Politics, Honesty and other things that don’t mix.

Campaign Manager David Plouffe sent out this email earlier today…

Amanda —

In the next 36 hours, the McCain campaign will be pouring millions of dollars — if not tens of millions — into negative attack ads against Barack Obama.

Before John McCain accepts the Republican nomination on Thursday, his campaign has to spend every last dollar of primary funds they’ve raked in from Washington lobbyists and special interest PACs.

Just yesterday, they aired a new negative ad in 14 swing states. His campaign manager even admitted that all McCain has to rely on is attacks, saying that for them, "This election is not about issues."

He doesn’t want Americans to notice that the Republican platform is the most extreme we’ve ever seen — opposing stem cell research, denying a woman’s right to choose no matter what the circumstance, and continuing to spend $10 billion a month in Iraq.

With so much at stake, we can’t allow another election to be determined by petty and divisive political tactics.

Make a donation to fight back against an unprecedented week of negativity from John McCain.

The McCain campaign is trying to distract voters from the real issues — so we’re going to focus on what they’re trying to hide.

They’ve come out against the life-saving possibilities of stem cell research.

They don’t even mention protecting equal pay for equal work.

They support huge tax cuts for the wealthiest 2% of Americans.

They’ve almost completely ignored the $10 billion we’re spending every week in Iraq.

And they make zero exceptions for a woman’s right to choose — even in cases of rape, incest, or to protect the life of the mother.

If that all sounds like more of the same, that’s because it is. John McCain is offering a third term of the disastrous Bush agenda, so it’s no wonder his campaign would choose to focus on attacks instead of issues.

Please make your donation today:

https://donate.barackobama.com/fightback

I know we’ve asked a lot from supporters like you recently, and many of you contributed just last week.

But the stakes are high, and there are less than 9 weeks before Election Day. It’s going to require unprecedented resources to defeat John McCain and bring about the change America so desperately needs.

Thank you for all you do,

David

David Plouffe
Campaign Manager
Obama for America

Teresa in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania describes herself as a “50-year-old-Caucasian-grandmother-registered-Republican-nurse.” But most importantly, she’s also one of the millions of individuals who has joined this grassroots movement.

I support Barack because I think he’s honest. I believe he wants to do a good job and really wants to change things. I like what he believes in.

As a registered nurse, Teresa is especially concerned about healthcare.

I see a lot of problems with healthcare – patients who can’t afford medicines or healthcare. You see people not taking their medicines because they can’t afford them and then facing repercussions because they don’t take their medicines. And people just get sicker. I’ve met elderly people who come in and say that it’s either groceries or medicine. Something has to be done about this. I hope there’s affordable healthcare in our future, and that’s one of the first things that he does.

Teresa also sees how healthcare impacts women in her community. “There are a lot of single women trying to raise children and pay for healthcare and make a decent living, and we need to help them out.” Teresa says fair pay for women is another issue she hopes the next president will address.

Teresa is excited to be supporting Obama. “I’m just so impressed by what Obama wanted to do – reform healthcare and create a better living for the middle class.”

Though she’s always voted on the Republican ticket before, Teresa was surprised at the way her friends and family have supported her choice to vote for Obama.

My father was a staunch Republican. He passed away the night of the Pennsylvania Primary. But before he passed, he asked me if I went to vote, and if I voted for Obama. And he was really happy for me when I told him I did.

Get more involved with the campaign in your community by joining Women for Obama and visit the Women for Obama homepage to learn how you can meet other women in your area.

You also have the unique opportunity to join the Obama Torchbearers, a group for young women leaders who are actively engaged in their communities and want to help bring change from a grassroots level. 

Well, there’s Palin, Palin, Palin and Palin — plus a footnote role for Rudy Giuliani, a man who once expected to be speaking tomorrow night.

A group of leading GOP women accused the media of sexist “smears” against Sarah Palin.

