Heading to Denver

by: rich

Sat Aug 23, 2008 at 22:56:08 PM EDT

Tomorrow afternoon I leave via airplane for Denver to cover the Democratic Party's presidential convention. Woo-hoo! I might post something tomorrow night, but that depends on Internet access. i don't expect to have anything up until Monday.

Meanwhile, as some of you might have noticed, there's a box on the right titled "Rootswire." That's an aggregate blog for a bunch of us bloggers covering the convention. Click on the box or you can go here to read posts by a whole bunch of different blogs. It'll give you a chance to see what some excellent bloggers from around the country are saying and doing.

Here's a list of the contributors. There will plenty of coverage in the blogosphere of this convention.

Speaking of the blogosphere...Thanks to the good people at SquareState.net, I'll be staying with one of their bloggers, Frankenoid. I'm grateful for her hospitality and I'm looking forward to meeting her and her family, having already met Squarestate's johne at the NOI bloggers' Summit back in March.

Now, all I have to do is navigate the TSA's various restrictions on what I can carry...

Arrived in Denver for the DNC!

by: NTriplett

Sat Aug 23, 2008 at 18:59:56 PM EDT

Well, after months of anticipation I arrived in Denver this afternoon for the Democratic National Convention.  I'm going to do my best to blog short updates about what is going on here at the Convention over the next several days.  

I'll confess that I'm already pretty tired and am going to need to do some recharging tonight.  As many of you may know, this past week was Welcome Week at Michigan State University.  This is a busy and important time for the East Lansing community.  In addition to One Book One Community and other welcome events, I decided to do a ride-along with the East Lansing Police Department on Friday night.  It was a powerful learning experience that I'll need to write about some other time.  Suffice to say that I was impressed with the professionalism of the men and women I spent the shift with.  The problem is that I was so impressed, rather than end my ride along at midnight as I had planned, I stayed until 6:00 a.m.  Needless the say that left me packing for Denver frantically at six, in order to get out the door by 8:30 a.m. and to Detroit to catch my flight by noon.  It's been a long journey, but I'm thrilled to be here now.

Stayed tuned for future Convention updates!

Nathan Triplett 

Rocky Mountain High/Way, Or Things I'll Be Doing in Denver

by: rich

Mon Aug 18, 2008 at 09:30:00 AM EDT

This coming Sunday I am lucky enough to be flying out to Denver to cover the Democratic Party Convention for Michigan Liberal.

There will be a lot going on in Denver. In addition to the speeches at the convention, there are symposiums, talks, speeches, protests, and parties. Yes, I’ve even been invited to a few parties by Michigan politicians. I won’t mention them by name so as not to have their reputation tainted by publicly associating with MichLib’s Resident Smart-Ass. You’re welcome.

My first goal is stay out of one of these cages in the so-called 'Gitmo On The Platte.'

Seems the jails in Denver are full, just like the hotels during convention week.

Convening a National Conversation about Democracy & America in Denver

by: Mayor John Hickenlooper-Denver Host Committee

Thu Jun 12, 2008 at 14:35:27 PM EDT

Jim Blanchard Talks Politics and Sports

by: Jack Ebling

Wed Jun 04, 2008 at 22:46:10 PM EDT

abc12.com: Michigan Democrats accept national delegate solution

by: Vox Sapiens

Mon Jun 02, 2008 at 23:28:44 PM EDT

Impressions from the Rules and Bylaws Committee Meeting

by: emptywheel

Sat May 31, 2008 at 10:43:59 AM EDT

I got a press pass to the RBC meeting and will be posting some impressions throughout the day.

The events started, for me, last night; I ended up on the same flight down as Senator Levin and Congressman and Debbie Dingell. Debbie and I talked a lot about today's meeting, the negotiations leading up to the primary and since, and what will happen as we move foward.

Debbie talked a lot about the efforts she and Gettelfinger, Kilpatrick, and Levin have made to resolve the issues--many of which haven't been reported. Likewise, I was able to share the perspectives that I've been hearing here.

Mostly, though, we talked about what we're going to do to unify the party, both in CD15 but also in the state as a whole. I think both Debbie and I are looking forward to this being over, so we can work on winning MI for whichever candidate gets the nomination. (I took a YouTube today on this theme, but I've got to go edit it before I can post.)

More impressions after the break. 

Michigan Voters in Their Own Words

by: XavierLA

Thu May 29, 2008 at 23:18:35 PM EDT

Below is a sampling of the videos submitted by Michiganders from across the state.

