In California's 10th Congressional district, right now, there is an opportunity to real- time, real impact with Carrots Not Sticks donations to the special election race for Ellen Taucher's replacement. In only five days, voters there will send another Democrat to DC. But what kind? Or can we force a runoff election?
Tauscher, now at the State Dept, had selected CA State Senator Mark DeSaulnier as her heir apparent, but ran into a bit of trouble with that, when the State Dept lawyers told her to stop publicly endorsing him to avoid a conflict of interest.
Now,Lt Gov John Garamendi, slowly jogging haphazardly, carpetbag in hand, to the finish line,inexplicably leading in the polls against the home- grown Anthony Woods, has another severe credibility problem- Dee Ell Cee Sincerity- Itis. He's taking money from Third Way.
The $10,000 donation from Bernard L Schwartz, chairman of the board of Third Way, and a board member of the New America Foundation, was made on April 3, 2009, according to financial disclosure records filed for "Garamendi for Governor 2010" on cal- access.
http://cal-access.ss.ca.gov/...
But ARC, you say, that's his Gov 2010 account. Look at the current expenditures on it. If you're spending money out of a state campaign account with your name on it, you're using those donations to further their interests and make your name well known for elective office. Any office. And Garamendi has been using his account.
Tauscher accepted the State Dept post for Undersecretary of Arms Control back on March 18.
Garamendi announced he was officially "in" on April 22. He (or his advisors) had put out feelers and hints of interest in the CA 10 seat before that date. However, and this is damned interesting, his FEDERAL FEC records show that he didn't sign the official statement of candidacy until June 1, 2009, and then it wasn't received as an electronic filing at the FEC over 2 weeks later, on June the 16th. http://query.nictusa.com/...
That's 3 months after Tauscher resigned. Look at that gap between April and June 16th again. That's too long a time for a serious candidate. Look at what outfit is running that campaign as treasurer, it's a law office out of Long Beach, in southern CA, called California Political Law, Inc. http://www.californiapoliticallaw.co...
John Garamendi used to be the Insurance Commissioner of the State of CA from 1991 to 1995, and again from 2003 to 2007. I bet he thought nobody would bother to look at his state For Gov 2010 account he was using at the same time.
Now, who's "Third Way" and why should you care ? Read the Huffpo link above in the intro, and you'll find that in early June, this 4 year old, triangulating DLC faux "progressive think tank" had a health care memo leaked that was written by former health insurance lobbyists and consultants. It opposed the Public Option, saying it would be "devisive, and undermine broader reform goals." McJoan wrote about their "hyper-incrementalist bullshit domestic policy" here. After the predictable, angry response to Third Way reviving Harry and Louise, Third Way did their usual thing.... backpeddled and declared it was all just a misunderstanding. Their thinking was "evolving." This is what you get from an organization that is neither chicken nor beef, Democratic nor Republican, and founded on the premise that since liberals upset the conservatives, they must avoid "polarizing policies"- as Ben Franklin said, fish and visitors smell after 3 days.
Third Way was last seen telling Senator Rockefeller(D, WV)how to do retroactive immunity for the telecom companies that were doing warrantless wiretapping during the Bush administration. Third Way is all about compromising the Democratic agenda. During the last 3 weeks, we've watched much of the main stream media collude with the Republican Party to kill actual reform by publicizing the crazed antics of astroturfing Teabaggers, and Birthers, at Democratic town halls, screaming about Death Panels and Euthanizing Granny, Hitler and Socialism, and their implication that this pressure had killed the Public Option. Meanwhile 50 million Americans, 1 out of every 6 human beings in this country, depending on us to enact the change we promised, are going to bed tonight with no health insurance and no access to organized and humane health care if they fall sick. Instead, they are to beg for mercy at the emergency room.
Third Way? Let's give money to the private insurance system to perpetrate this travesty, ou laissez- les acheter assurance d'ordure, if we could put AHIP lobbyist Karen Ignagni in a hoop skirt and powdered wig.
Garamendi taking Third Way money surreptitiously, plus being a former Insurance Commissioner so recently in this state, is a political kiss of defeat as far as I am concerned, no matter what he is saying now about Public Option.
Look at Garamendi's latest filing, a 48 hour contribution notice. donations from: http://query.nictusa.com/...
•attorney for company that does real estate,enviro,tax, and BANKRUPTCY. Most personal bankruptcies are now caused by unisured medical bills= more money for lawyers
•president of an insurance company that does estate planning.
•Safeway Inc PAC - gives money to wingnuts, like McClintock and Eric Cantor. BAD
•engineer at Lawrence Livermore
•MICRA PAC Norcal Mutual Insurance (gives money to anybody,D or R, who will gum up things in the state legislatures regarding malpractice, including Audra Strickland and Steve Poizner, now running for Gov)from 2006 http://cal-access.ss.ca.gov/...
