Tuesday Strategy Session: Update on Our Races

OK, now that I'm back, I'd like to get today's strategy session going. Let's talk about some updates on our All-Star races. Ready for the big news?

NV-03: So far, so good for Dina Titus. The Rothenberg Report upgrades this race from "Pure Toss-up" to "Toss-up/Tilt Democratic". Also, Dina Titus has taken a large 9% lead in her new internal poll while the best Jon Porter could muster in his own tracking poll was a 2% lead for him. Oh yes, and did I mention that I had a great time campaigning for her and Obama last weekend? ;-)

NM-01: News is now breaking that GOP candidate and current Bernalillo County Sheriff Darren White was involved in the US Attorneys Scandal that has crippled the New Mexico GOP. They all tried to politicize the US Attorneys and the job they're supposed to do for Republican gain, but the whole mess is now backfiring on them. Martin Heinrich's latest internal poll has him up 5% with leaners, and up 6% without, supporting the newest independent polls here also showing Heinrich in the lead.

Oh yes, and here's Heinrich's awesome new ad!



MI-09: Gary Peters is leading Joe Knollenberg 41% to 37% in his new poll. Obama's also leading McCain in this district. Hopefully with all the Democratic efforts to win Michigan this year, we'll win this race as well.

CA-04: The newest Research 2000 poll here has Charlie Brown leading Carpetbagger Tom McClintock 46% to 41%. Hmmmm, I wonder why? Maybe because Charlie Brown has a history of serving the community up here while McClintock's just looking for another prominent soapbox to spew his radical right crap? Just sayin'... ;-)

Feeling good? I hope so. Want to feel better? Well, why not donate?! That'll really cheer up for day... And your November 4! :-)

CA-04: C4O Spotlights Lt. Col Charlie Brown (USAF-Ret)

(Proudly Cross-Posted at ComputerQueen.Net and MyDD)

I'm just pleased as punch to have been asked to do another blog about Lt. Col. Brown.

Now, let me preface this by saying that I know this will prove to be a tough race. The PVI of the district is R+11, and the GOP is running a carpet bagger from the 19th State Senate district (Los Angeles, Santa Barbara and Ventura counties). It appears they have to transplant someone with a pulse to take over for Doolittle, whom chose not to run again after the scandals of the past year.

The newest polling data I could find was from May, where Brown was 2 points up.

The following is a taste of his issue profile:

On Health Care:

45 Million Americans lack access to health insurance, and the number is growing. Charlie believes increasing access to quality, affordable health care for all Americans is a moral and fiscal imperative. Charlie strongly supports the expansion of SCHIP, to ensure all children have access to affordable care. He also supports the concept of Universal Health care and will lead the fight for a new, constructive dialogue to solve America's health care crisis in the next Congress.

2 Words: Right On!

On Homeland Security:

It is appalling that 5 years after 9/11, the U.S. Government still hasn't implemented most of the 9/11 commission's recommendations.

Charlie believes we must immediately secure our borders, implement a national railway, port, and transit security plan, end the practice of using DHS funding for pork barrel spending that doesn't address legitimate security threats, address the communication and interoperability problems that continue to plague intelligence and emergency response operations, adequately fund FEMA and restore it to a Cabinet level post.

I don't even have to bother spinning this one!

On Iraq

Having coordinated surveillance flights over Iraq in the 1990's, Charlie did not support the U.S. invasion because he knew there were no WMD's present, that an invasion could unleash centuries old sectarian conflicts inside Iraq, and leave fewer American military resources available to defeat the enemy who attacked America on 9/11--Al Qaeda.

Despite under-manning, under-equipping, bad intelligence and naive post-war planning by politicians in Washington, America's military has toppled a terrible dictator in Iraq. But as General Patreus himself has said, our troops can only create the space for Iraq's newly elected politicians to reconcile the political differences that have fomented sectarian violence and civil war. Ultimately, Iraq needs a political solution, not a military one. And America can't defeat global terrorism by transforming the world's finest military force into the Baghdad police force.

Charlie believes accountability is the key to getting our troops home quickly and responsibly---tying future U.S. aid to the achievement of key political benchmarks by Iraq's elected leaders. Together with limited counterterrorism operations, training of Iraqi Security forces and accelerated reconstruction efforts, only real results from Iraq's politicians can expedite the process of political reconciliation Iraq needs to create a permanent stable government that can sustain itself and defend its own borders. Ultimately, open ended promises of money and troops by our government provide little incentive for Iraqi politicians to take action and ownership of their nation's future.

Ultimately, re-deploying US Troops out of Iraq will enable the United States to refocus on the real front lines against terrorism-fighting the resurgent Taliban in Afghanistan, strengthening our strategic alliances, improving intelligence gathering, expanding special operations capabilities, and giving our troops more time here at home- so they can be rested, trained, properly equipped and ready for quick deployment against terrorist concentrations or any other threats to America.

