I a really fascinating blurb in today's Hotline Blog, I found a tidbit that just blew me away":

Appearing at an AFL-CIO press conference to unveil its '06 political gameplan, AFSCME President and longtime Dem political strategist Gerald McEntee admitted yesterday afternoon that "progressives learned a hard lesson" in the '04 cycle: relying on paid turnout efforts is a recipe for failure.

McEntee went on to say this:

the Dems' "stranger-to-stranger" ground game was "trounced" by the GOP's "neighbor-to-neighbor strategy."

As somebody who switched from an outside group to a paid dem staffer during the cycle, I couldnt agree more with his analysis. It seemed to me that the biggest problem the party out here faced was that they were constantly playing catchup when it came to neighborhood infrastructure. Now, of course there are exceptions. The 36th District Dems are a well oiled, albeit ideologically homogenous, machine. But go down to Tacoma or up to Everett, and the same cannot be said.

Does anyone know who else is in the race for State Party Chair besides Greg Rodriguez?

So, with Paul Berendt on his way out, there is plenty of speculation regarding who will be in line to take his place.

I just want to put out there--without really knowing who else is going to be in the candidate pool--that I heart Dwight Pelz.

Here's an idea: let's get a LIBERAL (gasp!) to lead the state Democratic Party! Dwight is a true progressive with the passion, organization, and political savvy to get our butts in gear.

We dems are in a great spot right now with all of the "Values-Lapses" by the GOP and here's an opportunity to strengthen our organization even more, and I think Dwight will help us do that.

Plus he's cuter than a bug's ear.

Just my two cents.

Okay....I have to admit that I have a bit of a Joe Biden thing. I have always liked him, and he is a bit of a family friend. I am psyched that he is going to throw his hat in the ring this time, and was on my way to his pre-prez site Unite Our States (careful, it has audio that plays when you visit). Suddenly, I stumbled accross this amazing piece of web-foolery/brilliance:

Biznass, my biznass

Beez has dropped his latest bomb for the streets: the Unite Our States PAC. (Those of you peeping our shit illegally at work should be warned that Biden is audible dropping dope lines on the front page. The shit is mad dramatic, 2Pac style, but will piss off your supervisor.)

If, unlike JBITO, you have money, you should pass the shit along to Beezy, who is going to do all types of high-minded unity-related activities with the scrill. Further, there's no doubt that some of that money will find its way into the Biden '08 war chest. Because, as important, if discredited pundits have noted in the past, all money is legal.

The beautiful people at Music for America were awesome enough to send little me to the kickoff conference of the Progressive Legislative Action Network (PLAN) so that I could give all of you lovlies the scoop!

So. What's the plan at PLAN? See, right now, progressives like you and me are totally effed when it comes to the Federal government doing anything for us-- war for oil, oil for war, lather, rinse, repeat. But state governments? Governments in a lot of states aren't totally and paralyzingly dominated by the Republican party. So PLAN is going to use their own research, and get grassroots progressive groups (like BetterDonkey!!) together, to help rebuild a progressive future... from the states up.

Want highlights? 'Cause I've got highlights:

On January 6, 1941 FDR gave a State of the Union Address where he not only gives a great bit about foreign policy we should still be using, he also discusses the need for the focus of domestic policy to center around the Four Freedoms: Freedom of speech and expression; Freedom to worship God in your own way; Freedom from want; and Freedom from fear. What a radical notion, these four things, and perhaps what a great way to provide over-arching philosophy to the various issue areas we focus on.

In reading Ben's previous post I thought about how that applies to both Freedom from Want and Freedom from Fear. If we are seriously preserving these freedoms, then we have to start with those children. We have to deal with their reality where neither home nor school nor anywhere in between is free from fear. We have to deal with their reality that neither home nor school nor anywhere in between is free from want.

As a Democrat, as a progressive I am trying to think of ways that we can move towards solutions to this problem that are politically viable.

I am very please and excited to announce that Music for America has picked Seattle as one of three cities to focus their initial grassroots efforts.

