Assuming Obama gets the nod - How can we be sure the youth will show up in the general?

[Cronus Protagonist]

Especially when they've let us down time and time again in the past?

[Teaser]

1. forget it

not worth the flamefest.

[Cronus Protagonist]

3. Yeah, but no one cares about that

We're talking about the General Election here and Obama's youthful support. Will they show up when they have NOT done so in the past? Remember Dean? Remember Kerry? Remember Gore? The youth vote simply did not come through for any of them.

[AllentownJake]

5. See my post below.

[democrattotheend]

36. We've been showing up in the primaries

So I don't see why we wouldn't show up in the general, especially if we get our candidate, which was not the case in 2000 or 2004. Youth turnout was up in 2004 from previous years, but if Dean had been the nominee it probably would have been better. I just feel like we are damned if we do and damned if we don't sometimes. I get the sense from some of Clinton's older supporters that they resent our involvement in the primary, that they feel we have not "paid our dues" or that we think the presidency is like American Idol. So they are complaining about us voting in the primary, but then they will complain if we don't show up in the general.

[Liberal Gramma]

45. Keep the faith, democrattotheend

This old Democrat is thrilled to see all you young voters ready to carry the torch.

[democrattotheend]

80. Thanks!

I'm trying. I just can't stand when older people act condescending, treating me like I don't know what I'm doing and just support Obama because it's cool. With a degree in political science and 3 years of work experience in Washington, I could probably teach most of them a thing or too about politics.

[Orangepeel]

76. the youth vote didn't show up in the primaries in previous elections

Gore and Kerry didn't need them to win the primaries and Dean lost the primaries in part because they didn't show up.

[AllentownJake]

2. Because he's willing to invest in getting out their vote

Real investments not token. He has staff in every major college town responsible for just college voters.

For the PA primary he had a staffer assigned to the 5 colleges in my town and she organized Obama organizations in each one.

[BlooInBloo]

14. I agree - it takes a little bit of hand-holding, along with his natural charisma.

(feel better)

[bhikkhu]

70. That's what it takes, and he is doing it.

In spite of those who are still here projecting doom and gloom and preemptive "I told you so!"'s (no names needed).

[roseBudd]

4. Assuming HRC gets the nod - How can we be sure the old whites won't vote GOP like they did in 04

[BlooInBloo]

6. The myspace-ish/yelp-ish network he's made/making will help a LOT...

Just call it a "flash mob" - they'll show up in droves for that!

:rofl:

[Cronus Protagonist]

9. Maybe if we text them all with G8 FREE RINGTONES @ UR POLLING PLACE!! FOR REALS!!

That might work... :P

[AllentownJake]

10. I gave an honest answer what he's doing

However no one cares about it :cry:

[BlooInBloo]

12. I actually wasn't kidding.... well not until I went over the top with the flash-mob part at least.

[Cronus Protagonist]

15. I heard you, but you have to know they've been this excited before and never showed up in Nov.

Maybe this time it will be different, but I have to say that, based on past experience, they will show up in dribs and drabs, if at all, not in hordes like we need them to.

[BlooInBloo]

19. Exactly how much of Obama's campaign is similar to "past experience"?

It's even less safe than usual to draw that inference in Obama's specific case.

[Cronus Protagonist]

22. One word. DEAN and we're talking about the YOUTH VOTE, not the campaigns

When it comes to youth coming through, there's not that much difference here. Or is there?

[BlooInBloo]

24. Well, except that Dean wasn't the nominee.... I suppose not.

[AllentownJake]

28. Dean

Reached out however he did not do what Obama has done.

No candidate has invested as much as this group. He treats them as their own special interest group.

[The Magistrate]

33. There Is Nothing Particularly Out Of The Ordinary About It, Sir

Charismatic figure, cut-throat managers, and a serious political machine lurking in the background, that spotted the rising talent young: all reasonably standard issue. The skill with which it has been done is certainly remarkable, and the man has genuine force of personality and oratorical skill to burn.

"The 'NEW!' on the package, that's what's new!"

[BlooInBloo]

lol

[scarletwoman]

63. "The 'NEW!' on the package, that's what's new!" I love you, you old cynic!

I do hope the Democratic party does a good job of cultivating this year's crop of eager youngsters. No reason we can't be getting better at this as time goes on, is there?

:hug:
sw

[The Magistrate]

71. Thank You, My Friend

The line is pretty old, actually: a 'New Yorker' cartoon in the fifties, with a bunch of Madison Avenue types around a table, and one holding up the box with the happy cry that has stuck in my mind all these years....

[scarletwoman]

73. I'm old, too. I remember when the joke came out.

Still cracks me up after all these decades. :D

:hug:
sw

[AllentownJake]

27. Have they shown up for the primaries before.

Obama came to speak at a college in my town. The college kids got 400 tickets for a venue that held 4000. There were college kids waiting in line for the regular tickets because the 400 tickets for their campus went so fast.

That's because Obama campaign had taken the time to create a student group at that school and to appoint leaders in that area with real responsibilities to the campaign.

