Going Nuclear

It's not a nuclear war, yet. But it is the "nuclear option" deployed by Mitch McConnell and the republican Senate. This means taking away the 60 % majority needed to confirm a Supreme Court justice. I'm surprised at how easy it was. Two votes, and that's it. Hello Neil Gorsuch. Goodbye Constitution. Or so it looks.

Hang in there Notorious RBG!

Being a Democrat is tough these days. Not only because of these kinds of machinations by the Republicans and worse by the Orange One. But the divisiveness among my own Party is embarrassing. Time to get over the last election. Time stop petty bickering and time to strategize. For reals. It's only a little more than a year until June 2018 and the midterm primaries when we have a crack at the entire House of Representatives. Can we not fight about how pure someone is? And just try to get some more Democrats elected? Or will we always be the circular firing squad that can't shoot straight.

At least the Republicans seem to be even crazier, but a scary dangerous kind of crazy. One that might go nuclear for real.

The Blame Game

After every election, one side or the other plays the blame game. It's the media's fault. My opponent was corrupt and lied. The votes were rigged. All or some of that may be true, but in the end, there are always winners and losers.

After Bernie Sanders endorsed Hillary Clinton and even was the one to call for her nomination by acclimation from the floor after all the votes of every state and territory had been cast in a 90 minute roll call vote, many of his delegates still would not accept defeat. I should know. I was one of them. I was in that rowdy crowd up in the top tier to the far left of the arena and actually behind the stage during this last week. Those around me were angry. Some of them got up and walked out along with others from other state. Remember, Bernie Sanders had about 45% of the delegates in the hall, many of them first timers, young and eager for bringing major change not so much to the Democratic Party but to the nation.

Sending a message: No TPP

Bernie in his box up behind us

Calling for an end to fracking and 100% renewables

Bernie's message

Protesting Leon Panetta

Many of them were not really big D Democrats at all, having changed their party registration from Green or Independent  (no party preference or npp) just to vote for Bernie. They believed in the Political Revolution he had been calling for, some apparently without ever considering how that would play out, other than an electoral victory.

As an article in Politico stated, many of them came to the Convention, convinced his earlier endorsement of Hillary Clinton was not really a concession, that by being there and casting their vote, he would magically win; some even thought they could change the minds of Superdelegates (and they may have changed a few minds because there were several abstentions that could only have come from Superdelegates, as they were unpledged until that night), and some thought they could sway Hillary delegates to their, our point of view. The campaign never asked them to do that. The campaign said, in essence, it's over; come to the Convention, fight for the issues in the platform,fight for a unity message on the TPP which both Hillary and Bernie mostly agreed on, but which Obama has signaled he wants to go through. 

A sea of Bernie signs when he spoke

Our local Congressional District 2 delegation sat up in the nosebleed section (not quite; at least we had floor passes) with the mostly "Bernie or Bust" people. I was chosen as a delegate because I qualify as a Party leader, small time, but still, I've been involved in Democratic politics and on the State Central Committee and Executive Committee for years. I know the ropes. On the the day after the roll call vote too place, and Bernie nominated Hillary for President, a member of the Florida delegation was handing out signs in the lobby of our very expensive hotel saying Bernie has my heart; Hillary has my vote." Naturally a couple of us took them and displayed them. Mistake. We got told to go sit with the Hillary people. We did not belong in the "tribe." One guy got into an almost physical altercation with an angry woman sitting in front of us.

Our signs went into a bag to be taken to the Marin Democratic Party headquarters, never to be seen on the Convention floor again.

Then days later on Facebook, some of these folks decided we must be moles, sent from the Clinton camp no doubt. Nothing else could explain it. There were stories of seat holders, non credentialed people paid to keep us out of our seats. And I'm sure some of that was true. There were a lot of suits lingering in the aisles near us. Certainly on the last night, the seats were full and the Hillary crowd was trying to claim whole rows where they had never been before. Our little contingent refused to back down, and took our seats, prompting the Hillary woman to go off in a huff. She was invited to stay. I like to think we are inclusive. I assumed Hillary got to invite a few friends to the festivities, and there was no assigned seating so people got carried away on both sides.

