The Progressive Democrat Newsletter grew out of the frustration of the 2004 election. Originally intended for New York City progressives, its readership is now national. After much pressure from readers, this email newsletter is now going the blog route. I update the blog once a week focusing on both national issues and issues of interest to particular regions or states. In general, NYC, New Jersey (corrected!), Virginia and the Midwest get special attention simply because those are the areas where I seem to have the most readers. Get me more readers in your area (and let me know about it!) and I will focus there too.
I have started to publicize my blog more widely to increase readership, so I will be posting updates here. This week I discuss Nancy Pelosi's ideas for the opening of the next Congressional session, some paranoia on the part of the White House having to do with Elmo, and Democratic Corruption in Louisiana. I also have local stuff for people in New York, Iowa, Michigan, and California. Enjoy!
This week brought us one more House seat gain in an upset win for Ciro Rodriguez in the TX-23 race. This was not seen as a likely pick up, partly because Ciro was not the best campaigner. But last minute things clearly started looking up. Despite Ciro's seeming behind in polls, the DCCC poured in a huge amount of last-minute cash...and Ciro won quite solidly in the end. Ciro didn't just squeak by...he got 54% of the vote. Don't know what the DCCC saw that others weren't, but it is another indication that Dems are getting their acts together on all levels.
This week also saw the illness of Tim Johnson, one of our Senators. He seems to be recovering well, thankfully.
Been getting some more input regarding the format of the newsletter. Of course it has been contradictory input...so I will see what evolves naturally. Some want a much shorter newsletter, others like it just the way it is. Some want more humor, some don't see that as being necessary. So, I guess, I will mostly just keep doing what I feel like doing and hope it suits most people's needs!
Traffic is about 40 hits per day, down from the election but up generally. I know that sounds like nothing compared with places like Daily Kos, but I don't feel too bad about it. NY remains my top readership location. California, a state I never really recruited in, is almost always second. After that Virginia combined with DC, followed by midwestern states. And, another unexpected, Texas shows up in the top readership list from time to time. If that keeps up, I may just have to focus more on Texas! NJ lags behind that.
I welcome any further input as well as guest articles and will post events/groups you alert me to...with one caveat. Since I can keep track of my readers easier if they subscribe, guest articles and publicizing of events/groups on request will only apply if you are a subscriber. So please email me (see my profile) or comment here if you want to subscribe. Then let me know what events and groups are in your area and I'll get the word out!
Here is this week's newsletter. Enjoy!
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
NANCY PELOSI'S 100 HOUR PLAN FOR CONGRESS
ELMO PANICS WHITE HOUSE: Did Bert Put Him up to It?
DEMOCRATIC CORRUPTION IN LOUISIANA
MICHIGAN: Democratic Party Internships
RENEW IOWA: Energy and Agriculture in the Heartland
PROGRESSIVE GROUPS IN THE MIDWEST
REFORM IN THE AIR IN NY STATE
BROOKLYN, NY: Abuse of Eminent Domain for a Very Ill-Conceived Development Plan
NYC GROUPS AND EVENTS
BECOMING A DELEGATE IN CALIFORNIA
CALIFORNIA GROUPS AND EVENTS
VIRGINIA/DC AREA GROUPS AND EVENTS
NEW JERSEY GROUPS AND EVENTS