Organizing large groups of supporters around White House initiatives is going to require a delicate balance between top-down salesmanship and bottom-up incorporation of suggestions coming from the supporters themselves, but as early as 1995, Obama has maintained that this would be a legitimate model of healthy governance:
"What if a politician were to see his job as that of an organizer, as part teacher and part advocate, one who does not sell voters short but who educates them about the real choices before them? As an elected public official, for instance, I could bring church and community leaders together easier than I could as a community organizer or lawyer. We would come together to form concrete economic development strategies, take advantage of existing laws and structures, and create bridges and bonds within all sectors of the community. We must form grass-root structures that would hold me and other elected officials more accountable for their actions."
Could this backfire on the White House? Of course. Obama seems to trust voters enough right now to take that risk, though. (The voters appear to be returning the favor, if recent approval rating polls are to be believed.)
| 
