h/t to SwingState Project for this find
AL-07 EMILY's List made a small independent expenditure (sub-$30K) for mailers and phonebanking on behalf of Terri Sewell. Someone from EMILY really needs to explain why they endorsed Wall Street attorney Sewell over the well-known progressive (and equally pro-choice) Shelia Smoot.
Though Not exactly small in my book for this district (nearly 30k)
Remember when Emily endorsed the awful Nikki Tinker against much more progressive Steve Cohen in 2008. Didn't turn out well for them as Cohen won by 60% points. This won't either as Sewell is running a distant third in this race despite spending nearly half a million and much more than all the other candidates combined.
EMILY's List is an acronym for Early Money Is Like Yeast. Except in AL-07 where they have poured thousands of late dollars with just two weeks to go in trying to save face in their wrongheaded endorsement of Terri Sewell.
Shelia Smoot, the more progressive candidate , that I've been with since day 1 in this race and known for a Decade, leads Sewell by twenty points in that poll released just a few weeks ago. There is also another female in the race, Martha Bozeman, who has equally as strong pro-choice and progressive credentials as Sewell. EMILY's List failed to consider the candidacy of all the female candidates and picked someone that cannot win.
I understand the goal of Emily's List and believe they have been an effective organization in the past. However, writing off two other female candidates in this race was a terrible decision. Furthermore when EMILY endorsed Sewell there were three females in the race all of which could be defined as more progressive than their choice. Emily's List no longer seems to be about helping good female candidates get elected. It's become an insider baseball group. EMILY in their endorsement of Sewell simply touts her as the one who would be the first African-American female from Alabama elected to Congress.
Sewell is a former Wall Street Attorney and big Birmingham bond attorney who just recently entered the world of electoral politics. She is the consummate D.C. insider choice as she went to law school with Harvard at the same time as Barack Obama and has the Harvard connections. She looks good on paper, a solid resume padded with elitist connections.
However, Sewell lacks the ability to connect to the people in the district and the least of these who need a member of Congress that will fight for her. This election should not just be about being first. It would be an accomplishment and an honor for Shelia Smoot as well, but she's in this race to be the best Representative for constituents who need help in job creation, access to health care and better infrastructure. Shelia's already been a trailblazer being the first African American female as well as the youngest to serve on the Jefferson County Commission.
Of course I'm biased in this race, but we need a member of Congress who will fight for the least of these. Shelia Smoot says it best when she says
Send somebody to Congress who will impact your life not their own
This is who we need in Congress
Shelia at a forum last month established herself as the most progressive on an environmental issue related to disposal of Coal Ash in poor Perry County. She also remained more committed than the other candidates to making sure that Social Security remains intact. This is somebody we need in Congress, not a former Wall Street and bond attorney. EMILY's List made another bad choice in this endorsement, but the citizens of AL-07 are poised to make the right choice.
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