Obama Launches 2012 Campaign

BY Celeste Katz
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER

President Obama kicked off his re-election bid early Monday with a campaign video featuring "ordinary folks."

Obama himself does not speak in the 2:10 minute clip, which shows people talking about his historic 2008 election and why another four years in the White House for him can't be taken for granted. [Check out a roundup of political cartoons on Obama.]

The launch suggests Obama is not taking a 2012 win as a given—and that's probably wise on his part.

Just as with many of his predecessors, Obama began his presidency on a high note, only to see public dissatisfaction increase as frustrated Americans struggled with unemployment, questions about his healthcare reform program, and U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East. The anger materialized in the form of a GOP takeover of the House in the midterm elections and a sense among Republicans that if they could just find the right candidate, which they're still working on, Obama could be toppled. [See photos of Obama behind the scenes.]

 More recently, Obama has sought to shore up his popularity with his African-American and Democratic base, headlining a high-dollar Democratic National Committee fundraiser in Harlem last week and making plans to return to New York on Wednesday to speak at Rev. Al Sharpton's annual National Action Network gala.

The latest Gallup daily tracking poll shows Obama's job approval and disapproval ratings tied at 46 percent each.

In a statement that accompanied the video, Obama and his team wrote:

We're doing this now because the politics we believe in does not start with expensive TV ads or extravaganzas, but with you —with people organizing block-by-block, talking to neighbors, co-workers, and friends. And that kind of campaign takes time to build.

So even though I'm focused on the job you elected me to do, and the race may not reach full speed for a year or more, the work of laying the foundation for our campaign must start today.

We've always known that lasting change wouldn't come quickly or easily. It never does. But as my administration and folks across the country fight to protect the progress we've made—and make more—we also need to begin mobilizing for 2012, long before the time comes for me to begin campaigning in earnest.

As we take this step, I'd like to share a video that features some folks like you who are helping to lead the way on this journey.

In the coming days, supporters like you will begin forging a new organization that we'll build together in cities and towns across the country. And I'll need you to help shape our plan as we create a campaign that's farther reaching, more focused, and more innovative than anything we've built before.

We'll start by doing something unprecedented: coordinating millions of one-on-one conversations between supporters across every single state, reconnecting old friends, inspiring new ones to join the cause, and readying ourselves for next year's fight.

This will be my final campaign, at least as a candidate. But the cause of making a lasting difference for our families, our communities, and our country has never been about one person. And it will succeed only if we work together.

There will be much more to come as the race unfolds. Today, simply let us know you're in to help us begin, and then spread the word:

http://my.barackobama.com/2012

Thank you,

Barack

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• Check out a roundup of political cartoons on Obama.
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