Yet Another Dem-Aligned Outside Group Closes Up Shop

[Hope And Change]

Yet Another Dem-Aligned Outside Group Closes Up Shop


By Greg Sargent - June 26, 2008, 10:00AM

Another Dem-leaning independent group has now closed up shop: The Fund for America, a group formed in preparation for the 2008 race that raised money from the Democratic Party's heaviest-hitting donors, including George Soros.

It's yet another sign of just how rapidly Obama is remaking the Democratic Party machinery in his own image: Fund for America is closing up because the Obama camp signaled to its big money people to stop giving to such groups.

It's only the latest such organization to follow Obama's will: Progressive Media USA, the group led by Media Matters' David Brock, recently announced that it would not be running ads in the general election. And MoveOn recently shuttered its 527, as first reported here.

It's worth stressing again what a major gamble this is on Obama's part: In exchange for centralizing control of his message within his campaign, he's effectively disarmed these big-spending groups, even as the GOP is almost certain to ramp up outside activities on its side. Of course, Obama's enormously successful fundraising could render that activity moot


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http://tpmelectioncentral.talkingpointsmemo.com/2008/06/yet_another_demaligned_outside.php

[THX1138]

1. I admit

I haven't followed the details of this too closely, but can someone explain why this is a good thing? How does neutering MoveOn and preventing Media Matters from running ads help Obama? I don't understand. Is this all about appearances? Or is there some strategic advantage to this? Hope it's not all for show. None of the GOP 527's are going to close shop and since this will be barely mentioned in the MSM I don't he'll get any credit for rising above the fray.

[Catherina]

2. I don't like this one bit n/t

[Bullet1987]

3. I think this is a dumb ass move on the part of the Obama campaign

I was hoping out biggest asset when the Rethug 527s starting pumping ads was that we would have ads too. This is not a good move IMHO. I think Obama gives too much damn credit to people...especially since he knows the MSM will parrot whatever the hell the rethugs say.

This could end up coming back to bite them in the ass.

[thewiseguy]

4. Very bad move. What is the Obama camp thinking?

[ieoeja]

5. The media always holds Democrats responsible for everything said by their supporters.

Not so the Republicans. 527s are less about getting around finance laws than they are about smearing the other guy without making your guy look bad in the process.

Unfortunately, that has always been a one-way street. If a Liberal equivalent of the Swiftboat Liars attacked McCain's service like the Swiftboat Liars attacked Kerry, the outrage against that attack would be deafening. And damaging to Obama even if he opposed the attacks.

We have already seen that Obama's campaign does a kick-ass job of defending the candidate. So let them lead the fight.

Another thing to consider is how 527s and official campaigns are coordinated. The 527s and campaign can not work together by law. So the campaign can not come up with talking points to desseminate to the 527s. However, Republics don't write their own talking points. The group founded by Norquist sends out those talking points to the media, the 527s, and to the Republic campaign itself. So they are all on the same page.

We do not have that. There are no Liberal powers-that-be with overall control of the Democratic message. That very concept is anti-Liberal. So it will never happen. The best we can do is let the Democratic candidate run his/her message.

[Tatiana]

6. I HATE this! Fund for America is a pretty good group.

Team O better be f-in right about this.

And they better reserve the right to flip-flop and green-light the Dem leaning 527s if the right wing picks up steam.

:(

[ellacott]

7. They still have the labor unions who can still run these ads

The recent ad with Alex is now being paid for by a labor union.

[cbc5g]

8. Did you all read it? He's centralizing his message so others don't confuse it

They will turn their efforts to helping Obama, not 3rd party ads.

[Peacetrain]

9. Question? Why is everything that Obama does

a bad move? He is damned if he pulls the party strings.. he is damned if he moves outside of the party strings.. He is damned if he does not play the same politics.. He is damned if he moves to a new set of politics..

[THX1138]

10. I would just like to know

why this is a good idea. What is the benefit?

[FrenchieCat]

13. Because it allows Obama's message to be the message......

as he cannot coordinate with such groups....as it is against election laws.

[FrenchieCat]

11. Because we are all much smarter than he is.......

We just didn't figure out how smart we were till after he won the primaries based on what he determined would make him win.

So now that he has won the primaries, we have a plan for him to win the general, but we just don't know what that plan is yet, or if it will work...but we do know that if he does as we say, he'll win.....maybe

or maybe not.

But we won't be so smart to know any of this till he wins,

or loses.

In otherwords, we have not clue what works, but we like to think we do.

We should all send in our resume to the Obama campaign.
Maybe they will hire all of us. :shrug:

[beachmom]

12. Many of Soros's groups were not that effective in '04. Why? Because

they could not advocate FOR Kerry. And also, exit polls showed afterward that many Americans viewed Kerry's campaign as more negative than Bush's, a major WTF moment in the year swiftboat was turned into a verb. This was due to the many liberal 527 groups attacking Bush, often incoherently when put altogether. There are still going to be ads by outside groups against McCain. But not 527s. This gives Obama an argument. Freed of public financing he can fight back himself, unlike John Kerry who had no money in August 2004 to fight back in a real way with.

[hedgehog]

14. I don't understand exactly what this means. Is Move On going to run

any ads at all now? Does the 527 rule cover only a specific type of ad? What is the role of Move On now?

[beachmom]

15. Yes, Moveon will run ads funded by small donors, just not a 527

which can take far higher donations.