The PCCC just sent an email to its nearly 1 million members endorsing Shenna Bellows for US Senate from Maine.
“We call Shenna Bellows the ‘Elizabeth Warren of civil liberties’ because she’s campaigning boldly on constitutional freedom and economic populism,” said PCCC co-founder Stephanie Taylor. “Like Elizabeth Warren’s challenge to former Sen. Scott Brown, many insiders thought Susan Collins was unbeatable. Until now.”
Bellows raised some eyebrows when this relatively unknown candidate out raised a sitting 3 term Senator during her first quarter using the power of
grassroots small dollar donors.
Collins reported $314,921 for the quarter while Bellows raised $331,454. Over 80% of Bellows’ contributions were $100 or less.
Bellows earned her spurs at the American Civil Liberties Union, first working out of the national office as southwest regional organizer against the excesses of the Patriot Act, and then returning to Maine 9 years ago as ED of the Maine ACLU affiliate. In Maine she played a prominent role in the Marriage Equality and Voting Rights referenda, and built a right-left coalition to pass a cell phone privacy bill. Maine is one of only two states that have this important protection.
While under her direction, the ACLU of Maine also initiated a challenge to the NSA bulk collection of phone data through the Maine Public Utilities Commission, an effort later quashed by an after-the-fact law passed by Congress in 2006.
“The DOJ is going after each state commission that dares do its job to protect the privacy and interests of the citizens in that state,” said Shenna Bellows, Executive Director of the Maine Civil Liberties Union, which intervened on behalf of the people who called for the investigation. “Threatening to sue anyone who asks questions is the federal government’s way of keeping the public in the dark about its actions. It sets a dangerous precedent."
Bellows' fundraising figures are attracting attention outside Maine. She spoke with
Ed Schultz yesterday, and
HuffPost picked up the story too:
"One of the biggest threats to our democracy is big money in politics, so it is refreshing to see that grassroots giving from real people can triumph over corporate interests from out-of-state," said Bellows. "Our early fundraising success shows that Mainers are taking a look at this campaign and like what they see."
Take a look at
Shenna Bellows. If you're looking for a strong progressive to replace Susan Collins, you'll like what you see, too!