Barack Obama, I do not want my contributions used to pay off Hillary's debt

[sfam]

Message to Barack Obama:

I have contributed to you three times, each time in the three figure range. I am planning on contributing to you more both in the primaries and in the GE. But now there's a catch. Recent chatter has it that you might consider helping Hillary pay off her debt as a gesture of goodwill. While I fully understand and agree with the need to come together as a party and to include Clinton's camp into the fold, using my contributions to you to pay off Hillary's debt would NOT be OK with me.

This is not why I sent you contributions, worked the phones, convinced my friends and associates and all the rest. I am not a millionaire, nor do I have the disposable income to give max contributions. If this money meant little to me, I wouldn't care. But for those of us who have to discuss finances with our spouses prior to deciding to contribute to your campaign, the impact of finding out that our contributions could be going to pay back a millionaire's personal campaign contributions doesn't sit so well. Even worse, she incurred this debt while plotting a course that has served to further divide our party. This sends exactly the wrong message from what you stand for.

Lets be clear - I think you're absolutely terrific! Your policies are right on target, and your leadership, oratory and coalition building skills have the potential to inspire a nation. I think you're exactly what our country needs right now. But its no longer about you. You've created a movement, one which has sustained your rise. Do right by us - use our contributions as they were intended when we gave them to you.

Now I know you personally haven't stated that you are considering this, but my concern is that I don't know whether these comments are just based on idiotic punditry banter, or whether they are trial balloons coming from your surrogates. Please clarify this in a public statement - that our contributions will go toward getting you elected.

Sincerely,

Your loyal supporter

[krawhitham]

1. It is just they way things are

It is normal to pay off debts, I have not problem with it. I would prefer he did not pay her back for her own loans. But a lot of the debts are to small little companies that were working with a democratic canidate to make America better by getting one elected. These small companies should be paid

[sfam]

3. Small companies should be paid for...but truly this is her problem...however...

I could far easily stomach Obama paying off the little guys that Hillary has stiffed along the way FAR more than I could stomach the payoffs to Mark Penn, for instance.

Nor would I want to have my money to go back into her bank account.

[butterfly77]

8. I have a problem with it..

I sent in my money for his campaign. I agree with the OP.

[TexasObserver]

26. No, it's not normal. It is sometimes done EARLY in the process with early losers.

But not when the other side stayed in way past the time they should have bowed up, ran up millions in debt, and attacked the winner unmercifully.

The meme that "that's how it is done" is bunk. Prove it. Name one major presidential contest that went this far where the winner took on the loser's debt. It has not happened. It's a fiction.

Let her drown in her own debt. Why give her any help in that regard? And don't say it's for the poor vendors who did credit business with her. That's their problem, not Obama's, and certainly not his contributors' problem.

Nope, she gets no Obama money.

[Doityourself]

2. Neither do I. I did not give to him for Hill or Pen frick that..I want my money back then

[DemsUnited]

4. I have a different take. If legally allowed, Obama should say: give me the bills

from the state businesses you're stiffing and I will pay them. In this horrible economy, I don't want local businesses in states across this great country, who provided services for the Clinton campaign in good faith, to get stiffed.

That way, these local businesses will get a check *directly* from Obama, his name, his signature. Local papers will run stories about how Obama cares enough about local businesses and economy to make good on Clintons debt. Good will, good advertising, good campaign strategy for the fall.

What Obama should specifically reject is any payment to Clinton coffers (hell, even with the personal loans to the campaign, they're worth 100 mil) and any bills to so called "strategists" and advisers.

That's my take, for what it's worth.

[sfam]

5. You're smarter than I. I would go with your take as well...

Good point. I wouldn't mind having Barack pay off those sorts of bills. Just not the ones to Mark Penn's invoice or Hillary's bank account.

Perhaps that's the way to work this out. If Obama can translate paying off her bills to the little guys into positive local press coverage, that actually translates into helping him get elected. I can support that.

