MoveOn Backs Obama

Liberal advocacy group MoveOn, which reports 3.2 million members nationwide, today announced that it is endorsing Barack Obama for the Democratic nomination for President.

"We need a President who will bring to bear the strong leadership and vision required to end the war in Iraq, provide health care to every American, deal with our climate crisis, and restore America's standing in the world," MoveOn.org's Executive Director Eli Pariser said in a statement. "The enormity of the challenges require someone who knows how to inspire millions to get involved to change the direction of our country, and someone who will be willing to change business as usual in Washington. Senator Barack Obama has proved he can and will be that President."

Obama accepted the endorsement from the controversial group, which made headlines in September with its "General Betray Us?" ad critical of Gen. David Petraeus. John McCain and other Republican presidential candidates condemned the ad.

"In just a few years, the members of MoveOn have once again demonstrated that real change comes not from the top-down, but from the bottom-up," said Obama. "From their principled opposition to the Iraq war – a war I also opposed from the start – to their strong support for a number of progressive causes, MoveOn shows what Americans can achieve when we come together in a grassroots movement for change."

This is MoveOn's first endorsement in a Democratic primary, and it comes with a promise from the group to mobilize on Obama's behalf.

"With 3.2 million members nationwide and over 1.7 million members in states that vote next Tuesday, we'll be able to immediately jump into action in support of Senator Obama's candidacy," Pariser said.