Democrats trying to unseat each other

[Jarhyn]

How is she supposed to be doing that?

Hint: Fox News is not the greatest source in the world on her. The right wing has long had a strategy of demonizing whoever is perceived as a Democratic leader. Pres. Bill Clinton. VP Al Gore. Sen. Harry Reid. Rep. Nancy Pelosi. Pres. Barack Obama. Now they are doing it to her.

She recalls growing up with all these right-wing attacks, and she has decided not to let the right wing control the narrative about her. I like how she responds without being very nasty.

Meet the 26-year-old socialist trucker running for Congress on TikTok - The Verge

Then describing his use of TikTok (videos) and Discord (like Slack and IRC). He's careful to try to keep out right-wing trolls. He has rules like "don’t be toxic; keep the server a safe, inclusive space; and engage with others in good faith."

He calls himself a socialist.

He supports the Green New Deal, but he wants to put even more pressure on oil and gas companies and the government to create change, including nationalizing power production. He wants to abolish not just Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) but also the CIA. He supports Medicare for All, but he also wants to cancel all medical debt and make all prescription medication free.

...
“I grew up with the internet and I know how everything works, but it’s a lot more than that,” Collins said. “My online personality is me, even as a candidate. I don’t talk like a politician, I don’t post like one, and regular people can tell the difference between a canned social media strategy and a candidate who’s accessible online.”

She's helping the republicans by flanking moderate democrats with further left candidates in swing states. She's incredibly naïve if she thinks that her agenda can win in rural Georgia or rural Oregon. These areas are very conservative. There are a secret cabal of far left teenagers just waiting to vote for the mythical socialist hero in these areas. I grew up in Oregon 5th district. It's a very conservative area (compared to Multnomah county and Portland with is liberal and mostly carries the state). For most of life it was controlled by a conservative (Denny Smith was one). I saw moderate and liberal democrat after democrat lose to the republican every two years. Representative Schrader first ran and won in 2009. He's just a great guy. I personally worked on his campaign and have donated. Every election for him is very tight. The republicans hate him. He owns a farm. His republican neighbors plant hateful signs around their properties that he and his kids have to see as they drive home. (Republicans love their offensive signs).

Anyway, he runs as far left as he can! He believes in science. He's very pro environment, pro science, pro women's rights, pro tribal rights and human dignity. He favors lowering the costs of college and opening it up, increasing access to health care for people, and etc. He's done a lot to help the tribes. He and I are both involved in the adoption community. He really cares about helping kids. Does work in the foster care system that you'll never see on the news. I know him personally. He's a great caring guy. Some people on the left got upset with him because he didn't pass a couple very anti gun legistition. So a guy on the left wants to run against him. Kurt will beat him, but it will be costly. It's going to hurt his chances when he runs against the republican. The republicans know that this is a 50-50 district, so they always pour the resources into our district for the republican. And AOC is doing what she can to open up the cracks for the republicans to expose. Thanks AOC.

Ah, just more "WAH, someone is trying to open discussions on party platform!" The primaries exist for a reason. If you don't like it, maybe move to a country without primaries. The party cannot remain representative without the joyous ability to object to direction. And besides, all this does is INCREASE election participation, especially among the Dems. If you're that concerned, get out and about for whoever wins your primary.

 

[Cheerful Charlie]

Finish him! Of course the DCCC has a long history of not supporting progressives, so it is not like any of this is new. I suspect Lipinski will fall as women turn out at the polls to vote against politicians that have not been supporting important women's issues. This is going to be an ongoing battle for a number of future election cycles.

You seem to be quite obsessed about this idea of female vote.

In any case, it's not a good idea if Democrats fill Congress with the sort of "Bizarro Tea Party" radicals. Four squad members are more than enough! By the way, did you guys hear that Ilhan Omar is getting divorced? I am guessing the reason is that affair.

In 2018, 52% of voters were women, only 48% are men. A number of surveys demonstrate women do not like trump, and not by a little bit. Especially younger omen. Who voted more than the baby Boomer and Silent Generation in 2018. It is just a reality that women will decide the 2020 elections. Never mind the horse race polls, which vary wildly on any given week. We have to look where the votes ae and where those votes are going, and women are being energized by Trump and the GOP, and not in a good way for either. Trump is now championing destroying the safety net. SS, Medicare, ACA, and Medicaid. And everything else these bastards can destroy. So it is not like women are just reacting to his boorish, nasty persona, though they don't like him personally. It is his policies that are driving the women's revolt we will see in 2020.

Ilhan Omar is getting divorced? Trump is being demanded to give DNA samples for a legal case brought by a women he raped. Which is worse?

