Barack vs. The Rumor Mill

Barack Obama has launched a new site to uncover and squash rumors and lies about him, his family and his campaign at http://fightthesmears.com/. Read about it here.

Banner Year for 'McCainiacs'

This is the only one I've received so far from the McCain Camp:




Fellow McCainiacs,

We've been proud to work for and support John McCain since his first presidential run in 1999. Our friends and neighbors are well aware of our support, and today, we are able to publicly show that we want John McCain to be our next president in a unique way - a personalized banner.

For the first time in this campaign, you can order your very own personalized 3' by 6' banner to hang at your home, office or even your local party headquarters. As you can see from the picture, ours says "Donatelli's for McCain."

These banners can be personalized with your name or the name of any group you belong to, showing support for John McCain. This opportunity is being offered exclusively to our online community for a limited time. With your donation today of $250, you will receive your very own personalized banner to display proudly at your home or office. Please follow this link to order your banner right away.

We believe that John McCain is the best and most experienced candidate for president - he is ready to lead from Day One. We want to take advantage of every opportunity to publicly affirm our support, and this banner offers an opportunity to be used at house parties, fundraisers, tailgates, neighborhood picnics, college dorm rooms, local party headquarters and more.

Again, this offer is only available to our online community at this time, so please take advantage of this exclusive opportunity by following this link to place your order today!

We hope you order your banner and we truly appreciate your support for John McCain, our next President of the United States!

So... not much to analyze here. It's mostly just an ad for a customized/personalized banner -- no real rhetoric or suspicious claims. But this, if nothing else, is indicative of the marketing strategythe McCain campaign is taking - focusing on pride and personal ownership of the election process.

Hillary v. McCain Argument

This one just in from Hillary's folks:


Have you seen the general election polls lately? They consistently show that we'll beat John McCain in November. In a national head-to-head match and in the critical swing states, the numbers show I'm the best candidate to take back the White House for Democrats.

That is why it's critical that we stay in this race and keep fighting for every last vote. We can win the nomination if we extend our popular vote lead, and that means putting everything we have into the final races. With just a few days before the voters in Puerto Rico head to the polls, our campaign is working hard -- and your support is making the difference.

Every vote matters. I need you to help today and join our matching program. When you give today, a supporter will match your contribution and double its impact, making your $25 gift worth $50 or your $50 gift worth $100.

Contribute today to have twice the impact on the final primary races.

In the past 24 hours, thousands of you have given generously to our campaign, and I'm so delighted to see your incredible commitment.

With your help, we're going to keep driving forward to victory, and there's no better time to help than right now. By making a contribution today, you'll double your impact when your gift is matched.

Contribute today, and your gift will be matched.

Thank you for putting your heart and spirit into this campaign. I couldn't do it without you.


More popular vote rhetoric about her "lead," mixed in with a healthy dose of "the national polls say I'm a better candidate to beat McCain in Nov." Nothing much more to it, except for a push for more donations and implied momentum over the next 24 hours. Obviously, Hillary and Co. believe that a majority of votes over the last few primaries will be what it takes to bounce her back into the graces of superdelegates.

All of that aside, perhaps what's most interesting is what's not being written -- she is no longer calling out Barack by name - or questioning his experience or positions on key issues.

Viva Las Clintons!

Here's the latest from Hillary:


This Sunday, voters in Puerto Rico will go to the polls and make their voices heard -- the first time the island has played such a vital role in selecting our party's nominee. At this critical moment, I am depending on you to help me make sure they have a choice. We are depending on the voters of Puerto Rico in our fight to secure the nomination.

It doesn't matter what the pundits say. You and I know this race is up to the voters, and I'm going to keep fighting for every last vote. That's why it is so important that we get voters to the polls over the next few days -- and we can't do that without your help.

Over the next four days, we have the opportunity to make history in the Puerto Rico primary -- and win the national primary vote by redoubling our efforts. That's why a group of supporters has agreed to match contributions today from new donors -- meaning every dollar you give is worth double. Your $50 gift is worth $100, your $25 gift is worth $50 -- even a donation as small as $5 will have twice the impact.

