I am pretty sick and tired of hearing people say, “Democrats don’t have any ideas! They don’t have any plans for how to make things better. All they can do is bash Republicans.” This is patently false; the Democratic Party has a Six-Point plan for 2006:
The Democratic Party is committed to keeping our nation safe and expanding opportunity for every American. That commitment is reflected in an agenda that emphasizes the security of our nation, strong economic growth, affordable health care for all Americans, retirement security, honest government, and civil rights.
Unfortunately, I haven’t seen much media coverage about the Six Point Plan. Media, both mainstream and left-leaning, have been ignoring this for some reason. And it is important! These are good points, this is a good platform from which the Democrats should work. Everyone needs to read this plan, to understand what is in store for us now that the House and Senate are under Democratic control.
Things are going to get better!
Yahoo! News has what may be the least surprising headline ever: Democrats have big lead after sex scandal:
A ABC News/Washington Post poll found Democrats held a 54-41 percent lead in the congressional horse race among registered and likely voters, which ABC said was the biggest Democratic lead this close to election day in more than 20 years.
This shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone. Representative Foley’s actions were bad, Speaker of the House Hastert’s coverup was even worse. There was no way that this wouldn’t lead to a massive public backlash against Republicans and towards Democrats. The question is: will this backlash hold up for another four weeks?
Let us hope so!
So why do I like Bill Winter, besides the fact that he is trying to unseat the possibly-racist Tom Tancredo? Aside from being an alternative to Tom, Bill actually has some solid ideas that he is running on. One of those is support for alternative energy sources:
“We may be the only industrialized country in the world that hasn’t
fully connected the dots between energy policy (and) global warming,”
Warner rallied the crowd. “As leaders of the world, (the United States)
could end up reversing the policy (of) ‘let’s go borrow money from
China to buy oil from parts of the world that don’t like us.’ Not only
could we create thousands - if not millions - of American jobs, we
might just save the planet along the way!”
It’s amazing the difference between Winter and Tancredo. It’s like the difference between day and night. Bill Winter is actually sane, intelligent, and cares what happens to the world, and to Colorado. Tancredo just wants to round up and deport all Mexicans, whether they are in our country legally or not. Nothing else matters to him. Or at least it doesn’t appear to.
The choice is obvious, fellow citizens of Highlands Ranch: vote Bill Winter for Congress!
Hehehe… regardless of the URL, I don’t think that this is the official website of The Connecticut for Lieberman Party. It’s far too honest to be the official website:
When it became clear that Lieberman was no longer a real Democrat, he needed a way to hold onto his precious seat in the Senate. He scoured the state to identify the 25 supporters needed to form a political party so that he could still run, even after he loses the Democratic Primary on August 8th. That inspired the formation of Connecticut for Lieberman.
If you hate the democratic process, and agree that people who vote in primaries are just troublemaking radicals, then please support Connecticut for Lieberman. Together we’ll continue fighting to make life more difficult for Connecticut families.
Connecticut for Lieberman - it’s just not a party without Joe Lieberman!
Funny, but in a sad way. ‘cuz while the website is being satirical, there’s also a healthy dose of truth in there, too. Lieberman is basically saying “fuck democracy, fuck the voters, fuck the Democratic party, the only thing that matters is me!”
It’s been a month for writing letters to elected officials, apparently. This time around, I got spurred into action by General Wesley Clarks’ WesPAC to write to Joe Lieberman:
Dear Senator Lieberman:
Please don’t take this personally, but I believe that you will be doing the wrong thing if you choose to run for senate as an independent. On Tuesday, Democratic Connecticut voters made their wish clear: they want Ned Lamont to represent them in the U.S. Senate. Please sir, do the right thing and through your support behind Ned Lamont.
As you well know, politics is a rough career. You’ve tasted victory and defeat. But through it all, you’ve stood behind the Democratic party. And it is now time for you to do the same thing, by endorsing Ned Lamont. As much as it might sting to admit it, Ned Lamont is clearly the winner and deserves to be the Democratic nominee. Your support will ensure that your senate seat stays with the Democratic party. And isn’t that the most important thing?
Sincerely,
Michael R Fierro
I don’t think that this will have any more effect than my letter to Ted Harvey, of course. Lieberman seems to be dedicated to running for the seat that he truly believes he deserves. But maybe, if enough of us write to him, someone on his staff will suggest that Lieberman listen to the voice of the people.
If you haven’t written to Lieberman yet, be sure to do so today!
How many different ways do I love Howard Dean? I dunno if I can list them all. But let me try starting with this quote:
Dean said in Wednesday’s speech that Democratic incumbent Bill Nelson is “going to beat the pants off Katherine Harris, who didn’t understand that it is ethically improper to be the chairman of a campaign and count the votes at the same time. This is not Russia and she is not Stalin.”
