A letter to Hillary (via Geoff Garin, her new campaign strategy leader)

Even though I've long ago made up my mind and thrown my support behind Barack Obama, I didn't opt out of Hillary's mailing list (as if such a thing is possible in the first place). Today, I received the following message from Geoff Garin, Hillary's new strategist:

Dear Joe,

You've probably heard about some of the big changes going on in Hillary's campaign lately. My name is Geoff Garin, and along with Howard Wolfson, I'm now leading the campaign's strategy team. My job is to plot the path to the nomination and lay out the strategy that will get us there.

There are two reasons why I said yes immediately when Hillary asked me to do this job. First, I believe that the Hillary Clinton I know will be a great president who will do great things for our country. Second, I am confident she can win.

Let me lay out for you the situation as I see it right now. The Pennsylvania primary is approaching -- just four days to go -- and a win there will do two things: give us momentum that will carry us through the races that follow, and show that Hillary is still the best choice to beat John McCain in the big, competitive states that will decide the race in November.

The Obama campaign is outspending us three-to-one in Pennsylvania. But I'm confident we can win in Pennsylvania, and I know Hillary is too. She is campaigning hard and really connecting with the voters there.

The voters in Pennsylvania know that she is the candidate who understands their lives and respects their values, and that every day she will be a president who stands up for them instead of looking down on them.

If I had to point to two of our best weapons in this campaign, one would be the incredible strength of our candidate, and the other would be the phenomenal role people like you have played in sustaining this campaign, even through some pretty tough times. Everyone from Hillary on down has made sure I know about the vital role her online supporters have played in this race.

I made a personal commitment to Hillary that her campaign would be as good and as strong and as smart as she is. And I want to ask you a favor to help me keep that commitment. In the days and weeks (and hopefully months) ahead, I want to know what you think -- about the state of the race, our campaign strategy, or your ideas for doing things differently. You've made an investment in this campaign, and I want your input as we plan the days, weeks, and months to come.

I can't promise that I can reply personally to every single message -- but I can promise to read them all.

Click here to send me your comments, thoughts, and ideas about our campaign.

I'm really looking forward to reading what you have to say, and to working with you to help Hillary win!

Thanks,
Geoff Garin

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So...I bit; clicked and responded as follows:

Mr. Garin,

I am extremely disappointed in the way Sen. Clinton's campaign has been handled and the overall tenor of her message, especially since the primaries and caucuses began.

Hillary's comments during public appearances, interviews and in the debates have been off-puttingly mean-spirited and have seemed, many times, deliberately misleading. I'm not referring to the Bosnia trip description (which the media has overblown), I'm referring more to tactics that have been historically (at least during the last 15 or so years) been the stock in trade of Republicans.

Hilary has been through the public ringer so often since President Clinton's first administration, many times unfairly (Whitewater, Vince Foster's suicide, now NAFTA) that I truly expected a 'high road' campaign from her. It has been very disappointing over these last few months to watch and hear her feed the media's (and to a degree, the public's) thirst for sound bite, no matter how cryptic, 'mostly' accurate or just downright disingenuous (whether or not Obama is a Muslim, his association with Rev. Wright, the elitist charges).

I was particularly offended by Hilary's pandering beer and whiskey shot photo op hot on the heels of Sen. Obama's 'bitter' comment. When was the last time Hillary had a beer, let alone a shot of whiskey? I know it was an attempt to be 'one of the people' and to capitalize on the 'elitist' attack momentum, but it was absolutely grotesque in its execution. It would have come off as much more genuine if Sen. McCain had pulled a stunt like that, because honestly, I can see John McCain drinking beer and shooting whiskey; Hillary I cannot.

I've had enough of the mean-spirited, disingenuous, revisionist and self-serving agendas of the current Bush administration and I don't see anything separating Hillary from the same behavior at this point.

I was very exited about this election and about voting for Hillary. But that was before the campaign(s) began in earnest. After months of 'politics as usual', I cannot in good faith or conscience support Hillary's run for the presidency.

I do not expect a reply as you stated in your e-mail that you may not be able to personally reply to each response, but I do trust that you will read this, as you also stated that you would personally read each one.

Thank you for your time and attention.

Joe Banks from Cincinnati

Amazingly, I received a response from Mr. Garin immediately after clicking 'submit'...

Dear Friend,

Thank you so much for the comments you just sent me. While I am not able to respond to each message personally, I can assure you that I will read every single one. I'm really grateful for everything you are doing to help Hillary win, and I look forward to working with you in the coming days.

Sincerely,
Geoff Garin
Hillary for President

So...Geoff and I went from being on a first name basis to the 'not sure if I really know you at the mall' greeting, 'Friend', which I suppose, is the wonk equivalent of Dude.

I also forwarded the text of my response to the Obama campaign. I'll let you know if an actual person responds from that camp, too.