We have lived in South Atlanta since the early 1940's and watched Georgia go from Southern Democrats to GOP Republicans because of the Civil Rights Legislation. Our family became active in the Fayette County Democratic Party in 2004 and have had two members as Chairperson of the FCDC, also, one as member of the School Board for 10 years, pushed back against the Federalist Society's control of our County Commissioners and won.
Our State now has Two Democratic Senators and our House represenative is also a Democrat.
My wife and I strongly urge everyone to be active in local politics. It will make a difference for you, family and society.
This point from today's edition is so true and bears repeating:
"As Jess explains, her run for office was equal parts offense and defense. Her chances of success were long, but the fact that she put up a fight may have helped a Democrat in another district win. The importance of that fact cannot be overstated."
There are so many good resources for Dems, and one of them is the group, RFS, Run for Something.
I feel that donating to them helps support them in their goal to keep Rethugs from running unopposed and forces the Rethugs to divert money to the smaller races. Well, probably not their main goal, but it underscores Robert's comment above.
After an earlier column, we signed up to support Idaho Dems and sent our first-ever contribution in this deep red state where we have a second home. Got a call the next day from the Executive Director, who is a state legislator. She said they have gone from almost no contested races anywhere to about 70% of races with candidates. And every new outrageous law from the state legislature strengthens their case and cause. They are very inspiring.
Here in NC, Kate Compton Barr is running in a new, heavily gerrymandered state senate district with the slogan “clear eyes. Full hearts. Can’t win”. And wears campaign shirts that say “loser”. She’s doing a great job of drawing attention to gerrymandering and giving Dem voters in her district an opportunity to turn out—and add to statewide totals to flip NC blue! https://www.katebarrcantwin.com/ And the NC Dems are running candidates in almost every district throughout the state, places where Dems have never run before.
Robert, I am so delighted that you featured Jess Piper's substack this morning. She is such an amazing and inspiring person. People who go back into her archives will also see her terrific piece on the "Fundie Baby Voice" used by Katie Britt in her response to the State of the Union.
David Pepper (of Blue Ohio) also wrote about Missouri yesterday. I am cross-posting a comment I made there here.
I joined Blue Missouri this month, and I am so excited that my money will support these people. I left Missouri for bluer pastures 2 years ago, but I still follow the news there. Here are some snippets from today's Missouri Independent:
"The Senate, dominated by a Republican supermajority, is beset by GOP factional warfare that has disrupted both this year’s session and those of the past three years. A group that called itself the conservative caucus in 2021 and 2022 before rebranding as the Freedom Caucus, has repeatedly disrupted normal functioning of the Senate.
"Filibusters held up approval of a new congressional district map and forced a special session on provider taxes vital to funding Medicaid. This year, the infighting became so bad several Freedom Caucus members lost committee chairmanships....
"With most seats considered safe for one party or the other and only half of the chamber on the ballot, there is little chance Republicans will lose their majority. Three open seats are considered toss-ups, however, and could end the GOP supermajority if Democrats have a good year."
and " Missouri House Speaker Dean Plocher, fending off an ethics investigation into allegations of misconduct, announced Tuesday he will drop out of the lieutenant governor’s race and instead seek the GOP nomination for secretary of state."
And of course, yesterday featured Erin Hawley, wife of the execrable Senator up for re-election, arguing before the Supreme Court to keep all American women from accessing medication abortion.
Missouri's state house is a mirror of what is happening with Republicans the US House of Representatives--so dysfunctional they can't get anything done, and riddled with ethics problems. We mustn't give up on these states. There WILL come a time when the voters have had enough."
One other point I would like to make--Missouri was a swing state until recently. This isn't a place where no one can even remember voting for a Democrat. I do believe there could be people who could go back to pulling the lever for the D.
We have been so happy in our new home in Minnesota, but courageous people like Jess Piper sometimes make me feel a bit sad and ashamed to have abandoned the fight in Missouri.
Beau of the Fifth Co was refered to in Joyce's comments a while ago and I hit the link. He made a very good point about why Huntsville was so receptive to Marilyn and that the The Space Command had not long ago been moved there and there was a new, large population of well educated and community focussed voters there that were not there when she lost, last time around. He offered that as a warning to not get too,fired up and loose sight of the real dangers in other rural areas that have not had such an influx of pofessional, well educated voters.
Jess Piper’s message resonates with me in NC. There are 100 counties in NC and in the last election 44 counties did not have a candidate running. This year thanks to a change in the DNC of NC there will be a Democratic candidate in 96 counties. The message in NC is many staunch Republicans in rural parts of the state are fed up with the Republican candidates and whose ads tout their loyalty to Trump and will vote Democratic as a way of voicing their disapproval of Republican politics. This is a scenario that has not gotten a lot of attention. Investing in these candidates has value and as Trump siphons off money for legal expenses. ( over $100M ) there is less money down stream. Every little bit helps.
Giving money helps candidates, and is a way to be a Daily Dem. But I would encourage all of us to help candidates with the physical stuff as well as the monetary stuff. Give money to Field Team 6 - and participate in their postcard writing work of registering likely Democratic voters. Give money to a candidate, and volunteer to be a driver as they go door to door. Give money to your local Democratic committee, and sign up for a canvassing shift. Money helps, but our physical presence is what will move the needle.
