Tom Barrett Doesn't Feel Ignored By President Obama

[bigtree]

WASHINGTON (AP) — Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett says he's not disappointed that President Barack Obama didn't do more to support his effort to replace Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker in Tuesday's recall election.

Barrett told CNN Tuesday morning that he doesn't feel ignored by Obama — "not one bit," he said.

. . . Obama didn't travel to Wisconsin to campaign with Barrett. Instead, he sent out a message on the social media site Twitter late Monday.

"It's Election Day in Wisconsin tomorrow," Obama tweeted, "and I'm standing by Tom Barrett. He'd make an outstanding governor."

Barrett says there are some people who want to make the recall vote a national election. But, he says, it's really more about Wisconsin, its people, and jobs.


read: http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5iYkRkQGSQZN29O2rAtAhCXlazPQA?docId=87e8628033594cea9a688d97b11d2695

[monmouth]

1. Barrett makes more sense than many here on DU. I'm glad the President stayed out of it. It's a

State matter.

[MannyGoldstein]

2. How much money has the DNC put into Wisconsin in the past six months?

And what percentage of the DNC's war chest does that represent?

That will really tell us all we need to know.

[Arkana]

3. Don't know, but OFA has been phonebanking on Barrett's behalf.

And they've been referring to themselves as Obama for America, not Organizing for America.

[PeaceNikki]

5. they're also canvassing and observing the polls

They've been amazing.

[Liberal_Stalwart71]

16. Yep! I've been on the phone for the last few weeks. I'm calling from MD.

OFA has been very active. It's just that Democrats can't stop bitching and whining over this president. Really, it's worse than the Teabaggers. He can do no right in their eyes no matter what he does.

[Son of Gob]

22. Not Democrats, Third Party hacks who will do anything to tear down Democrats.

You're right, they are no better than Teabaggers.

[Liberal_Stalwart71]

23. Got it! ;)

[PeaceNikki]

4. OFA resources have been and are dedicated to this.

That's perfectly ok with me.

[Freddie Stubbs]

6. 5/23/2012: DNC Appeals To 'Millions' To Raise Money For Tom Barrett

The Democratic National Committee is fundraising directly for the Democratic Party of Wisconsin in an effort to aid Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett (D) in the upcoming gubernatorial election against Gov. Scott Walker (R).

"Choices don't get clearer than this," read the email sent Wednesday evening by the DNC chair, Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.). "Winning in Wisconsin sends a powerful message to the far-right extremists, and it starts to roll back their worst offenses. To build our organization and make it happen, Democrats need to come together to turn out hundreds of thousands of voters -- and we all have a part to play."

What's notable about this fundraising appeal is that the money will go directly to Wisconsin Democrats, rather than to the DNC. Other national organizations -- including the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee -- have sent out solicitations related to the recall, but the money has not directly gone to Wisconsin entities.

A Democratic party official told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that Wednesday's fundraising email was being sent to "millions" of people.

more: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/23/scott-walker-recall-dnc-tom-barrett_n_1541148.html

[earthside]

7. Bunk.

Tom Barrett has to say that whether he believes it or not.

Frankly, I find a 'Tweet' from Pres. Obama on election eve stating that he is "standing by Tom Barrett" -- insulting.

Pres. Obama is certainly not 'standing' by the candidate ... he is 'Tweeting' long distance.

This much is true: if Barrett wins, it will be (and should be) perceived as a victory by Wisconsinites, progressives and union activists ... the national Democratic Party and Pres. Obama will not be a part of that triumph.

If Barrett does not defeat Walker, the effects, however, will be directly deleterious to the Obama campaign ... the demoralization of Wisconsin Democrats and the momentum for the TeaPublicans may well swing that state to Rmoney in the fall. Furthermore, as an observer of the Wisconsin saga, if Walker wins I think the demoralization of progressives across the nation will also be discouraging.

Last week Democratic insider strategist Julian Epstein on Martin Bashir's MSNBC show was disgustingly dismissive, negative and sneering towards the Wisconsin recall effort -- if this is really how party establishment-types in Washington think about this Wisconsin situation, then they are woefully out-of-touch with how core, activist liberals/progressives feel across this country.

Whether Pres. Obama should have done an event with Tom Barrett is a debatable question, but clearly the national Obama campaign publicly adopted a very 'steer clear' attitude towards the recall (I hope the Obama field organization in Wisconsin was full-out for Barrett) ... in my opinion, that was a mistake and they will therefore have to accept the consequences of their decisions.

[lunatica]

8. I think Obama is quite aware that he's a lightning rod politically and they probably

realized that if he jumps in it would really bring out the teabaggeratti big time. To think otherwise is to be unaware of just how much he's hated by them. They're probably also aware that Democrats are most likely going out in force and don't need any more incentives to light a fire under them.