"I’ve been the young guy in the Senate for so long that it’s hard getting used to this old guy routine!" - Senator Joe Biden

Joe Biden flew from hot and humid West Palm Beach to an even hotter Fort Myers this morning to host an economic roundtable discussion at the Harborside Event Center here in Southwest Florida. About five hundred were in attendance — supporters, volunteers, and a considerable number of undecided Independents and Republicans.

In fact, Fort Myers Mayor Jim Humphrey, a Republican, introduced Joe, showing his support for the Obama-Biden ticket.

Joe and the audience listened to the concerns and struggles of the individuals taking part in the roundtable discussion. Joe asked them questions and spoke about the kind of politics that he and Barack want to bring to the White House. He talked about the Obama-Biden economic plan and the need to keep good jobs here.

It was just what the audience wanted to hear.

Support for Barack and Joe is gaining in the region, according to local volunteer Marj Lowell. Marj recently attended the Democratic National Convention and called it "the trip of a lifetime." After returning to her home state of Florida, she and her friends have been "working like the devil," canvassing and making phone calls to help drum up support in this crucial state.

Here’s a short clip of today’s roundtable, introduced by supporter Richard Carney, a Vietnam Vet who believes that Barack and Joe will bring about the change we need:

Peter Rubi
September 3, 2008
En Route to Sarasota

 “I’m in this race to take those tax breaks away from companies that are moving jobs overseas and put them in the pockets of hard working Americans who deserve it. And I won’t raise the minimum wage every ten years – I will raise it to keep pace so that workers don’t fall behind. That is why I am in it. To protect the American worker. To fight for the American worker."
– Barack Obama at a speech in Des Moines, Iowa, November 10, 2007

Wednesday’s GOP convention is themed “Prosperity.” Prosperity is on every voter’s mind this election, as the policies of the past eight years have led us to an economy where ordinary Americans are having trouble finding jobs and make their house payment. Barack Obama is committed to turning around the economy and helping every American have the opportunity to achieve the American Dream.

Barack will start us on a path to prosperity by first changing the tax policy. The Bush tax cuts give those who earn over $1 million dollars a tax cut nearly 160 times greater than that received by middle-income Americans. Obama will cut income taxes by $1,000 for working families, and eliminate income taxes for seniors who make less than $50,000 per year.

Barack has a plan to create new jobs for American workers. He will end tax breaks for companies that send jobs overseas, create new job training programs, and invest in a clean energy economy that will create five million new “green” jobs. His economic plan will support small businesses by providing tax relief for small business and start-up companies. Obama will raise the minimum wage, index it to inflation and increase the Earned Income Tax Credit to make sure that full-time workers earn a living wage that allows them to raise their families and pay for basic needs.

For families who are already having a hard time, Barack will crack down on mortgage fraud, reform bankruptcy laws to protect individuals who filed for bankruptcy because of medical expenses.

By creating strong new economic policies that invest in the American worker and help middle-class Americans get back on their feet, together we can turn this economy around.

Read more about Barack’s economic policy.  

Barack is in New Philadelphia, Ohio today where he will hold a discussion on women and the economy at Kent State University’s Tuscarawas campus, which provides hundreds of flexible courses for students who are working and/or student mothers. Watch the event live below…

[UPDATE] This event has ended. Check back for more coverage from our road team.

Former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay says Dems could reap electoral rewards from years of political organizing.

There is nothing unusual about Republican Clarence McKee’s criticism of Democratic
presidential candidate Barack Obama. “He’s not ready to be president of the United States because he lacks wisdom,” said McKee on Tuesday. He added that Sen. John McCain’s running mate, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, “has more experience and leadership abilities than Barack Obama.” What runs counter to conventional political wisdom is that McKee, a Florida delegate to the Republican
National Convention this week, is black.

Born the daughter of missionaries in Ivory Coast, West Africa, Margi didn’t live in America until her 16th birthday, when she returned to finish high school and attend college. Now, at 60, Margi sees that her upbringing helped to change her perspective on the world.

As Minister for Children and Families at the 12,000 strong Northland Church in Florida, Margi has also gained perspective on the problems that are facing everyday Americans as they struggle to keep their homes or fill up the gas tank. It’s changing not just her perspective, but the views of other Christians what she works with.