[NotThisTime]

12. I agree with this, pay the little guys, get the press, to hell with strategists & personal loans

[sfam]

14. I added this thought as a "P.S." in my email to the Obama campaign...

It's a great great point. I wouldn't be upset if my money went to paying off folks who got shafted along the way, especially if this led to positive local press coverage.

My money went to help him get elected - that approach would meet that standard.

[smoogatz]

13. Excellent call: should be its own OP. nt

[Bolo Boffin]

6. Hey, could you put a comma where you put the colon in that title

What's there now is newspaper headline convention for "Barack Obama said that...".

You meant it in the business salutary sense of course, but it is a bit confusing.

[sfam]

7. Done..nt

[Bolo Boffin]

11. The Grammar Nazi in my soul is at rest. n/t

[TeamsterDem]

9. Amen! n/t

[CreekDog]

10. they won't be, they cannot be

stop worrying.

[info being]

15. I certainly wouldn't give any more if he does this

[sfam]

16. But are you waiting to "find out" prior to giving more?

This is where I am right now. He has the thing won, so I probably would only want to give in the GE unless he needed more in the primary. But if I do give more in the primary, I REALLY want to know the answer to this prior to contributing.

[goldcanyonaz]

17. The media is the only ones suggesting this. perhaps to divide the 2 camps further.

Looks like they are doing a great job.

[sfam]

18. So....no trial balloons out there from Obama? Are you sure?

Perhaps you're right. I'd just feel better hearing a surrogate echo my concerns here...

[QueenOfCalifornia]

19. I agree.

I am K&R'ing this and hope many others will to.

Let Steve Jobs, an avid Hillary supporter, pay her back.

I just do not want one, single dime of mine to go to the Clinton Dynasty. Hell... Let Walmart pay her... They get along so fucking great.

[genna]

20. Article about negotiations between Wilder and Robb

Thought it was interesting to bring a little context here.

http://www.salon.com/opinion/feature/2008/05/08/deal/index.html
-snip

Like Wilder 14 years ago, Hillary Clinton is simultaneously holding a losing nomination hand and a very strong negotiating hand. It's in Obama's best interests to start negotiations now because Hillary has options. She can keep attacking him. And even if she just attends rallies or puts ads up on cheap West Virginia TV, she'll make plenty of news. Based on recent polls, she can run up big wins in West Virginia and Kentucky, which could inspire another round of "Why can't Obama close?" stories and renewed speculation about his appeal to blue-collar voters. And she can make things very uncomfortable for Obama in Florida and Michigan by not compromising and pushing for their votes to count.

So if, eventually, Hillary Clinton does the math that the rest of the world is doing and decides to fold her hand, she could learn a great deal from Doug Wilder's negotiations back in 1994. Get your own money back. Don't worry so much about everyone else; they knew what they were getting into. Get a big symbolic victory that will show that the race was about something more than your ego. And keep in the game long term by promoting a supporter for a future role.

-snip

To paraphrase the author, she wants:
1. Debt relief
2. A major platform win - aka healthcare
3. VP first right of refusal

[sfam]

21. I disagree...Wilder's bank account is different than Hillary's...

As a Virginian, I do remember this battle, and have always voted for John Warner since then, as he, not Wilder, was more responsible for Ollie North's defeat (the republican party was divided). That said, I'm OK with paying off Hillary's vendors. I am not OK with paying her personally, or her staffers. Wilder did not have 100 million in the bank, although if I had contributed to Robb, I don't think I would have liked him paying Wilder with my contribution either.

Lets face it, we've moved to a very different world in that the majority of Obama's contributions are small. But to us personally, they mean more than 2300 from a millionaire. The implications should be different here.

[AtomicKitten]

22. He refused to pay "walking around" money in states.

Obama has made it clear he isn't kowtowing to the Good Old Boy political system. Although it is sometimes "customary" helping the loser pay off their campaign debts, considering he refused to pay the "walking around" party money in, for instance, So. Carolina and Pennsylvania, combined with the, um, caliber of her campaign, I'm guessing he's going to call bullshit on that noise as well.

He says this is our campaign. Email him via his campaign website and tell him how you feel about this.

