As America awaits the start of the second presidential debate, it occurs to me that we are missing the real story of this presidential campaign. To be sure, it’s about the economy, stupid, and the temperament of the candidates, and taxes, health care and the war. But it’s also about organization. If Sen. Barack Obama wins, the reason-as much as any other-will be a superb ground game.

Obama was not very successful as a “community organizer” in the Chicago housing projects, but he adapted whatever he learned-and whatever knack he was born with-to build an innovative, lavishly financed and meticulously-run outreach machine.

From text-message signups to email-based organizing-to the hordes of young staffers deployed in force to swing states-Obama has focused to an unusual degree in modern campaigning not on broadcast TV advertising but on real-life, person-to-person contact.

He is hoping not only that his medium is his message-personal testimony to his ability to bring the country together-but also that his voter-identification work will yield results on Election Day.
The central (but by no means only) target of all of this organization: turning out younger voters, that is, those between the ages of 18 and 30.