You might have noticed a spike in candidate posting here at Daily Kos over the past few days. It's ironic that most campaigns want to have a "discussion" only when they need something (mostly $$$), and the last week has been nothing special, just a different "ask."
It seems Democracy for America is conducting a poll to determine the first of its 2006 endorsements. A field of 50 was widdled down to ten, all vying for one endorsement and the accompanying national fundraising letter.
If you haven't voted already, I am going to make the case for who I believe should receive the endorsement hands down. I hope you will bear with my as I explain why I voted for Christine Cegelis. And then I hope you will join me in casting your ballot for her as well.
The candidates are all great and have compelling stories. Lois Murphy came closer than anyone else in the country in 2004. Francine Busby is running in the ethically challenged "Duke" Cunningham's district. Bryan Kennedy is challenging the nutbag Jim Makesnosensenbrenner. All are compelling, but in my mind, none more deserving than Christine.
She's One of Us
Many of the campaigns on the list have freshly minted user id's here at Kos since the voting on BFA began. I remember the first time I met Christine Cegelis (my hometown is 5 minutes outside her distirct). We were talking about the net, and I asked her what she knew about Kos. She told me, to my astonishment, that she had an ID but it was an alias. She had actually been here for some time, not peddling her campaign or asking for anything, just talking to people from within this community.
Since then, she has become a frequent contributor to this site, but something sets her apart from the rest of the campaigns on the BFA list. First of all, she has been here for months talking about the campaign. Second, she doesn't post "brouchereware." Meaning, she posts, and then sticks around in the comments, engaging individuals who want to use this medium for what it was made for...a discussion. Third, it isn't always an "ask" with Chrstine. I remember reading one diary she posted about the airlines jetisoning their pension programs and the impact it has on her constituents (O'Hare airport is right there). In 2004, I worked for the first congressional candidate to become a frequent blogosphere contributor, Jeff Seemann. In 2006, it is my belief that Chrstine personally interacts with the medium better than any candidate around.
A Grassroots Campaign
Christine's online outreach doesn't shock me at all, because it is an extension of the kind of traditional campaign work that brought her so close to the biggest upset of 2004 against Henry Hyde. Every vote the campaign receieved was earned through a message of progress and organization on the ground. She didn't have Republican money, but she had Democratic heart and determination. At the end of the day, she received 44+ percent of the vote, and Henry Hyde retired, not wanting another dog fight.
It's now an open seat.
Christine was one of the first "Dean Dozen" candidates in 2004, and most would be in awe if they saw first-hand (as I have) the way local DFAs have rallied behind her campaign. I remember my first local meetup after the last election, Christine was there, of course, and the loyalty of the two dozen or so members from that location is fierce. These are people that hit the streets and do the dirty work of democracy overlooked by those who count campaign contributors as their most important constituents. Not Chrstine, and it warmed my heart. The scene at that Meetup was only mirrored throughout the Northwest suburbs of Chicago during the last campaign cycle, and it continues today.
The Opposition
Some candidates for the endorsement can effectively make the claim that their opponent is certifiably crazy and/or a DeLay cronie. But only one candidate's opponent is an ex-Tom DeLay staffer, and that is Peter Roskam. Roskam is the guy chosen by the local GOP to succeed Henry Hyde. If ever there was an opportunity to get with the national meme of villianizing Tom DeLay, this is the race to do it in.
Stop The DCCC From Recruiting Some Self-Funding Milquetost Democrat
Even still, national organizations have threatened the campaign by attempting to recruit the same old tired, self-financing, candidates in the district that will only blur the distinction between themselves and the Republican opposition. Christine's campaign is met with constant demands about meeting this or that fundraising total or face the prospect of receiving no aid in a very winnable race, or worse, face establishment recruitment of the kind of candidate described above.
Chrstine has already raised more money than she had in all of the 2004 cycle, and winning this vote would end the discussion of further recruitment. A few weeks ago I was on a conference call with the DCCC and Rahm Emanuel. They talked about polling all sorts of prospective candidates in the district rather than using those resources to help the candidate that has been running for two years already...and never stopped. Every step of the way, her campaign has met the establishment challenges with an uprising from her own network of grassroots supporters inside IL-6 and from within the netroots. Winning this vote would be the final nail in the coffin and ensure us a great candidate with a message of progress in a very winnable district.
Concluding
Again, each and every one of the campaigns on the list have compelling stories. Some offer tales of great efforts in 2004. Some focus on their opponents. Others talk about grassroots organizing. Only one has the entire ball of wax, and then some.
That candidate is Christine Cegelis, and I hope that you will join me in casting your ballot for her today.
Tim