An Obama Internet Presidency

From June's Atlantic:

If Obama wins, and if he can harness the Web as a unifying force once the voting is done, he could be a powerful president indeed—the kind that might even deliver on some of the audacious promises that Obama the candidate has made. But the Web, like the politics it seeks to transform, is unruly and fickle. The online networks that have turbocharged Obama’s candidacy could end up hemming him in, and even stalling his agenda, as president.

Read the whole article here.

Comments

Actually a comment on this instead:
(1) Bush knew was what he saying -- of course the first paragraph was aimed at Obama
(2) The Obama campaign is very, very touchy about anything related to Israel

No, not very, very touchy. Instead very, very smart to respond quickly to an insult and smear. That's a good thing.

Posted by bjd | May 15, 2008 10:27 AM

the idea of the president using the internet to open up participation in government is a powerful one. but i do worry about the percentage of people that do not use the internet. in the past everybody could tune into the radio, or pick up the paper. not everyone has a computer let alone high speed internet. so some of the people that the president needs to engage the most, like the poor or rural families, may not gain access to the system and will be left out of the conversation.

Posted by pb | May 15, 2008 11:05 AM

Very compelling article, though I'm surprised you didn't mention what an extraordinary job the Obama campaign has done with mobile, as well - keeping in touch with supporters via regular text messages, allowing them to text in questions or feedback (and actually responding to every single message!!), providing in-the-moment local info about polling stations, etc.. It's truly been revolutionary and I'd love to see more coverage of it.

Posted by apb | May 15, 2008 1:10 PM

America, do you know what the world would be with an Obama presidency? Let me begin to tell you... a great chunk of negativity off of my back. Of course, the road won't be easy but with each individual's help we can take back our country - one person at a time! Look at what Sen. Obama and his team have accomplished through the grassroots organization... Millions upon millions have gotten up to vote. It's extraordinary. If this can be translated into a day by day or week by week or month by month, together we can accomplish a whole lot!

What we have witnessed is lying at the highest level! Not admitting the truth, can't say I'm sorry or I made a mistake. I'm talking about Hillary Clinton. The American people need to know the truth... as in Jack Nicholson's famous actor's line "Can you handle the truth"? Obviously, Nicholson can't or won't to endorse Hillary. She is the worse candidate of all of the candidates. She's dysfunctional and scheming always. I guess the 32 years of scandalous sex stories have gotten to her. Because right now she's unable to utter "I made a mistake" "I'm sorry" or even "thank you." We don't need or want leadership of this kind!

This country really, really needs to have Obama as our president!

Posted by change | May 15, 2008 4:30 PM

Marc, as someone who has used Obama's website (MyBO, as we affectionately called it) to organize in Los Angeles, I think I can say that your conclusion is totally off. Obama put these tools in place precisely BECAUSE they lead to a mobilized, informed electorate that WILL occasionally get in the face of a president it elected but will inevitably disappointment somewhere down the road. As a community organizer who convinced alienated people to hold their officials accountable, he has spoken often about how he wants his own supporters to hold him accountable, and to keep on organizing after he's elected.

The idea that Obama doesn't realize that he's set loose a movement that down the road will put pressure him is ludicrous; he isn't that naive. On the contrary, he relishes the idea (and, of course, he will be able to mobilize those supporters to pressure Congress very easily, too, if necessary).

Just look at how pissed off people in California got about how the lists for pledged delegates were trimmed, and the campaign's response: we know the leverage we'll have with Obama, and he knows it, too.

With all due respect, if you think a President Obama risks being caught off guard by an unusually prickly base, I don't think you've understood either the candidate, or his grassroots activists.

Posted by Jmatz | May 15, 2008 4:38 PM

If he is nominated, and if he is then elected, I would expect the netroots will turn on Obama, one-eighty, during the late stages of transition planning.

Posted by RonK, Seattle | May 15, 2008 7:56 PM