Pirate's Cove

All is not well in Obama astroturf land

At her home on Tom Sawyer Road here the other night, Bonnie Adkins agreed to begin spreading the word that President Obama’s embattled health care plan needed help.

Ms. Adkins, who for the past two years devoted hundreds of hours helping Mr. Obama get to the White House, hosted a potluck supper that was advertised to Democrats in this eastern Iowa town along the Mississippi River. People were invited to bring a favorite salad or dessert — and their cellphones — to make calls drumming up support for the president’s agenda.

She wondered whether her house would hold everyone, but there was no reason for worry.

“We had 10 people. Not a huge number, but good,” said Ms. Adkins, 55, who has been an Obama volunteer since the first day she saw him during a stop here on March 11, 2007. “The enthusiasm is not there like it was a year ago. Most people, when they get to Nov. 5, put their political hat away and it doesn’t come out for three years.”

And many, many, many more are realizing that the change they thought they were voting for was not actually what they were voting for. They bought into hopenchange, felt the words of The One, and had no clue what Obama actually stood for. Remember the video of Obama voters being asked questions and getting the answer completely and utterly wrong?

As the health care debate intensifies, the president is turning to his grass-roots network — the 13 million members of Organizing for America — for support.

*Cough* astroturf  *cough*

“It’s a waste of time,” said Gilbert P. Sierra of Davenport, a Democrat who attended an Organizing for America meeting, where about 100 people gathered to vent frustrations and discuss how they could stand up to conservative critics. “Why spend money on this and only be talking to the choir?”

Which is what Obama is pretty much doing at his town halls. Talking to the choir, with his heavily prescreened attendees and questions.

Organizing for America has paid political directors in 44 states, Mr. Stewart said. In recent months the group’s strategy has changed. Gone are the television commercials on health care, climate change and other issues that were broadcast in an effort to pressure moderate Democrats to support the president’s proposals. Now, after the White House received an earful from some of those Democrats, the group has started running advertisements of appreciation.

Hmm, astroturf? Yup. Astroturf. And, you do have to love that what is essentially Obama’s organization, no matter what the laws are stating (it is supposedly a part of the DNC, now,) is running advertisements appreciating Obama. Narcissist anyone?

“People came out of the woodwork for Obama during the campaign, but now they are hibernating,” Ms. Smith said. “Now it is hard to find enough volunteers to fight the Republicans’ fire with more fire.”

It couldn’t have anything to do with the fact that people are finding that they really do not want the government put in charge of their health care, could it?