Now really, who can argue with that? Harris did act much in the same manner that Stalin would have concerning “elections.” Rigged election? Check. Make yourself the person in charge of said election so it’ll never be questioned? Check.
Of course, Harris’s camp whined about Dean’s statement:
In a statement Thursday, Harris’ campaign said Dean’s comments comparing her to a communist dictator responsible for millions of deaths “reflect a lack of understanding and basic decency.”
Which is the equivalent of saying, “MOMMY! Howie was mean to me!”
(Source: TheDenverChannel.com)
This problably shouldn’t be as surprising as it is… The Rocky Mountain News is reporting that Ken Salazar is going to choose to back Joe Lieberman if Lieberman loses to Ned Lamont in a Connecticut primary:
Sen. Ken Salazar is risking the ire of some fellow Democrats by pledging to support incumbent Sen. Joe Lieberman, of Connecticut, in November’s election whether or not he wins the Democratic primary.Lieberman, a centrist and stalwart supporter of the war in Iraq, is facing a serious challenge from anti-war candidate Ned Lamont in the Aug. 8 Democratic primary.
Last week, Lieberman announced he was circulating petitions to run on the ballot as an independent even if he loses the Democratic primary.
Liberal activists have been trying to pressure national Democrats to support the winner of the primary, even if it is not the incumbent. This week, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., said she would not back Lieberman if he loses the primary.
But Salazar said Wednesday that he is in Lieberman’s camp and that he will support him in an independent bid if he loses the Democratic primary.
What Salazar is basically saying is, “Screw what the Democratic voters in Connecticut thing. Joe’s my friend, so I am going to back him. Even if that hurts the party.” Seriously, what part does Salazar belong to? Because he sure isn’t acting like a Democrat right now.
Apparently, if the Democratic leadership isn’t going to speak out against the Bush administration, then George Clooney is going to speak out against the Democratic leadership:
“The fear of (being) criticized can be paralyzing. Just look at the way so many Democrats caved in the run up to the war,” Clooney said Monday in a profanity-laced posting on The Huffington Post blog site.
“In 2003, a lot of us were saying, `Where is the link between Saddam and bin Laden? What does Iraq have to do with 9/11?”‘ Clooney wrote. “We have to agree that it’s not unpatriotic to hold our leaders accountable and to speak out.”
This is so very true. But I can’t just feel sorry for the Democrats. It is up to them to make a stand against the administration. The mood of the country has changed, the Democrats need to grow a spine and lead.
It looks like everyone in the state knows that Gary Lindstrom doesn’t have a chance at winning the Democratic nomination for Colorado Governor. Well, everyone but Gary Lindstrom, that is. Lindstrom is staying in the race ’til he’s knocked out, and as ColoradoPols.com points out, that’s not necessarily a good thing.
That’s the word from state Rep. Gary Lindstrom, of Breckenridge, who said he’s in the race to stay and believes he can get the requisite 30 percent of the votes at the party’s May 20 state convention to make it onto the primary ballot. “I’m in it for the long haul, unless something changes,” Lindstrom said. “I can’t imagine what that might be.
“I made a commitment three months ago when I filed my papers with the secretary of state to stay in it at least through the primary.”
Lindstrom has no chance of being the Democratic nominee for governor, but his inclusion in the race does matter…for control of the State House. If Lindstrom continues to chase his tail running for governor and does not run for re-election to his seat in Summit County, his seat becomes a risk to turn Republican.
I admire Mr. Lindstrom wanting to stand on principle. I really do. But I also think there’s a point where one has to recognize one is fighting a losing battle. Lindstrom has no shot at toppling Ritter, but he has a good shot at keeping his state House seat. That’s where he should be concentrating his efforts.
There’s at least an outside chance that the 2008 Democratic National Convention could be here in Denver!
“One hundred years ago - in 1908 - the nation looked to Denver as Democrats nominated one of America’s greatest orators, William Jennings Bryan,” the official letter of intent reads. “It would be a great honor - and an historic event - for Denver to host the Democratic National Convention again a century later.”
Click here to find out more!
New national interest in Colorado as political battleground and regional interest in a Western-states primary has local officials enthused.
“There has been a lot of talk about this Western states primary, so if we take more of a regional approach we really think it will be a strong application,” said City Councilwoman Elbra Wedgeworth, who is co-chairwoman of a committee in charge of courting the Democrats. “I’m excited.”
If we do get the convention, count me in! I don’t care who I have to finagle, I’m there!