Ah well, people are calming down now. Happy to be home. Back to work on the local level. 

Bumps on the Road to Philly

 Will He or Wont He?

As part of my Bernie delegate status I get to communicate with others of the same status. People are seriously disturbed that Bernie might endorse Hillary before the Convention. Don't do it they say. The Platform battles have been going on for a week or so in other places, like Orlando. Our plank to not bring up TPP (Trans Pacific Partnership) during Obama's lame duck administration fell on deaf ears. Even though Hillary says she is against it too, her delegates, or enough of them, voted it down.

Now it will be a Minority Report and maybe taken to the floor. Can we get the votes there? People are concerned about going against Obama's wishes. But he will be gone? He has so much else he has done to leave a lasting legacy in this Country. This is a bad deal for America, and probably for the world, in terms of environmental regulation (or lack thereof) and workers' rights. We can have fair trade agreements. Let's work for those.

Anyway, I am getting all my ducks in a row for the long trip east. Since I just had a birthday, my wonderful husband bought me a new Surface Pro. Now I just have to get it up and running and learn how to use it in time for the trip. Yesterday got a new carry on bag in bright orange on sale at Macy's only because of the color. The black one was twice as much!

  The Big Endorsement 

 

 Some of you all were surprised that Bernie actually endorsed Hillary.

Joint appearance in N.H. off the YV screen

Some people think he can still get the nomination. That is very unlikely; but there is work to do and so all of us delegates, spending our precious vacation money, money we could use to buy a new car, or put away for a rainy day, are still headed to the Democratic National Convention. There will be votes on Platform, Rules, and of course on the candidate. We are promised a roll call, so we get our vote. There will be workshops. I have signed up for Candidate Training. What I do. And Bernie is asking us to work for down ticket progressives and 50 state strategy. Keep the Political Revolution alive!

I am honored to be one of 1832 delegates chosen to represent Bernie in Philly.

News Flash! the Airport workers on strike! Will planes be able to land? will baggage be unloaded? More to come on the bumpy road to Philly! Stay tuned.

What to eat while stuck on the tarmac while an airport strike is on:

 

Trailmix, and lots of it. Hershey Bars; bottled water, but not too much; the toilets might be backed up.

 

On the Road to Philly

Last time I said I'd talk about what to eat on the road to Philly. I imagine when you get there you eat Philly cheese steak. But for now, let's take a little side trip to the Marin County Fair, which is like most County fairs everywhere with animal exhibits, and carnival rides and all sorts of arts and crafts and pie baking contests. Also lots of schlock for sale. I guess there are people who drive around in big old trailers or campers from fair to fair all summer long.

At our Fair this year, as every year, our Democratic Party had a booth. This year we had a fun game called Make the Donald Eat His Words, where you lob a bean bag into the mouth of a large mounted Donald head. On the bean bag are written sayings that actually came out of that mouth in the real world. (as real as The Donald world can be.)

If you hit the mouth, a bell rings. Lots of people aimed for eyes or nose instead just for fun. Some people got really excited about this game, paying $5 to throw all the beanbags. (It was one free throw per person or 3 for a dollar). Our booth made $131 on our 4 hour shift alone. The most we ever made on one shift in the past was $40 or so, if one or two generous democratic donors stopped by. This was all in small bills, mostly ones.

Around the corner from our booth was an actual Trump booth where a couple of
unhappy women sat. One of them walked past our booth and said nasty things about Hillary. Another woman grabbed up some bean bags and started throwing them at the Hillary cutout we had standing in one corner of the booth.

Most people found it all in good fun, and the kids had a blast perfecting their aim. They understood the ramifications of what the Donald would be like as a President. A number of obvious Hispanic families stopped by. "Oh," said one man, with a heavy accent, reading the bean bags. "He loves Mexicans, does he," and threw straight into the mouth.

It was all in good fun. No humans or Presidential candidates were harmed. One woman who claimed to be a bib Hillary donor was incensed though and accused us of promoting violence.