Fran:

Sarah (Grand Rapids):

Florine Mark:

Phil (Michigan's 8th District):

Michigan voter tells it like it is:

Pam:

Charles (Muskegon):

Michigan woman:

Janine (Ann Arbor):

Lanny Davis offers a simple, fair MI/FL compromise

by: XavierLA

Mon May 26, 2008 at 20:44:26 PM EDT

Lanny Davis layed out a compromise on the issue of Michigan and Florida in a piece on the Politico. He starts with two neutral principles which the Rules & Bylaws Committee members ought to use as a guide.

The legal principle supporting that solution is pretty simple. In U.S. contract law, the party breaching a contract usually has the right to "cure" the violation during the term of the contract. But if the other party stands in the way of that cure, the breaching party cannot be further sanctioned — and certainly, as a matter of fairness, the party preventing the cure should not stand to benefit.

DNC Chairman Howard Dean said at the time that such revotes were permissible and would bring Michigan and Florida back into compliance. And there was precedent: In 1996, Delaware Democrats held a party caucus earlier than the permissible date, resulting in a rule violation. But state Democrats were allowed to hold another caucus later on and were then found to be back in compliance.

The MI/FL Delegate issue has been resolved.

by: Brainwrap

Fri May 23, 2008 at 18:19:55 PM EDT

It;s over. Hillary just crossed a line--intentionally or not--that goes way, way beyond anything resembling acceptable behavior.

She just invoked Robert Kennedy's assassination in 1968 as one of the main justifications for her not dropping out.

If she chose her words deliberately, it was unforgivable.

If she chose her words in error, it was a gaffe of gargantuan proportions.

Either way, I don't think we need to worry about what's gonna happen on the 31st, because I think Hillary Clinton just ended her Presidential--*or* VICE-Presidential--ambitions forever today.

Clinton to Obama: "fair and quick resolution" to MI, FL needed

by: XavierLA

Thu May 08, 2008 at 15:33:18 PM EDT

In a letter addressed to Sen. Barack Obama, Sen. Hillary Clinton asks the Illinois Senator to join her in working towards a "fair and quick resolution" to the Michigan and Florida questions.  Sen. Clinton writes that simply seating the delegaitons is enough enough, and that "[t]he people of these great states, like the people who have voted and are to vote in other states, must have a voice in selecting our party's nominee." 

 One of the foremost principles of our party is that citizens be allowed to vote and that those votes be counted. That principle is not currently being applied to the nearly 2.5 million people who voted in primaries in Florida and Michigan. Whoever emerges as the Democratic nominee will be hamstrung in the general election if a fair and quick resolution is not reached that ensures that the voices of these voters are heard.  Our commitment now to this goal could be the difference between winning and losing in November.

The Obama campaign has not immediately responded to Sen. Clinton's letter.

Full text of the letter below the fold. 

Where is the outrage?

by: XavierLA

Wed Apr 30, 2008 at 18:24:28 PM EDT

I was in East Los Angeles on Super Tuesday when the non-partisan election reform organization Why Tuesday? interviewed Dolores Huerta, one of my personal heroes. Huerta, a human rights activist, community organizer, and co-founder (with Cesar E. Chavez) of the United Farm Workers, talked about the need for serious voter reform to ensure that every voice is heard in our democracy.

Dolores Huerta has spent her life fighting the good fight, empowering people of color and other marginalized groups to organize and push for change.

It was in that spirit that today hundreds of Latinos--organized by the United Latin American Citizens—protested outside of the headquarters of the Democratic National Committee in Washington, DC.

Latinos came from Orlando, Tampa, Miami, Jacksonville, and beyond to express their outrage at their disenfranchisement

“This is a civil liberties issue – not a campaign or candidate issue,” said Jose Fernandez, president of the Democratic Hispanic Caucus of Florida, speaking to the crowd… Another speaker was Anita de Palma, 66, of Clearwater, Fla. She is a past Florida director of the League of United Latin American Citizens… “This is our heritage!” said de Palma, referring to the right to vote and have that vote count. “Our forefathers fought for it, our father’s fought for it, and I’ll be damned if we are going to let it get away from us now!”

And she’s right.

Julian Bond, the chairman of the NAACP, has said that this selective disenfranchisement could remind voters of America’s “sordid history of racially discriminatory primaries."

And it does.

The overriding consensus on MichiganLiberal is to tell the 2 million voters who voted in Michigan and Florida "tough luck," and to blame the MI and FL party leadership.

"Tough luck" is what African-Americans were told when they failed literacy tests.

"Tough luck" is what African-Americans were told when they weren't able to pass the "grandfather tests" in the days before the Voting Rights Act.

"Tough luck" is what my grandparents were told when they tried to buy a house, only to discover there was a "whites only" clause in the deed.

"Tough luck" is what my mother and her black neighbors were told when they wanted to swim in the Los Angeles city pool on "whites only" days.

And "tough luck" is what people of color hear time and time again when whites overlook us for the job, promition, or recognition we've earned.