If you live in a reliabley blue area and you think Dems in red areas don't have anyone to vote for is hyperbole I can assure you it is not! When I requested a Dem ballot in the recent Alabama primary in my South Alabama precinct, I had 3 choices: Biden, reps to the Dem nominating convention and one state-wide referendum. There were NO Dems running for any other seats!!!!! Because I volunteered to report results for the local LWV, I know exactly how many Dems voted in my precinct: 8. Yes 8. Are there more Dem or Dem-leaning voters here? Yes, but they don't vote because they have noone to vote for!!!!! Is that frustrating? Yes! So what do I do? I work to get Dems elected in other districts or in other states (ex: Marilyn Lands, Doug Jones in Alabama), help register young people to vote, help previously incarcerated people regain their voting rights.... The possiblities to make a difference are almost limitless. That keeps me motivated in the presence of an almost completely disfunctional state Dem party!!! I can still help make change happen!!! I highly recommend it!!!
Jess Piper is such an inspiration! Thanks for the link!💙
Shunning plant-based, meat alternatives is the “anti-woke” stand du jour.
Florida legislature this year also banned lab-generated meat and windmills/wind energy. Priorities !
In ‘22 we volunteered for the campaign of the excellent Dem candidate running against our Freedom Caucus Rep. She was trounced but made gains 👍 with Independents in a MAGA red county. It was such a learning experience! I encourage all who are able to volunteer for a campaign.
It’s a great year to run Democrats in every race. The MAGA Republicans won’t know what hit them when they go to the RNC for campaign funds and find out the vault is empty because every dollar is paying Don’s legal bills or his campaign expenses.
Permit me, please, to brag on a former sixth-grade student of mine, Kate Compton Barr, who is running for NC Senate in District 37, knowing full well that she won’t win. “Clear Eyes, Full Heart, Can’t Win.” So proud of her.
NC State Chair Anderson Clayton has followed Piper’s model, getting Dems to run in all but 2 races. A huge improvement from previous years. Maybe another NC friend has the exact numbers.
We have lived in South Atlanta since the early 1940's and watched Georgia go from Southern Democrats to GOP Republicans because of the Civil Rights Legislation. Our family became active in the Fayette County Democratic Party in 2004 and have had two members as Chairperson of the FCDC, also, one as member of the School Board for 10 years, pushed back against the Federalist Society's control of our County Commissioners and won.
Our State now has Two Democratic Senators and our House represenative is also a Democrat.
My wife and I strongly urge everyone to be active in local politics. It will make a difference for you, family and society.
R&J
This point from today's edition is so true and bears repeating:
"As Jess explains, her run for office was equal parts offense and defense. Her chances of success were long, but the fact that she put up a fight may have helped a Democrat in another district win. The importance of that fact cannot be overstated."
There are so many good resources for Dems, and one of them is the group, RFS, Run for Something.
I feel that donating to them helps support them in their goal to keep Rethugs from running unopposed and forces the Rethugs to divert money to the smaller races. Well, probably not their main goal, but it underscores Robert's comment above.
https://runforsomething.net/help/
Robert, you are proof that there is good news everywhere, if only we look and then be it!
As for Jess Piper...she's a keeper!
After an earlier column, we signed up to support Idaho Dems and sent our first-ever contribution in this deep red state where we have a second home. Got a call the next day from the Executive Director, who is a state legislator. She said they have gone from almost no contested races anywhere to about 70% of races with candidates. And every new outrageous law from the state legislature strengthens their case and cause. They are very inspiring.
Here in NC, Kate Compton Barr is running in a new, heavily gerrymandered state senate district with the slogan “clear eyes. Full hearts. Can’t win”. And wears campaign shirts that say “loser”. She’s doing a great job of drawing attention to gerrymandering and giving Dem voters in her district an opportunity to turn out—and add to statewide totals to flip NC blue! https://www.katebarrcantwin.com/ And the NC Dems are running candidates in almost every district throughout the state, places where Dems have never run before.
Robert, I am so delighted that you featured Jess Piper's substack this morning. She is such an amazing and inspiring person. People who go back into her archives will also see her terrific piece on the "Fundie Baby Voice" used by Katie Britt in her response to the State of the Union.
David Pepper (of Blue Ohio) also wrote about Missouri yesterday. I am cross-posting a comment I made there here.
I joined Blue Missouri this month, and I am so excited that my money will support these people. I left Missouri for bluer pastures 2 years ago, but I still follow the news there. Here are some snippets from today's Missouri Independent:
"The Senate, dominated by a Republican supermajority, is beset by GOP factional warfare that has disrupted both this year’s session and those of the past three years. A group that called itself the conservative caucus in 2021 and 2022 before rebranding as the Freedom Caucus, has repeatedly disrupted normal functioning of the Senate.
"Filibusters held up approval of a new congressional district map and forced a special session on provider taxes vital to funding Medicaid. This year, the infighting became so bad several Freedom Caucus members lost committee chairmanships....
