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Dear Shawn,
These are the faces of our 50-state strategy -- and they wouldn't be here without your support.Take a long look at that photo -- those organizers are the heart and soul of the Democratic Party.
This was taken last month in Cleveland, Ohio, the first time all of the organizers were in one place. Most of the time you'll find them in the field working grueling campaign hours -- often in places that haven't seen a real Democratic organizing effort in years. They're traveling to every corner of every state, making sure that the Democrats don't give up on a single precinct in the fight for the White House in 2008.
That's why I'm asking you to stand up by Friday and help support these organizers. We need 2,500 people to stand up and show the organizers that ordinary Democrats support their often thankless work.
These men and women are in your state, right now, working to make sure no voter is left behind. Will you help them?
We all remember what it was like to get out of bed the day after the election in 2004. We wondered what had happened, what we could have done differently, and what we could do to make sure it never happened again.
When I ran for chair of the Democratic Party, I vowed to find a better way. The 50-State Strategy is the answer, and in the years since, we've dedicated ourselves to the idea that the Democratic Party wins when it is powered by ordinary Americans fighting in every corner of this country.The people in this photo -- and people like you -- are the better way.
In 2006, we showed that a 50-State Strategy helps Democrats win in states like Montana and Virginia. Now we're gearing up for big 2008 wins in states like Nebraska and Colorado -- victories that will only help take back the White House.
It's easier -- and cheaper -- to run a program that takes blue states for granted and writes off red states completely, but that's not the Democratic Party we need. As Craig, an organizer in Nebraska, puts it: "Even if you live in the reddest of states ... the Democratic Party is still going to find you, contact you, and ask you for your vote and support."
Will you be one of the 2,500 people to help fund the organizers that are rebuilding the Party in your state?
You've gotten plenty of emails from me in the past asking you for money, and you probably already know that ordinary Americans ought to control the political process from the bottom up.
This time, I'm just glad I can show you what happens when they do.
Thank you for making photos like this happen.
Gov. Howard Dean, M.D.