I think the Donald's words contain a lot more violence than slinging them at a face plastered on a piece of plywood though.

We ate garlic fries and drank wine from the Elks Club booth. The Young Democratic Club folks brought along some candy as prizes for the kids. Someone else provided toothbrushes. How All American can you be?

Election's Over for now

Yay, the election is over, and with it comes a mixed bag of emotions. Hooray, our candidate for Supervisor in Nevada County, Heidi Hall, won her seat easily and with a large margin. Way to go Heidi. Our judicial candidate in Marin County is in a virtual tie for first place with another candidate in what was a hard fought nine way race. Now we start over without missing a beat (or not too many), for a November runoff. Fourth of July parade is the first stop on this trip.

Sad that Bernie Sanders did not carry California and is just hanging on by the skin of his teeth in my Congressional district. That's means I do not get to go to Philadelphia as an elected delegate. As third woman in a man/woman alternating scheme, I'm in sixth place overall.

I also put my name in for an at-large delegate and Party Leader or Elected Official (known as a PLEO; I am a local Party leader and I do hold positions within the State Party too). However, I did not get one of the coveted spots. Many good people who have been working within the Party for years and a number of energetic newcomers did make the cut and a hearty congratulations to them. This will be an exciting Convention and Presidential election.

I would love to be a fly on the wall inside the committee rooms, instead of a passive viewer at home.

We do have the Republican Convention first to entertain us all. (Putting the best spin on the presumption that He-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named is the nominee; but anything could happen there too, so stand by for news at 11!)

Election night found us at a local watering hole with our victorious judicial candidate Mike Coffino and his friends. We ate salads and drank wine.

Details elude me. Invent your own. In the meantime, here is a delicious Beach Martini and Ocean Cobb salad to tempt you. I call it what to eat on your way to the airport from a Democratic Executive Board meeting in Long Beach California. It's what I did this weekend. No recipes, but you can figure them out. Enjoy!

Democrats Can Cook in California

Your campaign cook is dishing with the politicos at the California state Democratic Convention this weekend in Anaheim, home of Disneyland.  The food is a mixed grill of savories and sweets served with lots of spice. Many events, parties and celebrities are in the house.

Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren rocked the house; they were eating out of her hand. Gavin Newsom added some herbal touches, along with former Massachusetts Congressman Barney Frank at the Brownie Mary Democratic Club.

Brews of all sorts on hand from thirsty delegates. The Party shows progressive taste by dissing the Trans Pacific Partnership. That would not be good food for Democrats and other living things.

S.F. Congresswoman and former Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi brought us tasty delights and flavorful news of DC and beyond as she mixed and mingled with all the delegates throughout the day.

And State Attorney General, now candidate for U.S. Senator, Kamela Harris, provided food for the soul at an outdoor rally with hungry Democrats.

And though I missed their party down the street, I am ready to join Close the Gap with some smokin' hot races this fall and next year!

Mmm brownie recipe! (No, not that kind):

Ingredients 

Original recipe makes 16 brownies Change Servings

• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 2 tablespoons butter 
• 2 tablespoons water
• 1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
• 2 eggs

  Directions

• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Grease an 8x8 inch square pan.
• In a medium saucepan, combine the sugar, butter and water. Cook over medium heat until boiling. Remove from heat and stir in chocolate chips until melted and smooth. Mix in the eggs and vanilla. Combine the flour, baking soda and salt; stir into the chocolate mixture. Spread evenly into the prepared pan.
• Bake for 25 to 30 minutes in the preheated oven, until brownies set up. Do not overbake! Cool in pan and cut into squares.
• 
  
   

Train Democratic Women - Get Bumped by IRS

So the IRS just investigated the Tea Party, who - come on, we all know it - are dedicated to the overthrow and takedown of all things Democratic or not right of Atilla the Hun, and they actually deny non-profit status to a group of Democratic women in Maine, of all places, for training Democratic women.

Where's that story?

Right here, right now: (From Salon.com)

Meet the group the IRS actually denied: Democrats!

