White House unveils $50 million plan to boost Democratic support [View All]

Source: WP

Amid fresh signs of Republican fundraising momentum, White House officials unveiled a $50 million plan to try to shore up Democratic majorities on Capitol Hill in advance of the November midterm elections, using a campaign theme of "defending the middle class."

Run out of the Democratic National Committee, the plan involves using paid media advertisements, new media outreach and traditional get-out-the-vote efforts to boost support from the millions of young and minority voters who cast their first ballots ever for President Obama in 2008 but whose energy has since waned.

White House officials cast the move as the first time that Obama's massive online fundraising capacity will be brought to bear in a significant way to help the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. Organizing for America, the entity created by the Obama political team in the wake of the 2008 presidential campaign, is also planning to send staff to the states with competitive races to help on the ground.

Republicans have outraised Democrats in many of those races, particularly Senate contests in key states such as Illinois, New Hampshire, Ohio and Pennsylvania, according to the latest Federal Election Commission reports.

Read more: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/04/16/AR2010041602567.html