Swing State Project

Before reading the email, I want to relate a little background on Bob Mulholland, who blogs -- among many other things -- for the California Democratic Party. Jerome Armstrong of MyDD posted the following in the comments:

Mulholland is a great guy, back in Feb of 2003, he let Markos and I in to blog the CA Dem convention, introducing him to blogging.

DavidNYC followed up with this important comment:

Oh man, that was a seminal moment in blog (and Dean) history. I remember being incredibly excited that you guys had been given press credentials, and that you were actually there reporting on the event. I thought to myself, "Finally - a version of events I know I'll be able to trust!"

While there was considerable press about blogging at this year's conventions, the legitimization of blogging started almost a year and a half earlier. What an amazing convention for bloggers join the Party.

CNN reminds us that this was the convention where John Edwards was cut off after saying, "Saddam Hussein is a serious threat. And I believe he must be disarmed, including the use of military force, if necessary. We cannot...(BOOING)" This was the convention where Howard Dean dared to ask, "What I want to know is what in the world so many Democrats are doing supporting the president's unilateral intervention in Iraq. (CHEERING)"

Bob Mulholland will always be remember for his vision in seeing the potential blogging offered. So I'm guessing it was not out of the ordinary for Art Torres to receive my email praising Bob's Blog and asking for his help in sharing his knowledge. Here is the email I (quite promptly) received from Chair Torres:

Dear Mr. Brigham:

       Thank you for your email and the kind words about Bob Mulholland and his blog.  As Chair of the California Democratic Party, I do share my experiences with other state Chairs about what works and what does not for our communications with California Democrats.  Last weekend, I was in Orlando, Florida with Democratic state chairs from both red and blue states and shared the grassroots technique that we used so successfully in this last election.  One of the ingredients for our success was Bob's Blog.

       Hopefully, other states will follow suit with blogs of their own and I am happy to continue to share our experiences with other state Democratic Parties.  We continue to strive to make our Web site, www.cadem.org, even better as well.  Thank you for your suggestion.

Sincerely,
Senator Art Torres (Ret.)
Chairman, California Democratic Party

Chair Torres brings up a great point, that Bob's Blog was part of the success of the California Democratic Party. With three-fourths of State Parties not using blogs, I don't think I can overstate the importance of one of the most successful State Parties in America appreciating the power of blogging.

We don't need to wait for the next ADSC meeting to talk about best practices. We can do better.