Although Tea Party applicants got unfair IRS scrutiny, only one known group had status revoked. They’re Democrats

By Joan Walsh

Topics: IRS, Scandal, Democrats, Republicans, Editor's Picks, George W. Bush, Barack Obama, Progressives, Business News, News, Politics News

Emerge America (Credit: Flickr)

Everyone agrees that the IRS shouldn’t have targeted groups with “Tea Party” or “Patriot” in their names for special scrutiny in awarding tax-exempt status. NBC News reports two agents have been disciplined for doing so, and the Justice Department announced a criminal probe. But so far no one has identified a single conservative group that was denied status in the controversial review, though some faced bureaucratic hurdles and had their tax-exempt status delayed.

In fact, the only known 501(c)(4) applicant to have its status denied happens to be a progressive group: the Maine chapter of Emerge America, which trains Democratic women to run for office. Although the group did no electoral work, and didn’t participate in independent expenditure campaign activity either, its partisan status apparently disqualified it from being categorized as working for the “common good.”

Ironically, the national organization and its earlier chapters had gotten tax-exempt status by the IRS during the Bush administration in 2006. But it appears as though the Maine group’s rejection triggered a review of the entire organization, and Emerge America and all of its chapters had their tax-exempt status revoked. Emerge reincorporated with 527 status, which requires it to report its donors. 

Here’s what director Karen Middleton has to say:

Emerge America and its initial state programs were granted 501(c)(4) status by the IRS several years ago. Later, when a new state program applied for the same status, it was denied because Emerge works only with women who are in the Democratic Party, so the IRS determined this did not meet the definition of “social welfare” for the common good. We believed this denial triggered a review of the Emerge programs that had already been granted c4 status, and consequently those statuses were revoked. Becoming 527 organizations has not hurt our fundraising or organizational expansion – we report our donors and continue our work fully transparently.

Again, the focus on Tea Party groups is wrong, but two-thirds of the groups reviewed had no Tea Party ties — and only a Democratic group had its status denied. This story is more politically complicated than the right lets on.

Making Nice

Last night I attended the party for our new Assembly member, Marc Levine. Please note that I worked, although in a minor capacity, for his opponent, Michael Allen, an incumbent whose seat was redistricted this year.  As a progressive Democrat, I naturally gravitated to the more progressive candidate, Allen, whose short term in the Assembly was marked with bills protecting consumers, the mentally ill, farmworkers and much more.  Yes, this was not only a redistricted seat, but the first test of California's "Top Two" primary.  So we had two Democrats running against each other for the coveted new 10th Assembly District, covering all of Marin and some of Sonoma Counties.  To the surprise of many a pundit and political insider, the voters spoke out for the less established, more moderate, Democrat. Or maybe simply against what they perceived to be insider vs. outsider in an era of mucho distrust of government.

More about the actual campaign later.  This is a report on a party, held in a crowded upstairs room of a popular venue in San Rafael.  People lined the stairs to check in.  Young men in short haircuts handed out clipboards for us to sign.  Marc graciously greeted guests at the top of the stairs.  Everyone was checking out the crowd.  There were lots of new faces.  The question that naturally sprung to mind was "How many of these people are Democrats?"  Marc had appealed (wisely it now appears) to independents and even Republicans. 

Some of the old stand-bys were there too.  A couple of County Supervisors, sitting or former City Council members, and the usual partygoers.  I got a drink from the bar and worked the room.  A duet sang folky style "soft rock" music, and guests dined on mini-burgers, crab, oysters, mussels, cheeses, and some healthy veggies.

A newly elected school board member from Sonoma expressed her surprise to see me there.  "We're all Democrats" I said, realizing that wasn't even necessarily true, but since she and I both are, she nodded her understanding.

It became apparent the venue was too small, and fire codes must have been invoked. As I was leaving I ran into our Party chair who said they were not letting anyone up.  Everyone wanted to see the new kid on the block it seemed.

It's a new era, and we all must figure out our place in the political strata.  Looking forward to new campaigns in the coming year.