Obama has cash to attack McCain's base

By: Jeanne Cummings
The Politico
July 30, 2008

ATLANTA — In nearly every presidential cycle, candidates throw a little money at a state to try to turn it into a fresh battleground. It almost never works.

But Barack Obama believes his historic nomination gives him more of an opening to press such a strategy.

And what sets him apart from his predecessors is that he may actually have the money to attack his rival’s base on a broader scale and in a more sustained way than any candidate before him.

The process has already begun. The Illinois senator last month began airing ads and opening offices in Virginia, North Dakota, Colorado and a handful of other states that have voted Republican in recent cycles.

Obama is supplementing those high-profile moves with a potentially higher-impact investment in ground troops who can recruit volunteers, knock on doors, register voters and create a buzz around the campaign with bumper stickers and yard signs.

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