Politics is mostly a gamble in situations like this. For Obama it is easy to see that he brings out the worst in the Right. Staying away is the best thing for him to do.

[Proud Liberal Dem]

9. If Barrett feels that President Obama is doing/has done enough

than who are we to simply dismiss that? It's a state matter and President Obama has wisely IMHO avoided injecting himself personally into what is, at the core, a state matter first and foremost.

[EFerrari]

12. We don't know how he feels, only what he says publicly.

I don't know enough about WI to have an opinion on the situation. This morning it was reported on Amy's show that the thugs raised 30 million dollars to our 4 (I think that's what I heard, it was pretty early). Maybe when people say this vote is a proxy for November, they're talking about how the tsunami of Republican money will work.

[bigtree]

13. if the President had been more prominent, the right-wing would have been energized in the state

. . . and elsewhere, and would have raised even more by making President Obama the focus of that election. The vote would be more of a referendum on the President than about Mr. Barrett and his recall effort.

[EFerrari]

14. Maybe you know enough to make that determination, I do not. n/t

[bigtree]

15. history

it's not just my observation, either. We can judge by past efforts where the president has publicly insinuated himself into a state campaign and lost what became, essentially, a referendum on him, rather than a clear focus on the candidate. I can recall these things as well as anyone else who follows politics, so I think I do know enough to judge the effect of a president campaigning for re-election and their influence on a state race. 'Nationalizing' is what happens, and that's just a fancy way of saying that the President sucks all the air out of the room and it becomes all about him, as far as the republican opposition is concerned. I don't know why it seems like it would be so helpful for some to relive that in this particular race. It's pretty predictable what the effect would have been, given the players on the republican side. Why even go there? he did the smart thing. kept his head down and gave as much support as he was able without making himself their target. Smart politics all around.

Some folks here (I'm not saying you) want to make like the President is, all at once, the panacea for Mr. Barrett's campaign; but, can't find any other instance where they'll admit he did any good. That's both hilarious and sad.

[EFerrari]

17. Amy did a segment on the race today and man, oh, man, Walker can't be a bigger jerk.

He's Santorum league horrible.

I'm not really thinking about the President today but wondering if the Republicans can buy WI for 30 million dollars. You'd think that with people struggling so much right now, seeing that kind of money thrown around would piss normal people off, create resentment or otherwise backfire. We'll see, I guess.

[Proud Liberal Dem]

18. It makes me sick

the amount of money that gets thrown around in these elections. Just absolutely sick.

[bigtree]

21. anger against the Supreme Court

. . . I would hope. I think folks go there and can't see their way to a solution and we all start pointing fingers at each other when republicans are clearly having their seats bought for them by these big money men. Citizens United . . . infamy for that decision.

[AnotherMcIntosh]

10. Well said. Thanks for saying it so clearly and forcefully. n/t

[bigtree]

11. That's just a jumble of nonsense

The Obama campaign provided plenty of support for the Barrett campaign; as did the Democratic National Committee.

You cite someone that YOU"VE give a position of importance in the President's political team. Epstein doesn't work for the White House or the Obama campaign and is free to say whatever he wants.

Whatever 'steer clear' strategy that was adopted by the President was out of deference to the Barrett campaign and the voters of WI. It's just not some slam dunk, that, to have the President insinuate himself publicly and prominently into that campaign, or any other for that matter, would have a positive effect. Mr. Barrett is totally correct. This election is about the people of Wisconsin. Putting the spotlight on the President is a sure bet to draw the focus away from the issues and initiatives that Mr. Barrett represents and is running on and make that election all about republican attacks on our Democratic president. He didn't need any political advisers, or even the candidate to tell him that. I could have told him myself, it's so obvious.

[AtomicKitten]

19. So let me get this straight.

If Barrett wins, "the national Democratic Party and Pres. Obama will not be a part of that triumph. "
if Barrett loses, "the effects, however, will be directly deleterious to the Obama campaign."

So, damned if he does, damned if he doesn't. Gotcha.

Pres O has unleashed all 60 OFA offices in Wisconsin to work exclusively on the recall. That's not nothing. He did not come to Wisconsin for the same reason he doesn't attend weddings - he does not wish to take all the oxygen out of the room with an intrusive entourage, security, etc. Duh.

Edited to post Ashley Biden's wedding picture. She was married recently and the Pres and First Lady did not attend because of the above reason.

[Liberal_Stalwart71]

20. Here's the thing: while you're bitching about what Obama has and has not done in WI

note that Mitt Romney has not shown up for Walker, either. That says so much now, don't it.

OFA is working hard. We are on the ground.

Go Barrett! Go Obama!!!!