What this means is more local MFA shows in the area, help from MFA on local issues, a new burst of energy in the local political scene, and a new Seattle blog. That’s right, MFA has just started a blog for the Seattle community (http://www.musicforamerica.org/washington).

So I'm still held a wee bit speechless by yesterdays events so I decided to blow off some steam with a break of sorts. If you're feeling rather overwhelmed by yesterdays news or generally just all the crap...come on in and talk about whatever seems good to you.

Check out HoDo gabbing it up with Stewart! He looks awesome and does great. It's nice to have a Dem Leader who improves when you hear him speak!

Dean on the Daily Show.

One of the things I have been wondering about lately is the question of what it means that our party seems to be changing so much so quickly, as does the other side. I was in the bookstore yesterdayand saw Sen. Robert Byrd's book "Losing America" and was reminded how many folks think of him as the last bulwark of American liberalism and rational government. This is legitimate because he is such a towering figure in the Senate, but it is also totally backward.

In the 60's it was Byrd who called the civil rights protesters "Troublemakers" and who worked to shut down Martin Luther King. He represented the old Democrats of the South that we lost when Johnson signed the civil rights act of 65. The R's picked up a lot of those disgruntled southeners, and 40 years later have restructured their base to include them.

So, since then we have lost our status as the superpower party. The question that I wonder about: Is that really all that bad?

Sure the party is getting its butt kicked at the national level, but at the same time, aren't we kind of boiling away the fat and getting closer to what it really means to be a D? Isn't this all like a prolonged "sweatin to the olidies" kind of ordeal?

For reference, please check out: http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2005/5/23/3371/25466

I have been watching the reaction to the "compromise" on judicial nominations, and have seen a really interesting breadth of opinions. I do not want to lambast anybody for taking our D's to task and holding them to a high standard, but I have to say I feel we are at a critical moment.

For the first time I think we, as a party, are close to asking ourselves the really tough question:

"What will it take for us to offer a new message to the American people that all of the members of our family can get behind?"

Put another way:

"What does it mean to be a Democrat?"

Can you be pro-life and be a Democrat? What about anti-gay marriage? Can this party hold people who supported the war in Iraq and people who marched against it? What is the difference between a big tent and a party with no message?

Lets make one thing perfectly clear, as individual groups, no single issue group in our party can hold a candle to the evangelical church. If that is all we are, a collection of individual concerns, then we are tiny and we shrinking.

If you get a chance, go to the Pew research center's site and check out their 2005 political typography. it's really interesting. I just printed half of it for my long ass travel day tomorrow. Should be useful reading. The link:

http://typology.people-press.org/typology/

I'm gonna try something new. It's called Happy Hour. Your turn to discuss... and please discuss.

Sometimes it'll be an open thread (ala Daily Kos) and sometimes I'll lead the discussion.

This Edition: The Democratic Primary Schedule

CHICAGO — Democrats, looking to reverse their fortunes after two consecutive White House defeats, met yesterday to hear competing proposals to revamp the election calendar used to choose a presidential nominee every four years.

The three major proposals would focus on regional primaries. Two of those proposals would allow Iowa and New Hampshire to retain their leadoff roles in the candidate selection process.

A third plan, offered by Michigan Democrats, would create a rotating series of six regional primaries. A different region would launch each presidential nominating season.

Full Article here.

So I've been doing some thinking lately on Democrats and National Security. It occurs to me that everytime a Democrat has to show he's tough on security we look a little bit like Dukakis in the tank, way out of our league and a little bit stupid. I have a new idea about this though and I wonder if it would work, I'm hoping you Better Donkey's will have a thought about it.

Whenever a Democrat is asked about National Security and how seriously they take it, could the answer be, "How dare you?" How dare you question my commitment to the safety and security of this nation? How dare you insinuate I wouldn't do everything in my power to defend this nation from its enemies, either foreign or domestic? I have the utmost confidence in our professional military to communicate to me what they need and how I can help, and I am committed to making sure they have the tools they need and want to get their job done. There's not even a discussion here, I would assume my opponent takes this as seriously as I do.

