This is the tough question that progressive Democrats are facing for the 2012 election. Many of us are disappointed and even angry over President Obama's economic and political course. Widespread feelings of outrage at being ignored in favor of bankers and corporations are common among the very people who worked so hard to elect Obama in 2008. The President now faces a difficult re-election campaign, and organization is well under way. We want to help - or do we? A YouTube video, at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v... expresses this dilemma.
On July 10, 2011, progressive Democrats met at a potluck picnic in the Santa Cruz Mountains to bring out in open discussion our disappointments and anger about what the President has done or not done in the last two years, and our feelings about the 2012 election. We separated into small groups with two topics in mind:
1) To give voice to the legitimate concerns of the progressive grassroots, with an eye towards influencing President Obama, and,
2) To answer the question "What DO we do about Barack?" We came to many different conclusions that need to be resolved before the election campaign begins in earnest. Whatever our differences are, they pale beside the Republican alternative.
This video summarizes what came out of our progressive picnic. We have made it available online, and are sending the link to Democratic clubs throughout America, in the hope that it will spark a national discussion of this critical issue.
For the 2008 elections, a confluence of events caused legislators and the governor to support an early presidential primary in California. There was the whole "California as an ATM" and wanting to get our say, which I guess was part of it. And, you know, there was also the initiative to change the legislative term limits.
That measure failed, but the February election is still officially on the books. For a number of reasons, that could be a progressive nightmare. Few Democrats would show up, but it would still be a full statewide vote, with all the initiatives associated with that. It would yield one of the most skewed electorates in recent memory. Oh, and it cost the state at least $10 million to throw that party.
So, now AB 80 (Fong) aims to eliminate that expense:
Californians won't choose their 2012 presidential nominees until June under legislation that's heading to Gov. Jerry Brown's desk.
Assembly Bill 80, by Democratic Assemblyman Paul Fong, would move the presidential primary from February of next year to June, consolidating it with the statewide primary election. The bill was approved by the state Senate on a vote of 34-3.(SacBee)
That 34-3 vote at least indicates that an extra election and the extra expense just wasn't palatable politically for some of the Republicans as well. At the same time, the Governor will soon have on his desk a measure to basically make the electoral college a quaint annoyance:
California would give all its electoral votes to the presidential candidate receiving the most popular votes nationwide under legislation that was sent Thursday to Gov. Jerry Brown.
Assembly Bill 459 cleared its final legislative hurdle by passing the Assembly, 51-12, with little Republican support.(SacBee)
Basically, the bill would enter us into a compact so that all of our electoral votes would go to the popular vote winner, but only if a majority of the electoral votes sign on to the compact. Even if Jerry were to sign the bill, another 142 electoral votes worth of states would have to sign on. However, this might just be slow motion electoral reform we are watching.
Childhood risk of Type 2 diabetes, obesity soaring with soda overconsumption
SACRAMENTO -- Senate Majority Leader Dean Florez (D-Shafter), who last week introduced legislation aimed at curbing the rampant overconsumption of sugar-sweetened beverages, is calling on our Governor and an esteemed former President to confront the issue head-on tomorrow at the 2010 Summit on Health, Nutrition and Obesity.
President Bill Clinton and Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger are scheduled to join together tomorrow for a conference at The California Endowment in Los Angeles to promote "Action for Healthy Living."
Florez is urging them to use the occasion to raise public awareness of the role the overconsumption of sugar plays in exacerbating America's obesity and diabetes epidemics.
This past Thursday evening, nearly 100 Democratic activists got together to kick off the Yolo County Democratic Central Committee's 2008 Campaign - Yolo United! With the primary season over, we are now uniting to make sure that all of our energy is focused on getting Democrats elected to every seat that represents Yolo County.
We were fortunate to have three of Yolo County's delegates to the Democratic Convention with us, all of them ready to join together to make sure that we elect Democrats to every local, state, and Federal position on the ballot.
Don Gibson (Clinton delegate), Martha Beetley (Obama delegate), and Ryan Loney (Obama delegate) will be representing us in Denver in August.
Join me below the fold to learn more about the Yolo United Campaign.
Note: I am a volunteer with the Yolo United Campaign.
