Swinging Red Relatives Blue: Claire's Closing Argument

Claire has been an exceptionally good sport these past three weeks, opening up her in-box (whoa) to Pinko for a look at her efforts to swing her fence-sitting, potentially McCain-voting relatives. We got word last week that her grandmother was voting Obama(!), but Claire was still reticent about talking to her extended family in Nevada about the election. Yesterday her boyfriend Carl came up with a compromise: write a group email to your whole family instead of confronting those one or two potential McCainiacs head on. It's more "hey, here's what I think" and less "look b*tch...," and it might just encourage a few of her conservative relatives a chance to take in the points offered without feeling attacked. Claire's fabulous email is after the jump. I'm sending mine tonight.

------- Forwarded message -------
From: Claire
Date: Sun, Nov 2, 2008 at 1:09 PM
Subject:
To: [email redacted. what a great word, redacted.]

Dearest cousins, aunts, uncles, and family friends,

I don't normally do this kind of thing. In fact, I'd been debating sending this letter for a few weeks now, and didn't work up the courage until yesterday to actually write it. We don't tend to talk politics in our family, at least in my experience.

That said, fair warning: this is a letter about the election. If you don't want to go there, feel free to stop reading.

I'm writing this not because I don't trust you, who I love, to make the decision you feel is right on Tuesday. I love you, and I trust you. I'm not writing this as some kind of zealous, glazed-eyed follower. I've thought long and hard about this, and I've done a lot of reading. If you'll hear me out, I'd like to share with you the reasons I'm voting for Barack Obama for president.

Continue reading over at Pinko.