Obama Beefing Up Florida Efforts, Padding Out Staff
Though Obama campaign manager David Plouffe said the other day that Obama can win without Ohio and Florida, the campaign is moving aggressively this week to beef up its efforts in the Sunshine State.
The campaign tells us that Dem operative Steve Schale will manage the state's Florida campaign, while Ashley Walker, who ran the state during the primary, will be the Florida political director.
Obama advisers regard these two as among the very best the state has to offer. Obama aides say Shale has a great track record in winning House races in the state, meaning he has the sort of fine-grained local knowledge necessary to find extra votes in odd places -- the sort of thing that can make a big difference in a close race.
The personnel moves, combined with the fact that Obama will visit the state later this week, suggest that the Obama camp knows that Florida is going to be a grueling fight and that for all the talk of remaking the map, they will compete as aggressively as possible there -- starting now.
Meanwhile, as expected, the Obama campaign also announced today that longtime Clinton loyalist Patti Solis Doyle has joined the campaign as the head of the Veep-candidate-to-be's staff. The move is either a sign that Hillary's Veep prospects are good or that they're bad, depending on which pundit is doing the talking.
Late Update: A long list of Obama staff hires announced today after the jump.
Constituency Director: Brian Bond - formerly LGBT Outreach Director at the DNCNational Field Director: Jon Carson - formerly Obama for America Voter Contact Director
Senior Advisor to the Campaign and Chief of Staff to Michelle Obama: Stephanie Cutter
Industrial States Regional Director: Paul Diogardi - formerly Political Director for the Democratic Governor's Association.
Battleground States Director: Jen O'Malley Dillon - formerly Iowa State Director for John Edwards for President
Chief of Staff to the Vice Presidential Nominee: Patti Solis Doyle
Latino Vote Director: Temo Figueroa - formerly Obama for America National Field Director
First Americans Vote Director: Wizipan Garriott
Northeast Regtional Director: Eureka Gilkey - formerly Obama for America Deputy Political Director
50-State Voter Registration Director: Jason Green - formerly Obama for America political and field staff
Campaign Chief of Staff: Jim Messina - formerly Chief of Staff to Senator Max Baucus
LGBT Vote Director: Dave Noble - formerly of the National Gay and Lesbian Task ForceWest Regional Director: Matt Rodriguez -formerly Obama for America New Hampshire State Director
Senior Advisor: Michael Strautmanis
African American Vote Director: Rick Wade
Considering that by all accounts Patti Solis Doyle and HRC hadn't spoken between her replacement and at least early June, I can't see how this is a sign that Hillary's Veep prospects are anything other than basically non-existent.
June 16, 2008 2:26 PM | Reply | Permalink
Word on the street is that they are on bad terms, and I don't see Obama putting the person Hillary fired and scapegoated for her financial issues in as chief of staff for the VP if Hillary was going to be that person.
Anyway, Obama has great judgment, therefor I'm sure he knows that the nightmare ticket is a horrible horrible horrible idea. Just say no:
http://www.thepersonalispolitical.com/2008/06/why-no-nightmare-ticket-lets-count.html
June 16, 2008 2:30 PM | Reply | Permalink
"...while Ashley Walker, who ran the state during the primary, will be the Florida political director..." I thought he signed some pledge not to campaign in Florida...That's why their votes didn't count. He had someone running a nonexistant campaign?
June 16, 2008 2:31 PM | Reply | Permalink
Yeah, it was undoubtedly a pretty laid back job.
June 16, 2008 2:44 PM | Reply | Permalink
Mr. Wallace you are entitled to your own opinions but not to your own set of facts.
The reason that Florida was not counted was because the DNC said they would not be counted after they violated the rules that they had signed off on. Can you grasp that simple fact.
June 16, 2008 3:12 PM | Reply | Permalink
the hillary as VP thing is possible but I dont think he should pick her. I also never saw florida within reach for the democrat so you never know.
We finally know whos behind the smears about obama
Candidates on equal pay.
