Republicans raise online tools for 2012

"Hello, everybody," Mr Obama says in the 30-second YouTube video Monday posted on his Facebook page. "I would like to only a minute you invite meeting on the economy a town hall, the I keep Facebook's headquarters of this Wednesday, April 20 am take." "It will be live streamed, and I will answer questions from people across the country."

On Tuesday afternoon, more than 22,000 people had signed up.

It is all part of the Mr Obama re-election efforts to social media and other online tools use to galvanize supporters. But unlike in the last presidential campaign, Republicans are better prepared to compete in the 2012 competition online.

"The idea that the Internet of Liberals, owned by links in the course of the Obama, was false, has to win", said Patrick Ruffini, a Republican political strategist in online, now the exploratory campaign of Tim Pawlenty advice is, the former Governor of Minnesota, after he as a digital consultant to President George W. Bush's campaign 2004 and later at the Republican National Committee.

While the elections last year midterm, Republican caught with the Democrats with technology and social networks, and now many Republicans in the House and Senate are elected using this tool more than Democrats, according to some political and technology experts.

"This is the first choice in modern history, that both parties are understanding the potential of the technology that change the results of the election," said Andrew Rasiej, co-founder of TechPresident.com, a blog, which includes policy and technology and a digital consultant Democrats since Howard Dean presidential campaign in 2004. "Republicans and Democrats are ready to use online platforms and their potential no longer skeptical."

What Republicans after Senator John McCain bruising defeat in 2008 acknowledges is that Mr Obama digital strategy was deeply integrated into his real campaign. Mr Obama team to the its website, E-mails and text messages more than broadcast - his message campaign. It facilitates online the tools for people donate for the area of operation, in particular in caucus States, volunteers, and responsibility for other aspects of the campaign, such as groups of neighbours for a chat Assembly and create the Obama ' 08 iPhone app.

"You learn more to lose than win sometimes," Matt said lira, who on the digital team Mr. McCain's presidential campaign worked and who is now head of new media for representative Eric Cantor of Virginia House Republican majority leader.

Mr Lira said that House committed Republicans, meeting in January 2009 to get into the digital game and to aggressively during the elections last year midterm members and potential candidates on Twitter and Facebook login.

Mr said "You no top recruit for the House become, unless you want to use a robust on the Web," Lira.

Sarah Palin, which is a brand new Web site Tuesday with functions that enable supporters easy to donations, has her political action Committee has long been an established and robust presence on Twitter and Facebook, where they almost started 2.9 million fans. Other possible Republican presidential candidate in 2012, Newt Gingrich, Michele Bachmann and Mike Huckabee, including use also Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. Mitt Romney last week with a video, an update on his Facebook page, the nearly 845,000 members, a Twitter-post introduction the Hashtag # mitt2012, and a new Web site announced his exploratory Committee.

Mr. Pawlenty introduced an innovative twist: a social gaming layer borrowed from Farmville and foursquare, the awards, badge and refers to the supporters more participating in the campaign. As an example get supporters 10 points for connections with their Facebook account website of the campaign and the 5 points for their Twitter account Add. If you set one up on your Facebook page message or your own group, you will receive a badge.

Facebook, can in particular candidates to harvest valuable data. By permission of followers you log in with their Facebook account, campaigns can, depending on to a user's privacy settings, a supporter of the E-mail address, home and personal network access. "The days go on a website and registration and waiting to hear back from a volunteer co-ordinator about how you can get involved," said Mr Ruffini.

Neither the democratic or Republican digital strategists argue that social media, mobile and other digital tools alone is a campaign to win. While Facebook and other social media channels without a doubt powerful tools for the presidential election will be competitors in the year 2012, voters can expect even a flurry of traditional TV campaign advertising and direct.

"We consider the number of Facebook fans, Web visits, and it is not anywhere close to the range of television," said Mr Ruffini. "But things like the Facebook News feeds allow us, information in the average to deliver people of feeds."

Republican voters voted Democrats in their use of these tools, with 40% of Republican online users to social media to be politically active in a campaign, compared to 38 percent of democratic voters, according to a study by the Pew Research Center for Internet and society. Tea party supporters were especially likely social media combined with a group or candidates used.

