"So, Comrade, if you do not support me, I will crush you."
Two guesses who said that: was it Josef Stalin or John Burton?
Well, all I can tell you is that I heard from my old friend Don Goldmacher today. Don is a candidate on the Progressive Slate for this Saturday’s California Democratic Party ADEMs (Assembly District Election Meetings). And he tells me that word has come from on high that John Burton, who is running for party chair in April, will be sending his goons supporters to ADEMs across the state to take names and THEN kick ass. Those who have endorsed Burton will, in turn, be endorsed by Burton and his minions will vote for them. Anyone who hasn’t endorsed Burton will be defeated.
Why does this matter? The California Democratic Party is run by an approximately-2800-member Democratic State Central Committee. Those 2800 members are chosen in one of three ways (at a ratio of approximately 1:1:1). The electeds throughout the state appoint anywhere from 4-6 committee members each; county central committees (whose members were elected on last June’s primary ballot) elect members from within their ranks; finally, Democratic voters meet at district-wide elections, which will be held this weekend, to elect 12 delegates from each of the 80 state assembly districts. The full DSCC membership will then elect a party chair at the state convention in April.
Election through the ADEMs has always been considered the easiest and most accessible path through which grassroots activists can become involved in the state Democratic Party hierarchy. In both 2005 and 2007, a number of newly-energized activists ran in the ADEMs in an attempt to increase the voice of progressive activism in what they viewed as a hidebound and moribund state party. This year, many were/are hoping that the freshly-minted Obama activists would likewise take an interest in bringing some hope and change to state politics.
Enter John Burton, emerging from retirement at age 76. Now, if you’re not familiar with Burton, here are a few things to know about him. He is the brother of the late Congressman, Phil Burton, who built an unabashedly liberal political machine in California back in the ‘60s, which lives on to this day (Nancy Pelosi holds his old Congressional seat). John Burton ruled over California Democratic politics as the State Senate pro tem until he was forced out by term limits in 2004.
Now, I’d like to make one point crystal clear here. John Burton is a liberal lion. I do not disagree with his policy positions. What I disagree with are his old-school, hardball, machine tactics. Because while he may be mouthing the political clichés of progressivism (inclusiveness, transparency, accountability) he represents the antithesis of those values. John Burton stands for nothing, if not the backroom deal. And it’s important to distinguish between those methods which may be useful in pounding out legislation and those which are going to be effective in building an appealing and robust California Democratic Party.
Which brings us to the ADEMs this weekend and the "endorse me or die" stance taken by Burton. Burton entered the race for chair late in the game, apparently at the request of Barbara Boxer, who faces re-election in 2010. Now, we know that the Burton machine enjoys the overwhelming support of both the electeds and much of organized labor. So Burton, apparently in an effort to control the delegate selection and win the chairmanship, is claiming that members of labor who support him will be showing up to vote in the ADEMs. Here’s where it gets hairy. These Burton supporters allegedly have instructions to vote for the members of the Progressive Slate who have endorsed Burton, and they have been instructed to vote against any member of the Progressive Slate who has not endorsed Burton.
So, in AD-14, members of the Progressive Slate (most of whom are incumbents with a proven track record of activism) have been told that if they do not endorse Burton, they will be voted out. And of the Progressive Slate, all but one have capitulated. All of them, save one, have endorsed John Burton. That lonely soul is Don Goldmacher. As he said to me today, "What does it really mean to be a progressive at this point in the Democratic Party? Does it mean mouthing platitudes or truly fighting for what you believe in and standing for principle?"
That’s a really good question. John Burton is about to take a sodcutter to the grassroots. Will they be complicit in their own demise, or will they stand and fight? I don’t know. Don could lose his seat on the DSCC (which he is fully prepared to do), or he could be the top vote-getter at his ADEM. It’s truly up to the people who show up to vote. But if the Progressive slate wins in AD-14 and wins without Don Goldmacher, it will be a truly pyrrhic victory for progressives in California.
Here’s a fuller explanation from Don:
The back story on this is quite simple. There were several people who were running for chair of the state party including Eric Bauman, who is the Los Angeles County Central Committee chair, and he looked like the favorite of most people, including progressives. And then, suddenly, out of nowhere, came the announcement from on high that John Burton, who we assumed was no longer active in politics, was going to run for chair of the party and had the endorsement of the overwhelming majority of elected Democratic officials in the state of California. This apparently then put the squeeze on Eric Bauman, the details of which, I know nothing of; but several weeks ago Eric announced to all his supporters that he was withdrawing from the race for chair and would instead run for vice chair, the consolation prize.
Now, in the real world, that tells me that a lot of pressure was put on Eric to do that by people on high. And what that further tells me is that, indeed, people who run the party, whoever they are, are actually frightened of those of us who were first elected in 2005 as progressives and Deaniacs. We have rattled their cages; we have demanded that the party become open and transparent, including its finances. And Eric appeared, in the past year or two, to begin to side with us on certain issues, which, for me, made him attractive as the new chair.
Since I was democratically elected as a delegate, I will not be dictated-to by backroom dealers. And John Burton has been mightily supported by organized labor in the state; and that is neither a good thing nor a bad thing because I support organized labor. I just don’t like the way this game is being played because I don’t think it is democracy. So it is apparent that in the coming AD elections this Saturday and Sunday, many people are running, some organized labor, precisely to support Burton’s candidacy. And there’s been a lot of pressure for people to support Burton who might not necessarily have chosen him as their first choice, and they are endorsing him so that they themselves will be endorsed as candidates. Since I do not agree with this way of conducting the business of the party, I have not endorsed John Burton, nor have I asked for his endorsement, and I would hope that other candidates would take the same position.
Don asked me to tell you that in his real life, he is a documentary filmmaker who has never flinched from speaking truth to power.