Obama Zombies: How the Obama Machine Brainwashed My Generation

by Jason Mattera

  Conservatives are at a natural rhetorical disadvantage, since liberals make utopian promises that never come true. Liberals can and do always promise heaven on earth. But reality always pimp-slaps them in the end. Remember LBJ's so-called War on Poverty, which was allegedly created to make people less dependent on the federal government? Well, guess what? The reverse happened. Not only did the massive social programs and welfare policies fail to eliminate poverty, but they fueled and fostered generational welfare dependency that has hobbled families and crippled communities. Way to go, liberals! How compassionate of you!

  Remember: As government increases, freedom decreases. What- ever government gives you it can take from you.

  5. Twitter This

  And once we have our message locked and loaded, we need to use every available outlet to spread our ideas. I hope it's clear by now that young people are getting their information via YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, text messaging, and a host of other social networking venues. Besides college campuses, we must meet young people where they're at--on the Net. Web 2.0, baby! Our generation is getting its information virally, so we must flood those arenas with engaging content that is razor sharp in its analysis.

  Let's not forget that Obama had a machine of ninety people working on his new media team--an operation that produced the largest phone bank in world history, captured 13 million email addresses and 1 million cell phone numbers, and even created applications for the iPhone. Sure, B.H.O.'s message was old-school liberalism, but nobody would deny his MyBO website was a powerhouse. Obama, Axelrod, and Plouffe devoted globs of resources to make their campaign site an unprecedented success. There's nothing wrong with learning from our opponents. B.H.O. gave us a formula for interacting and connecting with millions of youth across the country. It's time to put those tools to work. The next GOP nominee better not bring back Pork Invaders. Good grief!

  6. Donate That Money

  For you older whippersnappers out there, you can make a difference, too, in waking up the Obama Zombie. The conservative movement doesn't run on ethanol. Like all grassroots organizations, it runs on cash. Obama raised a record-smashing $750 million. It wasn't just the cultic personality but the huge cash loads that made blanketing his message possible. Irony of ironies, one of the most anticapitalist presidential candidates in American history was one of the most effective at poaching massive mother lodes of dirty capitalist dough. So what's the solution?

  Get your wallets out and put your money where your future is. There are organizations that are specifically reaching out to the next generation, introducing them to the conservative ideas that aren't heard in the classroom. Trust me, there is nothing like seeing Michelle Malkin, Ann Coulter, Dinesh D'Souza, Walter Williams, or Peter Schweizer on a liberal campus totally wiping the floor with some smug professor or clueless student.

  Let's not forget how Ronald Reagan got onto the political scene. His famous 1964 "Time for Choosing" speech to support Barry Goldwater's election bid was bankrolled by three wealthy businessmen. LBJ ended up crushing Goldwater, but that speech by Reagan--which was aired on NBC--raised millions of dollars, solidified a base of hundreds of thousands of supporters, and launched the political career of the greatest modern president.16

  Moral of the story: Conservative wallets must open, because liberal ones like George Soros's already have and will continue to.

  There are many conservative organizations that reach out to young people. I prefer Young America's Foundation (www.yaf.org), having worked there four years and seen firsthand how the organization introduces young people to alternative ideas that are seldom taught in American classrooms. Get involved and give generously. Do it now. As in right this second, before Michael Moore eats another young person for breakfast.

  Admittedly, we have an uphill battle on our hands. But conservatives are realists; we don't live in the fantasy world of welfare unicorns and government sugar fairies like the left does. Being a liberal is easy. Promising every constituency under the sun "free" goodies (otherwise known as goodies paid for by you!) takes little effort, except for the ability to lie one's you-know-what off.

  Smashing the Obama cult is going to take a united effort.

  Can we awaken our generation of Obama Zombies?

  "Yes, we can!"

  Notes

  Introduction

  1. "Watch Online: BCN Highlights Student Reaction to Obama Win," Bowdoin campus news, November 6, 2008, http://www.bowdoin.edu/news/archives/1bowdoincampus/005623.shtml

  2. Jocelyn Vena, "Young voters across the country share their reactions-- both positive and negative--to Barack Obama's election-night win," MTV News, November 5, 2008, http://think.mtv.com/044FDFFFF0098989A0016009953B5/.

