Tell them:
"I want Chairman Brewer to opt-out of the 15 January beauty contest
and go to a DNC-sanctioned primary where candidates will campaign, Michigan
Democrats can vote for who they want to vote for, and our votes can actually
choose delegates to the National Convention. Please tell him and the
entire Executive Committee that I want to vote for who I want to vote for, I
want to vote for actual delegates, I want to have an election where the
candidates actually campaign here so Michigan's issues can be heard, I want a
9 February caucus."
If that is too long, just say:
"I'm against the 15 January primary/beauty contest. I'm for a 9
February caucus with all the candidates. Please tell Chairman Brewer and
the Executive Committee. Thanks, bye."
CALL RIGHT NOW! It'll only take 30 seconds and it will
protect your right to vote in a meaningful primary.
I've talked with the powers that be and John Edwards Wants To Campaign In and
Win Michigan.
If you want John to be President, you need to call the MDP NOW (it'll just take
30 seconds -- don't put it off any longer).
If you wish to email: midemparty@michigandems.com
Hi, my name is _____________ and I (live in _______________. I am writing
this email because I am concerned that I will not be able to vote for my
candidate of choice in the 2008 Michigan Primary, currently scheduled for
January 15, 2008. Many Democratic voters of Michigan are not being given the
choice to vote for the candidate they prefer in this very important nominating
process. Due to this, we are feeling disenfranchised.
A February 9th caucus not only conforms with the rules set forth by the
Democratic National Committee, it will allow Michigan?s issues to be
confronted by all of the candidates and will give all of the citizens of
Michigan a fair say in selecting the next Democratic presidential nominee. For
a democracy to work, all citizens must be included.
I am hoping that the Michigan Democratic Party will see the importance of a
ballot comprised of all of the candidates and reinstate our caucus for
February 9, 2008.
Sincerely,
Name
Phone Number
Email address
But, a quick phone call to the MDP is better: (517) 371-5410
You can also go out in front of the building and demonstrate.
The MDP Headquarters
606 Townsend, Lansing, MI 48933 (map)
My favorite homemade signs:
No to the 15 January Beauty Contest!
Don't Play Around with My Right to Vote
Follow the Rules -- 9 February Caucus!
We Want a Real Election, Not a Fake Coronation
Yes to a 9 February DNC-Sanctioned Caucus
I Want to Vote for Who I Want to Vote
Here's more information on the Primary/Caucus Issue:
The Legal Remedy
Mark Brewer can simply "opt-out" of the 15 January
"primary" and take us back to a caucus on a DNC-sanctioned date:'
According to the Michigan Election Law
168.613a (2) Not later than 4 p.m. on November 14, 2007, the chairperson of
each participating political party shall notify the secretary of state if his
or her political party will be using a method other than the results of the
January 15, 2008 presidential primary to select delegates to his or her
respective national convention to nominate a candidate for president of the
United States in 2008.
Please, Chairman Brewer, take the reins and save our beloved Michigan
Democratic Party, allow Michigan Democrats to vote for who they want.
Allow Michigan Democrats the ability to choose real delegates. Don't allow
the farce which will have terrible consequences for our Party -- disgruntled
activists, angry and confused voters, and Republicans who can say national
Democrats don't care about Michigan.
The Anti-15 January Coronation Movement Is Growing
In the State Capital
Two weeks ago State Representative Martin
Griffin (D-Jackson, District 64) but
forward a bill -- House
Bill 5353 -- in the Michigan House to scrap the 15 January
"primary."
Mlive's
report of the Griffin bill:
State Rep. Martin Griffin, D-Jackson, is pushing legislation that would
effectively cancel the state's 2008 presidential primary.
He says the state can't afford a $10 million primary that no longer makes
Michigan relevant in the Democratic process. ...
"In these tough economic times, taxpayers can ill afford to bear the cost
of a presidential primary," he said. "The benefit to holding the
primary is lost."
Griffin's bill has been co-sponsored by out of 58 Democrats as co-sponsors as
of 25 October.
