Blogosphere Day: Time to Invest in Our FutureWhen I entered the 2004 presidential race, it was with the support of tens of thousands of Americans organizing online (and later translating it offline) to create a movement to change America. It opened my eyes to the power of the internet. Through message boards, email, blogs, etc., the barriers to entry to participate in the ongoing discourse that is democracy had been lowered, and millions of Americans joined in the conversation.
Some of the "guardians" of our political discourse have bemoaned this development. I welcome it. The netroots have opened up the table to new players, enriched our political discourse, and dismantled long-standing barriers to participation in media and politics. How can anyone deny these are positive developments in a democracy?
That's why today is so important. Today is Blogosphere Day -- a day that realizes the great promise of our democracy: people coming together from across America to change the direction of our country. In the past, the progressive blogosphere has united on July 19 to support a specific candidate, and I was proud to support Blogosphere Day candidates Paul Hackett and Ned Lamont.
Now on the 4th annual Blogosphere Day, it's time to invest in our infrastructure, and that means supporting ActBlue. This isn't just about 2008, 2010, or any specific election. It's about building support for activists, for new ideas, and for candidates from the local to national level. Supporting ActBlue not only strengthens the progressive movement, but it strengthens our democracy.
After I left the 2004 presidential race, I urged my supporters to remain focused -- to channel their energy into fighting for a better America. Well, I could have never predicted what Ben Rahn, who was with us as we launched our campaign in Little Rock, would do. He, along with Matt DeBergalis and their great team, created ActBlue.
In just three years, ActBlue has sent $25 million to 1700 Democratic candidates, from over 200,000 contributors. At WesPAC, we've used ActBlue to raise hundreds of thousands of dollars for dozens for candidates in over 30 states! There's no question that ActBlue was a critical part of helping Democrats take back Congress in 2006.
Now ActBlue is working towards raising $100 million in this election cycle and continuing to improve and expand its platform, but they need the resources to make this happen.
That's where you come in. Just take a few minutes and
send a contribution to ActBlue today.
Make no mistake. The other side is taking notes and doing their best to emulate our success online. We can't wait to invest in the future. Please act now. Please
support ActBlue today.
Wes Clark
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