OP-ED

Passing the Torch to Obama

Will Kennedy’s legacy motivate grassroots?

During the campaign, Ted Kennedy passed the torch to Obama. But now, will Obama run with it? When it comes to health reform, Peter Dreier and Marshall Ganz argue in The Washington Post that Obama needs to look no further than his own campaign. They write that like women’s suffrage, Obama established a large grassroots network during the presidential campaign which he must reactivate in order to pass health-care reform. And in the the past few weeks, that network has reenergized, as droves of Obama supporters have filled town-hall meetings across the country. But now, argue Dreier and Ganz, Obama will need to activate it to fight the right wing: “This requires "movement" tactics, from leaflets, vigils, and newspaper ads to nonviolent civil disobedience—such as occupying insurance-company offices and picketing the homes of insurance executives—to focus attention on the companies and individuals who are the major obstacles to reform.”