 

[lpetrich]

Erica Vladimer for New York on Twitter: "A personal journey has ended, but a lifelong mission continues. And believe me when I say this is not goodbye. I will never end my fight for a more compassionate, inclusive, forward-thinking society. (Read more here: [url]https://t.co/sx7q6YboYh)
I’ll see you out there." / Twitter[/url]
noting
Our mission continues - Google Docs

Our mission continues ...

Friends and Allies,

We launched our people-powered campaign knowing we’d be up against the powerful status quo, but the potential to bring a new voice to Washington was critical -- for our district, our city, and our nation. Most importantly, we knew we were joining a larger movement already in progress -- a cause much bigger than our one race. We consistently sought ways to best lend our voices, passions, and ambitions to that cause. Ultimately, the biggest question for us was: How could we best advance that larger mission of a more compassionate, inclusive, forward-thinking society?

The answer we’ve come to is a difficult one. And so today, with a broken heart, but with clear eyes and fierce determination to achieve those ultimate goals, the time has come for me to end my candidacy for Congress in NY-12.

She had at least two progressive rivals, and both of them salute her:

Lauren Ashcraft for NY-12 on Twitter: "@EricaForNY It has been an honor to be in this race with you. You and your advocacy inspire me and I look forward to fighting for every single person with you, as you aren’t going anywhere" / Twitter
Lauren Ashcraft for Congress – Progressive Democrat for Congress NY-12

Peter for New York on Twitter: "
As a competitor I’m relieved because @EricaForNY is a force
As a friend I’m disappointed for her but proud of her run
As an activist I’m excited to have her continue the fight for real progress in NYC and the US #runwitherica https://t.co/tvlVkgGfAO" / Twitter
Peter Harrison is a housing activist: Peter for New York 12

Of the two, LA lists some endorsements while PH lists none, so I'm guessing that PH will drop out, LA will continue, and that PH and EV will campaign for her. LA already has these endorsements: Brand New Congress, Digital Left, Blue America, Forward Thinking Democracy, Paula Jean Swearengin, Mckayla Wilkes, Shahid Buttar, YoungPAC

LA's father's father was Thomas in the US Air Force, and he was stationed in Japan for a while. Thomas met LA's father's mother Kimiko there, and they had a son Harold. After his discharge, Thomas moved to West Virginia and became a coal miner there. He became one of the 78 who died in the 1968  Farmington Mine disaster, a big explosion in a coal mine. Kimiko lived off of Social-Security checks, went to night school to become a nurse.

LA's mother's father ran a trailer business in Pennsylvania and he fell and broke his neck. His family had to redesign their house to give him wheelchair access.

One of LA's formative experiences was living in Germany as an exchange student in her senior year in high school. She considers that German family her second family.

She went on to college and got a BA in International Relations and a Master's in Public Administration, while having a temporary job with the US Housing and Urban Development department. She went on to be a policy analyst, studying energy assistance programs for low-income families, and then to help create affordable housing in Mercer PA.

All these experiences helped motivate her activism.

 

[lpetrich]

I like this one from Melanie D'Arrigo: Melanie D'Arrigo for Congress on Twitter: "Imagine being a candidate campaigning on a platform that ..." / Twitter

Imagine being a candidate campaigning on a platform that:

• keeps 30 mil uninsured
• keeps healthcare costs

• doesn’t address the #ClimateCrisis
• doesn’t address housing
• promotes profits of corporations over the needs of the people

Then...

Imagine being that same candidate telling voters that they can’t have the solutions they need, but should be thrilled with small incremental steps towards a possible solution that will never solve the problem because it’s the prudent approach...



Then, being that same candidate, touting your experience to voters in making deals, despite evidence to the contrary, is a better asset than a candidate actually wanting to solve the problems.

That’s the argument my opponent makes against me..

it’s a weak and cowardly argument to make.

The fact is we can have the solutions we need.

We’ve just never had enough politicians with the political courage to actually solve them.

People have never been the priority for politicians like my opponent—corporate profits are.

We can have #MedicareForAll and join the rest of the world under a #SinglePayer system.

We can treat healthcare as a human right and save millions of lives—but our current politicians choose not to.

We can pass a #GreenNewDeal to end our #ClimateCrisis

If we act RIGHT NOW, we can mitigate the effects of future droughts, wildfires, extreme weather, flooding, food and water insecurity and SAVE OUR —but our current politicians choose not to.

We can end legislated wealth inequality.

We can force corporations and the uber-rich to pay their fair share and end predatory industries that target and profit off of misfortune and poverty—but our current politicians choose not to.

We can end homelessness across this country.

