Clinton Camp Memo on Obama Flip Flop on Outside Spending

TO: Interested Parties
FR: Howard Wolfson
DT: 02/25/08
RE: Unanswered Questions by Obama on Outside Spending

A little over two months ago, on the eve of the Iowa Primary, Barack Obama sharply criticized John Edwards for tacitly allowing outside groups to spend heavily on Edwards' behalf.

Specifically, Obama criticized Edwards as trying to get “around the campaign finance laws.” He even took to the radiowaves in Iowa to denounce the involvement of outside group spending in politics, saying:

“[Edwards] said he did not approve of 527s, these independent groups where there's no disclosure so you don't know who's funding them and how much is being spent... Part of what we need is some consistency when it comes to the positions we take, not just taking them when it's politically convenient.” [Radio Iowa, 12/22/07]

So incensed was Obama that he even pointedly told the New York Times that when it came to campaign finance reform, John Edwards was “just talking the talk,” and by not denouncing these outside efforts he was essentially showing that Edwards was not serious about bringing change.

Obama now has the opportunity to practice what he preached – to not just talk the talk, but actually walk the walk.

Yesterday we learned that a significant, last-minute outside expenditure effort is being organized by the United Food and Commercial Workers Union (UFCW). Specifically, the UFCW intends to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars in Ohio running pro-Obama advertising.

And now today, we are learning that the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) is placing a buy with TV stations in Texas, that will also be significant, most likely statewide, and may also include Spanish TV in some markets.

So what was the Obama campaign's response? To date, the campaign has tacitly embraced the outside expenditures. If Obama truly believes that we need consistency in the positions we take, the Obama campaign should answer the following questions:

Why has the Obama campaign remained entirely silent on the proposed outside expenditures proposed by the UFCW and SEIU?
Does the Obama campaign intend to call on the UFCW and SEIU not to run any outside ads on Obama's behalf?
If Obama intends to not comment on this matter or publicly support the UFCW's and SEIU's outside expenditure plans, how does he reconcile this sudden change in position?
Given that John McCain will be the Republican nominee and that this now marks the second time in two weeks that Obama has suddenly reversed course on campaign finance reform, isn't he presenting an opening for attack by staying silent/approving the expenditure?

Simply put, Obama's trying to have it both ways, decrying political loopholes two months ago and using them to his advantage now. That's hardly change you can believe in.

SEN. OBAMA ONCE BLASTED SEN. EDWARDS, SAYING 'YOU CAN'T JUST TALK THE TALK'
Sen. Obama blast John Edwards for criticizing 527s and then benefiting from their spending. "John yesterday said that he didn't believe in 527s - those are the independent groups that raise money without disclosure. Nobody knows who's giving the money or what's going on. He said, 'I don't believe in them because this is a major loophole in campaign finance reform laws, you have these outside groups helping out candidates and it is a way to get around campaign finance laws.'... So you can't say yesterday you don't believe in them and today you have three-quarters of a millions dollars being spent for you. You can't just talk the talk. The easiest thing in the world is to talk about change during election time" [New York Times, 12/22/07]

SEN. OBAMA CALLED FOR ISSUE CONSISTENCY, NOT POLITICAL CONVENIENCE
Sen. Obama: "Yesterday my understanding was that (Edwards) said he did not approve of 527s, these independent groups where there's no disclosure so you don't know who's funding them and how much is being spent... Part of what we need is some consistency when it comes to the positions we take, not just taking them when it's politically convenient." [Radio Iowa, 12/22/07]

SEN. OBAMA: OUTSIDE GROUPS HELP CANDIDATES EVADE THE LAW
Sen. Obama criticizes Edwards for using 'outside groups' as a way of 'getting around the campaign finance laws.' "You've got these outside groups that are helping out candidates and it's a way of getting around the campaign finance laws. So he said he's opposed to them - we found out today that there is an outside group spending $750,000." [MSNBC, 12/22/07]

OBAMA CAMP ONCE DECRIED "FLOOD OF MONEY" AS UNDERHANDED
Obama campaign decried 'big interests' that had poured a 'flood of Washington money' into Iowa in 'underhanded' efforts to support his rivals. "Sen. Barack Obama's campaign manager has spent the final days of the Iowa campaign railing against 'big interests' that have poured a 'flood of Washington money" into the state in 'underhanded' efforts to support his rivals. But more than three-quarters of that money has come from a pillar of the Democratic Party: labor unions." [Politico, 1/1/08]