CrazyDrumGuy

What Does MoveOn’s Endorsement Mean for Obama?

After a one-day online vote, progressive grassroots PAC MoveOn.org endorsed Barack Obama in the Democratic primary.

In a resounding vote today, MoveOn.org Political Action’s members nationwide voted to endorse Senator Barack Obama for the Democratic nomination for President. The group, with 3.2 million members nationwide and over 1.7 million members in Super Tuesday states, will immediately begin to mobilize on behalf of Senator Obama. The vote favored Senator Obama to Senator Clinton by 70.4% to 29.6%.
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Eli Pariser, MoveOn.org’s Executive Director, issued the following statement on the group’s endorsement:

“Our members’ endorsement of Senator Obama is a clear call for a new America at this critical moment in history. Seven years of the disastrous policies of the Bush Administration have left the country desperate for change. We need a President who will bring to bear the strong leadership and vision required to end the war in Iraq, provide health care to every American, deal with our climate crisis, and restore America’s standing in the world. The enormity of the challenges require someone who knows how to inspire millions to get involved to change the direction of our country, and someone who will be willing to change business as usual in Washington. Senator Barack Obama has proved he can and will be that President.

“With 3.2 million members nationwide and over 1.7 million members in states that vote next Tuesday, we’ll be able to immediately jump into action in support of Senator Obama’s candidacy. We’ve learned that the key to achieving change in Washington without compromising core values is having a galvanized electorate to back you up. And Barack Obama has our members ‘fired up and ready to go’ on that front.

The endorsement from MoveOn is interesting. Among Democratic primary voters, MoveOn is a force to be reckoned with–they are the voice of the progressive movement. And the Obama campaign has to love those numbers. Seventy percent of 3.2 million MoveOn members is 2.24 million Obama supporters. Even if the remainder of MoveOn’s members still vote for Hillary despite the endorsement, 2.24 million votes is… well, it’s a lot.

On the other hand, MoveOn could hurt Obama in the general election. The infamous “Petraeus, Betray Us” ad (PDF) is a major political talking point for Republicans, especially after Democratic Senators voted to condemn MoveOn for it. The presidential candidates already talked about it when the vote happend, but now the issue is certain to reemerge if Obama wins the nomination. We’ll have to wait and see whether the positives outweigh the negatives.

2/1/08 12:40 pm | Comment (2) | Permalink | Tags: 2008, Barack Obama, MoveOn.org