We often wonder what politicians are like when they aren’t campaigning.
In this video, you can see Barack Obama, the man instead of the candidate or the President. President Obama made a surprise visit to the campaign office in Chicago yesterday, thanking his supporters for all of their work, saying this victory is yours. Also, he cries while talking to his supporters. The second time we’ve seen that in a matter of days — a few streamers he couldn’t control.
Obama’s obvious emotion over the past few days appears to be tied to what he started in his youth, and how he’s watching young people who support him start their journey as his own comes full circle.
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Watch here:
Jim Messina, an Obama for America strategist, wrote in an email to supporters:
“The best campaign team and volunteers in the history of politics.”
So many times in this election, this campaign was counted out. They said our supporters wouldn’t turn out, and we’d never see the kind of voter participation we saw in 2008. They said we’d be buried in money and special-interest influence. And they said that no campaign could overcome the political headwinds we faced.
Last year, a major American newspaper asked, “Is Obama toast?” As recently as two weeks ago, another ran this headline: “Can Obama win?”
Tuesday night, you all answered all of those doubts with a resounding YES WE CAN. By knocking on doors, organizing phone banks, and chipping in a few bucks when you could, you built a campaign that is unparalleled. And you re-elected our president.
You also proved that millions of ordinary people taking ownership of a cause is still the most powerful force in our political process. You showed that grassroots organizing and small donations are not only the right way to win, but also the most effective way.
How we got here must guide where we go. If we’re going to accomplish the things America voted for on Tuesday, you’ve got to be even more involved in getting them done than you were in giving us all the chance.
We’ll be in touch soon about how we can get started on some of the President’s top priorities in his second term.
For now, I just want to say I am so proud of this team. And I can’t wait to see where you take this incredible movement from here.
Today in a conference call with reporters, the Obama campaign was asked what they were going to do with all of their ground game operations. They replied that they were going to talk to the folks on the ground about that, see what they wanted to do.
And that answer pretty much sums up the Obama ground game support. This was truly a grassroots movement of supporters who believe in this President. It was unprecedented in its organization and drive, fueled by the passion of the supporters for this President. His supporters are the movement.
President Obama spent his youth on the same causes he champions now – helping the downtrodden, lifting up the poor, the middle class, single mothers, and more. He’s not just snagging cool slogans from campaign strategists; he means it. His implementation is not always perfect and our government requires compromise, but his sincerity is not at issue.
So, as we head into the next four years for 44, we can rest assured that this President has our backs, listens to our voices, and needs us to continue standing up to be heard. We must do as he urged in 2008; keep pushing him and our government forward. We must be active. We must never let cynicism keep us from being heard.
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Sarah has been credentialed to cover President Barack Obama, then VP Joe Biden, 2016 Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, and exclusively interviewed Speaker Nancy Pelosi multiple times and exclusively covered her first home appearance after the first impeachment of then President Donald Trump.
Sarah is two-time Telly award winning video producer and a member of the Society of Professional Journalists.
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