McCain’s Clayton Williams problems
Bring It On GOP
Candidates on Social security
Its All About Taxes
http://sensico.wordpress.com/
June 16, 2008 2:32 PM | Reply | Permalink
Glad to see it. Florida is going to be tough for Obama, but this signals a serious investment. The kind that at the least can force McCain to play defense.
But, while I'm glad to see it, I'll be happy to see an equal serious investment in Ohio. I know they can win without it, but that doesn't mean they shouldn't give it everything they have. Ohio is ripe for the picking, Obama can't write it off.
June 16, 2008 2:32 PM | Reply | Permalink
He is investing in both.
June 16, 2008 2:37 PM | Reply | Permalink
Patti Solis Doyle? What the heck is up with this? She is the ultimate Hillary insider.
http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/200802u/patti-solis-doyle
Seems to suggest Solis Doyle wasn't the most competent...and Hillary's campaign suffered as a result of Hillary's personal loyalty to her.
June 16, 2008 2:34 PM | Reply | Permalink
Ive been away a while...good to see the staff widening. Anyone know what the status of Samantha Power(s) is ?
June 16, 2008 2:36 PM | Reply | Permalink
I've been waiting for her return. I think it is safe to come back now. I miss her!
June 16, 2008 2:45 PM | Reply | Permalink
I really don't think we'll see her for awhile. Just because the party's in "reunification" mode so they don't want that news story yet.
June 16, 2008 3:11 PM | Reply | Permalink
I agree. I would love to see her back, but not while McCain is still making his push to win over former Hillary voters. Or at least not before Hillary actively starts campaigning on behalf of Obama.
June 16, 2008 3:59 PM | Reply | Permalink
She is a humanitarian interventionist, and those people, in arguing that there is a noble use of the military outside of self-defense, helped soften American hearts to neocon-style interventionism.
June 16, 2008 7:02 PM | Reply | Permalink
Geh!
Greg, what the fuck is so hard for you to understand? NOWHERE did Plouffe or any Obama campaign person say they were writing off Florida or Ohio. NOWHERE. What they said was they were tired of putting all Dems egg into those two baskets. So they are working on remaking the map and giving the Dems more options. Which is a GOOD thing.
BUT, in so doing that, that does NOT mean they are walking on Florida and Ohio. Both of those states are winnable, and resources will be spent there. There is nothing incongruous in their sending staff to Florida following the earlier statements from the campaign. It is perfectly consistent.
What the flying fuck is so hard for you to understand about that? Are you too busy trying to re-fight the Clinton/Obama primary battle still to process this fact? For the love of all that is holy, wake the fuck up.
June 16, 2008 2:41 PM | Reply | Permalink
it's really hard to overstate how clueless this is. this post is obviously saying the opposite of what you seem to think it says
June 16, 2008 2:54 PM | Reply | Permalink
As we've said, small mind
50 state strategy and expanded electoral map blows their baby Clinton brain
June 16, 2008 3:03 PM | Reply | Permalink
No, it doesn't.
Your post follows the painfully disingenuous post from Kleefeld that misconstrues what Plouffe and the Obama team was saying. You don't clean up Kleefeld's mess, you ignore it. Instead, you wade into the befouled site that is election central in the aftermath of Kleefeld's wilfull blindness and write:
"The personnel moves, combined with the fact that Obama will visit the state later this week, suggest that the Obama camp knows that Florida is going to be a grueling fight and that for all the talk of remaking the map, they will compete as aggressively as possible there -- starting now."
Well, gee, Greg. "For all the talk of remaking the map" is a loaded and borderline sarcastic take from you on what is being done. And you have built zero credibility at this point with your months of months of carrying water for candidates not names Obama while taking every opportunity to criticize the Obama campaign.
One more time, so you can understand (I will type slowly):
Remaking. the. map. does. not. mean. giving. away. Florida.
Yet your usage of "for all the talk" (especially in light of Kleefeld's previous post bullshit spewing serves to underscore his incorrect take.