A few weeks back, I posted about a rally a grasroots "activist" organized in Lansing to raise awareness about the disenfranchisement of Michigan's voters. I also posted about some Michigan and Florida union workers who protested at DNC headquarters.

And although proud of both efforts, the question that lingers in the back of my mind (and in the minds of many of the other people of color I talk to) is why are  the rest of our brothers and sisters in the Michigan Democratic Party remaining silent when the votes of hundreds of thousands of are hanging in the balance? We ask ourselves, "Where is their outrage?"

AP: Saturday "could get raucus"

by: XavierLA

Wed Apr 16, 2008 at 19:05:09 PM EDT

I thought this was a pretty entertaining part of this afternoon's Associated Press story on this Saturday's congressional district meetings:

The 15 congressional district meetings could get raucous. Obama, former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards and two other candidates pulled their names from the ballot, forcing their supporters to vote for Uncommitted.

About 450 people have registered to run for the 36 delegate and 2 alternate spots set aside for those who backed Uncommitted. Brewer says the vast majority are Obama supporters, but he expects the competition to win a spot will be intense.

"People feel very passionately about their candidates, and I expect we're going to see a lot of passionate campaigns on Saturday," he said.

About 450 people also applied to run for 47 delegate and 13 alternate spots that will go to Clinton supporters, but the Clinton campaign has reduced the list to around 150 people, Brewer said.

About 21,000 party members are eligible to vote at Saturday's district conventions.

Its especially encouraging for me, a Hillary Clinton supporter, to see that, despite not having any formal organization in the state (like Michiganders for Obama), there was a fairly equal number of applicants for spots for "Uncommitted" and Hillary Clinton.

I can't help but to assume that the Obama campaign will benefit from its geographical closeness this Saturday.  From what I hear from my Obama-supporting friends in Grand Rapids, the competition could be described as "intense."

I know in California, the Obama campaign slashed over half of his delegates to the congressional district conventions, until public pressure (and a fierce reaction from the netroots) caused Axelrod & Plouffe to reverse their decision at the last minute.  There was a lot of speculation about whether the Obama campaign made a coordinated effort to eliminate anti-war activists and members of the netroots as a way of controlling the tone of the meetings.  But others have contended that it was less of an effort to cut bloggers and hardcore activists, and more of a way for the Obama campaign to ensure that its big donors were rewarded with a spot at the convention.

We'll see how this Saturday turns out, any predictions?

I know that I plan to be watching this all unfold at Creston High School in Grand Rapids. 

Michigan, Let Your Voice Be Heard Rally, Thurs. 4/17 in Lansing

by: XavierLA

Wed Apr 16, 2008 at 14:20:03 PM EDT

Earlier this week I was contacted by a woman who introduced herself by saying she had never done anything "activist" before, but after hearing about a protest of the DNC in Florida, had decided to organize one here in Michigan.  I'm pasting the flyer for the event below:

Our votes cannot be ignored. We will not be disenfranchised. The DNC’s refusal to count our votes and seat our delegates according to the ballots cast on January 15 compromises our civil liberties and our voting rights. This decision affects the rights of ALL Michigan residents regardless of political affiliation. 

Michigan, let your voice be heard.

Join together in a grassroots effort to ensure voting privileges and protect the right to vote for future generations.

• Demand that our votes be counted and delegates seated based on the Jan. 15 poll results or that a new Michigan primary take place.
• Demand that the DNC’s Rules and Bylaws Committee take the necessary steps to ensure the voices of the people of Michigan are heard and its delegates are seated at the Democratic convention this summer.

When: Thursday, April 17, 2008

Time: 12:00 PM

Michigan matters!

Preserve Democracy.

Our votes cannot be ignored!

For more information go to http://www.hillaryclinton.com/actioncenter/event/view/?id=11862

click on Events, or contact Buffysmomplus3@Gmail.com

Walk the Line

by: kelster

Mon Apr 14, 2008 at 14:33:35 PM EDT

Over at The Politico (via Huffington Post):

Ben Smith is reporting that 50-60 union members from MI & FL are picketing the DNC.

http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/0408/A_DNC_picket_line.html

MI, FL Union Workers Picket DNC HQ

by: XavierLA

Mon Apr 14, 2008 at 14:15:03 PM EDT

According to The Politico's Ben Smith, there are 50-60 Michigan and Florida union members picketing at the DNC headquarters.

They're complaining that the DNC's refusal to seat Florida and Michigan delagates will prevent dozens of union members who are delegates from attending the convention, and they want DNC Chairman Howard Dean to resolve the dispute.

Mike Williams, a Florida union member, compared the DNC's refusal to seat the delegates from those two states as similar to when a comoany locks outs striking union employees.