There are a lot of people who would have historically been more conservative or have voted Republican who are easily able to see what Barack is doing and why this country needs him. They can see the need for a new evangelical community, a new Christian community, that’s built on common unity instead of the divisions of the past.

Beyond the challenges faced by her fellow congregants, Margi has seen the rough economic times hit her family as well. She has four sons, and the economy has forced one to move across the country to try to find a more favorable economic environment. Another son’s business is flagging as the economy slows. They both see Barack as "a real point of hope" for their economic prospects.

Margi’s also concerned with education, and how the government can support our students.

I love Barack’s idea about students giving back to society in exchange for an education … I think that the measure of success is how much we can contribute to the moral and spiritual fabric of our community, so I like that he’d offer aid for social contributions.

In the end, though Margi’s support comes down to her feeling that Barack is the right leader for this moment in America.

I just feel really passionately about this country, and also very hopeful and passionate about what Barack stands for. My emotions are involved, as they are in most of the things that I pursue. I’m convinced he’s the one that this country needs right now.

Margi thought the best way to show her support for Barack was with a small grassroots donation to his campaign. She knows that every penny counts as we take on the Republican attack machine and try to elect Barack Obama as President of the United States. Join her today with a small dollar contribution, and become a part of our movement.

Voices for Change is a series featuring profiles of Barack Obama’s grassroots supporters from across the nation. The people who make up this movement come from all walks of life, but they share a common goal: to help bring about fundamental change in Washington.

He was on the losing side of the biggest public opinion issue of the day. The former naval aviator had staked his political fate on his faith that a new commander with a new strategy and more combat troops could pull Iraq out of a death spiral. That was at a time when Hillary Clinton was telling Gen. David Petraeus that his report on progress in
Iraq required “the willing suspension of disbelief.” When Barack Obama declared at the Senate hearing with Petraeus, “The time to end the surge and to start
bringing our troops home is now, not six months from now.” Even formerly strong proponents of the war in the Republican Party were bending to public opinion polls
and looking for an exit. McCain stood firm. “I would rather lose a campaign than lose a war,” he said at a campaign stop in California.
Against long odds — very long odds — McCain will accept his party’s nomination for president at the Republican National Convention on Thursday night in St. Paul.

“The great thing about John McCain is even if you don’t agree with him, and I don’t agree with him on
every issue, you know where he’s coming from,” said Healy, resident scholar at the McCormick Freedom
Museum and membership director for Chicago Young Republicans. “What I trust about him is, even when I
don’t agree with him, he’s doing what he thinks is right.” . . .
They may be smaller in numbers, but there are younger voters out there like Healy anxious to pour
considerable energy behind McCain’s campaign.

Ron Paul electrifies more than 10,000 at a counter-convention. See also: Kotecki video

John McCain’s years in a Vietnamese prison camp forged connections with soldiers that
are paying dividends as he enters the final stage of his campaign for president. Fellow prisoners, including some who now live in Maryland, have become outspoken advocates of the Arizona senator, sharing McCain’s life story at a convention designed in part to impress undecided voters who may not be well-versed in the candidate’s background. “We drew our strength from each other,” Everett Alvarez Jr., a resident of Potomac who was held in
captivity longer than all but one serviceman, said yesterday. “Those are the same principles that John
McCain practices now. He always maintains service to country over self.”

Palin has six years of executive experience as mayor of Wasilla and two years of executive experience as governor of Alaska, for a total of eight years of executive experience.

Delegates at the Republican National Convention this week got a laminated card listing their party’s principles. The top item, ahead of the economy, national security and fiscal accountability: “energy independence and lower gas prices.” The marquee billing reflects the Republicans’ push to make energy their hallmark campaign issue for the
first time in decades as they attempt to put aside internal rifts over oil drilling and climate change and focus on tapping voters’ anxiety over high gasoline prices. Arizona Senator John McCain — who will officially become the Republican presidential nominee at the St. Paul, Minnesota, convention — is betting that an aggressive push for more drilling will give his party the edge over Democrats who are lukewarm about or opposed to new domestic oil exploration.