He also had a staffer there on the campuses of the 5 schools to help those leaders.

[BalancedGoat]

42. I disagree with your assertion that they've been this excited before.

One difference with 2004 is that those who were excited were more voting against a candidate than for a candidate.

Didn't they show up in record numbers anyway that year? I believe that their record turnout was masked by record turnout across the board. At least that's what I remember hearing at the time.

[QC]

69. A free can of AXE with every vote! n/t

[bigwillq]

7. We can't.

We can only hope. But I really believe that they will turn out if Obama is the nominee...they have so far through the primary season.

[Melinda]

8. I dunno.... maybe because 100 years of war will require reinstatement of the draft?

:shrug:

[PoliticalAmazon]

30. Bingo. n/t

[slinkerwink]

11. that's why Obama's 50 state voter registration drive is so important.

[Catherina]

13. Right. We just gave him our money to sit home on election day

Are you for fucking real?

[AllentownJake]

20. Lot of young voter bashing

In the past they thought they could do an MTV music video with the hottest one hit wonder and talk about their underwear and the young would come out.

No one ever thought of talking to them like adults making some of them leaders and giving them responsibility or putting resources into getting out their vote via staff who would get them resources from the campaign would be a good idea.

[malletgirl02]

44. Thank you

Thank you for defending young voters. I was about to respond angrily to some of those the ageist responses, but then I saw your post and I calmed down.

[AllentownJake]

49. No one has paid attention to them

because of 1972. For 36 years they've been ignored because of that election.

They really thought Rock the Vote was a way to get people to vote by using gimicks and talking down to people. Throw some Celebrity on stage sing a song and have the candidate talk about fluff. It turned politics into a joke.

They didn't realize if you empower young people like you do every other interest group that you see results.

Obama has been succesful because he's created student leaders and holds them accountable. I know a few of them from the PA primary and they did their job...hard though alot of the kids in college from out of state had already voted in other primaries.

[Catherina]

53. Excellent point

The only reason I ever registered to post for these elections was because of all the young voter bashing here. I was incensed that a bunch of people who fucked up the last 24 years had the gall to lecture young people to get out of the way so the ADULTS, with at least 4 unforgivable strikes on their record, could do it "right". The young voter bashing really killed me. If it hadn't been for that and how young voters fought back, I probably never would have paid as much attention to Obama. I'm still incensed about it.

[Yael]

16. When did youth turnout break election records in PRIMARIES before?

We have the ground organization and we have yet to see the Obama machine in operation against McCain.

[Thrill]

17. Because the country hasn't been in the shits like this in a long time

[dailykoff]

18. Start by keeping the haters off the ticket.

Younger voters seem to be finding their way to the polls just fine.

[muryan]

21. We showed up the last time a candidate truly asked for us to show up

We've been working and donating in droves this time around, I don't spend my entire summer working for a campaign if I don't plan on voting for the candidate.

[billyoc]

23. Appeal to their better angels, and trust that they want to build a better world for the future.

Nah, I'm just fuckin' with ya, we threaten to kill them, THAT'S how.



And if they don't show up, I'll make sure they go in the front vehicle when we all get there.

[WritingIsMyReligion]

25. How can we be sure the grumpy old whites won't vote GOP, like they've been doing recently?

How can we be sure of anything in this election?

Pretty damn useless to sit spinning tales of misery surrounding hypothetical situations. :shrug:

[Deja Q]

39. No no no no no!

They're called "grumpy old protestants"... GOP.

[Hippo_Tron]

43. Ummm I beg to differ...

Grumpy Old Pricks

[mdmc]

26. we can't. we must rely on the old folks

hopefully enough old folks will vote with the young. And God Bless Bob Barr - if he can pick up Ron Paul as his veep then we have it made!

[PoliticalAmazon]

29. IMO a lot of the motivation is not wanting Hillary in the WH....

so if they are motivated by Hillary to vote against in the primaries, I bet they will be motivated with an exponent to vote against McCain in the GE.

[blogslut]

31. Because he is who they are showing up for

n/t

[Gore1FL]

32. It makes sense that they would if they showed for him in the nomination phase.

[AZBlue]

34. You're looking at it backwards: how can we be sure the youth will show up?

Because Obama's getting the nod.

[OPERATIONMINDCRIME]

35. Easy. Lollipops.

Give away lots and lots of lollipops...

[Cronus Protagonist]

47. lol

That might just work :P

[gmudem]

50. I love being talked down to

If so many young people are voting for him in the primaries, which have much lower turnout than in the GE, why would they not vote for him in the general election?

Obama doesn't talk down to people, no matter what age they are. He is also a new kind of politics, and frankly young people are already cynical so when we see Hillary's campaign it just reinforces our cynicism.

Hillary is the old, Obama is the new.

[Neshanic]

37. iPods and lots of positive feedback on their abilities.

