Tonight, we at Blue Majority are asking our readers on Daily Kos, Open Left, and Swing State Project a simple question: should we endorse in the Democratic presidential nomination campaign tomorrow, or should we wait until the nominee is certain?
There are two reasons we ask this question. First, we have always valued your insight and suggestions for which Democrats to place on the page. For an endorsement of this magnitude, a super majority of you, the supporters who make Blue Majority work, must approve. In order for us to place a presidential candidate on the page while the outcome of nomination campaign is still in doubt, two-thirds support from the community will be required.
Second, while we were always going to place the presumptive Democratic nominee on the Blue Majority page as soon as s/he emerged, over the next month several new candidates will be placed on the Blue Majority page in anticipation of the March 31st fundraising deadline. With the overwhelming majority of progressive, grassroots, electoral energy current focused on the presidential nomination campaign, we believe that the newly added candidates will receive vastly more support if there is a presidential candidate on the Blue Majority page. And yes, you know which candidate we are talking about.
So far in 2008, Barack Obama is on pave to surpass all electoral records in terms of progressive grassroots support, even the high marks set by John Kerry four years ago after he became the presumptive nominee. If the energies of people-powered congressional candidates and that of the movement behind Barack Obama's presidential campaign were to combine, it could create a powerful symbiosis that can build the sort of governing majority we need to pass strong legislation in 2009. For example, in the Democratic primary for Maryland's 4th congressional district, the Donna Edwards campaign was able to convert the new wave of Obama voters into a decisive victory. We want to help translate that energy into even more big victories like the one we saw in MD-04.
Now, many in the community are ambivalent about the Democratic nomination campaign. Also, there are still many Hillary Clinton supporters within the community. Further, even many Barack Obama supporters have reservations about him, and I am sympathetic to those reservations. Here on Open Left, for example, I recently expressed my displeasure with the way Obama distanced himself from the term "liberal," Matt blasted Obama for his Harry and Louise mailers, and Mike blasted the Obama campaign for using Bush Dog Jim Cooper, who played a major role in sinking health care reform back in 1993-1994, as a spokesperson for health care. In fact, Matt and I even once appeared in a commercial attacking both Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama for their plans to leave residual American military forces in Iraq. There are good, progressive reasons to be wary of Barack Obama, of which these are only a few.
So, we have decided to leave the decision to you. If two-thirds of the community approves, we will add Barack Obama to the Blue Majority page tomorrow, and roll out several new congressional candidates over the next couple weeks. If there is not two-thirds support for making an endorsement now, we will roll out the new congressional candidates anyway, and wait until there is a presumptive Democratic nominee before adding a presidential candidate to the page. And whether or not we add Barack Obama now, we will add Hillary Clinton to the page if and when she becomes the presumptive nominee.
So please, take the poll in the extended entry. Would you like Blue Majority to endorse now, or to wait until the nominee is certain? The deadline to vote is 6 p.m. eastern tomorrow, and the decision will be made based on the cumulative result across all three blogs. Take the poll.
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