[sfam]

23. I already did email him...and I agree we all should do this...

[TexanDem]

24. THIS IS GENERATED BY MEDIA PUNDITS -- NOT FROM CAMPAIGN

I called the Chicago headquarters and asked. Made a new thread about it here:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.ph...

[sfam]

25. Thanks for responding...your link isn't working though...

Have they made a public statement about this, then? Again, I know the pundits are talking about it, but would love to see a public denial that they would consider this. I'd contribute an additional $100 if I see that.

[TexanDem]

29. sorry about the link -- here you go ....>

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x5885298


nothing public that I know of - or if so, then I missed it. .

(copy and paste of my post)
Will Obama pay off Hillary's debts? MEDIA PUNDIT IDEA ONLY!

The whole Internet seems abuzz about this and people are threatening to not send funds to Obama if he pays Hillary's debts. So, suspecting that this is just a rumor, I called the Campaign Headquarters in Chicago and asked.if there is any possibility of this happening. The lady who answered the phone said this is coming strictly from the media pundits. There is absolutely NO discussion of this within the campaign. So,I told her that it's all over the Internet and that people are contributing to Obama, not to Hillary, and that Hillary has enough money to pay off her own debts. People won't want to send in money if they think Hillary will get benefit of it. I mentioned that perhaps it would be a good idea for the campaign to put out some sort of statement to make this clear because we don't want it to affect his contributions. She acknowledged my comment, and thanked me for calling.

People, I personally think we need to not give this rumor any more fuel. We don't want to deter any further contributions. Who knows that the media isn't planting that story to deliberately infuriate Obama supporters.

If you want to call the campaign headquarters, the phone number is 866-675-2008; press 6 for a representative. (number is easily found with Google)

[sfam]

30. I like hearing this, but I still would be interested in a public statement...nt

[TexasObserver]

27. Agree. You and all Obama contributors should object in writing.

Hillary's debts are Hillary's problem. We are headed to war with McCain. We cannot be spending resources to solve the problems that Hillary created, and that HER creditors created by giving her credit. These people are NOT innocent vendors. Most are businesses tied to her supporters, and they know the deal. If you're giving a campaign credit, you're taking a big risk of non payment.

Let her and her big posse spend their time figuring out how to deal with all that debt, and that will keep them out of the way and out of trouble the next six months. They need to be stuck with the mess they have created - Hillary, her supporters, and her creditors.

[sfam]

31. I did so today...I cut and pasted my message, along w/DemsUnited's point...nt

[Egnever]

28. its just a rumor

[chill_wind]

32. Tim Russert floated that right after Tues nite races ended. Google it.

He was speculating that it might be a good strategy. Tom Edsall then picked up on it some more at Huffpo. Then TPM, then onward..

http://tailrank.com/5887234/Big-Rewards-Await-Clinton-If-She-Ends-Campaign-Now

Thanks a lot, self-important Tim.

[sfam]

33. Tim Russert also talks to lots of insiders...

my concern is whether Obama surrogates floated this idea behind the scenes. Even if not, I'd really like them to know that his supporters won't go for it.

[chill_wind]

34. Agree. I think his campaign people should get in front of this, one way or the other.

They have to know the chatter is growing.

[rocktivity]

35. It's a hoax--precisely to trick Obama supporters into witholding their money

Obama couldn't do that if he wanted to--campaign finance laws forbid it.

:headbang:
rocknation

[sfam]

36. There's an easy fix...Obama can put out a statement addressing it...

And I don't get where you say campaign finance laws forbid it. How? This happens a lot.

And I doubt this was Russert's intent.

[jefferson_dem]

37. Lookie at this. Hillary keeps up the attacks on Obama today.

Fuck her.

...

It is how she has been viciously thrown under the bus by the entire Democrat party. You know, the same Democratic party that she and her husband made relevant again after the Dukakis and Mondale failures.

The way the Democratic party has thrown a loyal soldier under the bus is shameful.

http://thepage.time.com/2008/05/09/clinton-keeps-up-attacks-on-obama-goes-after-health-care-plan/