USAction, FireDogLake and CAF Dog The Conservadems

Robert Borosage, Campaign for America's Future co-director; William McNary, president of USAction; and Jane Hamsher, editor of FireDogLake, explained in a teleconference with reporters why they have launched an offensive targeting conservative Democrats who have indicated they may block key portions of President Obama's budget priorities.

“We are been pretty unhappy to see many often-conservative Democrats – New Democrats, Blue Dogs, etc. --suggesting that they are beginning to have doubts about the president’s program and are ready to move against it," Borosage said. “We think it is very important that they hear from their constituents and not simply from their contributors.”

McNary said that conservative Democrats can't be allowed to be "the unwitting accomplices of the obstructionists who have only declared that they want the president to fail." Using a football analogy, McNary said that if President Obama is the quarterback, "we need to block" so that he has room to maneuver his agenda through Congress.

"This is primarily an education campaign," said Hamsher, who has been leading an "accountability" project on FireDogLake that tracks how Congress is measuring up to the pledges President Obama and Democrats made during the 2008 campaign. "It is fortunate that several of members are up for re-election, because that is they time when they are listening to their constituents and hearing what they care about. I think if we make people aware of what’s going on, then they can decide for themselves."

The Campaign for America's Future has launched a website that lists conservative Democrats, makes it easy to send members emails or make calls, and contains links to up-to-date information on their actions.