March 18, 2009 — Barack Obama's use of grassroots organizing, and his success with his grassroots network, in last year's presidential campaign was unprecedented and now it looks like he's hoping to use that network to win support for his budget proposal.
Through the Democratic National Committee's Organizing for America, whose formation was announced by then President-elect Obama via YouTube in January, has already started sending e-mail blasts and posting instructions on how to call your congressmen to express your support for the President's budget. They even give you a sample script to read from when you call.
Pres. Obama tried this tactic back in February to drum up support for the embattled stimulus bill with mixed results. While his team reported 30,000 responses from the initial e-mail and YouTube video and more than 3,000 house parties thrown in support of the stimulus package, other outlets reported that these parties were sparsely attended and that people weren't even sure that they would have an impact.
More than any other before him, Pres. Obama has embraced new technologies and ways of reaching out to his supporters, but what is yet to be seen is if the momentum that he gained from this in the campaign can be translated into action now that he's in office. And if he is successful, what will be the implications for policymaking? Some traditional stakeholders, such as congressmen, may feel left out of the process if the president is able to successfully circumvent them to gain support for his policies.
March 18, 2009 — Barack Obama's use of grassroots organizing, and his success with his grassroots network, in last year's presidential campaign was 
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