Today is a new day in America. I am confident that we will all come together and unite behind our nominee Barack Obama - and tonight pledge my DNC superdelegate vote and my volunteer commitment to help win back the White House for the American people and elect President Barack Obama.
Visit my post about President Barack Obama on HuffingtonPost at http://www.huffingtonpost.com/... and feel welcome to leave a comment.
TONIGHT I'll be discussing this historic moment on Air America at 930PM CA time; 1230AM Eastern on "This is America with John Elliott". We will take your calls and emails so please feel welcome to tune in via computer at
http://airamerica.com/thisisam... and call 866-303-2270.
As always, thanks for your support and for all you do.
The first thing I want to say is that I am nothing special nor more intelligent then anyone else. The one thing that I am is an independent thinker who analyzes a situation and acts based upon what I feel is best, as opposed to acting based upon being part of an "in-group", the "first-group", the "cool-group", the "trend-setting group", or jumping on a bandwagon. By the way, how many of you saw Robin Williams on Law & Order this evening and the commentary on "sheep" mentality in America?
I have been greatly disappointed in the future of the United States, generally, and each of us, specifically, since John Edwards (the adult wing of the Democratic Party) dropped out of the Presidential race. I last and only posted on January 30, 2008 re "Unity Will Flow Naturally From Integrity & Credibility" and on January 21, 2008 re "The Country Needs John Edwards To Stay In The Race All The Way To The Nomination". I never intended to post again since it took 25+ years since my disgust with the Democratic Party following the 1980 Presidential Campaign and the defeat of my candidate of choice in the Wisconsin Primary, Jerry Brown, until this past year when the leadership ideas, backbone strength, and bold courage of John Edwards got me excited again in a President and the Democratic Party for the first time since 1980. However, the recent sequence of events caused me to be unable to stay silent and to at least make a record that I did my part and tried. I know that there are many other JRE supporters who feel as I do.
UPDATE: (Bob) I just got off the phone with David Dayen for the report from the ground. It was kinda tough to hear because all of the horns honking in the background. He said there was a great crowd, KTLA is interviewing a number of them, and they are having a lot of fun passing out the lapel pins. Also, he loved the fact that a Burbank Police Officer came by and told them he was their officer for the night and if they had any problems (with ABC or Disney) to give him a call. I wish I was there, if you can make it they'll be out there until 7PM.
OK, so everyone's frustrated with the content-free, brainless ABC News debate the other night. Chuck Todd actually gets it wrong - it's not about rabid Obama partisans rising up to hammer ABC, it's about thinking people rising up and deciding not to accept the thin gruel the media tries to feed us anymore.
The moderators are unrepentant and congenitally wired to not get it. So we're going to have to take to the streets - the mean streets of Burbank, California. We want to know if ABC/Disney executives can pass the Gibson/Stephanopoulos flag pin litmus test - it's obviously the most important issue facing the nation, so are they sufficiently patriotic? If not, we're willing to help them out.
With the February 5th primary election approaching rapidly, in which voters in California and 21 other states will pick which presidential candidates represent each party, we have a rare opportunity to make a monumental decision.
For the first time in years, we have an opportunity to elect a president who will give the global climate crisis the level of attention that is required to tackle it.
But how are we to know where the candidates stand on global warming, if reporters simply refuse to ask the right questions? Of the 2,938 questions asked of the presidential candidates since January 2007, just 6 mentioned global warming (source: League of Conservation Voters).
We are trying to construct a more inclusive society. We are going to make a country in which no one is left out.
Franklin D. Roosevelt
And then -- and then, finally, if you're one of the millions of Americans who have yet to cast your vote in this democratic process, beginning on February 5th and moving beyond, your voice will be heard and we will be there with you every single step of the way.
Join us in this movement. Join in this campaign. Let's make America what it's capable of being.
God bless you all and thank you for your support and thank you for being here and thank you for your voice.
On a union rooftop in downtown LA, I stood and waited for John Edwards. I took day off from work to drive from Irvine to LA. The traffic was bearable and I managed some parking as well. I ran into other local Edwards supporters from Orange County who were volunteering through the Progressive Democrats of America. It was nice to see some friendly faces and I was eager to hear John Speak, as was the rest of the crowd. They broke into changing "John Edwards" and their enthusiasm gave me the chills.