"We're getting locked out," said Williams as he and the other union members pickteted the DNC. Williams estimated that as many as a dozen building trade union members, and 30 union members overall, would be part of the Florida contingent to the Democratic convention 

Update: The pickets are members are of the Building and Construction Trades Council, which, to my knowledge, has not yet endorsed a presidential candidate.

MI & FL seated... on the Credentials Committee

by: memiller

Thu Apr 03, 2008 at 10:56:10 AM EDT

The Democratic National Committee said Tuesday that Florida and Michigan members will be seated on the three standing committees - including the critical Credentials Committee-at the party's 2008 national convention, a position that could affect the selection of the Democratic nominee.

Top Massachusetts Women Press for Inclusion of MI, FL Delegates

by: XavierLA

Wed Apr 02, 2008 at 16:12:07 PM EDT

This morning, prominent Democratic women from Massachusetts rallied in front of the State House, where "they threatened to withold support for the party nominee if they felt the nominating process has been bankrupted."

They called on MA superdelegates (which include Sens. Kerry and Kennedy and Governor Patrick Deval -- all three of whom have endorsed Sen. Barack Obama) to push for both a new primary in Michigan and a commitment to including the Florida delegates by seating those already elected or holding a new primary there, as well.

“Without us, there is no party. And if we leave, that wouldn’t be good,” said Senate President Therese Murray, standing at a podium in front of a staircase packed with bold-faced Democratic names. The group circulated a pledge for superdelegates to sign...

Attorney Ellen Zucker said the mechanics of campaigning would be harmed by disillusioning a major bloc of the Democratic coalition. “This is the core of the party,” she said. “These are the people who do the work. And their frustration has to be taken seriously.”

The rally took place around the same time as a meeting between Florida superdelegates and DNC Chairman Howard Dean, resulting in a joint statement, saying, in part:

We are all committed to doing everything we can to ensure that a Florida delegation is seated in Denver. We all agree that whatever the solution, it must have the support of both campaigns... We're committed to working with both campaigns to reach a solution as soon as realistically possible...

Clinton campaign Deputy Communications Director Phil Singer released the following statement in response to the DNC's statement:

We have long maintained that pretending the voters of Florida and Michigan don’t exist is not fair in principle and unwise in practice.  This morning’s Quinnipiac poll out of Florida reflects the urgent need for Democrats to get behind our effort to count Florida’s voters and seat its delegation.  Chairman Dean is clearly committed to seating the Florida delegation and we urge Senator Obama to join us in calling on the rules and bylaws committee to make this a reality. 

Singer is referring to the latest Quinnipiac poll which shows Clinton leading John McCain 44-42, while Obama trails by 9 points.  (The poll also has Hillary leading McCain in Ohio 48-39, with Obama's lead over McCain is just 1 point.)

Full news story after the jump.

EDIT: In the original version, I wasn't thinking clearly (blame it on midterms) and put "Michigan" instead of "Massachusetts." 

Clinton: Every vote should count

by: XavierLA

Thu Mar 27, 2008 at 16:01:59 PM EDT

Hillary just sent out the following message encouraging Americans to join her in calling for the voices of Michigan and Florida Democrats to be heard.

Dear Friend, 

It is a bedrock American principle: we are all equal in the voting booth. No matter where you were born or how much money you were born into, no matter the color of your skin or where you worship, your vote deserves to count.
                               
But millions of people in Florida and Michigan who went to the polls aren't being heard. The delegates they elected won't be seated at the Democratic National Convention in Denver this August -- and that's just not fair to those voters.
                               
The people of Michigan and Florida must have a voice in selecting our nominee for president. I have repeatedly called for seating their delegates.
                               
Click here to join me in showing our support for seating Florida and Michigan delegates at the convention.
                               
This is such an important principle, and I appreciate you standing up with me.
                               
                               
                                Sincerely,
                               
                               
                                Hillary Rodham Clinton
                               
 

Statement from Clinton Campaign on New Vote in Michigan

by: XavierLA

Wed Mar 26, 2008 at 16:54:41 PM EDT

Michigan will be a key battleground state in November. Disenfranchising Michigan voters today will, in the heat of a general election, provide Senator McCain with a powerful argument to use against the Democratic nominee. We cannot allow this to happen.

The people of Michigan must be counted and their voices finally heard.   What the people of Michigan need now is just action, not just words.

The Clinton campaign is calling for a new primary, because as Marc Ambinder notes, the judge's ruling does not necessarily require one.

Judge Nancy Edmonds's ruling DOES NOT order a new primary. She writes that the "the court agrees the issue of severability is beyond the scope of the claims." In other words: the parties themselves ought to figure out whether they need new primaries or not.

Full statement from Maggie Williams below the fold.