As a tax exempt organization it will seek to harness the energy of the president's re-election campaign for future legislative fights.

Under the federal tax code 501(c)(4) the group will have tax-exempt status as long as it is not primarily involved in activity that could influence an election.

As a nonprofit, it can run support ads for an issue as long as it is not involved in activity aimed at electing candidates for office.

On October 20, 2009, OFA hosted a national phone bank event intended to encourage elected federal officials to support Obama's healthcare proposals.

[8] This program enabled people to pledge a number of hours in support of healthcare reform and President Barack Obama's domestic goals.

Nevertheless, OFA members were never called upon to do volunteer work in support of including a public option in the bill, despite Obama's stated preference for such a provision.

This choice was criticized by some veterans of the 2008 campaign, who believed that Obama has erred by being too ready to compromise with conservatives instead of mobilizing the OFA volunteer base.