Col. Brown has show his willingness to speak truth to power. He was a vocal opponent of the Iraq War … not because it was the politically expedient thing to do, but because it was the RIGHT thing to do.

So this brings me to my support of Col. Brown. He already had a good showing in 2006, running against Doolittle, only losing by just over 3 points. The district has grown since then, and a lot more progressives have moved into the mountain regions of the Northern Sierra Nevada range. With all this motion, we have the best chance we’ve had in 20 years to take back the CA 4th.

On our commitment to Veterans, Col. Brown is setting aside 5% of his fundraising to assist with Veterans charities. Having a Father who is a Vietnam Vet, this is something that is very moving for me. I’d like to see more of our candidates rise to this challenge and help those who have fought for our freedoms.

Charlie Brown also understands the need for retail politics in a rural district, such as the 4th. From appearances at 4th of July Celebrations, to fundraisers at a Vineyard in Penn Valley (which is where I got to meet him … my friend’s parents own the vineyard), he is no stranger to the Grip-N-Grin. When people contribute to his campaign, he sends them a Hand Signed letter of thanks. That is something that is all too rare in today’s politics.

So, please join with the Clintonistas for Obama team as we support Our Progressive C4O All Stars.

As always, Just my 2 Cents!

Dizzy

Who Should We Love?

(This is my big, fabulous Swing State Project debut! And yes, this is cross-posted at MyDD.)

Hello. I'm atdleft, someone you may know from Clintonistas for Obama or MyDD or The Liberal OC. I'm new to Swing State Project, so please don't get too rough on me.

I just want to let you know that when we're not obsessing over all things Presidential, my friends & I are looking for good Congressional candidates to support. We already have some idea of who looks good to us, but I'd like to hear from all of you on which candidates we should help out. Whild I'd love to be of use to everyone, I at least want to make sure I'm doing something for Democrats that: (a) can win & (b) will stick to good progressive values once elected.

Because I'm in the area and I'm already familiar with her, I'm all for Debbie Cook. She's running against an extreme right-wing wacko incumbent, and she's the first Democratic challenger since Loretta Sanchez (in 1996) who has a real chance of winning an Orange County, CA, House seat. I'm already doing whatever I can to help her win, and I encourage everyone else in the LA/OC area to do the same.

But what about everyone else living in other parts of the country? I feel terrible leaving them all out in the cold. That's why I'm here today asking for suggestions.

So who should we love? Which candidates deserve our attention? Is Dina Titus the one who can finally upset Jon Porter in NV-03? Can Charlie Brown blow away GOP carpetbagger Tom McClintock in CA-04? Is the second time the charm for Darcy Burner (WA-08) & Christine Jennings (FL-13)? And can Jeff Merkley (OR-Sen), Tom Udall (NM-Sen), & Jeanne Shaheen (NH-Sen) help us expand our Senate majority?

So who should we love? Tell me now. If you make a good case, you might see big chances with this ActBlue page & some diaries from me promoting your favorite candidate(s). ;-)

Change I Can REALLY Believe In!

(Proudly cross-posted at The Liberal OC & MyDD)

You know, we hear the term "change" used so often as little more than a cheap political slogan. That's why it's been so refreshing to see Barack Obama give us reason to belive change is more than just a word. That's why I'm so proud of our Democratic Party for standing up for real change that helps real people. And yes, that's why I'm excited about some great Democratic candidates who are bringing home the message of change.

We have great Democratic candidates all over the country who are working hard to make change happen. I'm so blessed that I get to see so many of them in action here in California. The picture above is from Netroots Nation, where a number of candidates have gone to meet up with progressive activists to discuss how we'll take our country back.

The candidate pictured on the far left is Steve Young. He's the Democrat running for Congress in the 48th District. While the "conventional wisdom" and the typical naysayers have been saying he can't win, Steve's been busy building a strong grassroots organization in South Orange County. And now, he just might be ready to prove the naysayers otherwise.

I took a look today at some internal polling in the 48th District. In this area that's supposed to be "solid Republican", McCain is only beating Obama 41%-34%! Also, only 15% of all the voters polled said they believe this nation is on the right track. And even better, the top issues for these voters are the fixing the economy, reducing oil dependency, securing veterans' benefits, and lowering gas prices, all of these being issues Democrats are running strongly on. Immigration barely even reached the top four issues for Republicans only! And you know what's the best part? Steve Young is beating the GOP incumbent John Campbell 43%-36%!

So clearly, all the hard work done by Steve Young's campaign is paying off! Earlier this year, the campaign began working with local Barack Obama volunteers on this election. And now, the campaign has not just a strong network of organizers, but also a district that's being worked by Democrats and is starting to trend Democratic.

This is the kind of news that excites me. It should be exciting to all of us! And if we all want to stay excited about not just electing Obama, but making real change in Congress as well, we should be supporting Democrats like Steve Young that are making change happen from the grassroots up.

