Dean's DNC Iraq strategy not consensus position
Wed Nov 30, 2005 at 10:50:02 PM PDT
How can Howard Dean say that Democrats can coalesce around Korb and Katulis' vision of strategic redeployment of troops? And why not around Murtha's resolution instead? In
Howard Dean's letter to democrats today, he states:
We all agree that 2006 must be a transition year in Iraq. While we may have different ideas about tactics and timing, it's clear we must change course. The vision of strategic redeployment set forward by Brian Katulis and former Reagan Defense Department official Lawrence Korb offers a likely roadmap to success that we can coalesce around.
Katulis and Korb outline their Iraq redeployment strategy in this article. Their strategy shares some similarities with what Feingold talked about today in terms of transitioning from a goal-less fight in Iraq to fighting Al Queda in a global war, and shares some similarities with Murtha's resolution.
Sex & Democratic Family Values - I'm glad Obama Spoke Out
Fri Nov 11, 2005 at 08:27:51 AM PDT
While this may not be popular with some on DailyKos, I hope you'll read this whole diary and think about it. I am glad that
Barack Obama spoke out this week for family values on TV shows.
I have no problem with adults viewing sexual content on TV. I'm an adult and I like to watch it and so does every adult I know. But, I am very concerned about frequent casual sex being marketed to young teens. I am very concerned about sexual violence portrayed in a positive light on TV. I am very concerned about sex being presented repeatedly to young teens without accompanying health info. Combine that with the recent prevalence of abstinence education in an increasing percentage of our schools, and we're going to have some very confused and ignorant teens in this country.
CA Special Election Price Tag: > $300 million
Tue Nov 08, 2005 at 11:32:04 PM PDT
The total cost of Arnold's California special election may top $300 million, according to this
article. Gov. Schwarzenegger and his California Recovery Team have spent nearly $32.5 million, per the latest filings online, while the state teachers union has kicked in $55 million.
According to another article, total spending by "yes" and "no" campaigns is estimated at $220 million. Unions in California spent $100 million to defeat these initiatives.
I'm not sure if these numbers include the costs to each of the California counties for holding the special election.
Imagine something positive that could have been accomplished in California with $300 million . . .
For Dean's To Do List - Electing Precinct Leaders in 50 States, Resurrecting Dem Meetups by Precinct
Sat Feb 12, 2005 at 12:14:29 PM PDT
I'd like to propose some specific ideas for structuring local grassroots organizing for Dean's to do list, and please share your ideas, too, in the comments. Today, I'd also like to make a public apology to the world for my tiny role in Dean's fateful speech in Iowa (that's also in the comments below).
Here's one key item for Dean's to do list:
Every precinct in the country should have a Democratic precinct leader, and maybe elected precinct leaders. I also think the Party needs to develop a more effective structure for local gatherings (e.g., Meetups, grassroots house parties, precinct meetings) that allows for 2-way communication and strong GOTV.
New Totals of Public DNC Votes: Can 1 Anti-Dean Candidate Emerge?
Mon Jan 31, 2005 at 10:33:38 AM PDT
According to
MyDD's latest update, here are the total endorsements made publicly by voting DNC members:
Dean 49
Frost 15
Webb 10
Fowler 9
Roemer 4
Rosenberg 4
Leland 2
Will anti-Dean folks coalesce behind one of these guys? Frost's endorsements came earlier and seem to have slowed down, as people became concerned about or lukewarm to him. His performance in NY this weekend was roundly denounced as defensive and angry. Could Webb pick up more momentum? ASDC was supposed to be friendly to Webb, but he registered less than a handful of votes. Fowler got some momentum from the Executive Committee of the ASDC's recommendation of an endorsement (and the media's excited and misleading coverage of Fowler gaining on Dean), but then the full ASDC rejected that.
According to MyDD and others, Labor is expected to make an endorsement early this week. If it's Dean, it will really be hard for someone else to emerge as an anti-Dean with any steam.
[Humor Poll]: U.S. "loses" $9 Billion in Iraq funds
Mon Jan 31, 2005 at 12:46:27 AM PDT
I hate it when I lose $9 Billion and can't find it. I could have sworn it was right where I left it. Guess I better ask for some more to make up for it.
This does not inspire me to support the President's request for an additional $80 Billion for Iraq. How about you? Geesh.
