Crash the gate!  I dig the fact that he will end up hitting all 50 states.

Hello...the magic number is 2210!  /snark

But seriously, hitting all again would be an incredible accomplishment and might well lay the groundwork for future contests to be slightly more competitive.  People tend to listen a bit more when you take the time to come visit them in person.

Hitting all 50 states has a very symbolic meaning ..  it shows that you aren't just for the "red" states .. or the "blue" states .. it's the opposite of what George Bush does .. and sadly .. what Kerry did ..  how can you expected someone to vote for you .. if you don't show that you care about their state and problems .. and the best way to show that(give the time constraints) is to have stops in all 50 states .. and it is great publicity as well .. what happens when someone like Obama visits Montana? .. When is the last time a candidate in the primary or GE visited Montana? .. it would make all the TV stations and papers in the state

I'm not trying to get in a dig at Clinton here, but I do think you're hitting on the incredible value of taking all--or most--of the states seriously.  Yes, Obama campaigned less in WV and KY than did Clinton, but he took many of the red states of February far more seriously than she did.  And not only did he visit the states; he developed extensive campaign organizations in them, effectively melding paid staff and well-trained volunteers.  Beyond that, with his more than 1.5 million contributors, he has a remarkable donor network that doubtless spans the 50 states.  I'd love to see a map showing where those donors live, perhaps superimposed on a map showing precincts Kerry won and lost.

I like the idea of hitting all 50 states again.

I just remember reading about Nixon fruitlessly flying off to Alaska or some other remote state in the last weekend of his 1960 race against Kennedy because of a similar 50-state pledge.

Better to do it without committing to it, in case you need to kill the plan in the closing days of the election.

I agree - sure, he's not going to carry Texas, but we don't build a party by simply writing off states.  In contrast, a GOP candidate won't carry California in the next 20 years or more, but they have an organization here.  We should have thriving, supported parties in all the states - not all of them will contribute electoral votes, but all of them will contribute congressional candidates, expertise, policy wonks, and diversity.

Which leads to this trivia question -- who was the last presidential candidate to promise to campaign in all 50 states?

Answer: Richard Nixon, 1960, versus John Kennedy. Here's his speech accepting the nomination at the July 28, 1960 Republican convention in Chicago:

I announce to you tonight, and I pledge to you, that I, personally, will carry this campaign into every one of the 50 states of this nation between now and November the 8th.

And what were the practical implications of Nixon's pledge? Let's let historian Richard Norton Smith tell the rest of the story:

He wanted to call attention to the fact that Alaska and Hawaii had come into the union during the Eisenhower presidency. In practical term, that meant on the Saturday before the election, when he should have been in Illinois or Texas, he was on a plane headed for Alaska, which in those days, that was a lot more remote a destination than it is today. He paid a high price on Election Day.

As one wag tells me this morning, Nixon's pledge backfired on him -- thank God he never kept a promise ever again!

http://www.extrememortman.com/politics/5 0-state-presidential-campaign/

Yes, except that 2025 is NOT the "magic number."

And maybe he visited KY early on, but studiously avoided campaigning there during the KY primary when perhaps he could have done some good for himself with the working class.

46 state campaign - he rejects that Fla, MI, WV and Kentucky are concerns.

And if you want more bad news for BO, take a peek, here:

http://www.correntewire.com/blog/paul_lu kasiak

We need to remember that. Dems in every state can help the campaign, by donating, volunteering, making calls.

A 50-state strategy means we harness the people power in every state, even the ones we can't win. Its a winning strategy, i'd say.

Obama is doing this campaign in conjunction with the DNC.  I think this campaign is the start of bigger drive for Democrats to be competitive in every state, especially  the red states.

This 50 state campaign is to plant the seeds of democratic ideals in all states.  Although this campaign is to help who ever is the nominee get elected in the general, it will also help other local democratic candidates win their seats.

This is a good thing for those who believe in the ideals of the democratic party.

Barack Obama knows what it takes to win. Having won the Democratic primary, he is now "taking it to the states" to win the upcoming general election. The 50 state strategy does not mean winning in every state. It never did. It means contesting every state so that the Republicans need to watch their backs.

Obama is a masterful campaigner and will be numbered among the short list of best Presidents ever.

My guess is, it's close if not identical, but I'm really not sure.

And have always agreed.

We were the ones demonized for quite a while here since only certain states "counted".  

Glad to see a front page article that makes this much sense...  Even if it included a gratuitous shot at Obama.  Sigh.  I guess that's a requirement here.

Everyone knows, Hillary has never misspoken.  Oh wait...

It is not just the Presidency.
This Primary season has brought attention and activity to State Parties.
We want 60  Senate Dems(no joe lie)+Bernie.
We want a crushing majority in the House..
More Dems in State Leg's.
This is not about a candidate. It is about bringing ourselves out of the darkness of the past 8 years on all levels of govt.

50 States...yes!

It's also important to consider the impact that a heavily trumpeted '50 State Campaign' narrative can have.  A campaign stop in Outer Redstatia that supports a well illustrated mythos of inclusion may have more impact in a swing state than an actual campaign stop there(if a candidate goes far enough outside the normal patterns of campaigning, that can get more media coverage than a routine event right around the corner).  Americans, especially on the Left, love reality, but all of us are suckers for an interesting story.

Enough with planning on losing in 30-some states.  The 50-state strategy is going to have several positive effects:

1) Unexpected swing states.  Head over to Electoral-Vote and look at the latest O vs. McBush map.  Virginia's tied.  Virginia!  South Carolina's within 3%.  South Carolina!  And that's before the boost Obama will get when he's officially the nominee and can put 100% of his attention on McCain.

2) Putting McCain on defense.  Aside from the states that are surprisingly up-for-grabs, there are states that are surprisingly close.  Texas has a single-digit margin, for Pete's sake.  And every campaign stop that McCain has to make to shore up support in Texas, or Florida, or North Carolina, is a day where he's not trying to flip Pennsylvania or New Jersey.

3) Coattails.  The past 3 special elections?  3 Dem pickups in 3 deeply red states.  So what if Obama isn't going to win Louisiana or Montana.  How many Democrats are going to get a boost if they get to do an event with him?  If he appears in their TV spots?  If the local paper's wall-to-wall coverage of Democrats the week he's in town?

He won't just be making the perfunctory visits Nixon did back in the day, either.  He's got an organization in all 50 states, so he'll have an advance presence, and a professional setup at whatever campaign stop he does.  He may not win all 50 states, but I think he'll make a difference in all 50.

Would someone here please tell me when he was in Arkansas while he has been campaigning for President? I met him when he came here in 2006 stumping for Mike Beebe, but I do not remember him coming back since beginning his run.

The 57 thing was a hyperbolic joke alluding to the length of the campaign. It's obvious from the clip but most people have just heard about it and have not actually watched it.