Oh yes, and I should mention a few other terrific Democrats bringing the "change" message home. In the nearby 46th District, Debbie Cook is working hard to make change happen and get rid of a lazy, CReepy incumbent that hasn't done anything good for the district in the 20 years he's been in office. In another district that was once thought of as "unwinnable", Debbie Cook is proving the naysayers wrong.

Debbie Cook is a Democrat that has been mkaing good, progressive change happen in a city and a region that are supposed to be "solidly Republican". She's not only been challenging the status quo, but beating it! Debbie Cook deserves our support.

Oh yes, and while we're talking about beating the status quo, let's not forget two other fantastic change-makers running here in California. Charlie Brown has been one of the hardest-working Democratic challengers this side of the Rockies. He nearly ousted the GOP incumbent in 2006, and this time the Rethugs are running so scared that all they can do is run an extreme right, wacky, out-of-district carpetbagger. Charlie Brown can win... If we support him!

And finally, we have Russ Warner. He's taking on yet another out-of-touch, out-of-ethics GOP Congresscritter, and his work is helping us quickly turn this reddish-purple district bluer. Russ Warner can win... All we need to do is make sure he has the support he needs.

So are you with me? Are you ready for some real change? Great! Please remember these wonderful candidates who are bringing home Barack Obama's message of change, and please do what you can to help them win! :-)

Making Change Happen, One House Race at a Time

(Cross-posted at PartyBuilder and MyDD)

Wow! Just wow. I've been perusing the FEC filings for the 2nd Quarter today. And you know what?

Democrats rock... Especially our terrific candidates here in California!

I am simply stunned by how well Democrats are doing... And conversely, how poorly these GOP incumbents are doing! It really proves that we have an "enthusiasm gap" in our favor.

When we have Democrats like Debbie Cook, Nick Leibham, and Charlie Brown outraising their opponents in races that are supposed to be "solidly Republican", we know the GOP is in deep trouble. When we have GOP incumbents like Dana Rohrabcher & Brian Bilbray who can't muster up enough support in their own districts, we know we have a real opportunity to make real change happen. When we have this much grassroots support in our communities for our supposedly "longshot" Democratic candidates, we know change is a'comin'!

So let's celebrate! Oh yes, and let's donate to these great candidates and make sure the momentum stays strong! Barack Obama & the Democratic party are following the 50-state strategy, and this is the fruit of their efforts & our labor.

Let's keep making change happen... ;-)

Spoghtlight On: The CA 4th CD

For my inaugural post, I would like to take a moment to discuss a Congressional race that is in my backyard. I’ve commented before about this candidate, but I really want to introduce him to the readership. This laudable candidate is Lieutenant Colonel Charles Brown (USAF Retired) running for the California 4th.

Now, let me preface this by saying that I know this will prove to be a tough race. The PVI of the district is R+11, and the GOP is running a carpet bagger from the 19th State Senate district (Los Angeles, Santa Barbara and Ventura counties). It appears they have to transplant someone with a pulse to take over for Doolittle, whom chose not to run again after the scandals of the past year.

So this brings me to my support of Col. Brown. He already had a good showing in 2006, running against Doolittle, only losing by just over 3 points. The district has grown since then, and a lot more progressives have moved into the mountain regions of the Northern Sierra Nevada range. With all this motion, we have the best chance we’ve had in 20 years to take back the CA 4th.

Now, I do have to admit that Col. Brown is a Blue Dog candidate, but in this climate it’s probably a good thing. He’s progressive enough to massage some of the Liberal G-spots that I personally have (ex. Universal Health Care, Hate Crimes Legislation, LGBT Rights and Responsible Energy Policy) while still keeping true to his feelings about fiscal responsibility, which is one of my watchwords as well. He even encourages people to slow down a little when driving to save gas and our environment. And, having caught him on the freeway a couple of times, he practices what he preaches!

Moreover, Col. Brown has show his willingness to speak truth to power. He was a vocal opponent of the Iraq War … not because it was the politically right thing to do, but because it was the RIGHT thing to do. He openly shares that he tasked and flew recon missions over Iraq in the 1990’s and … yep, you guessed it … no WMD!

Also, on our commitment to Veterans, Col. Brown is setting aside 5% of his fundraising to assist with Veterans charities. Having a Father who is a Vietnam Vet, this is something that is moving to me. I’d like to see more of our candidates rise to this challenge and help those who have fought for our freedoms.

Charlie Brown also understands the need for retail politics in a rural district, such as the 4th. From appearances at 4th of July Celebrations, to fundraisers at a Vineyard in Penn Valley (which is where I got to meet him … my friend’s parents own the vineyard), he is no stranger to the Grip-N-Grin. When people contribute to his campaign, he sends them a Hand Signed letter of thanks. That is something that is all too rare in today’s politics.

I could go on and on about Lt. Col. Brown, but I’m sure I’ve been long winded enough for my first post. Thank you all for this opportunity to really discuss some of the progressive candidates that will help further our country if given our support.

As always, Just my 2 Cents!

Dizzy