White House Hopes Go "Plouffe"

"Plouffe" reminds me of the sound made when a dog does his business, but it's also the last name of Obama's campaign manager and the guy who he's now looking to for help:

David Plouffe, the man who managed President Barack Obama's campaign, will be taking on an expanded role as an outside adviser to the White House, according to sources familiar with the plan, a move that comes just days after a stunning defeat for Democrats in a Massachusetts Senate special election.

Allies of the White House cast the Plouffe move as less about the Massachusetts election and more about the fact that the election year is heating up and Plouffe has more free time following the publication of his campaign memoir late last year. Still, the timing is sure to stoke speculation that the White House is seeking to shore up its political operation.

After managing Obama's successful primary and general election races, Plouffe chose not to go into the White House -- as so many of his campaign colleagues did -- but rather return to the private sector and focus on writing his memoir of the campaign called "The Audacity to Win". The book was released on November 3, 2009.

Plouffe did stay involved with Organizing for America, the operation formed in the wake of Obama's victory to maintain the massive grassroots email and donor base built during the campaign. While OFA officials tout it as a success story there is increasing skepticism within the party about whether it has truly fulfilled its mission of bringing a grassroots army to bear on the President's top priorities.

Plouffe has also remained in regular touch with the President and his political team. The President talks fairly regularly with David," said White House press secretary Robert Gibbs. "I know that it is somebody whose advice and counsel he both seeks regularly and believes David is an exceptionally smart advisor who understands the type of anger and frustration that he's seen. "

This more or less confirms that Obama will be going back to the only thing he's been successful at - campaigning. The rest of the year will be one big campaign, with lots of rallies, town halls, and the like to try and restore the luster Obama lost when he actually had to start running something.