From the Associated Press:

DEERFIELD BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Sen. Joe Biden assured older Jewish voters Tuesday that Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama will be strong on protecting Israel, which he said is less secure now than when President Bush took office.

Biden, Obama’s vice presidential running mate, laid out his own history on Israeli issues for the audience of several hundred at a Broward County retirement community and emphatically said Obama stands right along side him on Israel.

Biden said he has fought the sale of sophisticated weapons to Arab nations, has known every Israeli prime minister since Golda Meir and has co-sponsored legislation to fight Palestinian terrorism.

"I am chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee," Biden said. "I give you my word as a Biden — I would not have given up that job to be Barack Obama’s vice president if I didn’t in my gut and in my heart and in my head know that Barack Obama is exactly where I am on Israel. And he is."

… He also said the terrorist threat to Israel has increased, along with the threat from Iran as it tries to develop nuclear weapons.

"By any objective fact, Israel is less secure today in the world than it was eight years ago," Biden said. "I promise you … we will make it more secure."

From the Sun Sentinel:

U.S. Sen. Joe Biden, the Democrats’ blunt-talking vice presidential pick, on Tuesday put his foreign policy experience on display for South Floridians and reiterated that he and Barack Obama will be wholehearted supporters of Israel.

At rallies in Deerfield Beach and West Palm Beach, Obama’s running mate reached out to Jewish voters by tossing out Yiddish phrases and promising that the Democratic ticket would make Israel safer by improving America’s credibility across the globe.

Biden, 65, also repeatedly cast himself as a scrappy fighter and champion of middle-class values.

"A straight left and right hook," Biden said of his campaign style during an evening town hall meeting before 1,200 backers in West Palm Beach. "We ain’t laying down."

The Delaware senator distanced himself from an Israeli news story Monday that reported he said Israel would have to "reconcile" itself with a nuclear Iran. Biden called the report erroneous and outlined a long list of measures he’s supported on behalf of Israel.

At the event at the Palm Beach County Convention Center and at an hourlong rally at the Century Village clubhouse in Deerfield Beach, Biden said he wouldn’t have relinquished his position as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee without being certain of Obama’s support for the Jewish state.

"I would not have given up that job if I didn’t in my heart, in my gut and in my head know that Barack Obama is exactly where I am on Israel," Biden said.

… At both appearances, Biden spoke of making health care more affordable and accessible and protecting Social Security against privatization. He stressed that the Democratic presidential team wants to improve national policies to ensure people are treated more fairly.

"My mother has an expression: Walk a mile in my shoes," Biden told an audience of about 800 in Deerfield Beach. "[Obama] understands the words dignity and respect."

Biden also pushed for a national catastrophic insurance fund that would pool government resources to fund relief for hurricanes and other disasters.

"The last time I heard, hurricanes don’t have the word ‘ Florida’ on them. They don’t have the word ‘ Louisiana.’ They are acts of God," he said. "We have to pass this fund."

From the Flathead Beacon:

The Obama Campaign secured an office in Bigfork, [Montana], and opens its doors to the public on Wednesday September 3rd.

“We encourage everybody from all political backgrounds to come and learn more about Senator Obama and Senator Biden,” says state Communications Director Caleb Weaver. Weaver says Bigfork will be the 17th Obama office in Montana. A Kalispell office opened in August, and a Whitefish office is slated to open soon.

Weaver says the opening of this Bigfork office is part of a statewide effort to engage in face to face contact. Montana is one of 18 battleground states, and the Obama campaign is working to reach out to as many people as possible.

“By getting people engaged in the political process, that’s how real change is going to happen,” Weaver says.

From the Indy Week:

Just after 2 p.m. the day after Sen. Barack Obama accepted the Democratic nomination for president, people were streaming into the campaign’s downtown Durham office at 112 W. Main St.

Inside, they met volunteer organizer Beth Silberman, who sat behind a desk and used her laptop computer to find the contact information of the field organizer closest to them. That organizer would tell them about canvassing and voter registration in their neighborhoods, and about events scheduled during the Labor Day weekend—the "Convention Weekend of Action," as the Obama campaign called it.