  3. Jason Linkins, "After The Election: Impromptu Rally At White House Draws Massive Crowd," Huffington Post, November 5, 2008, http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/11/05/after-the-election-improm_n_141437.html.

  4. Ibid.

  5. "Video: Oh My God," MTV News, November 6, 2008, http://think.mtv.com/044FDFFFF0098989A00170099545E/.

  6. Vena, "Young voters across the country share their reactions."

  7. Andrew Romano, "He's One of Us Now," Newsweek, February 18, 2008.

  8. Luke Russert, NBC News transcript, November 5, 2008.

  9. Chris Harris, "Super Tuesday Youth Voter Turnout Triples, Quadruples In Some States," MTV News, February 6, 2008, http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1581027/20080206/id_0.jhtml.

  10. Albert R. Hunt, "Letter from Washington: Republicans worry as youth vote desert the party," New York Times, September 2, 2007.

  11. Alex Beinstein, "Barack Obama Youth Director Hans Riemer," October 25, 2007, http://www.alexbeinstein.com/2007/10/barack-obama-youth-director-hans-riemer.html.

  12. Natalie Morales, "Importance of the youth vote," NBC Today, February 4, 2008.

  13. Paul Waldman, "The youth vote, the culture wars, and Barack Obama," American Prospect, November 21, 2007, http://www.prospect.org/cs/articles?article=the_youth_vote_the_culture_wars_and_barack_obama.

  14. David Schaper, " 'Camp Obama' Trains Campaign Volunteers," National Public Radio, June 13, 2007, http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyID=11012254.

  15. Ryan Lizza, "Battle Plans; How Obama Won," New Yorker, November 17, 2008.

  16. Olivia Ward, "Looking at how Obama brought youth to the polls," Toronto Star, November 10, 2008.

  17. Ibid.

  18. Andrew Chung, "Seeking out the MTV crowd," Toronto Star, February 4, 2008.

  19. Ibid.

  20. Michael Whack, "The "BAM" . . . The OBAMA Handshake!," Organizing for America Community Blogs, January 12, 2008, http://my.barackobama.com/page/community/post/michaelwhack/CVBJ.

  21. Suzanne Goldenberg, "Generation gap: After a lifetime with Bush, only the hippest candidate will do," Guardian (London), February 2, 2008.

  22. Romano, "He's One of Us Now."

  23. "Our Fading Heritage: Americans Fail a Basic Test on Their History and Institutions," American Civic Literacy Program, 2008, http://www.americancivicliteracy.org/2008/summary_summary.html.

  24. Sara Hebel, "Obama, helped by youth vote, wins presidency and makes history," Chronicle of Higher Education, November 5, 2008.

  25. Ibid.

  26. Sara Lipka and Reeves Wiedeman, "Young voters overwhelmingly favored Obama, swinging some battleground states," Chronicle of Higher Education, November 14, 2008.

  27. Ibid.

  Chapter 1: The Media Muzzle and the Hope-a-Dope Mantra

  1. "Obama in Jeans," CNN video, May 8, 2009, http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/politics/2008/05/08/obama.jeans.cnn.

  2. Richard Leiby, "Obama Delivers the Zingers at Journalists' Dinner," Washington Post, May 10, 2009.

  3. Ashley Parker, "For Washington journalists, one night to laugh," The Caucus, New York Times blog, May 10, 2009, http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/05/10/white-house-correspondents-association -dinner/.

  4. Mike Allen and Michael Calderone, "Washington Post cancel
s lobbyist event amid uproar," Politico, July 3, 2009, http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0709/24441.html.

  5. Brent Baker, "Revolving Door from Journalism to Team Obama Now Up to a Dozen," Media Research Center, July 29, 2009, http://www.mrc.org/biasalert/2009/20090729104616.aspx.

  6. Richard Wolffe and Daren Briscoe, "Across the Divide: How Barack Obama is shaking up old assumptions about what it means to be black and white in America," Newsweek, July 16, 2007.