It seemed like people were paying attention, that they knew we had to give him a chance to speak and I really hope more than the people on the rooftop will have a chance to hear what he said, it's for all of us.
Go here, to Brad Blog for the entire speech, it is well worth the listen and it was amazing.
This is going to be a very short diary, because I just want to give Edwards supporters some excellent news.
The race for the Nevada caucus is in a statistical dead heat, according to a new poll.
A new poll by the Reno Gazette-Journal shows a neck-and-neck three-way race among Democrats for Saturday's caucus. On the Republican side, U.S. Sen. John McCain has taken his first lead in Nevada of the election season, and Mitt Romney, who has been working Nevada harder than any other Republican, is trailing in fourth place.
A look at the top line results (more will be posted later this morning):
We Will Right The Wrongs, Make Our Nation The Way We Want It To Be - That's America Rising
As he opened an eight-day bus tour across the state this afternoon, there were reminiscent strains of his 2004 message in the air at the Polk County Convention Center as he presented his closing theme for this campaign: "America Rising."
Long before it was "popular", John Edwards was calling for a New Strategy for Iran (and the War on Terror in general)
Long before the NIE Report, threw water on the GOP's fiery rhetoric about the looming dangers of Iran, Edwards was saying we must learn the lessons of the Iraq War -- NOT Repeat them in Iran!
Long before the cynical Rumsfeld Memos were leaked (proving Edwards right), John Edwards was busy "reframing" the Global War on Terror, calling it "a 'bumper sticker' slogan Bush had used to justify everything ..."
Did Edwards get Media Attention and fanfare for his insightful and stateman-like leadership -- NO, but he DID help to change the national conversation!
So Much so, that insiders in NIE (National Intelligence Estimate), seem to have taken his advice that: "We've got to stand up to Bush and Cheney and the Neocons ..."
I think there may be some dispute between supporters of different candidates about who has the coolest celebrity endorsement, but for my money, the best one so far this campaign season is the endorsement of John Edwards today by Harry Belafonte.
Belafonte, who became famous in the 1950s by popularizing Calypso music from the Caribbean, has been a long time human rights activist. Among other things, he worked with the Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. during the civil rights movement in the 1960s. He hasn't stopped working for the betterment of humanity since.
"The only things Inevitable in Life, are Death and Taxes!"
These are both unpleasant subjects, and since political candidates can't really do a lot about one, this diary will be exploring the other -- Taxes.
John Edwards has based his campaign on hard hitting messages about the need for "Economic Parity" in our Country -- this Diary will be taking a serious look at what Edwards will do about Taxes.
The Senator often says "I do not wanting to live in a Country made up of the Super-Rich and Everybody Else!"
That's not the America we all grew up in. Each year achieving the American Dream becomes more and more difficult. What are working people to do, in this society of Haves and Have-Nots?
Is John's tough Campaign Rhetoric just Talk, or does he actually have the Plans to Back it up?
Turn the page, to see where the "Rhetoric meet Reality" when it comes to that annual April Ritual, most hard-working American love to hate -- spelled I.R.S.
December 1, 2007 - Des Moines, IA, Brown & Black Forum
December 1, 2007 - Des Moines, IA, Heartland Presidential Forum
December 4, 2007 - Des Moines, IA, NPR News/Iowa Public Radio Debate
December 10, 2007 - Los Angeles, California, CBS
December 13, 2007 - Johnston, Iowa, Des Moines Register Democratic Debate
January 15, 2008 - Las Vegas, Nevada
January 31, 2008 - California
Hillary Clinton's plan for ending the war is weak and imprecise. She refuses to commit to bring all of our troops home by the end of her first term in office. Clinton's military and diplomatic advisers believe our invasion of Iraq was justified and a military solution exits for resolving the war. Clinton is not demonstrating the qualities of leadership we need in our next President to end the war in Iraq.
K Street and Corporate lobbyists are turning up the heat on Congressional leaders to pass the Peru Free Trade Agreement, yet another trade policy that benefits only the bottom line of big corporations, at the expense of American workers.
Some Corporate Republicans and Corporate Democrats are sucumbing to the pressure of supporting the Peru Free Trade Agreement before the ink is even dry on the checks.
