Greetings, Fans of Northern California ! Welcome to Oroville, California's Feather River Festival, "Fiesta" Parade held this Saturday, May 10, 2008.  

Charlie Brown, (ret. USAF)  Democratic candidate for Congress in CA 04,  at the Fiesta Parade during the Feather River Festival in Oroville, CA.

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Veterans Max Cleland and Charlie Brown, May 1, 2008, at a Veteran's Town Hall meeting in Sacramento

please continue below for the story and more photos

(Earlier today, dailykos poster Jerome a Paris posted a diary about his financial series "Anglo Disease - My job is done,"  http://www.dailykos.com/... in which I left a comment that several asked me to expand into a diary. This is it.)

One of the largest problems I see in our efforts to get both the politicians and the weary and cynical voters who are turned off by the entire political process is to just get them to turn loose and stop repeating the cliches they have stuck in their brains.
If you really don't like something in our society, you do have the power to change it.  You might not change it a lot, but just by thinking about changing something, or believing that something can be done, you begin that process. Then you see what works, and what doesn't, until you find a solution.
This is what engineers do. This is what scientists do.  This is what pastors and reverends and monks do. This is what plumbers do.  This is what teachers do.  This is what parents do. This is what your parents did.

And then we got to our generation, and the process suddenly seems .... impossible. Fruitless. Hopeless.  How do we change this?

Greetings from Northeastern California, where the 4th Congressional District is slowly turning blue.  On Saturday, April 26th, the Charlie Brown Campaign for Congress greeted over 60 eager volunteers that morning in Roseville, ready to get to work and let people know what a great Congressman he'll be for our district. In a Day of Action, there was precinct walking, voter registration outreach, and phone banking. And then the candidate went to Grass Valley for the Home show... and met more people. Brown is running on the Democratic ticket to replace the Incumbent.(R, Corrupt,Useless,and Not Indicted... Yet)  

It's never too early to remind people there is an alternative to the potential of 2 more years of one's  next Representative being under investigation by the FBI and the DOJ.  These are the people who are going to make it happen, it was:    

Standing Room Only at Charlie's HQ's This Saturday !

The Olympic Torch Relay, which has been met with worldwide protests everywhere since it started its journey in Greece earlier this spring, and was met with more on- site protests in France, England, and San Francisco, US, before leaving for Argentina, has finally made it to its last stop near China, before entering Australia, Japan, South and North Koreas, and Vietnam,...   then back to China finally...  which is Jakarta, Indonesia. The Indonesians are taking no chances and are tightly regulating the venue. The flame is being kept in a secret location until the "show."

For security reasons, the original 20km (15-mile) route has been cut to a few laps around the capital's main stadium.

It will be watched by 5,000 people, who had to apply for special identity cards, and 2,500 security officers.

Greetings, Gentle Readers and fans of Northern California, and Happy Start of Irrigation Season! Have you glued your pvc pipe today?

The April Quarterly FEC financial reports for candidates running to replace  the scandalized and retiring before he gets indicted John Doolittle, (R, Friend of Abramoff)  were finally showing up in the electronic retrieval bins, and I went dumpster diving.

It never fails, I finally go to post something and my slightly faster internet dial up goes pffffffffflllllltt like a flat tire. I really meant to illustrate this with cute pictures, but I'm going to try throwing the text up first and see what happens.  

Greetings, Gentle Readers and fans of one of the most pollen laden Congressional districts in the state and even the Nation, the beautiful, blooming CA- 04.

This is going to be short.  If you were thinking of donating to the Democratic Candidate with the best chance of winning in the race this fall, Charlie Brown today, March 31, is the deadline for those 1st Quarter Primary donations.  

http://www.charliebrownforcongress.com

Charlie Brown nearly beat the Republican holding the seat the last time. That guy is so scared he won't run again. Now let's finish the job and do it !  A little update on the Repubs on the flip.

"Charlie Brown supports the veterans. He's the first person I've met running for office who walks the talk"
Wendy, the Mom of a Marine daughter and veteran.

On September 8, 2007, Charlie Brown said he'd donate 5% , five percent, of his campaign donations to charities for Military Veterans.  On a lovely spring afternoon 6 months later, this past Thursday, in the courtyard of the Gathering Inn of Roseville, Democratic Candidate for Congress (and retired Lt Col USAF) Charlie Brown gave part of his campaign donations back to the community.  

Cody Conway, Marine Veteran, at the Gathering Inn, Thurs March 20, 2008  

Greetings, gentle readers. This is about Afghanistan.

Click here first:

http://www.reuters.com/...

This is our Commander In Chief, today, March 13, 2008, at the White House during a videoconference with Afghanistan Reconstruction Team Leaders and Brigade Combat Commanders

This is what he said:

"I must say, I'm a little envious," Bush said. "If I were slightly younger and not employed here, I think it would be a fantastic experience to be on the front lines of helping this young democracy succeed."

"It must be exciting for you ... in some ways romantic, in some ways, you know, confronting danger.

You're really making history, and thanks,"  

Today, Tuesday, March 4, 2008, On the south steps of the Historic Auburn Courthouse, A Republican Political Icon Announced His Candidacy for the Congressional Seat of California's 4 th District.  Ladies, Gentlemen, and Pooties, Please Meet: Ventura County's...  Tommy McDooDuck !