We can provide the housing, healthcare and job security to ensure every American can be productive and successful— but our current politicians choose not to.

Our current politicians like to point to progressives as the problem, and that our desperately needed solutions will bankrupt America.

In the same breath, they take in $millions from lobbyists to bankroll their campaigns and further corporate interests designed to hurt us.

Progressives aren’t the problem.

The problem has always been politicians that put their own self-interest over the best interests of their constituents while telling them everyone else is the problem.

It’s shameful & they can’t hide any longer.

#PrimariesAreComing

She's running against Tom Suozzi in NY-03, in northern Long Island.

 

[lpetrich]

Doyle Canning is the coauthor of a book that's featured in Center for Story-based Strategy She's running in OR-04, where I live.

Melanie D'Arrigo for U.S. Congress - another good one from her: Melanie D'Arrigo for Congress on Twitter: "”Shouldn't we move to the Center to get Republican and Independent votes?” " / Twitter

”Shouldn't we move to the Center to get Republican and Independent votes?”

Moving to the Center between Dems and the GOP compromises away the solutions benefiting people. It’s what led to Trump and millions of Americans losing faith in our party.

#FAQs

Bipartisanship is great in theory, but we’ve seen a GOP repeatedly negotiate in bad faith, unwilling to compromise. We’ve seen Dems trade a $1 for 25¢ while the GOP tries to gut healthcare, women’s rights and locks kids in cages.

So where are the meaningful solutions?

Whether you’re a Democrat, Republican or Independent, people care about solutions that benefit them. We pay too much in taxes, for healthcare we can’t afford to use, housing, education and are affected by the climate crisis.

People's needs exists outside of partisan politics.

The overwhelming majority of Independents we've spoken to aren't Independents because they are in-between political parties, but because they feel both parties have left their needs behind in favor of their own self-interest & greed.

"More of the same" doesn't win them back.

Moderate Dems and Republicans haven’t delivered on policies that help American families. In fact, they've actively worked against the needs and best interests of their constituents in favor of protecting their corporate donors.

Decisions that shape the lives and future of our families are being made at a table that American families aren't invited to. It's a table designed for the politically powerful & obscenely-rich.

Progressives are building a new, equitable, table. The proof is in the policies.

I support #MedicareForAll

It's the ONLY healthcare plan that covers everyone, makes healthcare financially accessible & provides choice. It’s the most fiscally responsible to implement.

Other plans, at best, leave millions uninsured with costs rising & coverage shrinking.

The #climatecrisis can no longer be ignored because our politicians are bought by lobbyists. Progressives are pushing bold solutions that meet the urgency of the moment. Moderate Dems, like my opponent, are only offering more corporate tax breaks.

I support #FreePublicCollege and student debt.

We shouldn't penalize or dissuade kids from working class families who want to go to college. An educated, debt-free young person adds more to society and the economy than one drowning in debt or struggling to get by.

Hard working American families shouldn't be forced to bear the financial burden of tax breaks for billionaires and corporations. Everyone needs to pay their fair share.

We shouldn't struggle paycheck to paycheck just so a billionaire can write off another private jet.

I support solutions to the problems at the center of people's lives.

We win by making a meaningful impact—not with threats about needing to stick to the status quo. can no longer expect solutions from the same elected officials that have long enabled its problems.

We need strong, vocal leadership advocating for moral and responsible solutions to the serious crises American families and our democracy faces. The needs of the many can no longer be sacrificed for the power of the few.

Learn more about my campaign

She has a diagram of support for progressive policies (GOP, Indep, Dem):

• Paid maternity leave: 73%, 83%, 94%
• Gov't childcare funding: 56%, 75%, 90%
• Boosting min wage: 31%, 65%, 84%
• Tuition-free public/state colleges: 28%, 61%, 80%
• Medicare for All: 19%, 56%, 81%
• Universal Basic Income: 6%, 32%, 45%

Source: CNBC All Economic Survey

Also, "New York Voters Support the Progressive Agenda":
Strongly support, somewhat support, not sure, somewhat opposed, strongly opposed

• Green new Deal: 32%, 32%, 17%, 8%, 12%
• Medicare for All: 31%, 28%, 17%, 30%, 14%
• Homes Guarantee: 29%, 33%, 17%, 12%, 9%

Source: Data for Progress

 

[lpetrich]

Support Working Women Candidates | Matriarch

For working-class candidates, raising huge sums of money in a short amount of time — while also working one or more jobs — is often unthinkable. And for working women who often bear the brunt of household duties and childcare as well, finding the time to campaign is nearly impossible. These are the candidates who need and deserve early assistance and infrastructure support, because they are personally connected to the issues they are fighting for.

