more dirty politics

[Ban Hammer 13,340]

I Made the "Vote Different" Ad

Hi. I'm Phil. I did it. And I'm proud of it.

I made the "Vote Different" ad because I wanted to express my feelings about the Democratic primary, and because I wanted to show that an individual citizen can affect the process. There are thousands of other people who could have made this ad, and I guarantee that more ads like it--by people of all political persuasions--will follow.

This shows that the future of American politics rests in the hands of ordinary citizens.

The campaigns had no idea who made it--not the Obama campaign, not the Clinton campaign, nor any other campaign. I made the ad on a Sunday afternoon in my apartment using my personal equipment (a Mac and some software), uploaded it to YouTube, and sent links around to blogs.

The specific point of the ad was that Obama represents a new kind of politics, and that Senator Clinton's "conversation" is disingenuous. And the underlying point was that the old political machine no longer holds all the power.

Let me be clear: I am a proud Democrat, and I always have been. I support Senator Obama. I hope he wins the primary. (I recognize that this ad is not his style of politics.) I also believe that Senator Clinton is a great public servant, and if she should win the nomination, I would support her and wish her all the best.

I've resigned from my employer, Blue State Digital, an internet company that provides technology to several presidential campaigns, including Richardson's, Vilsack's, and -- full disclosure -- Obama's. The company had no idea that I'd created the ad, and neither did any of our clients. But I've decided to resign anyway so as not to harm them, even by implication.

This ad was not the first citizen ad, and it will not be the last. The game has changed.

link

too late dude, it already seems suspicious.

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

If the guy acted alone then what is the problem?

The only issue here is that he made it while working for a company with ties to another candidate, who has already denied having anything to do with it.

If it was done with their knowledge its little different from the ads in previous elections - demonising an opposiing candidate seems largely standard practice here...

[Ban Hammer 13,340]

If the guy acted alone then what is the problem?

The only issue here is that he made it while working for a company with ties to another candidate, who has already denied having anything to do with it.

If it was done with their knowledge its little different from the ads in previous elections - demonising an opposiing candidate seems largely standard practice here...

but did he act alone? do we really know that at this point?

furthermore, his company did work on the obama campaign. and he does this allegedly on his free time and it's a coincidence? such remains to be seen.

[Caladan 19]

Yeah, I'm sorry, there's just nothing to be outraged about. The Obama campaign says they didn't ask him. The guy confirms it. If he'd lost his job over it, wouldn't he have a reason to go public with that? What would be the payoff for him to keep silent?

Plus, the ad was clever as hell. It implied Hillary is a machine candidate likely to win the nomination soley through money and family name, but that's clean by the standards of politics.

But, I'll try: Outrage! Condemnation! Impotent Rage! Nope, not happening.

Ooh, wait! Maybe it's the work of the Richardson campaign!

[fozzie 41]

but did he act alone? do we really know that at this point?

furthermore, his company did work on the obama campaign. and he does this allegedly on his free time and it's a coincidence? such remains to be seen.

It was the man on the grassy Knoll!

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

If the guy acted alone then what is the problem?

The only issue here is that he made it while working for a company with ties to another candidate, who has already denied having anything to do with it.

If it was done with their knowledge its little different from the ads in previous elections - demonising an opposiing candidate seems largely standard practice here...

but did he act alone? do we really know that at this point?

furthermore, his company did work on the obama campaign. and he does this allegedly on his free time and it's a coincidence? such remains to be seen.

What this does is gives the Obama campaign the appearance of a conflict of interest - which really only undermines their assertion that "they are trying to get away from nasty politics". Whether or not the guy acted alone its bad for their PR regardless.