An interesting experience today.
A mass email was sent out to the members of the Birmingham (AL) chapter of the National Jewish Democratic Council on behalf of Alabama State Senator Vivian Figures. She is running for the US Senate this November against our Republican incumbent, Jeff Sessions.
The email was inquiring about the possibility of Senator Figures speaking to our NJDC chapter, and linked to her website. I looked at her website, and from the site, could not determine whether she was a Democrat challenging Sessions in the general election or a Republican primary challenger. I found that neither of the words "Democrat" or "Democratic" appeared anywhere on her site.
After confirming via other sources that she is in fact a Democratic state Senator from Mobile, I sent the following reply to the PR rep who had sent the original email:
Personally, I'm not particularly interested in hearing anyone speak to the NJDC who can't even place the word "Democrat" or "Democratic" anywhere on her website. (I've Googled the entire figures2008.com site, and neither term appears anywhere within.)
I would love to see Jeff Sessions pack his bags. But even in Alabama, in 2008, we can (and should) be proud to be Democrats.
If your firm is working with Sen. Figures, and trying to get her in front of DEMOCRATIC groups in Alabama, I'd suggest a little more party identification would be helpful.
The representative of Sen. Figures responded quickly, thanking me for my concerns. He also said that the Senator would like to call me and discuss the matter with me.
I provided my cell phone number, thinking "yeah right." At most I expected a form email.
Not 10 minutes later, it rings. And it is Senator Figures on the phone herself, not a representative, not a secretary.
What followed was a 30-40 minute conversation, easily the longest I've ever had with an elected official at the state level (or higher). Senator Figures thanked me for my concerns, and told me that she is certainly not running away from the term "Democrat." She's been a proud Democrat all her life, she said, and promised that the website will soon reflect a more prominent statement of party affiliation.
I know, I know, promises from politicians are a dime-a-dozen. But the mere fact that she called me to discuss my concerns really impresses me. Not only that, she gave me -- as she gives everyone -- her HOME phone number, usually forwarded to her cell phone, and asked me to call her at any time with any concerns.
She seems like the real deal, and if she's half as sincere as she appears to be, she'd be a welcome replacement for our "good ol' boy" incumbent, Jeff Sessions. I related the story of how my wife and I met Senator Sessions in 2003 at the United Jewish Communities Washington 13 conference, and how he was completely patronizing. Not only did he have no interest in signing on to the bill for which we were lobbying, he also made it clear that our opinions were useless to him. I guess he knew that he wasn't getting a lot of Jewish votes in Alabama, anyway.
Senator Figures doesn't shy away from discussing her personal life. She's been a single mother for over a decade, and her oldest son is in jail on drug-related charges. She states that on her website, and brought it up on the phone to me, telling me that she loves her son dearly, but we all have to face the consequences of our actions. Indeed.
Look, I would have voted for any Democrat running against Jeff Sessions in November. That moron needs to go. But Senator Figures really impressed me, responding personally to an offhand email comment. She really wanted to take the time to understand why it was important to me, and I appreciated that.
Personal conversations with elected officials? Very rare indeed.
If you live in Alabama (or even if you don't) let's help Vivian Figures replace Jeff Sessions. An uphill battle? To be sure. But that doesn't mean it's not worth fighting.
Alabama has never elected a woman to the US Congress. Senator Figures is well-qualified to be the first.
Vivian Figures for U.S. Senate