President Obama kicks off the final three weeks of the election campaign with a town hall for supporters at George Washington University broadcast by OFA live over the web:
The webcast is availably for anybody who wants to tune in, but is geared particularly towards attendees of OFA's "Commit to Vote House Parties" being held across the country. The goal of the house parties is to encourage GOTV efforts, particularly among Obama supporters who cast ballots for the first time in 2008.
Update 1: Jeremy Bird just started the event, introducing Tim Kaine who is speaking from a House party in New Hampshire before President Obama. You can also see a larger version of the broadcast here.
Update 2: Kaine is with Paul Hodes, the Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate in New Hampshire. Kaine says he doesn't want to go backwards -- he wants "to have the President's back" in moving the country forward.
Update 3: Things are launching on time -- President Obama arrived at 4:05PM and is starting off with a short opening speech before taking questions (which will come by Skype among other routes).
Update 4: President Obama's opening remarks focus on the narrative of his first 21 months in office, contrasting the 9 straight months of private sector growth with the 750,000 jobs being lost per month when he took office, with the risk of a Great Depression on the imminent horizon. He says that while things are still difficult we avoided the Great Depression and are finally moving in the right direction. He also acknowledges that we haven't yet accomplished every item on his campaign agenda, but points to health care in particular as a key accomplishment, also touting reforms in education, including the student loan system and expanded investments in clean energy. "We're not where we need to be yet," he says, "and this election will help determine whether we can keep along the path" that will allow us to continue addressing the challenging America must confront.
Update 5: President Obama characterizes the GOP campaign as one based on fear and says that to win this election, hope will need to triumph over fear -- and for that to happen he'll need the help of the OFA volunteers who helped win the 2008 election. He says to OFA supporters: "It's up to you" whether we continue along the path of progress or we allow the other side to take us back.
Update 6: First question -- not surprisingly -- is about the impact of corporate money on elections, asking how its impact can be minimized. President Obama says that the biggest problem with money in politics is the flood of untraceable corporate money unleashed by the Supreme Court's Citizens United decision. "We don't know if they're being funded by foreign corporations because they're not disclosed," he says. When you see an ad for "Americans for Prosperity," he says, you should be able to know who is funding that ad and why they might be saying what they are saying. Allowing these sorts of ads to air without disclosure, Obama said, is "hijacking our democracy." The medium-term response is to pass something like the DISCLOSE Act, but as far as November is concerned, the only weapon Democrats have, he says, is to get out to vote, and to talk to their neighbors about getting out to vote.
Update 7: Second question comes from Skype and the question is: what's the best way to convince someone to vote? President Obama says the most important message to tell people is that this election represents a choice -- it's not a referendum on the economy. The GOP, he says, is adopting a "throw the bums out" message. Democrats need to argue that this election is a choice between a party pushing to move America forward and a party that wants to try the same exact policies that got us into this mess in the first place. Obama says that when people see that this is a choice, a "lightbulb goes off" and they remember that the GOP are the guys who got us into this spot in the first place. Democrats might only be halfway to the finish line, but at least they are running in the right direction.
Update 8: Question from Twitter expressing the hope that people would be more patient about the pace of change because it took eight years to create the problems we face. President Obama agrees with the premise of the question, but he also points to things like investments in new battery technology which he argues is creating the kinds of change we need. He says that people do need help now -- and he cites programs like loans and aid to teachers that are delivering that help -- but says the larger structural problems are going to take time, over several years, to solve and get the country back to where we want it to be.
Update 9: Question is about what has surprised Obama since taking office. First thing Pres. Obama mentions is the short attention span of the media that is focused on the latest developments instead of the long-term items on the agenda. He says it's a challenge to keep focused on long-term goals in that media environment. The second thing he mentions is that he's surprised at how courageous some members of Congress been. Even though Congress is unpopular, he says there are a lot of people who took tough votes that they knew would be bad politically -- health care, which he acknowledged is unpopular in some districts, or financial reform, which would bring a ton of money in attack ads. Specifically he calls out Tom Periello as a courageous congressman along with Betsy Markey and John Boccieri.
Update 10: Last question is about the economic future and prospects for jobs for young people just entering the workforce. One of the great strengths of America, Obama says, is our adaptability. This isn't the first time we faced challenges, and just as we've overcome past challenges -- many of which were more difficult than the ones we face today -- we can overcome them again this time. America is a country that adapts and changes and comes back stronger than ever. We have to "adjust to new realities" and "be honest about where we're falling short." Specifically we says we need to look at strengthening education, increasing exports, saving more, moving away from financial services, It won't be easy he says but if we stay focused on the long-term, we're going to get through this and solve our challenges. What makes President Obama confident about the future, he says, is having had the opportunity to meet the American people. He ends with another plea to vote on November 2, saying if Dems get out to vote, we'll do just fine on election day, and then goes into the crowd to shake hands.
