Just Say No to Supporting Third Party Candidates
Before hring the tip jar, this diary is not advocating for a third party.
But the diary is for discussing pushing the President and our Dem leadership away from Wall Street Big Money and back toward our old Democratic Party values.
Obama Got the Moves ?
Barack Obama's recent moves (like, say, advocating for jobs and announcing troops out of Iraq) have brought him up in the polls.
A theme with Occupy Wall Street movement seems to be indicative of a growing national skepticism that either party is governing with the 99% in mind.
How will that pan out for our party in 2012?
Though I have not seen any Obama specific signs at Occupy Santa Fe, the one above or ones like it have appeared. Do they represent a substantial amount of voter sentiment?
Enter Jill Stein
A Green alternative to the Wall Street parties
by Damon Eris
Wed, Nov 02nd 2011
With her announcement that she will seek the Green Party's nomination for President of the United States in 2012, Jill Stein ended months of speculation among third party political insiders, Green Party activists and Independent progressives. Occupy Wall Street is now buzzing with the news as well. Could the protest movement provide significant momentum for a third party insurgency in next year's elections?
Since the temperatures started to drop in New York City, many participants in the Occupy Wall Street demonstrations in downtown Manhattan have begun to gather in the atrium at 60 Wall Street, an indoor public arcade, to hold organizing meetings and events. Hundreds of activists now filter in and out of the space over the course of the day. Among them on a recent afternoon was David Cobb, the Green Party's candidate for president in 2004, who was spreading the word about Move to Amend, an organization he founded in 2009 which seeks to abolish corporate personhood. We spoke for a few minutes, and when I told him that I cover third party and independent politics for a number of websites, he asked excitedly: "Did you hear Jill Stein announced her candidacy for president?!"
Why would anyone vote for Jill Stein over Barack Obama?
Kos said it
Though he was not talking in context of any third party challenge, back in September Kos mused that the President and his advisors better change their approach.
Thu Sep 01, 2011 at 10:45 AM PDT
Whatever it is Obama is doing, it's not working+*
Soon afterward the President dropped talk about deficits and focused on jobs, and his numbers went up. (Kos has come out since then applauding the change.)
How might we reclaim some of that 2008 Activist Base
Have the President's numbers come up among those Democrats who worked for his election in 08, and who have worked so hard on Climate Change , Alternative Energy,and other issues?
(Remember the the infamous Smog Letter?)
Speculation about why some Dem voters might swing over to Stein :
Some "what if's" that might drive voters away from our Democratic Party President:
1. What if President Obama were to approve the Tar Sands Pipeline?
After being interrupted down in Denver recently, he says he is yet to decide.
2. What if Democratic Leaders in Congress agree to cutting Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid like has been proposed to the Catfood for Supper Committee?
3. What if the Administration is successful in letting the Banksters off the hook for being held accountable for past and ongoing foreclosure Fraud?
Quick actions we can take in support of the President and our Party:
1. Thank the President:
This is a turning point – President Obama comments on Keystone XL
News — admin November 2, 2011 at 12:46 pm
This is a turning point.
Yesterday President Obama made his first comments about the Keystone XL pipeline. Take a minute to read what he told a Nebraska television station that asked him about the pipeline:
The State Department’s in charge of analyzing this, because there’s a pipeline coming in from Canada. They’ll be giving me a report over the next several months, and, you know, my general attitude is, what is best for the American people? What’s best for our economy both short term and long term? But also, what’s best for the health of the American people?
When pressed about how the potential for new jobs plays in to his decision, President Obama said:
I think folks in Nebraska, like all across the country, aren’t going to say to themselves, “We’ll take a few thousand jobs if it means that our kids are potentially drinking water that would damage their health …”
Getting the President to step up and own this decision is an important victory that would not be possible without your hard work. We’ve come a long way from a few dozen people sitting in on the hot August concrete outside the White House.
Of course, the fight continues: the President has said that this is his decision, which means we need to make sure he stands up to the pressure from big oil and rejects the pipeline. Now that we know the President is paying attention, it’s important to speak loud and clear.
Can you send an email to President Obama to thank him for stepping up, and to let him know that we expect nothing less than for him to reject Keystone XL? Click here to send an email.
2. Petition our Dem Leaders
Tell Harry Reid and the Democratic senators on the Super Committee: Absolutely no cuts to Medicare, Medicaid or Social Security benefits
3. Convince the President
No immunity without investigation
Facebook Twitter Email
In America right now, small crimes get punished, but big crimes--committed against the whole country by the 1%--get free passes and bailouts.
Federal and state negotiators—including top members of the Obama administration—are days away from striking a bad deal that would let the banks off the hook for illegally foreclosing on millions of homeowners.
The only way to stop it is to convince the president that millions of Americans want to see a full, fair investigation before anyone gets immunity. Add your name and we'll deliver it to the White House.
A compiled petition with your individual comment will be presented to President Obama.
Some will say that Occupy Wall Street is above elections and parties, and that is its value. Others see an eventual role for the movement in electoral politics. We shall see what evolves.
The hard part for the movement just now is to keep up the pressure through the winter and up to the election, imo.
If you have not yet done so, please consider joining your local Occupy Wall Street actions.
Occupy Everywhere, Occupy Together
Namaste.
5:03 PM PT: Thanks, Mr. President
Tar Sands Action Responds To Obama's Keystone Pipeline Comments
Tar Sands Action is known for its August sit-in in front of the White House that resulted in the arrest of over 1200 Americans.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/... ...
Update 2: Please consider taking action to push President on the foreclosure deal. See FP diary up now:
Sweetheart deal on bank fraud would give Obama 'zero credibility' to run against Wall Street+*
8:04 PM PT: From the comments:
If anyone thinks she won't peel off votes from (1+ / 0-)
Pres. Obama, they would be wrong.
A lot of dems are cynics now and are in a real mood about some upcoming potentially disastrous decisions before Obama.
Just because someone is registered dem does not mean they will stick with the party in the 2012 election. There are a LOT of things that can happen between now and 367 days from now.
But it does concern me and it should concern the pres. WE know full well--as does the pres--that the energy isn't there like it was in 2008 and neither is the public money.
It's a whole different game this time.
I will stand as a dem even if I have to hold my nose to do so, but my God, alternatives are tempting at times. But I will not leave my party. I will work to drag it leftward from the precipice.