•Liberty Mutual Insurance attorney- 7/28/09 5 people including former banker at Goldman Sachs charged with insider trading before Liberty Mutual aquired Safeco http://ifawebnews.com/...
•Intermedia Advertising Inc- not inherently bad, but does advertising for the US Army, Public Storage, and auto insurers. Two things that make them more money during a war and more insurance.
•Men's wearhouse clothing founder&CEO (okay, I hated putting you on this list, because you're a good guy, you're excused)
My point being here that by just picking up one day's filings we can see Garamendi taking too much fox money to do anything about this henhouse.
So let's take a look now at Anthony Woods, Iraq vet, West Point and Harvard grad, local guy born in the district at Travis AFB in Fairfield. http://query.nictusa.com/...
Filed his statement of organization with the FEC on May 20, 2009. That's almost a month before somebody in Garamendi's organization bothered to send the FEC the filing notice that they were bothering to do a federal campaign.
Okay, I looked at his latest donation and it's from the founder of a company that wrote word processing software for the Apple II and Apple III, Quark Inc. Also has a nonprofit that does AIDs education. The donation before that, it's from an attorney who works on affordable housing issues. The donation before that, a guy who advocates for manufactured and modular housing, and a media attorney who gave campaign donations to HOWARD DEAN and Barack Obama. Also defends news organizations against subpoenas and in gaining access to court proceedings. You did work for the TV show South Park? You're cool. The donation before that, a software for business applications company entrepreneur.
Quite a list of donor contrasts, there.
Looking at the PAC donations for Woods,there's Votevets and the Human Rights Campaign.
Say you had a problem that needed the attention of your congressperson or somebody in the Federal government. Which person would you want to try to get to respond first ? One that's got so many insurance donations coming out of his pockets he can't be taken seriously, or the guy who bothered to be honest about his intentions ?
Back in April, John Garamendi announced he "expected" to be a candidate for the seat,but piddled around for 2 more months before he filed to run. (and I was checking his POS website daily). Meanwhile, Anthony Woods was saying in an April interview with Calitics that he:
AW: I support universal health care with a public option. I would like to see an increase in SCHIP to cover all children, an early buy-in for Medicare, maybe at 55 years of age, and subsidies for those in the middle, so they can purchase quality health insurance. And everyone should have that public option so that they don't have to rely on a private insurer that may deny them coverage for a pre-existing condition. I think this is a major issue for families, but also a huge issue for businesses, who have such a burden of health care costs that it's stopping them from being competitive.
http://www.calitics.com/...
John Garamendi on the Public Option in April:
John Garamendi on the Public Option in May:
chirp. chirp. crrrrick. chirp. cricket.
He finally glommed onto saying he supported the Public Option in June. There are going to be protests that Garamendi said he's always been a proponent of single payer Medicare for all. Okay, but he's been in office as Insurance Commissioner and Lt Gov for how long, under Democratic and Republican governors and Democratic CA legislatures, and this has never happened. It's like saying you want a Star Trek type of Earth in the near future with interplanetary peace, justice, respect for all beings and science, and then you never get around to building the landing pad for the Vulcans.
Carrots, not Sticks- putting your donations to progressive candidates who do support the Public Option, not just saying it as a buzz word:
ACT BLUE page for Anthony Woods:
http://www.actblue.com/...
As of wednesday 8/26, this was at 1,776 supporters and $192,942. Surely we can get this to break $200,000 and 2000 supporters.
Anthony Woods on facebook, events and more:
http://www.facebook.com/...
Saturday, Sunday, Monday, Tuesday: Get Out the Vote, Fairfield, El Cerrito, Walnut Creek, Antioch, phonebanking
This friday, Aug 28, 7pm to 9pm, All Candidates All Party Debate (submit questions to be answered) at Las Positas College, Little Theatre Bldg 800, Livermore, CA http://www.facebook.com/...
Confirmed candidates to attend this do not include Garamendi at this time. Do include Woods, DeSaulnier, Buchanan, Hampton for the Democrats and Bunch, Clift, Peterson,Loos,Toth for the Republicans, and others. http://www.facebook.com/...
event is free, parking is $2 at the college.
With such a diverse field (minus Garamendi...) the possibility of an interesting discussion is strong and the possibility of a run off election because no candidate pulls a majority is a very real possibility.
You ask why are people doing this when the cynical wisdom says the big name will just go slouching towards Washington. It is time to pass the torch to the next generation that can make a difference, and just by primarying the other opponents, Anthony Woods has.