[Deja Q]

38. Those millenials would rather get another earring in their ear, nose, lip, elsewhere (warning: pics)

On edit: Removed the pic that would be entitled the "How-to" chapter... :scared:

[Skittles]

40. I believe Mr. Obama needs to concentrate on all who do not vote

not just the youth vote

[anigbrowl]

41. How do we know old voters won't die by November?

Dumb question. You don't know, you work on making sure they go to vote in November.

[Youphemism]

46. Post a YouTube Video...

... about how fun it is to go to the polls stoned out of your gourd.

[JoFerret]

48. They have

and they will. 'Tis the nature of the beast.

[AtomicKitten]

51. We've wired them with collars that explode if they don't vote.

[scarletwoman]

58. Ah! Excellent!

:rofl:

Peace,
sw

[Swamp Rat]

52. It's not them I am worried about.

It's the folks who are so uniformed they think Obama is a Magic Negro Muslim.

[JackORoses]

54. by not putting Hillary on the ticket for starters

[Auntie Bush]

55. Don't worry...they will vote unless they have a hot date or have something better to do...

like the Obama girl. She wasn't so hot to trot off to the polls...was she?

[cottonseed]

68. This time there is something better to do. They will come out and vote.

[Ysabel]

56. young people have not let us down this is a myth...

[scarletwoman]

57. Uh, how about by working at it? You know, organize and stuff. All hands on deck and all that.

They haven't been as excited in the past as they are this year, no reason we shouldn't be able to harness that energy and keep it directed toward the general election.

sw

[MzShellG]

59. We all have to do our part as democrats if we wanna win against the repukes.

Obama knows how to get the youth fired up but I will get more involved to gotv. We all should.

[ShadowLiberal]

60. Most who vote in primaries vote for the same party in the general election

Also I've read recently that McCain's efforts to reach out to young voters really haven't been too serious or pushing hard.

[HooptieWagon]

61. President McCain = 100 years of war = DRAFT!

[Cronus Protagonist]

64. I got news for ya.... several DEMOCRATIC Senators want a draft

Are you sure Obama won't allow a draft? Even if Bush throws the switch on Iran? Hmmmmm.... maybe someone should ask him so he'll be on the record on that one.

[HooptieWagon]

66. I believe that was a strategic move to end the war

Tie a draft (that draftees can't get a TANG assignment to avoid) to the war, and all of a sudden you have a bunch of pukes who don't want their kids drafted voting to stop funding. As a political ploy, it might have worked, although i'd be worried about blowback. As a campaign meme, though, it may have merit.

[Cronus Protagonist]

72. As far as I'm concerned, ANY call for a draft is a mistake

One simply doesn't gamble with the lives of our children on a political ploy. That's a cheap shot with huge consequences. I'm ashamed for the Democratics who have fallen into this dangerous, and ridiculous way of thinking.

[CaptJasHook]

62. Thanks for the CONCERN.

[MadBadger]

65. It's a real good sign that they have given a shit in the primary.

[scheming daemons]

67. As a rule, people don't tend to vote in the primary and then SKIP the GE....

If people, even young people, are only going to vote in ONE of the two, it would be the GE.


Nobody goes out of their way to vote in the Primaries or Caucuses and then SKIPS the General.

[Cronus Protagonist]

75. I don't know if anyone noticed but we need orders of magnitude more youth to vote in the general

The number who voted in the primaries is not significant enough. The overall number of voters who actually vote in primaries is WAY less than the number who vote in the General. Each young primary voter needs to bring two or three or even four of his peers to the general election to make it stick. Can we count on that? If so, how, if not, we need another strategy to make them come.

[JVS]

84. The only thing that might make a lot of them skip the GE is if their candidate doesn't get the nod.

[dave29]

74. IRAQ.

.

[Warren DeMontague]

77. I hear you can get 80,000 people to show up just by telling 'em "The Decemberists" are playing.

I don't really understand what all the fuss is about. I don't like that rock and roll noise the kids nowadays listen to on their ipooods.

I'd much prefer to take my teeth out, turn on some nice Celine Dion, and relax in the barcalounger with a nice warm glass of metamucil.

[Scout]

78. free beer n/t

[Cronus Protagonist]

79. Yeah, but that would also bring out the GOP base :P n/t

[redqueen]

81. How can we be sure of ANYTHING?

You do the best you can with what you've got.

Obama = best option.

Really nothing more to it than that. Jesus Tapdancing CHRIST this "concern" shit is fucking TIRED!

[JVS]

82. Yeah, because kids get fucking pumped for primaries but don't give a shit about who takes office.

:eyes:

[quaker bill]

83. Because they did during the primary

Howard Dean rallied the youth vote heavily in 2004. However, he lost when they did not show on primary day.

Barack Obama has rallied the youth vote, and they actually are turning out in record numbers.

The proof of the pudding is in the eating...

There is no historic evidence for a group showing up in the primaries in record numbers that then failed to do so for the general.

[IsItJustMe]

85. Lot's of them don't want to go to Iraq. Ever think of that.

[SoxFan]

86. Cronus, you made the papers