Silberman said the phone rang constantly throughout the afternoon. A log book on the table contained several pages of names and phone numbers of would-be volunteers. "We’ve had a lot of people walking in and asking what they can do," she said.

Helen Featherson, a lifelong Durham resident who lives near White Rock Baptist Church, wrote down the field organizer’s name on a Post-It note. She’s been getting e-mails from the campaign for weeks, but her excitement over Obama’s speech the night before finally brought her in.

"I was just awestruck," she said of his speech. "I had my doubts in the beginning—can he pull this off? But he did. And wow, look at how much money he can raise from grassroots people. That reminds me, I’ve got to go home and make my donation online."

… “The Triangle is going to be critically important to us in this election," said Paul Cox, spokesman for Obama’s North Carolina campaign. Four of the campaign’s 16 state offices are in the Triangle—one each in Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill and Cary. That’s because the Triangle is home to many of the 600,000 people who’ve moved into the state since 2004. "We’re counting on the demographic changes in the Triangle, the high growth, and the willingness of so many residents to support Sen. Obama to carry us over 50 percent in the election."

Durham is arguably the most crucial part of the Triangle for Obama’s campaign because it’s home to the two most important demographic groups: newcomers and African-Americans.

… Not only is North Carolina up for grabs this year, but Jensen said these demographic shifts could make it a "permanent swing state."

For the campaign, all this translates to the hard work of going door-to-door to register the unregistered and make the pitch to those who are. That’s why the field operation—the network of paid staffers and well-trained volunteers—is so crucial to the campaign’s success.

Faulkner Fox is lead organizer of the grassroots group Durham for Obama. "The enthusiasm has been absolutely unbelievable," she said. After the primary was over and the official campaign closed its local office, the all-local, all-volunteer group continued to work throughout the summer out of her house. "We couldn’t wait two and a half months for them to come back, because the people of Durham wouldn’t wait."

Fox, who has worked on political campaigns since the 1980s, said she’s never seen this kind of persistence among volunteers. As for demographics, she said that while the Durham for John Kerry campaign tended to attract a higher proportion of white volunteers, the Obama campaign is more diverse, about half black and half white, with a wide range of age groups. "The people who come to volunteer look like the City of Durham," she said.

John McCain’s presidential campaign today released its latest television ad, entitled “Alaska Maverick.” The ad highlights Governor Sarah Palin’s record of taking on the special interests in Alaska and bringing reform and change. While Barack Obama talks about change, Governor Sarah Palin has actually done it. The ad will air in key states.

After suspending political activities for a day in anticipation of Hurricane Gustav,
Republicans led by President Bush last night inaugurated their truncated national convention by
celebrating nominee John McCain’s record of military service and political independence. “If the Hanoi Hilton could not break John McCain’s resolve, you can be sure the angry left never will,”
Bush told the convention by satellite from the White House. “He’s not afraid to tell you when he disagrees. Believe me, I know.” In the most forceful speech of the evening, former Tennessee senator Fred Thompson said McCain was “the kind of character that civilizations from the beginning of history have sought in their leaders. It’s
pretty clear there are two questions we will never have to ask ourselves, ‘Who is this man?’ and ‘Can we trust this man with the presidency?’ “

The ad is a ferocious defense of his embattled running mate. See also: McCain lashes out

“Barack Obama has never governed a city, never governed a state, never governed an agency, never run a military unit, never run anything. Sarah Palin has been a mayor. She’s been a governor. She has a record of reform. She has a record of leadership. She’s run a budget.” – Mayor Rudy Giuliani

Today, Governor Sarah Palin met with First Lady Laura Bush and Cindy McCain in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

The McCain campaign may not be quite as upset about comparing his speech to Obama’s as thought.

It’s a macabre point to raise, but there’s a 1-in-3 chance that a 72-year-old man won’t reach 80— McCain’s age at the end of a second term.

Consult an actuarial table and do a little math to get the same numbers we did.