  7. Ibid.

  8. Daniel Schorr, "A New, 'Post-Racial' Political Era in America," NPR transcript, January 28, 2008, http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=18489466.

  9. Lyndsi Thomas, "ChiTrib's Zuckman: Obama Success Story Just as Impressive as McCain POW Story," Newsbusters.org, July 9, 2008, http://newsbusters.org/blogs/lyndsi-thomas/2008/07/09/chitribs -zuckman-obama-success-story-just-impressive-mccain-pow-story.

  10. Jill Zuckman, "Fighting the 'Who?' factor: Candidates considered outside the top tier struggle to get even a once-over from voters," Chicago Tribune, June 28, 2007.

  11. Jill Zuckman, "On the campaign trail, Palin has the folksy persona down," Chicago Tribune, September 16, 2008.

  12. David Von Drehle, "Does Experience Matter in a President?" Time, March 10, 2008.

  13. Ibid.

  14. Richard Wolffe, "Our time for change has come," Newsweek, January 14, 2008.

  15. "Obama Love Fest: NBC Reporter Admits Objectivity Difficult Amid Candidate Fervor," Breitbart TV, January 8, 2008, http://www.breitbart.tv/?p=26294.

  16. Jacques Steinberg, "On the Press Bus, Some Questions over Favoritism," New York Times, March 1, 2008, http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/01/us/politics/01press.html.

  17. Joe Klein, "Why Barack Obama Could Be the Next President," Time, October 23, 2006.

  18. Ibid.

  19. "The Invisible Primary--Invisible No Longer," Pew Research Center's Project for Excellence in Journalism, October 29, 2007, http://www.journalism.org/node/8187.

  20. "How the Press Reported the 2008 General Election," Pew Research Center's Project for Excellence in Journalism, October 22, 2008, http://www.journalism.org/node/13307.

  21. Eli Saslow, "As Duties Weigh Obama Down, His Faith in Fitness Only Increases," Washington Post, December 25, 2008.

  22. Media Bias Facts, Media Research Center, http://www.mediaresearch.org/biasbasics/biasbasics3.asp.

  23. Bill Dedman, "Journalists dole out cash to politicians (quietly)," MSNBC, June 25, 2007, http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/19113485/ns/politics/.

  24. "Obama's Selma Speech," March 5, 2007, http://blogs.suntimes.com/sweet/2007/03/obamas_selma_speech_text_as_de.html.

  25. "Obama, Clintons honor activists at Selma, Ala.," Associated Press, May 5, 2007, http://www.kcby.com/internal?st=print&id=6301042&path=/news/national.

  26. "Obama's Margin of Victory: The Media," Media Research Center, http://www.mrc.org/SpecialReports/2008/obama/obama.asp.

  27. Ibid.

  28. Felix Gillette, "Primary Scream," New York Observer, February 5, 2008, http://www.observer.com/2008/primary-scream.

  29. Martin Snap, "Barack as a Jedi knight," Contra Costa Times (Calif.), April 14, 2008, http://my.barackobama.com/page/community/post/martinsnapp/gGBJOg.

  30. Lili Haydn, "Why Obama is like a desert lover," Huffington Post, February 29, 2008, http://www.huffingtonpost.com/lili-haydn/why-obama-is-like-a-deser_b_89285.html.

  31. Jose Antonio Vargas, "Obama Fervor Is Breaking on the Web," Washington Post, February 23, 2008.

  32. Sam Fulwood III, "For Obama, hipness is what it is," Politico, April 24, 2009, http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0409/21522.html.

  33. Ibid.

  34. Ibid.

  35. Alex Leo, "CNN Story On Obama's 'Swagga' The Most Embarrassing Ever?" Huffington Post, April 29, 2009, http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/04/29/the-most-embarrassing-cnn_n_193095.html.

  36. Ibid.

  37. John Kass, "Obama's mystical (national media) disconnect from sleazy Chicago politics," Los Angeles Times, May 11, 2008, http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/washington/2008/05/mediasobamaluv.html.

  38. "Obama's Political 'Godfather' In Illinois," Associated Press, March 31, 2008.

