Obama OC Goes to Vegas, Baby!

Wow, what a weekend I’ve had! There’s nothing like taking a vacation that doesn’t just make me feel better, but also helps me make a difference. And this weekend, I’ve actually had a chance to do that here in Las Vegas as I joined many of my friends from Obama OC for a “Drive for Change” weekend of campaigning and camaradery.

I mean, come on! What could be better than a fun weekend in “Sin City” with a bunch of friends that combines good deeds and good times? Well, I had plenty of both last weekend. And if you’d like a full debriefing of what I’ve been doing in Nevada since Friday, follow me after the flip for more!

Ah, where do I start? Well, how about my arrival! On Friday morning, I carpooled my way to Las Vegas with a good friend from Obama OC. And even though my friend had to endure over four hours of me blathering on about Orange County politics, we eventually made it to the hotel intact and still sane. However before we checked in at the hotel, we just had to drop by the Nevada Obama office for Las Vegas. We chatted with the friendly staffers inside for a little while, and then we went off to do all that fun stuff that tourists are supposed to do in Vegas.

Gawking at the new hotels on The Strip. Stopping by that big chocolate factory in Henderson. Looking in all the stores at the outlet mall. Oh wait, I think I forgot something. Oh yes, my friend and I don’t gamble. Good for us.

OK, so I bet you now want to know what actual work I did this weekend. Well, I did quite a bit yesterday! I arrived at the campaign office bright and early in the morning. And from there, I found out all the neat things that the Obama campaign is doing in Nevada. Now remember that Nevada is an early caucus state this time around, so all of a sudden their primary votes matter. And believe me, the Obama campaign is taking this seriously!

There are about 3,000 precincts in Nevada, and the campaign is working its hardest to make a presence in each and every one of them. In fact, it felt like I visited at least 100 of them yesterday! I was teamed up with a local from the area, and we canvassed all around the southeast part of the Las Vegas metro area. Now I know it doesn’t exactly sound like fun, but I actually had a good time meeting many of the great Nevada Democrats who will play a major role in determining who will be our next President. Oh yes, and my partner and I actually didn’t have a tough job to accomplish. All we had to do was ask these folks who already support Obama to sign “pledge cards” to let the campaign know that they will be going to the caucus.

Wait, pledge cards? Go to caucus? HUH?! OK, it isn’t that hard to explain. Remember that unlike our primary system in California, Nevada Democrats will be voting in a caucus. This just means that everyone interested in voting must make it to their neighborhood caucus at a set time on January 19. And unlike our primary, their vote isn’t a secret.

OK, why isn’t their vote a secret? Well, I found out last night. After my day of going around Las Vegas and talking to Democrats about why we all love Barack Obama, I attended a “mockus caucus” potluck dinner. The Obama campaign set it up to explain to all of us how caucus day will work. Now last night, we all had to go to different parts of the living room to vote for which food item we liked best. There was intense campaigning there for each dish, and each of us had to take a public stand on which dish was yummiest. And in the end, our “precinct chair” counted out each of the “caucus” groups, and he awarded delegates proportionally according to which group was the biggest.

And just like that, Nevada Democrats will have to choose which presidential campaign to “caucus” with. And oh yes, whichever campaign turns out the most supporters will probably win that caucus. That’s why the Obama campaign is working so hard to make sure Obama supporters in the Silver State attend the caucus! And really, that’s why Obama OC decided to take a trip to Nevada this weekend. We want to help the campaign achieve a historic win in quite a historic event for not only Nevada, but for the whole American West.

Come on now, doesn’t this sound like fun?! Yes, I know, you couldn’t make it this weekend. That’s OK. We’ll be doing another road trip on Veterans’ Day Weekend, and there will likely be more between then and January.

Oh yes, and just because we occasionally do trips to Vegas doesn’t mean that we will be ignoring our own home turf in OC. We know how important California will be in determining who will be our next President, so Obama OC definitely has more events in store to help Barack win California.

So would YOU like to join us at Obama OC in making a difference, both here in California AND in Nevada? If so, check us out. Not only do we have a great candidate in Barack Obama, but we also have a great grassroots campaign in Obama OC. Pretty soon, we’ll have local actions for us to talk to our neighbors about voting in the February primary. Oh yes, and don’t forget that next road trip to Vegas in November! Just know that no matter how you want to make a diffenece, you can be the change you want to see with Obama OC. 🙂