(edited to correct date typo 4/11/08 ARC)

Greetings, Gentle Readers of one of the most lovely Congressional districts in the country, CA- 04, accursed with one of the most scandal - encrusted representatives, the Abramoff linked Republican who wouldn't give the money back, John Doolittle. As you've heard, Doolittle is retiring in Dec of 2008, mired deeply in defense lawyer debt and polling so badly behind Democratic challenger Charlie Brown, the local Repubs are running out of area talent auditions. (criteria: anonymous person with money. Apply now. Operators are standing by.)

This diary is going to be a bit different. Nobody gets arrested or indicted. It's about California's housing market/ mortgage foreclosure meltdown.  We're going to look at the situation in two different districts.

(Huh? 4 ? Ventura?  Don't you mean 24, ARC?  Yeah. Keep reading. )

Another diary in my continuing series "The News Republicans in CA- 04 Don't Want You To Read

I promised myself to follow this one to the end.  Greetings, Gentle Readers, of one of the most beautiful congressional districts in the state of California, the lovely 4th, represented by one of Congress' most Abramoff- scandal- encrusted and lawyered- up incumbents, the retiring Republican Representative, John Doolittle.

Brent Wilkes, the convicted Defense Contractor who gave a lot of money to John Doolittle, who then gave Wilkes' company Dept. of Defense government contracts, was sentenced for bribery in the matter of ex Cong. Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham( R, Penetentiary)  to 12 years in prison on February 19.   http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmem...    Wilkes should be relieved to hear this, because the court had originally recommended a sentence of sixty years. Gulp.

So much for that "transactional lobbying" (the congressman made me do it) defense.  John Doolittle was subpoenead as a witness in that trial but successfully fought participating.  

Republican Candidate for California's 4th Congressional District Theodore Terbolizard, running to replace retiring, Abramoff scandal encrusted John Doolittle, was arrested early Sunday morning February 10 in Grass Valley on suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol. http://www.theunion.com/...

Terbolizard, who was pulled over for speeding at 1:43 am near the exit for Grass Valley's famous, historic gold tunneled Empire Mine State Park,  failed his field sobriety assessment and was arrested and taken to jail, where he took a blood test. He was released on his own recognizance later that morning.

"This will not affect my campaign other than giving me publicity," Terbolizard said Sunday afternoon.

No, It's Not the Onion. It's My Congressional District.  Please continue reading...

If you thought we didn't have media bias here in more "liberal" California, compared to say, Fox News, think again. This is what I see in the Sacramento Bee's "Capitol Alert" section   http://www.sacbee.com/... ( registration req.) this morning, so I'll copy it for you:

Doug Ose will hit the air waves next week in an advertising blitz introducing himself to 4th Congressional District voters, spokesman Doug Elmets said Tuesday.

The Sacramento Republican and former 4th Congressional District congressman announced last week that he was running for the seat being vacated by Rep. John Doolittle, whose role in the ongoing Jack Abramoff investigation is sending him into early retirement.

Now, who posted this? The SacBee's Political Editor.  And why should you care? Because Ose has never represented our CA- 04 Congressional District.  He spent 3 terms repping a different district to the south. CA- 03. Three is not Four. Was this deliberate? Absolutely.  She didn't bother to fact check Elmet's press release or verbal statement.

An Alternative title for this could be "Brown Whups Butt On Fundraising Last Quarter !"
Greetings, Gentle Readers, from California's muddiest Congressional District on Indictment Watch™ !  As you have been following along our story of the slide and fall of our retiring Republican incumbent, the Abramoff Scandal encrusted Rep. John Doolittle, you found out yesterday that there is no shortage of spare Republicans from down south and out of district, who are eyeing our Congressional seat with lust in their hearts and lumps of cash in their pockets. http://www.dailykos.com/...

The Year End Quarterly FEC Financial Report for the period of October, November, and December 2007 for John Doolittle's 2008 Campaign Donations was filed on the last day of January and has just recently come online.  It shows Rep.  Doolittle not only did not take in very much money in the last quarter, but is mired deeply in debt to a legal firm and made no payments to them during that quarter. He owes the lawyers 4 times as much as he raised last quarter. The debt totals and more below the fold:

Friday, February 1, 2008.  Republican Doug Ose, the formerly retired Representative of a different district, announced his candidacy on the steps of the Placer County, Auburn Courthouse for the CA- 04 Congressional seat being vacated by scandal- plagued John Doolittle

Greetings, Gentle Readers, fans of one of the loveliest Congressional Districts in the state, still accursed with one of our nation's most notorious Republicans, the incumbent but not running again Rep. John Doolittle.  As you may already have celebrated with us, Rep. Doolittle announced his retirement from Congress 2 weeks ago, on January 10, 2007, but we're still stuck with him until next January. This gives him plenty of time and motivation to continue to wreck havoc and mayhem upon the nation, the economy and the people while guaranteeing he draws a full retirement pension.
Of course, we're still on Indictment Watch here, because he has not been cleared in that DOJ investigation and he's still fighting those subpoenas.
It's time for a CA- 04 district update.  This will be a Presidential Candidate Free Diary.™

Greetings, Gentle Readers, from CA- 04.  Just in case you didn't hear last week, our Abramoff scandal encrusted incumbent, Representative John Doolittle, is not running for re election this November.  Because Doolittle is refusing to formally endorse another successor, this has led to much speculation as to just who the heir apparent shall be on the Republican ticket.

Now, another well known Republican name in the district, CA State Assemblymember Ted Gaines, announced Monday, 4 days later, that he's not going to run for the seat. http://auburnjournal.com/...

http://www.sacbee.com/...

Ted Gaines