Hey! You have to lobby your government NOW, before things get underway.

[crispini]

Some folks on this board have had some things to say about President Elect Obama's cabinet picks and other recent actions. One fairly frequent rejoinder I see made often is along the lines of, "He hasn't taken office yet," and "I'm going to give him some time before I start complaining about what he does." With all due respect to the folks making this argument, I'm afraid it really shows a certain amount of political naivete and a lack of experience with how our government works.

Let me tell you a story here. To give you some background, in our state, we only have legislative session once every two years. Because of this, when the legislature is "in session," to say that it is chaotic is an understatement. One of the things that groups I am involved with often do is what's called a "lobby day." You get all of your constituents on a bus and get them down to Austin and they go around talking to legislators about what the issue is. Planned Parenthood does this every session, and other groups do this as well. Now, here comes the story. I was attending a campaign event with various state house legislators, sponsored by the retired teachers association. Someone in the audience asked, "What can we do to be more effective getting our issues across to you?" One of the legislators there said, "Don't have Lobby Days. Get with us in meetings BEFORE session starts so that we have time to sit down and listen to your issues."

Now, I *do* think that Lobby Days are effective, but I agree with this legislator that you have to push for your issues right from the beginning, BEFORE session starts. And this brings me back full circle to President Elect Obama. Those people who are saying, "He hasn't even taken office yet," are, quite frankly, being a bit ingenuous. The office of the President Elect is busy, busy, busy. They are making cabinet picks and RIGHT NOW they are very probably writing draft legislation or at the very least consulting with members of congress on it, and getting things ready to go. He's already said that he wants to have something ready for him to sign right after he is inaugurated. Guess what? That means they're working on it NOW. And that is why NOW is an appropriate time for us to continue to be engaged with what the PE is doing, in a positive way.

And guess what? They want our feedback. Here is the email I got last week. I've already signed up to host a party -- how about you?

This week, President-elect Barack Obama is announcing the key members of his White House economic team who will help him tackle serious challenges and bring the change we need to Washington.

But there's still a lot of work to be done in communities all across the country -- including yours.

On December 13th and 14th, supporters are coming together to reflect on what we've accomplished and help plan the future of this movement.

Many of you have already submitted your feedback through our online survey. Our team in Chicago is reviewing an impressive number of detailed responses, and your input will help guide the future of this grassroots movement.

Sign up to host a Change is Coming house meeting and invite your friends, family, and neighbors to attend.

You'll receive everything you need to make your meeting a success, including a special DVD our team put together just for these events.

Discuss the issues that are most important to you, what you can do to support Barack's agenda, and how you can continue to make an impact in your community.

Now is the time to put aside partisanship and politics, find common ground, and work together. Please invite those who might not have been involved in the campaign, even those who might have supported our opponent.

The challenges we face demand we be as inclusive as possible. It'll take the whole country working together to get our country back on track.

Host a party to celebrate our historic achievement and take the next steps to bring the change our country needs:

http://my.barackobama.com/changeiscoming

Your continued involvement is crucial to the future of this movement.

As Barack said on Election Night, "This victory alone is not the change we seek -- it is only the chance for us to make that change."

The grassroots organization you built to win the election will continue to set our country on a new path.

Thank you for everything you're doing,

David

David Plouffe
Campaign Manager
Obama for America

[John Q. Citizen]

1. Absolutly! obama isn't the end. He's an opportunity. We need to make it happen.now that we have the

opportunity.

[Phred42]

2. HOw dare you NOT just sit there with you thumb up your butt and let it all just happen

How dare you not drink the new and improved kool-aid and shut up..... like good lemmings do.
How dare you presume to question Obama...



good for you!
:toast:

[crispini]

3. Ahahahha. Here's the thing I think people don't realize: OBAMA IS USED TO THIS.

JEEZ, he's a DEMOCRATIC ELECTED OFFICIAL, for Pete's sake! That means he's listened to ENDLESS HOURS of dissent at community meetings and other places. He's endured TONS of this, not all of it rational! The man is not stupid and he's not a fair flower that's going to wilt at the slightest smell of critique. HE'S DONE THIS BEFORE. (Sorry, not shouting at you, it's just ridiculous that we're having this argument.)

[crispini]

4. kick.

[Pastiche423]

5. K&R!