OBAMA/DNC TO INVEST $20 MILLION IN HISPANIC OUTREACH

The Washington Post's Shalaigh Murray reports today on "$20 million investment in Hispanic voter mobilization" by the DNC and Obama for America.

The DNC put out an advisory saying they will, this afternoon, "hold a conference call to discuss the historic and unprecedented announcement that the Democratic campaign will commit $20 million to mobilizing Hispanic voters."

Since when does the DNC have a massive cash-flow to invest in what essentially has become a Democratic Party base vote this cycle? Sure the Obama campaign has already invested millions in Hispanic voter outreach starting in the primaries. But this announcement makes me wonder if when they say $20 million they really mean something else. Perhaps the fact that most Democratic fundraising dollars are going to the Obama and DNC operations, instead of the shadowy 527s of yesteryear, means this is the total consolidated effort on the Democratic side. Still, it would represent well more than double any previous effort. Yes, as the advisory say, it would be "historic."

What's the McCain campaign/RNC to do now?

UPDATE: 4:10 pm

AP put out a big national story on the wire about this announcement.

The campaign said the $20 million will be spent on registering and mobilizing voters, advertisements and online organizing.

I've received calls from reporters with La Opinion and South Florida Sun-Sentinel about this effort, a little evidence of the excitement this announcement is stirring up.

UPDATE: 5:15 pm

The Obama campaign is really playing up the historic-money angle, according to the DNC press release:

The unprecedented $20 million commitment to engage and mobilize Hispanics will include voter mobilization, voter registration, online organizing, community outreach and paid advertising. Part of the effort will also include "Camp Obama" trainings around the country, which will empower Hispanics with the organizing tools and information they need to engage and turn out voters in their home neighborhoods and states. Both the Obama campaign and the Democratic National Committee also have Hispanic staff involved at every level of the campaign, from field organizers to senior roles.

Senator Barack Obama's campaign has already spent more on Hispanic outreach than any presidential campaign before it, and now the Obama campaign and the Democratic National Committee will join together in this unprecedented initiative to continue promoting engagement and mobilization among Hispanic voters and build on already overwhelming Hispanic support for the Democratic party and Senator Obama.

And this comes as no surprise, Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) members applaud the $20 million announcement.

UPDATE: 7:40 pm

Obama campaign and DNC have been citing my Hispanic Voter Project research. See this from NBC News First Read blog.

The New York Times blog "The Caucus" cites our research in a post about today's announcement:

The D.N.C. and the Obama campaign will jointly finance the effort. They noted that the $20 million sum was more than double what the Bush and Kerry campaigns spent altogether on Hispanic outreach during the 2004 election, according to a Johns Hopkins University study.