The GOP lost the claim for the Party of Fiscal Responsibility some years ago, but it's just getting worse and worse.
Thank Ickes for endorsing Dean with contrib to HILLPAC
Sat Jan 29, 2005 at 12:44:28 PM PDT
This posting by Jerome at MyDD -- and the comments below Jerome's posting -- includes some interesting analysis of the DNC Chair race, where the Clintons stand on it, and more. For example, Jerome writes in the comments that Ickes' endorsement suggests that both the Clintons and Ickes think Dean becoming DNC Chair is inevitable and there's no point in fighting it.
And, here's an action idea forwarded from Molly Kurland:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Harold Ickes, former heavyweight in the Clinton administration and current chair of Sen. Clinton's PAC, has endorsed Howard for the DNC chairmanship. This had to have taken some guts because neither of the Clintons have taken a public position on the issue. Please consider sending a note to Ickes to thank him with a donation to: HILLPAC, 1717 K St., NW, Suite 3098, Washington, DC 20036.
Even a small donation, if we all sent one, would drive our message home. Please pass this message on.
Thanks,
Molly
$20.06 to DNC for 2006 IF Dean is elected Chair
Thu Jan 27, 2005 at 09:55:05 PM PDT
Eric Friedman was a Kerry delegate to the national Convention in Boston last summer. He heard Howard Dean speak a few times while there. He is now supporting Dean for DNC Chair. He suggests the following way of getting the DNC's attention.
--------------
Would you be interested in trying to help kickstart the following idea to get Dean elected as Party Chair? My mom, Celeste, and I came up with this two nights ago and are trying to get the word out. I thought you may be interested in trying to get a grass roots movement going and would consider sending it out to your email lists. Basically the idea is to pledge to the DNC a check for $20.06 towards 2006 if they elect Howard Dean as our Chair.
Regardless of this past election, Howard Dean is the best thing to happen to our Party in years and deserves a chance to bring us back to being Democrats, the party that puts People First. Please read the following letter (below the fold) and feel free to forward it or extrapolate it if you agree with its premise.
Bayh votes "no" on Rice - what's up with Bayh?
Wed Jan 26, 2005 at 10:41:26 AM PDT
I've never followed Evan Bayh very closely, but I had the impression he was a DLC member and a Democratic hawk. Please correct me if I'm wrong.
Today he voted "no" on Rice's confirmation. This article suggests that he's voting a bit differently than in his past because he may want the Dem nomination in '08.
This Indiana news article mentions that he opposed Rice because of the Administration's handling of Iraq, and didn't say he opposed going to war in general. So maybe there's no inconsistency with his earlier views or philosophy. Any thoughts on this development?
Is Dean a Poor Manager? No. And, the DNC is not an Insurgent Campaign.
Thu Dec 09, 2004 at 03:33:22 PM PDT
David Corn, the Washington editor of The Nation magazine,
writes that a Dean campaign insider told him:
The party chairman has to be organized and know how to manage a large organization, he explained, and that is not Dean. He noted that Dean did a poor job of running his own campaign. (This person had been supportive of Dean.) "If you can't manage a presidential campaign, that's a good indication you are not ready to be president," he said.
Having made hiring decisions and thought about management issues, I think it's best to hire someone with successful management experience relevant to the job position. So, here's my assessment of Dean's management skills (based on various reports from insiders and outsiders) and what might be ideal management skills for the DNC Chair position.
Latke King rejects Schwarzenegger appointment
Wed Dec 08, 2004 at 12:22:29 PM PDT
Here's a funny, but true, Hanukah story that took place today.
I grew up in West Los Angeles and a neighbor on my block fried the best latkes I've ever eaten. The neighbor is a well-respected businessman. His family held a party that lasted all eight days of Hanukah and people from all over West L.A. and the greater L.A. County would stop by during the eight days to eat his latkes and mingle with the other party guests. Parking on our street that week was always horrendous, but it was worth it for these great latkes. My neighbor always wore an apron that said "Latke King" and the latkes never made it onto the serving table. People would grab them off the tray as he carried them from the frying pan to the table.
I happened to talk to him this morning. He told me that the Governor's office called him to offer that they would fly him to Sacramento to teach the Governor's chef how to make latkes for a party he's hosting tonight.