"With most seats considered safe for one party or the other and only half of the chamber on the ballot, there is little chance Republicans will lose their majority. Three open seats are considered toss-ups, however, and could end the GOP supermajority if Democrats have a good year."
and " Missouri House Speaker Dean Plocher, fending off an ethics investigation into allegations of misconduct, announced Tuesday he will drop out of the lieutenant governor’s race and instead seek the GOP nomination for secretary of state."
And of course, yesterday featured Erin Hawley, wife of the execrable Senator up for re-election, arguing before the Supreme Court to keep all American women from accessing medication abortion.
Missouri's state house is a mirror of what is happening with Republicans the US House of Representatives--so dysfunctional they can't get anything done, and riddled with ethics problems. We mustn't give up on these states. There WILL come a time when the voters have had enough."
One other point I would like to make--Missouri was a swing state until recently. This isn't a place where no one can even remember voting for a Democrat. I do believe there could be people who could go back to pulling the lever for the D.
We have been so happy in our new home in Minnesota, but courageous people like Jess Piper sometimes make me feel a bit sad and ashamed to have abandoned the fight in Missouri.
And a P.S.
Beau of the Fifth Co was refered to in Joyce's comments a while ago and I hit the link. He made a very good point about why Huntsville was so receptive to Marilyn and that the The Space Command had not long ago been moved there and there was a new, large population of well educated and community focussed voters there that were not there when she lost, last time around. He offered that as a warning to not get too,fired up and loose sight of the real dangers in other rural areas that have not had such an influx of pofessional, well educated voters.
Something to consider.
Jess Piper’s message resonates with me in NC. There are 100 counties in NC and in the last election 44 counties did not have a candidate running. This year thanks to a change in the DNC of NC there will be a Democratic candidate in 96 counties. The message in NC is many staunch Republicans in rural parts of the state are fed up with the Republican candidates and whose ads tout their loyalty to Trump and will vote Democratic as a way of voicing their disapproval of Republican politics. This is a scenario that has not gotten a lot of attention. Investing in these candidates has value and as Trump siphons off money for legal expenses. ( over $100M ) there is less money down stream. Every little bit helps.
Giving money helps candidates, and is a way to be a Daily Dem. But I would encourage all of us to help candidates with the physical stuff as well as the monetary stuff. Give money to Field Team 6 - and participate in their postcard writing work of registering likely Democratic voters. Give money to a candidate, and volunteer to be a driver as they go door to door. Give money to your local Democratic committee, and sign up for a canvassing shift. Money helps, but our physical presence is what will move the needle.
That decision on Eastman gives a whole new definition to the word "eviscerate."
Millions of unregistered women nationally trend heavily Democratic. Register Democrats -- save Democracy.
https://www.fieldteam6.org/mission
If you live in a reliabley blue area and you think Dems in red areas don't have anyone to vote for is hyperbole I can assure you it is not! When I requested a Dem ballot in the recent Alabama primary in my South Alabama precinct, I had 3 choices: Biden, reps to the Dem nominating convention and one state-wide referendum. There were NO Dems running for any other seats!!!!! Because I volunteered to report results for the local LWV, I know exactly how many Dems voted in my precinct: 8. Yes 8. Are there more Dem or Dem-leaning voters here? Yes, but they don't vote because they have noone to vote for!!!!! Is that frustrating? Yes! So what do I do? I work to get Dems elected in other districts or in other states (ex: Marilyn Lands, Doug Jones in Alabama), help register young people to vote, help previously incarcerated people regain their voting rights.... The possiblities to make a difference are almost limitless. That keeps me motivated in the presence of an almost completely disfunctional state Dem party!!! I can still help make change happen!!! I highly recommend it!!!
Jess Piper is such an inspiration! Thanks for the link!💙
Shunning plant-based, meat alternatives is the “anti-woke” stand du jour.
Florida legislature this year also banned lab-generated meat and windmills/wind energy. Priorities !
In ‘22 we volunteered for the campaign of the excellent Dem candidate running against our Freedom Caucus Rep. She was trounced but made gains 👍 with Independents in a MAGA red county. It was such a learning experience! I encourage all who are able to volunteer for a campaign.
❤️🤍💙
Delighted to see that Alabama district flip decisively from red to blue. I’m calling the winner “Marilyn Landslide!”
It’s a great year to run Democrats in every race. The MAGA Republicans won’t know what hit them when they go to the RNC for campaign funds and find out the vault is empty because every dollar is paying Don’s legal bills or his campaign expenses.
Permit me, please, to brag on a former sixth-grade student of mine, Kate Compton Barr, who is running for NC Senate in District 37, knowing full well that she won’t win. “Clear Eyes, Full Heart, Can’t Win.” So proud of her.
https://www.wsoctv.com/news/local/clear-eyes-full-heart-cant-win-why-kate-barr-is-running-anyway/6OWDCKD7X5AONJPU7IHMD6WM5M/
NC State Chair Anderson Clayton has followed Piper’s model, getting Dems to run in all but 2 races. A huge improvement from previous years. Maybe another NC friend has the exact numbers.