Contribute today, and your donation will go twice as far toward helping us make history.

Puerto Rico isn't the only important deadline our campaign faces. The final two races -- in South Dakota and Montana -- are just six days away. And this Saturday marks another crucial end-of-month fundraising deadline.

And with the DNC Rules and Bylaws Committee's decision on Florida and Michigan also coming Saturday, there has never been a more important time to keep our campaign moving forward.

We can finish the primary races strong and win the nomination, but only with your help. And because your contribution today is worth double, today is a great time to give.

Double your impact by making a contribution today.

Throughout the course of this campaign, your support has made the difference time and time again. Now we are facing the last few primaries together, and I wouldn't have it any other way.

Thank you for everything


Wow. With all due respect, who knew Puerto Rico - not even a state - would be so crucial to the Clintons' campaign? Anyway, my read on this one is that Hillary is hanging on to hope by relying on her popular vote argument. She's counting heavily on Florida and Michigan - where Barack's name wasn't even on the ballot - to be counted, and in her favor. Should be interesting to see how this last goal-line drive impacts her fundraising efforts ... and if it really matters.

Off to a Slow Start

Since my initial posts, I haven't had a lot to say. However, I have signed up to receive e-mails from each of the candidates still in it - and so far haven't got much content to dissect, save for a few "thanks for joining my team" notes.

I hope to scrutinize the official missives coming from each camp, but there haven't been a lot in the last week or so.

Barack and his people have been uncharacteristicly quiet - as they try to wrap up the remaining delegates... Hillary is saving her rants for the press... and McCain must be sitting back waiting for the Democratic contest to be settled before he starts his e-attacks.

That said, there must be all sorts of unofficial e-mails flying around... I just haven't tapped into them yet.

I'll work on that while we wait for the candidates to start emailing again.

Barack Turns a Corner

Here's an e-mail from the Obama camp that just came in:


We're poised to reach a major milestone tomorrow. When the votes are counted in Oregon and Kentucky, we could secure a majority of delegates elected by the voters. A clear majority of elected delegates will send an unmistakable message -- the people have spoken, and they are ready for change.

As we near victory in one contest, the next challenge is already heating up. President Bush and Senator McCain have begun coordinating their attacks on Barack Obama in an effort to extend their failed policies for a third term. Last week, President Bush used a speech before the Israeli parliament to launch an unprecedented partisan attack. Senator McCain echoed his divisive misrepresentation of Barack's foreign policy vision, engaging in the same fear-mongering and distortion.

Barack responded forcefully -- you can see a preview of the tough responses he will always give to GOP attacks in this video:
http://my.barackobama.com/newforeignpolicy

We're just 16 pledged delegates away from reaching an absolute majority. Be sure to tune in tomorrow night to see Barack's speech.


This e-mail is interesting to me for a few reasons. First, Obama is "sort of" claiming victory, assuming tomorrow's contests in Oregon and Kentucky will give him a majority of delegates. This, as his camps puts it, "sends a clear message that the people have spoken and are ready for change." Notice the email doesn't reference Hillary at all -- implying that Hillary is done and now it's time to battle John McCain and the Republicans. The rest -- and most -- of the email is devoted to defending Barack's foreign policy position against the thinly veiled attacks by Bush and McCain.

I should back up and state that most of the emails I've seen from Barack have been very much tied to the ongoing primary contests, urging people to donate money and show other support while giving detailed status reports on delegate counts, fundraising totals and other indicators to show momentum. Now that it seems the primary season is drawing to a close (maybe), it will be interesting to see how these emails evolve as they lead up to one large contest in Nov. - rather than several smaller contests.

Please. Not another political blog!

What's my purpose here? Let me just state it at the onset.

I am a communications professional. And part of the geekiness of being a comms PR dude is understanding how information is purveyed and used to persuade.

I thought it would be interesting to see how the candidates for president were using e-mails to persuade.

So, that's what this blog is going to be about.

I am going to try to collect and capture e-mails by or about the candidates, and then analyze them in hopefully an academic sense, deconstructing them to uncover what the primary message or claim is.

I'll let snopes and the like determine the validity of the claims or messages.