I urge you to read this diary which explains better than I can why John Laesch is a true courage candidate. It's that simple.
So, why another diary on this when I was up at 1 am shoveling snow and salting ice here in Iowa for the Biden campaign? I don't have the time to be doing this, but John's courage in the face of attacks against Planned Parenthood and his subsequent unfair rebuke by the DC machine inspired this addition. John deserves it, and he deserves your help. I've added John's Courage Candidate profile to the rest, below the fold ...
But first, a short background. Yesterday, I wrote a personal diary about my life, my presidential choice, and my hope for Democratic unity after this presidential season is done. I believe in intra-party unity, and I'm a bit of a pragmatist. Sometimes, however, that doesn't work. Sometimes, we have to tell groups like PP and the DCCC where to go when they make a bad call. Courage Candidate Larry Kissell was unfairly ignored by the national party structure. They didn't listen to our voice, but they listened to our wallets and our boots. They came to their senses this year.
Today, I'm helping a real progressive - John Laesch - fight against the DC machine. He has shown consistent courage, and he deserves to be rewarded with our support and the Democratic nomination in Dennis Hastert's old district. I don't care what interest groups think; I care about who is fighting for our interests. John is fighting for Illinois and for all of the women in America. He deserves a profile as much as anyone on my list:
John Laesch (IL-14)
A veteran with the courage to take on Dennis Hastert in 2006. That should be enough, but he's shown an amazing commitment to progressive values and the netroots. When a Planned Parenthood clinic was under attack in Aurora, IL, John stepped up. I'll let former campaign staffer Downtower tell the tale:
John Laesch responded, not just with diaries [at Daily Kos] urging support for Planned Parenthood, but by stocking up on "support Planned Parenthood" signs and urging them on those who stopped at the campaign office to pick up their Laesch signs, making public statements in support of the clinic, and yes, even standing out there shoulder-to-shoulder at the clinic itself with the pro-choice activists who were standing toe-to-toe and nose-to-nose with wingnuts, trying to shield users and workers at the clinic from their vitriol.
That's the kind of courage we should reward.
Rep. Pete Stark (CA-13)
Travis Bickle beat me to the punch with his "Ten Reasons to Love Pete Stark." Travis mentions, in addition to Stark's recent stand for children, his status as the only "nontheistic" member of Congress, and his persistent battle against the current Bush Administration. But what you may not know about is how Stark stood up to the first Bush Administration's HHS Secretary. While you may disagree with Stark's lack of tact when he chastised the Secretary for his support of George H. W. Bush Administration policies that were "bankrupt and damaging to minority members," it was during a battle that Stark fought for national health insurance. Sending him money probably won't matter in his safe seat, but you can send Pelosi and Reid a message.
Jim Neal (NC-Sen)
I’m a fighter. I am committed and will survive the mudslinging which comes in an election year when the GOP is vulnerable, scared, without substance and rudderless. I ain’t afraid of the briar patch, and I am running this race to win. -Jim Neal
Jim Neal came out of the gates locked and loaded. Nevertheless, talk is cheap, and while it took a great deal of courage to jump into a hard race against Elizabeth Dole (especially since Jim announced while a primary still looked probable), some people have been wondering if Jim is has the courage to take strong stands. He took a stand and showed courage today while he was liveblogging on BlueNC:
"[Gay?] I am indeed. No secret and no big deal to me-- I wouldn't be running if I didn't think otherwise."
I was impressed with Jim the first time I met him, even though I was supporting another potential candidate at the time. Now, I'm even more convinced that his campaign is going to be positive and uplifting for North Carolina. He's going to be an even better Senator, and in addition to being right on the issues, I know he's not going to be afraid to stand up for what is right. Even with a credible primary challenger, I'm supporting Jim Neal's bid for Senate
Al Franken (MN-Sen)
Back in April, I was tremendously impressed by Al Franken's defense of liberal values on Larry King (and so was Daily Kos, since the diary sat on the Recommended list for a day). He defended Keith Ellison, our first Muslim Congressman, from the callow attacks of Glenn Beck. He defended universal health care, and his own courageous record of speaking the truth. In American politics, speaking truth to power is hard, but speaking truth to the entire country is harder. Al has spoken the truth to the American people for years, and has never been afraid to voice his heartfelt opinion. I'm honored to have Al in our corner.
Sen. Joe Biden (POTUS)
I've been impressed by Joe Biden's courage for a long time. He marched in Wilmington with civil rights groups, and he fought a tough, uphill, upset battle when he first ran for Senate as a 29-year-old. And then he had to face the death of his wife and his daughter in between winning his election and joining the Senate. He was sworn in at the hospital bedside of his two sons (who survived the accident) after an introspective search for meaning, during which he strongly considered giving up his seat. He then risked isolation from the good-ol'-boy politics of the Senate by commuting home almost every day to take care of his young children. For twenty years, he raised a family and rarely spent more than one night at a time in Washington. In addition, he's never met with a lobbyist, and he's eschewed stock investments to avoid conflicts of interest. Many Senators do what is easy; Biden did what was right.
However, what's often forgotten is how Joe Biden stood up to Bush back in 2002. Back when everyone who disagreed with Bush was fair game, Joe objected to the Hastert Iraq War Resolution, did not vote for it in committee, and drafted the Biden-Lugar Resolution. Biden-Lugar would have forced diplomacy on the Bush administration. It could have prevented Bush's unlimited war in the Middle East. Biden had to face the fallout when the resolution was opposed by both Democrats and Republicans. Though all of our Presidential candidates who were in the Senate at the time ultimately made the wrong decision, Biden was the first candidate to stand up to Bush's Iraq plans in the Senate. That took courage.
Larry Kissell (NC-08)
I'd like to think I helped write the book on Kissell here at Daily Kos, but the truth is that we all came out because of his courage. He's not the fake mill worker or coal miner's daughter that some politicians claim to be - he's the real deal. He's a man who hasn't been afraid to be progressive, even when he was running against a DCCC moderate in the primary. He made it to the general election on sheer grit and great campaign ideas, and he had the courage to put himself into debt to win his race. He had the courage to run a positive, uplifting campaign. His courage defied the doubters and brought him within 330 votes in 2006. And after fighting for the votes to be counted, he had the courage to get right back off the mat and keep fighting. What more can I say?
That's my ActBlue list of Courage Candidates. Candidates with Courage: the leaders we need.
I'm committed to pointing out candidates with courage. I think it's what we need most in 2008, and I'm happy to add people to the list when they stand up like John did. To quote the diary that started it all:
You may disagree with my precise choices (or suggest others), but I hope the message is clear - we need the Democratic Congress to be the Courage Congress. I think it's an issue that deserves more play as we look toward finding the netroots heroes for 2008. I think our candidates should demonstrate a work ethic, grow the grassroots, be frugal with their money, and be surrounded by a good staff - but I'm against being an ATM for blue dogs. We need to support credible candidates and maintain our influence, but they need to have courage. We can't give money to everyone, and we should expect people to candidates to build their own organizations, but courage should be our lighthouse on rocky shores. Courage wins.