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Ex presidential candidate John McCain announced the launch of a grassroots organization called "Country First," which is supported by many of the social media tools that contributed to President Elect Obama's historic win.

According to an email to McCain supporters — whose contact data was gleaned during his run for President –, the goals of Country First are to "better define our Republican ideals and message" and "make government more responsive to today's problems and more answerable to the people." Potential "Charter Members" of the organization are asked to make a web contribution.

The site also features a video clip through which McCain expresses his love for the country. But in a social media fumble reported by ClickZ, the video cannot be shared and is not mentioned in the mass email announcing Country First's debut.

Campaign Solutions, a web consulting company that assisted with McCain's Presidential election campaign, developed the Country First website. There are reportedly plans to develop more features for the destination, which at present is little more than a placeholder with a donation option.

This effort is not the first attempt to rebuild the GOP's strength via social media. In November, a separate group launched RebuildtheParty.com, whose passion is to "win the technology war" against Democrats over the next four years.

The day after winning the Presidential election, Obama's campaign launched Change.gov, a site that enables ordinary citizens to interact with his administration. Obama used the site to keep Americans abreast of his team's transition to the White House; a December poll found over 70% of citizens felt the transition had been managed well.

In November, Obama also began holding weekly fireside chats on YouTube. Unlike the McCain video on Country First, such videos can be shared and embedded at users' leisure.