Glimpse inside Kerry campaign: no grassroots, reliance on 527s, fear of "moles"
Sun Nov 21, 2004 at 05:35:51 PM PDT
Promoted from the diaries. This, along with the excellent comments, is one of the best things I've ever read on dKos. I'd been thinking for some time about writing a piece on the danger of relying on 527s -- but Susan covered a good bit of what I'd hoped to address. --Trapper.
In mid-February two top employees of the Kerry campaign were calling me daily for a week interested in what I had learned as a grassroots organizer for Dean, and were considering hiring me.
Today's
NYT Magazine article by Matt Bai "Who Lost Ohio?" suggests some lessons learned by Dean grassroots organizers could have been crucial, but the Kerry campaign turned a deaf ear. The article also confirms a fear I wrote about on Kos in late February that
relying on 527s could be dangerous.
Fleet Center in Boston wasn't really secure despite huge security presence - Day 5 Posting 1
Mon Aug 02, 2004 at 10:36:03 AM PDT
Day 5 Posting 1 - Fleet Center security, unusually friendly cops, "trust fund baby" protesters, and GOP convention planning
This series of postings will describe my journey to the Democratic National Convention in Boston with media credentials and access to the main floor of the Fleet Center. Past postings are here:
Day 0 Posting 1 - Blogging: Journalism or Activism or Both?
Day 1 Posting 1 - Arriving in Boston: Saturated Air & U.S. Topography
Day 2 Posting 1 - Clinton a No-Show at Rock the Vote, Disappointed Grassroots Young Dems
Day 2 Posting 2 - a not-so-typical day for delegates and others
Day 3 Posting 1 - Teresa, Hillary, bloggers, and 5000 other "revolutionaries"
Day 3 Posting 2 - Altered Perspectives of Bloggers and Media - The Physical Logistics
Day 4 Posting 1 - Obama 10 years ago, Wesley Clark's amazing handshake, Fox's Gray Davis fixation, Orthodox Jews and Transgendered for Kerry, Bill O'Reilly's Self-Love Factor, John Cusack's obligatory "hi", and other crazy tales
Most people who work in security know that you can never provide 100% security. I sure saw that in Boston. Despite an estimated $50 million spent building barricades, erecting wire walls and alleyways, hiring military and security officers from all over the country, installing screening machines that checked all bags, training sniffing dogs, implementing metal detectors for each person entering, and frisking each person entering the Fleet Center, I still heard about people having no trouble sneaking in...
Obama 10 years ago, Wesley Clark's amazing handshake, Fox's Gray Davis fixation - Day 4 Posting 1
Sun Aug 01, 2004 at 03:10:39 PM PDT
Altered Perspectives of Bloggers and Media - The Physical Logistics - Day 3 Posting 2
Wed Jul 28, 2004 at 11:28:32 AM PDT
This series of postings will describe my journey to the Democratic National Convention in Boston with media credentials and a seat in the press area of the Fleet Center. Past postings are here:
Day 0 Posting 1 - Blogging: Journalism or Activism or Both?
Day 1 Posting 1 - Arriving in Boston: Saturated Air & U.S. Topography
Day 2 Posting 1 - Clinton a No-Show at Rock the Vote, Disappointed Grassroots Young Dems
Day 2 Posting 2 - a not-so-typical day for delegates and others
Day 3 Posting 1 - Teresa, Hillary, bloggers, and 5000 other "revolutionaries"
I'm writing this posting Tuesday at 11:30 pm from the Media Pavillion, a two-story tent adjacent to the Fleet Center built for members of the writing press. Each news outlet has its own area separated by curtains within the Pavillion complete with nice chairs, long tables, cables to hook up computers, Chinese food, water bottles, and various forms of caffeine. When the Convention takes place each evening, the writing press members watch the Convention on TV sets in the Pavillion. I noticed that the New York Times watches C-SPAN, probably for its unedited direct coverage. Some other outlets watched CNN, which is more pundit-coverage than speech-coverage. Could that lead to press group-think? Even more interesting...
Boston: Teresa, Hillary, bloggers, and 5000 other "revolutionaries" - Day 3 Posting 1
Wed Jul 28, 2004 at 11:07:18 AM PDT
A not-so typical day for delegates and others - Day 2 Posting 2
Mon Jul 26, 2004 at 12:17:54 PM PDT
Clinton a No-Show at Rock the Vote, Disappointed Grassroots Young Dems - Day 2 Posting 1
Mon Jul 26, 2004 at 10:30:16 AM PDT