Marc Corriveau (D-20, Wayne County)
Barb Byrum (D-67, Ingham County)
Mary Valentine (D-91, Muskegon County)
Kate Ebli (D-56, Monroe County)
Ed Clemente (D-14, WayneCounty)
Terry Brown (D-48, Huron and Tuscola Counties)
Mark Meadows (D-69, Ingham County)
Paul Condino (D-35, Oakland County)
Steven Lindberg (D-109, Alger, Luce and Marquette Counties)
Marie Donigan (D-26, Oakland County)
Mike Simpson (D-65, Eaton, Jackson and Lenawee Counties)
Bert Johnson (D-5, Wayne County)
Coleman Young Jr. (D-4, Wayne County)
Richard LeBlanc (D-18, Wayne County)
Doug Bennett (D-92, Muskegon County)
Fred Miller (D-31, Macomb County)
Steve Tobocman (D-12, Wayne County)
Robert Dean (D-75, Kent County)
In the Counties
Several County Democratic Parties have passed resolutions against the 15
January Primary, those include key Democratic counties like Kent (Grand Rapids),
Macomb and Washtenaw (Ann Arbor):
Kent County Democratic Party
Resolved: The Kent County Democratic Party believes that a 15 January
primary that chooses no National Convention delegates and gives Michigan
voters a very limited choice from the Democratic presidential field is not in
the interest of Michigan or the Michigan Democratic Party.
Therefore, the Kent County Democratic Party strongly encourages the
Michigan Democratic Party and its Chair Mark Brewer to opt out of the 15
January primary and return to a DNC-sanctioned Caucus on or after 5 February
2008.
Washtenaw County Democratic Party
We applaud the efforts of our state Democratic leaders, particularly Debbie
Dingell, Sen. Levin, and Gov. Granholm, to seek more balanced and
representative participation by all states in the process of primaries and
selection of the Democratic Party's candidate for president. However, in
view of the limited number of choices now to be available to voters on the
proposed January 15 Democratic primary ballot, and unless all eligible
candidates can be put on the January 15th primary ballot, and because of
our commitment to an equal-opportunity democratic process, we the officers'
board of the Washtenaw Democratic Party wish to inform MDP Chair Mark
Brewer, the MDP executive committee, and the other party leaders of our strong
support for a return to the use of caucuses, either on February 9 or on one of
the earlier dates (December 8, 2007; December 15, 2007; January 5, 2008,
or January 12, 2008) previously listed by Party leaders to challenge any move
by New Hampshire to schedule its primary earlier than January 22, 2008.
Further, we will communicate to all county Democratic chairs and Congressional
district chairs throughout Michigan, urging them to express support for this
resolution.
I don't have a copy of the Macomb resolution. I've heard of resolutions
passed at the 10th and 12th District Parties, but haven't seen them. I've
heard of other resolutions, but haven't seen them, if you know of any, add them
to the list. I know similar resolutions failed in Ingham and Kalamazoo,
but due to "let the leadership decide" arguments rather than support
for the 15 January "primary." I know of no resolutions passed by
county parties supporting the 15 January "primary."
A History Lesson
My friend greee,
has written an excellent, point by point history and legal study of the Michigan
primary debates:
1. The 2004 Democratic National Convention passed a resolution calling
for the creation of the Commission on Presidential Nomination and Scheduling.
This Resolution was co-sponsored by Senator Carl Levin and Michigan Democratic
National Committeewoman Debbie Dingell.
2. The Commission was tasked with the responsibility of studying the
timing of Democratic presidential primaries and caucuses and developing
appropriate recommendations for the 2008 nominating cycle.
3. The Commission began work in March of 2005. It held five
hearings on this matter, and received significant input from various state
parties.
4. In its Executive Summary, the Commission acknowledged that one of
its purposes was to address the role played by Iowa and New Hampshire in the
process of selecting the Democratic Part's nominee for President. The
report acknowledged the "valuable" roles played by Iowa and New
Hampshire in the nomination process. In particular, the Commission
identified the as positive "the personal engagement and involvement of the
voters who participate in these contests."
5. The Commission recognized the existence of reform efforts "over
the last three decades" that have attempted to broaden participation in the
delegate selection process."
6. The Commission report also related the concern of various state
parties that expressed "significant concerns" about the
"disproportionate influence" of the Iowa and New Hampshire nominating
caucus and primary. One of the states expressing such concern was
Michigan.
7. One of the stated goals of the Commission was a reaffirmation of the
Democratic Party's commitment to a nominating process that [would] produce the
best and strongest candidate as a nominee for the office of President of the
United States.