  39. Ibid.

  40. Todd Spivak, "Barack Obama and Me," Houston Times, February 28, 2008.

  41. Katie Couric, CBS Evening News, August 24, 2009.

  42. Noel Sheppard, "MSNBC Anchor: 'Socialist' Is Becoming the New N-word," Newsbusters.org, August 10, 2009, http://newsbusters.org/blogs/noel-sheppard/2009/08/10/msnbc-anchor-socialist-becoming-new-n-word.

  43. Noel Sheppard, "Obama Official: 'At the White House, We Love MSNBC,' " Newsbusters.org, May 5, 2009, http://newsbusters.org/blogs/noel-sheppard/2009/05/05/obama-official-white-house-we -love-msnbc.

  44. Top 20 Contributors to Barack Obama during 2008 presidential campaign, Opensecrets.org, https://www.opensecrets.org/politicians/contrib.php?cid=N00009638&cycle=2008.

  45. "Democratic National Cmte: Top Contributors," Opensecrets.org, https://www.opensecrets.org/parties/contrib.php?cmte=DNC&cycle=2008.

  46. Suzy Jagger, "Google unveils 'trillion-dollar' clean energy program," TimesOnline, October 3, 2008, http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/technology/article4870334.ece.

  47. Thomas Claburn, "Google CEO Eric Schmidt Calls for Innovation Bailout," InformationWeek, November 18, 2008.

  48. Rob Preston, "In Search Of An Economic Solution: Schmidt's Views," InformationWeek, December 1, 2008.

  49. Ibid.

  50. Owen Thomas, "Google Execs Pay $150,000 for Obama Bash," December 27, 2008, http://valleywag.gawker.com/5119039/google -execs-pay-150000-for-obama-bash.

  51. "Apple, Google face FTC antitrust probe," Deal, May 5, 2009, http://www.thedeal.com/corporatedealmaker/2009/05/

  apple_google_face_ftc_antitrus.php.

  52. "Apple, Silicon valley line up behind Obama," October 25, 2008, http://www.9to5mac.com/apple-obama.

  53. World News Tonight with Charlie Gibson, ABC, January, 4, 2008.

  Chapter 2: Will You Be My (Facebook) Friend?

  1. will.i.am, "Why I Recorded Yes We Can," Huffington Post, February 3, 2008, http://www.huffingtonpost.com/william/why-i-recorded-yes-we-can_b_84655.html.

  2. Matthew Fraser and Soumitra Dutta, "Barack Obama and the Facebook Election," U.S. News & World Report, November 19, 2008, http://www.usnews.com/articles/opinion/2008/11/19/barack-obama-and-the-facebook-election.html.

  3. will.i.am, "Why I Recorded Yes We Can."

  4. Andrew Rasiej and Micah L. Sifry, "The Web: 2008's Winning Ticket," Politico, November 12, 2008, http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1108/15520.html.

  5. Amber Lee Ettinger, "I Got a Crush on Obama," YouTube, June 13, 2007, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wKsoXHYICqU&feature=PlayList&p=vY3x8oj4XFI.

  6. "Hollywood Declares Themselves," YouTube, October 1, 2008, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=olpCyDA4kYA.

  7. Norman Lear, DiscoverTheNetworks.org, http://www.discoverthenetworks.org/individualProfile.asp?indid=1945.

  8. Brooks Barnes, "Getting Out the Vote, Keeping Up with Youth," New York Times, August 1, 2008.

  9. Rasiej and Sifry, "The Web: 2008's Winning Ticket."

  10. Alexander Burns, "McCain camp lacked in high-tech," Politico, November 22, 2008, http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1108/15888.html.

  11. David Talbot, "White House 2.0. A group of Boston geeks helped Barack Obama turn the Web into the ultimate political machine. Will he use it now to reinvent government," Boston Globe, January 11, 2009.

  12. Ibid.

  13. Ellen McGirt, "How Chris Hughes Helped Launch Facebook and the Barack Obama Campaign," FastCompany.com, March 17, 2009, http://www.fastcompany.com/magazine/134/boy-wonder.html.