smear attacks at the last minute.

[rixter1965]

The victories of soon-to-be-ex-President George W. Bush in 2000 and 2204 and the majorities held by Republicans/conservatives in Congress until January 2007 were attributed by the media to "message," the genius of Mr. Rove, the importance of "evangelicals" (Protestants, Catholics and Jews at this point who are, in fact, political conservatives and racists who disguise their views via religion). Time to take another look at all that....

The genius of Mr. Rove was his get-out-the-vote nuts-and-bolts organization that led to electoral victory via a serious approach to a state-by-state/mobilization strategy. That strategy was assisted by a much longer, more insidious approach by conservative think-tanks, congregations, pundits, talk-show hosts, etc. to frame the argument in their favor. "Liberal" became a term of opporbrium. "Tax and spend" became a no-brainer for tagging Democrats with failed policies. Etc. Etc.

I was a fervent Hillary supporter, now an Obama voter, and I give Senator Obama and his staff kudos for figuring out the boots-on-the-ground, shaking up our antiquated electoral-college based system of electing the US President, figruing out a way to unite rather than divide, energizing underrepresented groups, etc. in this campaign.

[starboymikey]

George W. Bush in 2000 and 2204
____________________________________________________

Bush in 2204? I had to read that 3 times to make sure I was reading it right. Boy, there's a science fiction movie I hope not to see :-)

Sorry, but I am so freaking out with this election.

[SurrealPumpkin]

It co-stars the son of The Tomato That Ate Philadelphia.

[rixter1965]

Typo - duh.