I just convinced a couple friends of mine to vote for Obama (I'm a die-hard Hillary supporter)

[StevieM]

I'm friends with a married couple that was undecided about who to vote for. They usually don't decide until the final days before the election. They were genuinely undecided, but leaning slightly towards McCain.

I basically just asked a lot of questions about what their concerns were and then we talked about the last eight years. We talked about the War and whether they were glad we went into Iraq. We talked about gas prices. We talked about health care and how many people don't have insurance or are worried about losing their insurance. Finally, we talked about the scarcity of jobs out there.

I think I had a certain amount of credibility since they knew I wasn't just some Obama-lover who expected everyone else to feel the same way. They knew how furious I was when Clinton lost and how unfair I felt her treatment was during the primary. So I think I came off as being objective. My main goal was to place the election in a certain context: give the Republicans yet another chance, or give Obama a chance. That seemed to resonate.

These people are independents, not Democrats. The main reason they were leaning (slightly) toward McCain was because of his greater experience. But I'm pretty sure that I succeeded in recasting the terms of the election for them. They won't 100% commit to a final decision until right before the election (they never do), but I've moved them to the point where they would vote for Obama if the election were tomorrow and are now looking at the race in very different terms.

It was so strange to be having this conversation, given how much animosity I had toward Obama myself just a few months ago. I didn't even put up my first pro-Obama post until the night of his acceptance speech. But the Convention really served as a turning point for our party. It brought the party back together on terms of mutual respect. And that enabled Hillary to go out and help win Obama new supporters. And now many of us are winning him additional converts.

Steve

[gratefultobelib]

1. Thank you for this!

[alcibiades_mystery]

2. woot woot

Hillary's been amazing during the general, simply amazing.

She really put to the lie much of the nastiness cast at her by the most vociferous Obama supporters during the primaries.

I was an Obama supporter during the primary; I don't think I ever really went after Hillary.

[Bicoastal]

3. Nice! Well done you, although...

...after the events of the last week, I can't see how any thinking person could support a McCain/Palin ticket or deny that Obama/Biden would be the best option for our country.

Not to minimize your accomplishment--again, well done.

[OhioBlue]

4. good for you steve!

one vote at a time. people helping people.

[gateley]

5. Excellent! And though I don't presume to speak for Hillary, my guess is

she would be pleased and proud of you.

[orwell]

6. I came close to converting a die hard McCain supporter...

...I left her thinking long and hard about her choice.

She no longer thinks Obama is a scary Muslim or a traitor to the country.

It's a start...

[Doityourself]

7. well done!

[TexasLady]

8. awesome StevieM

My sister is also a diehard Hillary supporter. In fact her name here at DU is Hillaryin08. She doesn't post here much at all anymore, but like you, her support now for Obama is fierce and strong. Kudos to you!!

[thesubstanceofdreams]

9. K&R! n/t

[Median Democrat]

10. I Have The Utmost Respect For You! Congrats!

Very impressed. I am working on some lifelong Republican relatives here, and it is slow going.

[last1standing]

11. This is what it means to be genuinely interested in the welfare of our country.

Thank you. I didn't support Obama in the primaries, either (Edwards here), but when my candidate lost I knew that I'd be supporting the Democratic nominee because not supporting them would have meant another four years of what we now have.

In a way I think I was fortunate that Edwards dropped out so early after seeing what happened between Obama and Hillary supporters. While it's quite possible that their extended fight led to the incredible increase in registered Democrats (which might be what puts Obama over the top in November), it also caused a lot of hurt feelings and a virtual civil war within the party.

I'm one of those who pops over to Capitalhillforum and hillaryclintonforum to see what they are saying and it still hurts to see that there are some who cannot understand what a mcsame/palin white house for at least four years would mean. It's sad to see so many familiar names saying things about Democrats I never thought possible. I truly wish that many of them were back to share this time with us.

Obama is going to in this election, thanks to people like yourself and Hillary Clinton. Because of that, I've already decided that in 2016 I'm supporting her with my time, money and vote. She deserves no less for her support for Obama.

[PresidentObama]

12. I love Obama, and I love Hillary!! n/t

[scheming daemons]

13. As someone who absolutely HATED you 6 months ago... I humbly say "thanks"...

My respect for Hillary has gone through the roof over the past months as well.

[StevieM]

16. LOL, I guess I was a little difficult at times. I didn't really think that anyone hated me,

just because I didn't post as often as so many other people did. I would have thought that I was small potatoes in the circle of Hillary advocates/combatants. It's nice to know that someone actually remembers me, even as an old adversary.

But that's all over now. We're looking at a great election. I don't know if we'll really get 375 electoral votes, but I do think that we'll win decisively and pick up a lot of Senate and House seats.

Steve

[Beacool]

17. Hate may be a strong word, how about strongly disliked?

:D

[FrenchieCat]

14. Thank you for this OP.....

It is appreciated.

[City Lights]

15. Nicely done, Steve!

:patriot:

[SemiCharmedQuark]

18. Wow! Thank you so much!

Well done :thumbsup:

[4lbs]

19. Great job! It seems Obama has the unique ability to unite people.

Unlike the wingnut faction of Republicans who seem to be splitting their party asunder.

[TheKentuckian]

20. Good job! Bring 'em on home!

[krkaufman]

21. Respect. n/t