WASHINGTON - Organizers of a grass-roots group formed from President Barack Obama’s re-election campaign vowed Wednesday to band together to fight the status quo in Washington and pass the president’s agenda, stressing they are not a partisan organization aimed at electing specific candidates.
Leaders of Organizing for Action defended their fledgling nonprofit group at a “founders summit” attended by top donors and supporters, saying it was a volunteer-driven nonprofit that aimed to marshal support for popular issues pushed by Obama such as curbing gun violence, promoting immigration changes and addressing climate change.
“This is something that should be celebrated, not criticized,” said David Plouffe, a former White House senior adviser and adviser to the group. Jim Messina, Organizing for Action’s chairman and former Obama 2012 campaign manager, said the group was focused on issue advocacy, not electoral politics.
“I suppose we all could sit back and relax after the campaign and say we got him re-elected,” Messina said. “But it’s not ‘yes he can,’ it’s ‘yes we can.’”
Front Section, Pages 4 on 03/14/2013