Advice To My Fellow Democrats

So far, I have pretty much tried to avoid talking about any politics with my friends here in Washington State. It has been a weird political season and a lot of my friends have been so pro-Obama to the extreme, that there has been no room to talk about anything, especially not the possibility that Obama could lose. My friends can't even fathom the idea, it is almost as if the Obama generation feels entitled, like they are saying "move over, your old, it's our turn now."

Well here are the latest shocking polls from Washington State
McCain vs Obama
Rasmussen 09/10 - 09/10 49 47 Obama +2
SurveyUSA 09/05 - 09/07 49 45 Obama +4
I just can't believe that in one of the most liberal states, Obama is only up +2 to +4.

Now a lot of my friends that are Obama supporters would be quick to point out these polls are flawed. They don't fully account for the youth, newly registered voters, and users of cell phones or some other excuse. While there is some merit to this argument, it doesn't change the sharp downward trend in Obama's polling. The time for excuses is over.

I admit that I was not originally an Obama supporter. During the primary, I really wanted Hillary to win, but what is done is done. Now that we are in the general election however, I have come to the conclusion that I don't want McCain and Palin to win. I honestly feel that our country would be far worse off then it is now if they were to win. We are at a critical junction and with four more years of the same policies, we may not ever be able to rescue our ever-growing lower class. So I am genuinely worried about the election season and I worry that my hard-core Obama supporting friends are actually hurting our chances of winning.

Since McCain picked Palin, Obama supporters have had diarrhea of the mouth. Some of the stuff that my friends and other Obama supporters say has been shocking. I have a hard time believing that what I am hearing is actually coming from fellow Democrats, the party that supposedly supports equality and womens rights.

Here is an example of some Facebook updates from friends:

"(name of friend protected) thinks Sarah Palin should rock a pair of exquisite lucite heals like the Republican whore she is! "

"(name of friend protected) wants the ravage that crazy conservative slut Sarah "Naughty Secretary" Palin! "

Earlier this year I came to terms that the Democratic party is no longer the party that I grew up with, but this behavior is extremely disappointing.

So my advice is this:

Obamacrats - take a moment and breath. Stop freaking out!

Take a page from Obama and rise above this name calling and bashing. It is only going to turn people away. Women will become defensive and either will not come out to vote for Obama or may even cross over. Be more sensitive towards women, especially the women who supported Hillary. Many Obama supporters seem to feel that women have to vote for Obama no matter what, because the alternative is far worse. As a result there seems to be this lack of compassion for the women who voted for Hillary. This complete disregard only pisses women off. Given how things are trending, there is no good reason to risk disenfranchising an enormously important segment of the Democratic coalition.

So Obama supporters, it is time to return to what made Obama great in the beginning.

• Talk about change
• Talk about hope
• Talk about why McCain isn't the maverick he says he is. Point out specifics
• Talk about how conservative Palin is
• Point out differences between Obama and McCain
• Remind people how good things were during the last Democratic President and how good they could be again
• Share articles with your friends that highlight Obama's strengths

This race is truly your's to lose so it is time to shape up and grow up. Be a voice for Obama, by going out and being a good example. Leading by example is one of the most powerful things anyone can do. When I see my friends bashing Palin it only reminds me of how they bashed Hillary and it makes me want to vote for anyone but Obama. I know that is a flawed thought, but you truly are a representative for the campaign so act like one.

On another note, I am extremely frustrated by what I see as a flawed strategy by the Obama campaign to not focus on the local elections and local Democrats up for election. Instead the campaign says...get Obama elected and everyone wins. This is probably true in the cases where Obama wins, but where that strategy is flawed is in the cases where Obama loses. If that were to happen under this strategy, Democrats would stand to lose so much ground in the various local elections nationwide. We could see a landslide back to Republican control at all levels of the government which would be a huge step backwards and undoubtedly lead this country further down the wrong track. Democrats need to hedge their bets and invest more heavily in contested contests at the congressional and state government level.

So my point is...please take time to campaign for Gov. Gregoire. She is actually down in the latest polls and it scares me. Gregoire has pushed our state forward and I don't want to see Rossi push us back. He is already talking about repealing the domestic partnership law that passed this year.


So get out and campaign
www.BarackObama.com and www.ChrisGregoire.com
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