I got this from Progressive Majority's web site. I thought some people might find it interesting. The course looks great, the only thing that sucks it that its $75.

Sign up now!

Progressive Majority is pleased to welcome our national partner Wellstone Action to Seattle to host a comprehensive Camp Wellstone training for activists, campaign managers and prospective candidates June 10 – June 12.

To register, click here.

Camp Wellstone is a dynamic, non-partisan program that teaches progressives how to win on issues and elect good candidates. I attended a recent Camp Wellstone in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and I must tell you that the training was comprehensive and worthwhile.

Through our partnership with Wellstone Action, Progressive Majority members receive priority registration at the 2-day training, which features distinct tracks for candidates, campaign managers, and activists. Sessions are led by grassroots organizers and political professionals, both from across the United States and from right here in Washington state.

Okay, I’ve met the guy a couple of times, I have friends who have worked at all levels in his campaigns, and before now I thought he was the perfect guy to represent Whatcom County, but what is Rick Larson doing voting to repeal the estate tax?

Is it that he simply dosen’t care about our trillion dollar deficit, our crumbling transportation infrastructure, or our failing schools? Is it that he thinks multi-millionaires need a break?

Or could it be that Rick wants to score points with people like Frank Blethen, the patriarch of the family that controls the Seattle Times, who hates the estate tax? (Speculation is that the reason the Seattle Time endorsed George Bush back in 2000 was due to Blethen's opposition to the estate tax.)

Evergreen Politics has a great interview with David Rolf, President of one of Washington State’s SEIU Locals (775). If organized labor is going to have a future, SEIU will probably lead the way. All in all, it’s well worth the read.

Alternet has an interesting article about what the Democratic party, and party activists need to be doing.

I pulled out a few excerpts below.

Currently, a dysfunctional division of labor exists between Democratic politicians and the progressive base, in which the base spends much of its energy attempting to stop Democratic politicians from selling out core progressive principles, while it is left to the politicians to reach out to those in the mushy middle.

Ideally progressives should be giving candidates cover to implement a progressive agenda by doing the reaching out and convincing themselves.

The lesson is that political parties are empty vessels. A party without a sufficiently militant base will end up standing for very little, and voters would rather vote for something than for nothing.

Examples of right-wing outreach abound, not the least of which are the numerous evangelical churches that became functionally indistinguishable from the Republican Party during the last election. Right-wing talk and Christian radio dominate the airwaves. The "pro-life" movement has created organizations like Feminists for Life and blackgenocide.org that seek to draw in those who don't initially self-identify as conservatives. Under Karl Rove's guidance, the GOP has aggressively courted Latinos through business and professional associations and African Americans through black churches.

As we meander our way to April 15th, Americans who submit to the IRS are forced to look back over the last year and take stock of their financial lives. After trying to determine whether or not that hooker you picked up when you were really depressed counts as a medical expense, you might work your way through to your charitable giving receipts. I often think of charitable giving as my symbolic effort to be a part of a losing fight. I know the $15 I gave to America's Second Harvest isn't going to cure hunger in America, it won't even make a dent, but I feel like I should do something to register my sense that hunger in America is a problem.

Lately I've started to wonder if giving to the Democratic Party isn't my most charitible act of the past year. Will my $25 a month help Democrats stand up in the face of Repubilcans? Demonstrably no. Will my $25 a month encourage the party to focus on local elections to get a deeper bench going forward? Survery says No. Will my $25 pay for my part of the keg at the next "Please George, let me take my pants off first" party in D.C.? Well yeah!

So Jeb Bush is going to run against Bill Nelson for his Senate seat in 2006. Evidence points to the fact that although Jeb isn't wildly popular in Fla, he's going to have more money than anyone has right to. The Republicans are focused on their continued take over of that state. Is this Terri Schaivo case going to backfire on him? If he can't save her, will that be what's remembered? Especially now that the line from the Schindlers is that there is more that he can do? Hardliners don't except anything but success when they think they can get it, I'm wondering if the GOP is going to find themselves burned by the fire of religious conservatives over this.