I need your help to power up our grassroots machine! - Al Franken

Dear Friend,
I knew when I launched my campaign for the U.S. Senate that I wanted it to be a grassroots campaign, one that belonged to every Minnesotan who wants to see real progressive leadership return to Washington. When I say "grassroots campaign," I mean the kind of campaign where we rely heavily on the hard work, creativity, and passion of volunteers - people just like you who are willing to work hard to help us win.

Now, I started pretty early - over 600 days before the election. Still, thousands of Minnesotans have already signed up to provide the people power we'll need to win this race - far more than we can fit in our little temporary office here in Minneapolis.

The good news is that we've found a new headquarters on University Ave. in St. Paul. We'll be able to more effectively use our people power to connect with neighbors and friends across the state, and turn our campaign into a powerful grassroots machine.

CLICK HERE TO HELP US OPEN OUR NEW HEADQUARTERS!

But there's a catch. You see, even in our wildest dreams, we hadn't planned on getting such a huge response so quickly. And so, trying to save money to use against Norm Coleman next fall, we hadn't planned to move into a larger space until the end of the year. Shelli, our accountant, and usually the most cheerful person in the office, crunched the numbers and told me that if we moved into the new headquarters now, we'd be adding around $50,000 to this year's expenditures. That's not the sort of thing that makes Shelli very happy.

But as I've traveled the state, I've found that Minnesotans are ready to get to work - RIGHT NOW. And so, despite Shelli's concerns, we're making the move - our new headquarters will be open for business next week, and if you've signed up to volunteer, we're going to be ready to put you to work. (If you haven't, of course, we'd love to have you.)

Part of what makes ours a real grassroots campaign is the way we're funding it. In the first fundraising quarter, over 10,000 people contributed to the campaign - over 90% of them giving $100 or less. I know that we have a committed base of supporters I can count on when we need some more fuel for our people-powered machine. And right now, we could use about $50,000 worth of fuel.

CLICK HERE TO HELP ME KEEP SHELLI HAPPY!

This campaign belongs to all of us who want to see our country get back on the right track. It belongs to all of us who want universal health care, a real investment in renewable energy, and an end to George W. Bush's war in Iraq - and are willing to work hard together to get there. It's going to take a lot of phone banks, a lot of stuffed envelopes, and a lot of good old-fashioned person-to-person contact to win this race. And, right now, it's going to take some money.
In recognition of your support, we're going to have a wall in our new headquarters devoted to listing the names of people who chipped in to help us open the doors. We're going to call it the "Wall Of People Who Gave Money To Help Us Open This Office." (The consultants wanted to go with "Al's Pals" or the "Wall of Heroes," but I like my idea better.)

If you can help, even with just a few dollars, we'll add your name to the "Wall Of People Who Gave Money To Help Us Open This Office." It's a powerful statement about our people-powered campaign. And every day, when our staff, interns, volunteers, and I walk by that wall, we'll be reminded that this campaign belongs to so many people who have helped to build our organization.

CLICK HERE TO ADD YOUR NAME TO OUR WALL!

We need to raise $50,000 to pay for the early move to the new headquarters. And we're going to need your continuing support to take back this seat in the U.S. Senate. If you're in the Twin Cities, we'd love to see you at our new headquarters (it's accessible, there's lots of free parking, and there's coffee nearby!) sometime soon - watch your email for details. If you're elsewhere in Minnesota, stay tuned - we'll be opening up shop in your area soon. And no matter where you are, thank you for continuing to support our campaign for change.
Yours truly,
Al Franken