"It is not necessarily that Democrats or liberal or young people become less active," said Aaron Smith, the author of the study. "It is more, that older adults, conservative voters and tea party activists come to join the party."

Republican presidential candidates still face a formidable online foe in Mr Obama. He announced his campaign for re-election of this month with an E-mail and SMS message blast, posts on Twitter, a short video on YouTube and a new app that combines supporters and their Facebook friends on his campaign Web site with a question, "are you in?"

"We are social media and the latest technology to the energy and commitment of the people on the ground, community by community, neighborhood by neighborhood, House to House, all around the country, fuel will use", said Katie Hogan, a spokeswoman for Mr Obama campaign for re-election.

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Republicans scramble for votes to budget bill:

House of representatives and Senate are scheduled to vote a temporary solution to the spending plan on Thursday, which time limit before the end of a very short-term funding measure worked out late Friday. In about two days between the revelation of the details of the plan early Tuesday morning and the vote on Thursday, Republicans and Democrats have the chance to express their skepticism about the Bill.

Representative Jim Jordan of Ohio, who is Chairman of the influential House Republican Study Committee, said on Tuesday that he would oppose the measure because it is not enough in federal spending cut.

"While I respect that deal some spending my Republican colleagues ultimately this support," said Mr.. Jordan in a statement. "I think voters are demanding us to our higher set."

The study Committee, consisting of from about 175 House Republicans forced means of the House Committee for greater cuts in the original editions beak, move the end in the Senate not.

While only 28 Republicans against the bridge plan approved, the money it flows up to hold the vote on Thursday is likely, that some of the Republicans who supported this measure were looking to a Government shutdown to avoid and to fund the Government through the rest of the financial year vote nay on the invoice.

In a meeting with reporters, House majority leader, representative Eric Cantor of Virginia was during, say, have the understanding that the Bill had "strong Republican support," Tuesday admitted to that he was not sure would pass the Bill without the support of Democrats. "Certainly we will ask always for them", he said of Democrats.

The agreement supports Democrats also largely Friday night, but it was somewhat ambiguous, where she would stand on a Bill this week that at some point their favorite programs, hacks, although the cuts Republicans are far less than was looking way.

"My guess is we don't know where our people are," representative Steny Hoyer H., minority whip, said at a meeting with reporters on Tuesday morning. "I don't think, they know where their people are," he said of the Republicans.

If, Democrats would be necessary, the legislation passed more Republican than 24 Member error. The failure of the Bill - an unlikely, if not impossible, prospect - would cause a shutdown Government.

Big not necessarily would lead Republican defector to the result, but would be a huge embarrassment for Speaker John A. Boehner.

Republican leaders for unity for the measure, show that contains significant concessions from Democrats who environment took a hit and educational programs and and Republicans, the error occurred while retrieving of anywhere in the vicinity of $61 billion in cuts, which they sought.

"I welcome the leadership of speaker Boehner back up tens of billions of dollars in cuts spending, forcing the President and his party leaders to retreat from their reckless shopping spree," representative Paul D. Ryan of Wisconsin, the Chairman of the House Budget Committee, said in a statement. "Cut round the historical issues that Washington's pervasive culture of spending, to signal job creator send page and the confusion unprecedented budget of the previous Congress leave cleaning up."

Spending plan cuts $38 billion in the current financial year. The House will vote on two separate measures: one all end federal funding for planned parenthood, and the second to go back on the health care overhaul by 2009. When the invoices are approved, they go to the Senate for a vote on the same day where are the planned parenthood health sentenced and measures verging.

Last week, threatened a fight over the money for planned parenthood to the failure of the negotiations on the measure to fund the Government through Sept. 30. House Republicans tried, take all federal funding for planned parenthood and other services for family planning and turn over this $ in the States take place. President Obama and the Senate Democrats rather than policy, and it decided against rider was eventually dropped.

On Tuesday, said Mr Cantor Republicans would continue to take ways to federal funding of planned parenthood. "Where I think we have been consistent," he said, "is that we very firmly believe that Government should not be used dollar, finance to abortion." (In fact it is already against federal law use federal dollars to get an abortion.)

