Obama Campaign Staffer Sends Out Email Bashing Paul Krugman And The 'Firebagger Lefty Blogosphere'

[Enrique]

edit: the column he emailed was by a guy that gets his stuff posted here a lot, "deaniac83" at a website called "The People's View". I described him here once as the nastiest pro-Obama blogger on the Internet, which he is. Incredible that the Obama campaign would associate themselves with him.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/08/17/new-mexico-ofa-firebagger-lefty-blogosphere_n_929231.html

WASHINGTON -- The Obama campaign's point person in New Mexico recently sent an email to supporters defending the president's position on the debt deal and bashing the Nobel Prize winning New York Times columnist Paul Krugman and the "Firebagger Lefty blogosphere."

On the evening of Aug. 1, just after Congress passed legislation to raise the debt ceiling, Obama for America (OFA) New Mexico State Director Ray Sandoval sent an email to supporters with the subject line, "Please take 5 minutes to read this, Please."

"I know many of you have raised frustrations, but please, I implore you, please take 5 minutes and read the article below. It does a great job of explaining the Debt Ceiling deal," Sandoval wrote in bold text.

The rest of the email was a blog post taken from a blog called "The People's View," run by Spandan Chakrabarti. Chakrabarti writes that he has "been participating in online and offline liberal activism since 2003, when Gov. Howard Dean ran for president."


(...)

[Armstead]

1. With "friends" like that... /nt

[Doctor_J]

2. Hopefully the president can bring enough "moderates" and "centrists"

aboard by next November, because there aren't going to be many liberals left on the Hope Train.

rec

[tblue]

20. If we re-label ourselves as 'centrists' would he listen to us then?

since committed progressives are personas non grata.

[Supersedeas]

21. are you saying that the train has already left?

[Hart2008]

3. Hmmm...Does he mean us at DU?

:shrug:

[Jakes Progress]

7. Most of us.

[Hart2008]

14. So the unreccers of this thread must think the reccers are "firebaggers"...

:grr::nuke::grr::nuke::grr::nuke::grr::nuke::grr::nuke::grr::nuke::grr::nuke::grr::nuke::grr::nuke::grr::nuke::grr::nuke::grr::nuke::grr:

[jefferson_dem]

8. Not "us".

[BeyondGeography]

4. Pull up a chair

:popcorn:

[ProSense]

5. So let me get this straight

an OFA director in NM links to an article claiming:

"I know many of you have raised frustrations, but please, I implore you, please take 5 minutes and read the article below. It does a great job of explaining the Debt Ceiling deal," Sandoval wrote in bold text.

Since the article is critical of Krugman, Huffpo writes: Obama Campaign Staffer Sends Out Email Bashing Paul Krugman And The 'Firebagger Lefty Blogosphere'

Now for the irony at the end of the article:

Obama himself has personally tried to reassure left-leaning bloggers, at times even encouraging dissent. In a video message sent last year to attendees of the Netroots Nation conference -- an annual gathering of progressive bloggers and activists, Obama said, "What I’m asking you is to keep making your voices heard. To keep holding me accountable. To keep up the fight."

UPDATE: 3:24 p.m. -- Hamsher responds: "(I)f this is a brilliant political strategy on the part of OFA, someone is going to have to explain it to me. I know the goal is to attract the much-prized Independent for 2012. But who do they think is keeping Obama's poll numbers afloat? ... What exactly does OFA think they stand to gain by ridiculing Krugman as a 'political rookie,' a hysterical 'fanatic' and an 'idealogue'? Do they think they hold so much sway with liberals that they can discredit Krugman and thus neutralize his criticism? This smacks more of narcissism and personal vendetta than any sound political 'strategy.'"

The same Hamsher who wrote this: His most ardent supporters are the dumbest motherf*****s in the world"

I smell useless shit stirring.

[Jakes Progress]

9. Straight. Yeah, right.

[Supersedeas]

22. Now we know

[jefferson_dem]

10. Sandoval is basically correct.

But he either shouldn't have sent the email or should found a more "diplomatic" way of making his case.

Of course, "firebaggers" are just gnawing at the bit to stir up more pointless shit...in order to divide the party.

[Pirate Smile]

16. There is a small segment that is just as chronically negative as the tea baggers.

It isn't all critics or even most people who are upset.

Just a few who are very loud and always look for ways to turn everything into a negative against Obama. They are relentlessly negative but squeal if anyone points it out.

[Jakes Progress]

6. Sandoval: Another ass on Obama's payroll.

If he would stop hiring people this dumb and start listening to people like Krugman, the campaign could stop chewing on its own toes.

[ladjf]

11. Standard campaign tactic, denigrating the opposition. nt

[MannyGoldstein]

12. Sandoval will probably be fired promptly, like Van Jones and

others who've criticized the right-wing electorate. Obama strikes me a fair and balanced: he'll make no distinction between right and left, everyone is treated equally.

Gotta run now - my giant 12-dimensional pink unicorn is calling.

[Enrique]

13. actually i do expect something will happen

this is pretty bad judgement by this guy Sandoval. I could be wrong...

[CakeGrrl]

15. More shit-stirring pushing all the old buttons:

** The Gibbs out-of-context quote;
** The evil Obama campaign attacks Krugman!!!!
** Angering the Hamsher faithful with the term 'Firebaggers' (but never mind some of them were a-ok when she called some supporters of the President "the dumbest motherfuckers on the planet")

Yeah, let's get all this crap wound up all over again. SOOOO helpful.

:eyes:

[Phx_Dem]

17. ...

:D

[killbotfactory]

18. We all have a cross to bare. nt

[FrenchieCat]

19. Krugman/Hamsher for President in 2012!

After all, only dumb motherfuckers support the President.

I think that ticket will sell and win at least 20%! :patriot:

[great white snark]

23. Wouldn't there be a residency problem for the Krug man?

And an inhuman problem for Hamsher?

[blkmusclmachine]

24. Translation:

Sit down, shut up, and eat your damn peas..

[Leopolds Ghost]

25. I expected there to be more discussion of this... is there another thread?

I was going to post one as even my less fire-breathing family members were consternated by this and sent me an e-mail. I figured there'd be discussion of it here...