Why Would ‘Organizing for America’ Mislead the Public?

POLITICAL PERSPECTIVE & OPINION

(ABOVE VIDEO: Javier Manjarres of Shark-Tank reports)

Why would Organizing for America, a community organizing project of the Democratic National Committee, mislead the public as to who they are while registering people to vote?

Organizing for America is an outgrowth of ‘Obama For America,’ the network of supporters who went door-to-door urging voters to support Obama in the 2008 presidential race.

The move was partially motivated by the fact that after Obama was sworn in as President, his White House was, by law, barred from using the 13-million-name e-mail list of supporters it had compiled during the 2008 presidential race.

Thus the administration established OFA within the structure of the Democratic Party, which was not bound by such restrictions. It’s mission is to galvanize public support for Obama and his political and social agendas.

This past week, Matt O’Hern, a local conservative media consultant, stopped in at the Merritt Island Public Library and noticed a voter registration booth set up. He walked over and informed the two women working the booth that he had just moved back to Brevard County and asked if they could help him update his address.

“Sure, what’s your new address?,” one asked.

O’Hern explained that his current address was temporary and he wasn’t sure what to do. One of the booth workers asked if his parents have a house in Merritt Island and then suggested he use their address, even though he pointed out that he did not live there.

“Oh, that’s OK, just put their address,” she replied.

Not feeling entirely comfortable with this advice, O’Hern declined the offer and then inquired if these two worked for the library. The were startled by the question, immediately looking at one another before hesitantly answering, “Uh… no.”

“Oh ok… so who are you with? A PAC? A 501c3? 501c4?,” O’Hern then asked.

“We’re here to help people register to vote..we’re non partisan,” one said. The other offered, “We’re called ‘Organizing for America’.”

Excusing himself, O’Hern stepped away and, taking advantage of today’s advanced technology, used his smart phone to Google ‘Organizing for America,’ discovering that it was Obama’s group sponsored by the DNC.

He then returned to the booth and showed this to the two workers and asked if this was the organization they were referring to. One of the workers sheepishly admitted, “Yes, that’s us.”

“Why didn’t you tell me you were Democrats?,” he asked. “Why did you tell me you were non-partisan when clearly you’re not?”

One replied, “We’re not supposed to tell you.” At which point, O’Hern chuckled to himself and walked away.

Considering that OFA is no stranger to charges of breaking election laws, O’Hern’s experience prompts a legitimate question, why would this organization be misleading potential voters by claiming to be non-partisan?

One possibility is that the workers are receiving compensation per voter registration form completed, or for meeting certain quotas, and do not want to alienate any potential voter who may choose to register as a Republican.

Another possibility is that, by claiming to be non-partisan, any advice offered to potential voters as they register, such as which party affiliation to choose, would be accepted as unbiased advice.

This is not the first time a worker representing OFA has been hesitant in identifying precisely who they are. The Shark-Tank’s Javier Manjarres reported on a similar experience earlier this year. (SEE VIDEO ABOVE)

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Tom Tillison quickly established himself as an integral part of the tea party movement in Orlando, Florida. He’s the original founder of the Central Florida Tea Party Council and Editor-In-Chief of the conservative news site Florida Political Press. He’s known for his laid back style and intensity of opinion, which he prefers sharing in open parking lots with plenty of room to pontificate.

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