By now, you are all familiar with Mr. Apologize, Joe Barton (R-BP). But have you seen just how many House races Barton has his oily hands in? One of those districts is AR-02, home of retiring Congressman Vic Snyder and the site of one of the top races this cycle. On the Democratic side, we have a dynamic progressive African American state senator in Joyce Elliott, someone the national netroots really needs to get to know better. On the Republican side, we have Karl Rove's poodle, Tim Griffin.
Elliott is a phenomenal public servant who has represented the district well during her stellar career. Griffin is a political hack man involved in everything from voter caging to the Attorney Firing Scandal. What's more, he's bought and paid for by none other than Congressman Joe Barton.
$1000.00. That's how much Barton's PAC donated to Griffin. And in return Griffin's going to be a reliable vote for the Republican leadership and for the corporations like BP that are joined at the hip with them.
Senator Elliott is different. She has been a strong voice and a courageous vote for all the people of the second district, even when what was right wasn't popular. She's a true trail blazer, and the last thing anyone should do is underestimate her. She's a progressive candidate and has fought for progressive values and policy in a tough state long before she had us at Blue Arkansas to back her up. Take a look. This is Senator Elliott standing up for EFCA in 2009:
http://www.youtube.com/...
That's the Senator Elliott so many of us here in Arkansas have come to know and love. She takes her stand with courage and conviction, but she has a great way of communicating progressive ideas in a nonthreatening and easily understandable manner. That's the kind of Democrat we need explaining problems like the oil spill and our fossil fuel addiction to Arkansans.
Still worried that she can't win? In the primary, Senator Elliott was blasted from the right by her allegedly "electable" (meaning white) opponent for being too liberal for the district. She answered with a single ad that destroyed her opponent:
http://www.youtube.com/...
She went on to crush House Speaker Robbie Wills despite facing off with his massive financial warchest and long list of endorsements.
Tim Griffin is not invincible. He's a carpetbagger from outside the district who jumped in to run against Vic Snyder, against the wishes of the local Republican establishment to some degree. He's got D.C. money and connections to Republicans like Barton, but that's about it. Oh and he has Nancy Pelosi to run on, all while he's taking the money of a BP apologist. And yes, a progressive black woman can win here, because Joyce Elliott has something Griffin will never have-an army of devoted volunteers who will fight for her to the bitter end. I know folks are discouraged here and around the country over what happened with Bill Halter, but there really is a progressive movement building here in Arkansas of all places and around the country. Nothing can put that genie back in the bottle, I promise you. Senator Elliott offers a real chance to hold a seat with a better Democrat, so we should definitely chip in. Think we can raise $1,000 dollars on ActBlue for Joyce Elliott to counter Barton's donation?
The fight for progressive candidates and government isn't over yet. So we lose a few battles and we get our feelings hurt. We pick ourselves up and keep going. Tim Griffin is a Republican that will be a lapdog for Barton and BP. It may be a tough fight, but getting Joyce Elliott elected will be a tremendous benefit not just to Arkansas and AR-02, but to the entire country. That's why you need to contribute and fight back against Barton, Griffin, and BP!