FFX County Politics Wrote:
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> Obama Campaign Opens Fairfax Office
> U.S. Rep. Gerry Connolly addresses crowd of
> 200-plus supporters.
> By Victoria Ross/The Connection
> Monday, December 05, 2011
>
http://connectionnewspapers.com/article.asp?articl
> e=356366&paper=63&cat=104
>
>
> President Barack Obama was not there, but U.S.
> Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-11) made sure the
> president’s presence was felt at the opening of
> the first Northern Virginia field office for the
> Obama 2012 Campaign in Fairfax.
>
> Connolly gave a stump speech to the 250 volunteers
> and supporters who crowded into the campaign
> office on Saturday, Dec. 3. The office is located
> in a strip mall on Lee Highway in Fairfax.
>
> "If we needed living proof that President Obama is
> going to invest heavily in Virginia, this is it,"
> Connolly said to shouts of "amen" and "that’s
> right." "No president has been more vilified than
> Barack Obama, and throughout it all he has
> remained gracious, a true leader."
>
> CONNOLLY INTRODUCED the prominent area Democrats
> who attended the opening, including State Sen.
> Chap Petersen (D-34), Del. Eileen Filler-Corn
> (D-41), Del. Ken Plum (D-36), Del. David Bulova
> (D-37), Kate Hanley, who preceded Connolly as
> chairman of the Fairfax County Board of
> Supervisors, and Ryan McElveen, one of the
> newly-elected Democrats to the Fairfax County
> School Board.
>
> Petersen predicted Virginia would be a
> battleground state in 2012. "The President has to
> do everything he did in 2008 to win across Fairfax
> County. In a lot of ways, the stakes are higher,
> because the statewide race will be closer,"
> Petersen said, adding that the anti-Washington
> rhetoric doesn’t play well in Northern Virginia
> where many people are invested in a healthy,
> functioning federal government.
>
> Many local supporters who attended Saturday’s
> event said they volunteered for the campaign in
> 2008, and intend to volunteer again. "I’m
> working-class and he works for me," said Paul
> Strasberg, an economist who lives in Fairfax.
>
> "I like President Obama because he doesn’t make
> up all these crazy ideas," said Zach Strasberg,
> 13, a student at Robinson Secondary School. "He
> doesn’t harass people, like Herman Cain does."
>
> Latasha Gunter of Fairfax said education was a key
> issue for her. "I feel like the President has made
> a strong effort to reach across the table. He
> works effortlessly to support change for all
> Americans."
>
> Olivia Hinebaugh of Vienna brought her
> 15-month-old son, Callum and husband Jason to the
> event. She said she supported President Obama’s
> health care plan. "My biggest struggle after I
> graduated from college was getting health
> coverage. I was a preschool teacher. We were ready
> to start a family, and I couldn’t get health
> coverage. Personally, that’s why I’m a huge
> supporter," she said.
>
> Organizing for America-Virginia hosted the event,
> and opened offices in Newport News as well as
> Fairfax on Saturday. Along with the campaign's
> statewide headquarters in Richmond, the field
> offices will serve as community hubs for 2012
> election activities.
>
> ON FRIDAY, DEC. 2, Democratic Party of Virginia
> Chairman Brian Moran joined Organizing for
> America-Virginia volunteers as they delivered the
> signatures required to put President Obama on
> Virginia ballots in 2012.
>
> In order for candidates to be eligible for their
> party's nomination in the Commonwealth of
> Virginia, the state Board of Elections requires
> the signatures of 10,000 registered voters,
> including 400 from each congressional district in
> the state.
>
> "Nearly three weeks ahead of the Board of
> Elections deadline, the Organizing for America
> volunteers delivered more than 15,000 notarized
> signatures collected through grassroots efforts in
> every corner of the Commonwealth," said Marianne
> von Nordeck, press secretary for Organizing for
> America.
That's stupid.