I am a campaign blogger for BarackObama.com and this is crossposted at BarackObama.com/blog, DailyKos and OpenLeft.

Barack Obama has inspired tens, if not hundreds of thousands of people to engage in the political process for the first time in their lives.

This campaign believes it's important to not only engage the already active, but to recruit new bodies in the march for progressive change. This weekend, Oprah Winfrey attracted thousands of people -- some of whom drove miles through the freezing rain -- to show up and listen to speeches about the necessity of political change in this country.

This wasn't about glitz and glamor. This wasn't just a photo-op. This was about organized grassroots mobilization.

I am a campaign blogger for BarackObama.com and this is crossposted at DailyKos.

Senator Obama believes our policies are stronger when they benefit from the input of the American people -- and he believes this requires open dialogue.  

Today in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, Obama is discussing his foreign policy vision with New Hampshire voters and some of his top advisors in an open, participatory forum.

You can watch it live beginning at 11AM EST at:

http://nh.barackobama.com/fpforum/

We'll be back later on today with updates and highlights from the forum.

I am a campaign blogger for BarackObama.com and this is crossposted on Daily Kos

In a new SurveyUSA Election Poll of Iowans sponsored by KAAL-TV Rochester-Mason City-Austin, Barack Obama will fare significantly better than Hillary Clinton in the general election. Obama easily beats all of his Republican opponents (with 50% or more against each of them), while Clinton's margin is significantly slimmer against Giuliani, Romney, and Huckabee, and she even loses to McCain.

Details from the poll:

Obama leads...

   * Giuliani by 13 points
    * Romney by 14 points
    * Huckabee by 21 points   (no track; this is the first time we've run that pairing)
    * McCain by 8 points

Still ahead in Iowa in most matchups, but by smaller and, over time, narrowing margins, is Hillary Clinton. Today, Clinton leads...

Giuliani by 4 points. (1/3 of Obama's lead)

Romney by 6 points. (1/2 of Obama's lead)

Huckabee by 6 points (1/3 of Obama's lead)

...but trails McCain by 4 points.

Crossposted from BarackObama.com

In early May, we tried something that might have seemed preposterous a few years ago.

We announced that on June 9, there would be a nationwide Walk for Change, where thousands of grassroots supporters from across the country would pound the pavement in their neighborhoods and share Barack's hope for a new kind of politics. In the history of political campaigns, nothing like this-- with people in all fifty states participating this early on in a campaign-- had ever been done before. But we believed that by combining unmatched grassroots energy for a candidate with unprecedented integration of online tools, you guys could pull it off.

Below is the story, with video and photos, of Walk for Change. It's the story an unprecedented grassroots mobilization that brought more than 10,000 people out to the streets. It's the story of ordinary people working together to share their hopes and dreams; ultimately, it's the story of an effort to reclaim our democracy.

Crossposted from BarackObama.com

Hi Everyone-- I'm Sam Graham-Felsen, the new blogger for BarackObama.com.

Millions of Americans are responding to Barack Obama's call for a new politics. Millions of Americans see something profound in Barack's message of civic renewal. And already, tens of thousands of them across the country are spending their evenings, weekends, and spare minutes to help Barack become the next president. Already, over 73,000 people have contributed to this campaign. As Jerome Armstrong puts it, "the number is absolutely astounding."

This week, I've been profiling some of these supporters--real people with real stories, deep-rooted hopes, and genuine belief in this campaign. People like N'ell Jones, a 30-year-old single mother from Little Rock, Arkansas, who decided to get involved in this campaign because she believes Barack will significantly improve her daughter Kaya's life. People who have decided to engage in the process for the first time in years, like Randy Larson of Iowa City, Iowa, who believes that "this is a once in a generation chance to elect somebody who has the experience that's actually important to be president." People who are getting involved in electoral politics for the first time, like Reese Thornber. "Some in the older generation," says Reese, "are more willing to accept politics as usual... but this generation finds fault with that logic-- we see no reason why there can't be a change."

Unfortunately, some in the Washington media establishment seem to be spooked by this groundswell of support. They don't understand a candidate who doesn't speak the language of Washington, with its increasingly meaningless focus-grouped phrases and glib applause lines. They're confused by a political leader who wants to use a national campaign for president to have a dialog with the American people about the best ways to address our common problems. But most of all, they're uncomfortable with a campaign that that sustains itself and continues to grow because of passion, interest and commitment from normal Americans who aren't part of the conventional-wisdom machine in D.C. Their response? Another round of the tired, old "style versus substance" narrative that fails to capture what's really happening.