If you think your post was saying something opposite of what you have put up there, you may want to go back and re-think it. But you don't post in a vacuum, and this post builds on what came before it. What came before it was Kleefeld's horrifically misguided take on the Plouffe statement, and you buy into it with your verbiage here.
Bad post, badly written.
June 16, 2008 3:10 PM | Reply | Permalink
John:
The above was in reply to Greg. Probably clear, but wanted to make sure.
June 16, 2008 3:15 PM | Reply | Permalink
Indeed. Greg Sargent is insipid indeed.
I've come to think that the only real value in visiting this blog as against KOS, MyDD or HuffPo is for the unadulterated pleasure of bashing morons Sargent and Kleefeld
All they do is copy what others say and add their own two cents
Literally
June 16, 2008 3:27 PM | Reply | Permalink
As I was SAYING
June 16, 2008 3:35 PM | Reply | Permalink
Yup, just saw Kos' post. Impossible not to think of Sargent/Kleefeld with regard to Kos' swipe at "traditional battleground mentality". Ah well, we can always hope Greg/Eric will figure it out at some point.
Hint:
A whole bunch of states are in play, gentlemen. INCLUDING Florida. And Ohio. But not exclusively those.
It's a new electoral world. Join us in it.
June 16, 2008 3:52 PM | Reply | Permalink
Say! Todd Beeton at mydd gets it:
http://www.mydd.com/story/2008/6/16/162755/970
C'mon Greg, join the club! You can do it!
June 16, 2008 5:33 PM | Reply | Permalink
1. Denial
2. Anger
3. Depression
4. Bargaining
5. Acceptance
June 16, 2008 3:24 PM | Reply | Permalink
The TPMElectClintonsCentral staff still having trouble getting their minds around an expanded electoral map
No wonder she lost
June 16, 2008 2:47 PM | Reply | Permalink
Is John McCain doing ANYTHING?
I'm beginning to think not.
He is still spending a lot of his time fundraising while Obama spends all of his time campaigning and his staff organizing every state.
June 16, 2008 2:47 PM | Reply | Permalink
Greg,
I wouldn't put it quite so direct terms, but Eric's headline about Plouffe's comments about getting to 270 votes (which Eric reinterpreted as "We don't need Florida and Michigan") was highly misleading.
Actually, I'll take it one step further: it was flat-out inaccurate.
I was surprised to see Eric glean that headline from Plouffe's comments and I'm even more surprised to see you parrot the same point without qualification or verication. This is all the more ironic since you use that same point to introduce an article that would seemingly undercut and contradict the claim that the Obama campaign doesn't think they need Florida and Ohio.
So, which is it? Did David Plouffe say that they don't need Florida and Ohio to win? If so, please tell me where I could find this. And if not so, please tell me why you so eagerly repeated this fallacy in the course of explaining that the Obama campaign is, indeed, contesting Florida.
June 16, 2008 2:48 PM | Reply | Permalink
Well done, hokny, well said.
Greg, hokny conveyed my thoughts exactly.
June 16, 2008 3:21 PM | Reply | Permalink
Obama's gonna have to pander harder to the Jewish group if he has any chance of pulling out FL. College kids and blacks won't be enough in FL.
June 16, 2008 2:48 PM | Reply | Permalink
Naming Patti as the VP's CoS now is nothing short of bizarre. First, there is no VP nominee and we seem to be at least two months from one being named. Second, they obviously know this position will drive punditry and supporters wild either way. I truly do not understand the advantage of naming her now, even if this is the role they eventually plan for her.
June 16, 2008 2:48 PM | Reply | Permalink
I agree, it's such a weird pick.
She has been with Hillary since 1991, until her "firing" from the campaign in April....strange to see such a long time Hillary insider as Obama's VP Chief of Staff, whether she is still close or has now broken from Hillary.
June 16, 2008 3:19 PM | Reply | Permalink
It makes sense if Richardson is the VP
June 16, 2008 4:53 PM | Reply | Permalink
Any other reason besides their both Hispanic?
Is Obama's own campaign manager black?
Maybe it makes more sense if Richardson is NOT the VP... for balance.
