Why I support Barack Obama

By Dave Mooney

(CT Bob: Dave writes about why he supports Obama in very clear terms. I agree with his conclusions.)

I'm supporting Barack Obama for many reasons, but the most compelling reason for me is the undeniable leadership qualities he possesses. I truly believe he will be able to build a winning coalition in November and parlay that into being an extremely popular and effective President and world leader. This belief is not derived from any particular policy position he has taken. It is derived from his character and charisma, his unique take on things, his background as a professor of Constitutional Law and his willingness to say what needs to be said, even if we didn't know it needed to be said.

His willingness and ability to challenge the status quo is also very appealing to me. As a State Senator in Illinois, he worked towards reforming how that state utilizes the death penalty. He has frozen out federal lobbyists and PACs from his presidential campaign and found financing from a record number of new, small contributors. He opposed the Iraq war at a time when few did. He knew it was a foolish endeavor before I came to that conclusion. He was smarter than me on this war and I appreciate that.

When Sen. Obama spoke at the 2004 convention, we all saw his potential to lead our nation. He has been in the Senate for just three years but how long does one need to have a job to realize the organization is broken beyond belief? We need to pluck him from that morass while he is still relatively pure and a little idealistic, while he can still see with an outsider's eyes. He is ready and our country is desperately ready for the kind of change Barack Obama represents.

For the past few weeks, my wife Bonnie and I have been running a phone bank for Obama right in Bob's hometown of Milford. We've mobilized volunteers from Straford, Milford and other towns to reach out to hundreds of voters in nearby towns. The reception has actually been astonishingly positive. It is not often when making political cold calls that you hear from the other end "Thank you for doing what your're doing," or "I appreciate the call!" The Connecticut primary is just ten days away as I write this and your vote in the Democratic primary may very well be for the next President of the United States. It will count more than it ever has in the past. The time has come to get motivated, get to work, get out the vote and get our country going in a fundamentally new and better direction.

About Dave: Dave Mooney is a software engineer at Fujifilm Medical Systems and an active member of the Stratford DTC. He also ran for State Rep in the 120th Assembly District in 2006.

Those interested in volunteering can find an ever-growing list of local opportunities at ct.barackobama.com. You can also email me at dave@davemooney.com or post comments below, which I will do my best to respond to.