Lieberman Stance Prompts Anger at Obama
Voters are already expressing their frustration with Mr. Obama's seemingly hands-off approach to health reform, CBS News Capitol Hill Correspondent Nancy Cordes reported on the CBS Evening News Thursday. On the White House's official Facebook page, people have left messages like, "You need to get off the sidelines and start pushing for what you promised" and "If this White House doesn't change, I won't vote for you again."
In an effort to organize those sentiments, Politico reports, the Progressive Change Campaign Committee (PCCC) is e-mailing a group of thousands of 2008 Obama campaign staffers, volunteers and donors, asking them, "Are you disappointed in President Obama's refusal to fight Joe Lieberman?" They will be asked to explain their frustration in a blog post or YouTube video and send it to other Obama organizers.
The PCCC has held a number of campaigns targeting specific politicians, pressuring them to support a health care bill with a government-run insurance plan, or "public option." The group already tapped more than 70,000 of the president's former supporters to sign a petition in September asking Mr. Obama to demand Congress pass a bill with a public option.
The PCCC has also run negative ads against Lieberman and Ben Nelson for their opposition to the public option, as well as campaigns to pressure Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid into action.