8. One of the stated goals of the Commission was to receive and
consider a broad input on the process of selecting a Democratic nominee from a
wide range of interested and knowledgeable individuals and organizations.
9. To this end, the Commission met with 31 individuals including
Senator Carl Levin and Michigan Democratic National Committeewoman Debbie
Dingell. Also, the Commission took written testimony from an additional 14
individuals or organizations well familiar with the presidential primary
process.
10. The Commission also noted the more current involvement of Michigan
in the efforts to reform the nomination process:
"When the DNC adopted its 2004 Delegate Selection Rules in January 2002,
Michigan Democratic leaders voiced their opposition, as they had in the past, to
the exceptions provided in the rules for Iowa and New Hampshire. Later in 2003,
the Michigan State Party indicated that it was its intention to submit a
delegate selection plan that scheduled its contest for the same day as the New
Hampshire primary. This proposed action engendered a not unexpected reaction
from Iowa and New Hampshire and generated intense media attention. Ultimately,
following serious discussions between the DNC and Democratic leaders in
Michigan, Michigan agreed to hold its 2004 contest inside the window. For its
part, the DNC agreed to form a commission to review the rules and make
recommendations with respect to the 2008 calendar. Accordingly, then DNC
Chairman McAuliffe, Senator Levin, and Ms. Dingell jointly co-sponsored a
resolution adopted by the 2004 Democratic National Convention on July 25, 2004
establishing a "Commission on Presidential Nomination Timing and
Scheduling."
11. Senator Levin and Debbie Dingell appeared at the May 14, 2005
meeting of the Commission held in Chicago, Illinois. According to the
Commission report:
"The comments by the Party leaders from Michigan centered on what they
described as the dominating role and privileged position of Iowa and New
Hampshire at the start of the nominating process. The leaders asserted that
these early contests have a disproportionate impact on the nominating process
rendering contests in later states less meaningful or altogether irrelevant.
They suggested that the retail politics espoused by Iowa and New Hampshire can
be duplicated in other states. It was suggested that both states are able to
keep their coveted status based on a strategy of commitments and pledges that
the states have exerted on past potential presidential candidates. The actions
by other states to move their contests closer to those held in Iowa and New
Hampshire suggest that voters in other states are anxious to also have their
issues addressed and their voices heard. The Michigan presenters stated that
ending the Iowa and New Hampshire exemptions would allow the Party to fulfill
its promise and commitment to treat voters and states equally, and would prevent
any state from having and exerting a disproportionate influence over the
process."
12. In its written report, the Commission states:
"The rules that govern this process are not abstractions unrelated to
broader goals. Rather, they are designed, if somewhat imperfectly, to help
ensure that the Democratic Party selects its nominees through a fair, open,
inclusive and representative process."
13. In its written report, the Commission stated its concern about the
negative impact of "front loading" the nomination process.
14. As a part of Findings and Recommendations, the Commission
recommended that there be one or two first-tier caucuses between the Iowa caucus
and the New Hampshire primary.
15. The recommendation of the Commission was adopted by the Rules and
Bylaws Committee and incorporated into the Delegate Selection Rules (hereinafter
"DSR") for the 2008 Democratic National Convention.
16. On April 14, 2006 Michigan Democratic Party Chairman Mark Brewer
submitted an application for a "pre-window" caucus slot.
However, this application was rejected. Instead, two
"pre-window" slots were awarded to Nevada and South Carolina.
In other words, Michigan democrats Levin and Dingell sponsored a process,
participated in the process, but did not like the results. So they are
taking there toys and going to play elsewhere.
For other diaries on the topic:
David Boyle's passionate MDP
*CLOSED-TO-PUBLIC* meeting on 11/7; demand a Feb. caucus & enfranchisement
(FURTHER updated)
My earlier: On
the Primary Crisis: What's Next, ,
sndowty's Washtenaw Dems Resolution on Jan. 15th Primary
Tom Koller's insightful The Sky is Not Falling (yet)
As David said in his diary:
It's YOUR Party. Do you want your vote to count, and the right to vote for
all the 2008 candidates; or do you want some "beauty contest" that
even Hillary said doesn't matter, and with most of the major candidates
absent?
Your Party, your choice.
Let your voice be heard!!
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