On the Senate side faced skepticism from the most conservative members, who do not think the spending plan, it's enough cuts, and of more liberal members, Senator Bernard Sanders, independent of Vermont, said on Tuesday, that he would reject the measure because it was "Robin Hood in reverse." However, passage in the House appeared likely.

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House Republicans propose $4 trillion in cuts in ten years

On "Fox News Sunday," the Chairman representative Paul D. Ryan of Wisconsin, also said that Republicans would call for strict caps on all issues, that the Government should cuts effective are, whenever the Congress exceeded these limits.

"We go delete a plan, which calls our fault on a downward path and gets us to a point one give debt-free nation, our next-generation", said Mr Ryan, as he that the politically charged initiatives he put beginning of 2012 budget said in advance,, which on Tuesday democratic "political weapon would go to give you against us."

"But they have to lie and demagogue to make the political weapon," he said.

Republicans and Democrats remained divided about, such as an agreement to make that Government would prevent that as early as Saturday, be could if a budget bill now expires financing the Government set a shutdown.

Senator Charles E. Schumer of New York, the Chamber No. 3 Democrat, said progress has been made is, but neither he nor other top lawmakers can guarantee that government agencies can remain open after Friday.

Mr. Schumer said Democrats Republicans pushing to consider some of the automatic annual issues were on agriculture, to achieve a target of about $33 billion in cuts, Treasury and Justice Department programs, instead of it was that it all come from what in the household usage as discretionary accounts is known.

A Democrat at the negotiations involved, on condition of anonymity said that, said alternative spending cuts from the White House and Senate Democrats would range up to $8 billion. But to the dismay of Democrats, not only Republicans were resistance against these cuts, they were also proposing more expenditure than the Pentagon for military and homeland security programs will.

"If you cut only from domestic diskretion?re, you need to cutting things like helps to go to college students;" "You have will, cut scientific research, including cancer research," Mr. Schumer said on the ABC News program "This week." "These things have created millions of jobs over the years."

Another possible source of savings by the Democrats is the $3 billion in unspent transport fund. Republicans have package including cuts resistance as a central element of expenditure, he cuts them an accounting gimmick.

"We want real expenditure cuts," spokesman John A. Boehner told reporters on Friday. "We have that do discretionary part of the budget."

Despite continued wrangling in public, suggested some legislators a shutdown could be avoided in view of the fact that both parties have said that you should be interrupted not eGovernment services.

"I think we get," said Senator Lindsey Graham, Republican of South Carolina, on the CBS News program "face the nation."

To draw a line against Republican attempts to cut programs like planned parenthood and education initiatives for young children of Senate majority leader, Harry Reid, which appeared to be on the same program.

"It is a question of how we do it," Mr. Reid said. "We in advance not possible." We can do it on the program for young children. "We can do it on homeless veterans."

While the dispute over a plan to fund the Government through Sept. could have 30 direct consequences, the conflict over the emerging Republican budget for the coming year proposed a more partisan clash on fundamental questions as the Federal Government provides services.

The political risk of significant changes in Medicare and Medicaid, the health care program for poor Americans recognize Mr Ryan stressed that such spending under the Republican budget, increase simply not so strongly continue to like it otherwise have.

He wanted to also be clarified that require all the changes in Medicare, which would include more wealthy Americans, a larger share of their Medicare costs to pay, amount to a voucher program would - an approach which has strongly criticised by the Democrats.

Mr Ryan, said his plan was more like the Medicare prescription drug program and it would allow to select patients from a menu of the social security funds. The Federal Government would not directly the subsidy on the plan for the consumer.

Mr Ryan said "It, the person, not go into the market". "It goes to the plan." "Give more poor, more for people who are sick, and we so much money to people that are rich not for that."

Americans, the now 55 or older are in the current program to a sudden change in their health insurance to prevent would go, he said.

Democrats took proposals quickly target Mr Ryan, say that he tried to shrink the deficit at the expense of the people more Allied aid as the wealthy business interests need with Republicans.

"Paul Ryan made it clear that subsidies on old people's homes, health care, protect the Republican budget to big oil companies", said Jesse Ferguson, a spokesman for the Democratic Congressional Committee campaign. "It is always clear who the priority in the House Republican budget can - special interests, not middle class families."

Jackie Calmes contributed reporting.

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