If You Wanna be President:Some tips

If you wanna be president, think down the line. Be between 25-35 years old and run for City Council, preferably in a medium sized city in the Midwest, or South. Be a Democrat for sure. Run and win, then serve two terms and run for Supervisor, win. Serve two terms, run for Assembly, maybe State Senate, win. One term there and think about Congress. Run and maybe win, if not run again, it's only two terms. If you are really really popular the the sitting Congressperson is not, or there's an open seat, you might skip from steps 2 and go straight for Congress after your Supe. gig. You are now 55 or 60.

Are you good at what you do; have you proven you can raise millions, yes, millions of dollars. Does the grass roots in your state love you, and those in other states getting to know you? Are you mentioned pm MSNBC and Fox News?

Now you might think about that Presidential run. Don't forget there is always Mayor of your City if it's a big one, Governor of your State, other Constitutional offices, and U.S. Senator. All great offices and ways to get things done, assuming your purpose in all this running is to get things done, for your District, State and Country. Good things, important things. Fixing the roads, building bridges, making sure there is universal healthcare and education, an end to income inequality. Those are goals, and lofty ones, but the ones Democrats need to keep in mind and aim for.

Run baby run. But not for President, not this year.

Unless you really are a Buddha Judge. Then all bets are off.

California Dem Party Chair Race Heats Up

So now there are five in the race for Chair of the California Democratic Party, and already the rumors are flying. Someone is intimidating delegates to get them to vote for a certain candidate. Someone else is being held hostage by the Legislature. Another candidate is too hot to handle, and two are just a footnote.

For the record, I'm all in for current vice-chair Daraka Larimore-Hall, an unabashed Democratic Socialist from Santa Barbara, a professor and progressive activist, who has moved up through the ranks, not got there through cronyism or privilege. If anyone can unify the Party, he can. He's been elected twice as Secretary and as Vice Chair. He knows his way around Party politics and the grassroots. He's smart and accessible. He will listen.

Folks, if you are being pressured or threatened to vote a certain way, you need to speak out now. No more hiding in the shadows, allowing rumor and innuendo to grow. This is how we got where we are today. A new chair was elected last year, amid rumors that he bullied and harassed people into voting for him. If those rumors were true, taking a stance and telling the truth would have made a difference. As it happened, that Chair lasted only a short time before he was forced to resign because even worse stories came to light. We would likely have a different chair today, instead of an acting one, holding office only until the June election. We would be focusing on winning races, raising our credibility among voters and recruiting new Democratic voters.

People who are bullied, harassed or threatened must always speak up. It's not easy, but it's right. You may lose your position (probably not, if you are truthful), but you will gain respect, your own and others.

Madame Speaker at the State of the Union Speech

No words needed:

Never Too Early

That's right. It's never too early to start thinking about 2020. City Council race coming up? School Board? Certainly Assembly, County Supervisor, and Congress. 

You may want to launch your campaign for water board, sewer board or Community Services District. Find out now what seats are coming up and when you find the one that seems right for you, get the answers to these questions before you make a final decision:

1. Is the incumbent likely to run? You may not know yet, because they may not have decided, but at least know who the incumbent is, what their track record is and what has been written about them and their votes on the board. This information can help you decide if it's worth challenging the incumbent. If they are not doing a good job, or you have some better ideas and  will to take on the challenge, don't let the fact that someone else is sitting there now stop you.

2. When is the election? In March, when the California primaries take place or in November, along with the General election? Or both. Is there a primary to whittle down the field to the top two? This is important because it will make a difference in your fundraising and endorsement seeking schedule. If it's in March, filing is in the fall. You need to be  cognizant of the holiday season and plan accordingly.

3. How much does this race normally cost? If you're running against the incumbent, it will probably cost you more, to get yourself known and up to speed, and get your message out to the voters on why they should fire the incumbent and hire you, instead. You can get the information on past election costs either at Cal-Access the State site with campaign disclosures or at the City or County where the election takes place. Sometimes you have to go physically into the office of the Board to get hard copies of the disclosure statements.

Now that you're armed with some basic information about the race, make sure you are up to speed on the decisions made by this board, the scope of the duties and how you can contribute to the quality of the work done.

Whatever you run for, the most important question is one to ask yourself: Do i have the "Fire in the belly" for this job?

If the answer is Yes, go for it. Just do your homework, make sure you can raise the funds and get the support needed and you are off and running.

My Advice to Democrats

We have a new Speaker of the House, hurray! When last heard from, the Campaign cook was chowing down on chocolate, and her nails, and watching the results of the 2018 mid-terms. They were good, all of them - chocolate, nails and midterms.

Now we have a new Speaker of the House in Nancy Pelosi. She has a plan. She has already vetted plan to fund the government and stop the stupid tRumpian shutdown over a big wall he wants to build.

My advice is this:

1.  Stop calling it "The wall." It doesn't exist, there is no wall. The more you say "The Wall," the more it seems like a done deal. Just say tRump want to build a wall that no one needs and no one wants and we can't afford, because we need to fund the government and keep services for the People.
2.  Next time you go to negotiate (which isn't possible anyway), with tRump, don't send Chuck Schumer. Send a nice quiet Democrat, or a Republican, if there are any left with compassion and brains. and guts. Not Mitt Romney. Make him thin it's his idea. He's a big baby and the way you deal with babies is distract them. Show him a nice shiny thing he can buy with h\the money he wants to extort from the American People instead. Like a fantastic health care plan or a tremendous infrastructure plan. Call it the tRump Freeway, who cares, just get it done. And get him to go along. And Chuck Schumer ain't the guy to do it.
3.  Just for fun and bonus points, take Melania to see the Modern Muslim Fashion show, currently at the De Young in San Francisco, but I'll bet it's on to the east coast soon. Donald won't know what to do when she comes home rocking her hijab in glitter and sparkles.

That's it for now folks. More to come soon.

Happy Blue Year! 

Speaker Pelosi with granddaughter, Bella