Though I agree one reason she's on board is for Latino outreach.
June 16, 2008 7:08 PM | Reply | Permalink
I don't understand it either, but I'm sure it is for some reason that is beyond me (not that hard).
June 16, 2008 3:11 PM | Reply | Permalink
Al Gore Endorses and will appear with Obama on stage in MI. Share your opinions here:
http://tpmcafe.talkingpointsmemo.com/talk/2008/06/al-gore-endorses-your-views-on.php
TPM, take timeout from Hillary Obituary and report-Be on the toes.
June 16, 2008 3:19 PM | Reply | Permalink
Al Gore Endorses and will appear with Obama on stage in MI. Share your opinions here:
http://tpmcafe.talkingpointsmemo.com/talk/2008/06/al-gore-endorses-your-views-on.php
TPM, take timeout from Hillary Obituary and report-Be on the toes.
June 16, 2008 3:19 PM | Reply | Permalink
Why doesn't the VP candidate get to choose their own chief-of-staff? And why not put Solis- Doyle in any other role they were filling than VP CiS when you know her Clinton connection is going to get the talking heads talking about reading between the lines and waxing poetic about the unity ticket once again. It's as if Obama wants Hillary back in the news and front and center in the VP discussion.
June 16, 2008 3:23 PM | Reply | Permalink
Her selection and assignment does seem odd, but she does have a background that may prove beneficial. Although, she has been associated with Clinton she does have high level experience in the White House that few possess. Solis as David Plouffe is from Chicago as are numerous key staff members, it seems unlikely that she would have been chosen if they objected.
June 16, 2008 3:25 PM | Reply | Permalink
But why associate her with the VP position at all? Find something else for her to do.
June 16, 2008 3:30 PM | Reply | Permalink
Point taken! Am not too big on the "message" folks that follow, Obama and Team does not have the time for such messaging, but associating her with the VP is a poor notion as ultimately that person will have a role in who works with them.
June 16, 2008 3:59 PM | Reply | Permalink
And the utterly predictable reactions start to pour in:
>>> Not exactly a signal that Obama is considering Hillary Clinton for the job.
At least that's how Clinton loyalists see it. "It's a slap in the face," Susie Tompkins Buell, a prominent Clinton backer, said in an interview. "Why would they put somebody that was so clearly ineffective in such a position? It's a message. We get it." She said it was a "calculated decision" by the Obama team to "send a message that she [Clinton] is not being considered for the ticket."
Other Clinton insiders also seethed. "Who can blame Obama for rewarding Patti? He would never be the nominee without her," one person who has worked for both Clintons and remains close to them said. The sentiment reflected what another person in the immediate Clinton orbit described as "shock" that Obama would send such a strong signal that he is not considering Clinton as his runningmate so soon.
http://blog.washingtonpost.com/the-trail/2008/06/16/clinton_insiders_take_umbrage.html
June 16, 2008 3:30 PM | Reply | Permalink
i don't get the solis-doyle hire.
she was not a great manager for hillary.
if there is bad blood between patti and hillary, this exacerbates it.
otoh, isn't patti hispanic?
June 16, 2008 3:48 PM | Reply | Permalink
She wasn't a great manager because Clinton didn't back her to the point Penn, Wolfson, McAuliffe and Co did whatever they wanted. Penn should have been fired, not Patti Solis Doyle.
June 16, 2008 3:59 PM | Reply | Permalink
Maybe that's the point. The Penn/Wolfson/McAuliffe crowd get to take a hike.
June 16, 2008 7:41 PM | Reply | Permalink
Gore endorses Obama.
Where are the headlines here? Even myDD.com has it. Why not TPM?
June 16, 2008 4:22 PM | Reply | Permalink
Well, it's not exactly a bombshell, is it?
June 16, 2008 7:43 PM | Reply | Permalink
Adding Patti Solis Doyle might not be seen as a unifying move to political junkies and insiders but to the rest of the 100+ million voters in the general election it looks like a unifying gesture - good move!
June 16, 2008 4:40 PM | Reply | Permalink