It is a sort of working-class version of EMILY's List | Support Pro-Choice Democratic Women - "We ignite change by getting pro-choice Democratic women elected to office."

EMILY = Early Money Is Like Yeast

Progressive Women Launch Working-Class Version of EMILY’s List

From former elected officials and congressional candidates to labor leaders and political activists, the women behind Matriarch are drawing from their own experiences navigating the political system to help create an infrastructure that supports working women, who often also deal with household and child care responsibilities at the same time as campaigning.

Amy Vilela, who ran an insurgent congressional campaign in Nevada last year and was featured in the Netflix documentary “Knock Down the House,” said Matriarch is “going to fill a void” by supporting women who come from disadvantaged backgrounds early in their races, when it matters most. “It’s organizations like this that will lift our voices and help us get a seat at the table,” said Vilela, who’s on the group’s advisory board.

Many establishment-aligned organizations, like EMILY’s List, which was founded in 1985 to support pro-choice women running for office, consider a candidate’s early fundraising or Rolodex of wealthy friends in order to measure their viability.

 

[Jimmy Higgins]

There are a couple issues there. It isn't enough to support the Green New Deal (which is a vague and utterly plan free plan) and Medicare For All... if that isn't the primary voting consideration for those being polled.

I bet we'd see a marked difference between "Do you support Social Security and Medicare" verses "Do you support Government Entitlements"?

 

[lpetrich]

Lauren Ashcraft for Congress – Progressive Democrat for Congress NY-12
Lauren Ashcraft, democratic socialist, mounts challenge to Rep. Maloney
Rep. Carolyn Maloney has been in the House of Reps for 14 terms, and she has been good on the liberal side. But for Lauren Ashcraft and some others, she is not good enough.

Lauren Ashcraft was a project manager for JP Morgan for a while.

“I became radicalized by working in the private sector in New York City, and I realized that capitalism is socialism for corporations and billionaires,” she said. She now works at her church.

Church? The Middle Collegiate Church
Lauren Ashcraft for NY-12 on Twitter: "@shawna_morlock @raisingimagine @middlechurch I was legit atheist (turned all the way off by the far right) until I met @RevJacquiLewis who teaches us about anti-racism and revolutionary love! Thank you @shawna_morlock! Merry Christmas!" / Twitter
I'm an atheist because I think that all deities are pure fantasy.
Lauren Ashcraft for NY-12 on Twitter: "I tried to put this in my own words but @raisingimagine (one of my amazing pastors/teachers at @middlechurch) worded my thoughts about Christmas perfectly. If you are celebrating for religious purposes, don’t forget what the person we are celebrating represents and stood for. https://t.co/yKxkGtQdWp" / Twitter

Hey!! Unto you a child is born!!

An immigrant brown baby child who was not separated from his mom or dad at the border.

An immigrant brown baby child who came in the flesh to turn systems of power on their heads.

An immigrant brown baby child who grew to believe women, defend the poor, care for the Earth, and dethrone the greedy.

An immigrant brown baby child who showed us that love is love, regardless of gender expression or sexual orientation.

An immigrant brown baby child who should't be celebrated on December 25th without working for a world where those things are true.

I'm glad we have the story of THAT child to help us imagine a better world.

Merry Christmas to all who celebrate.
Thanks for coming to my Ted Talk.

Yet more making Jesus Christ in the believer's likeness. JC is poor, he is rich. JC is Jewish, he opposes the Jews. JC is a social worker, he is an entrepreneur. JC is Nordic, he is black. Etc. Xenophanes said it very well 2500 years ago. "The Ethiopians (black people) make their gods black and snub-nosed; the Thracians (northern Europeans) say theirs have blue eyes and red hair" and that horses and cows and lions would make pictures of gods that look like horses and cows and lions, as the case may be.

Rev. Jacqui Lewis, PhD on Twitter: "Hump Day & I need to remember this:
God can turn tragedy into something that strengthens us. God can turn hurt into something that grows a muscle of compassion in us.
#ProgressiveChristianity #LovePeriod #InTheMiddleOfIt @middlechurch" / Twitter
Rev. Jacqui Lewis, PhD on Twitter: "I’m a “Professional Christian” (Ha!) and every now and then even I need a reminder. Let me be clear: God doesn’t CAUSE tragedy to teach us lessons, but She can turn the tragedies of our lives into something that makes us stronger. #LovePeriod @middlechurch #InTheMIDDLEOfIt" / Twitter
What kind of a "God" is that???
Lauren Ashcraft for NY-12 on Twitter: "@RevJacquiLewis @middlechurch I always love that God is a she and your messages!" / Twitter

Shows that there is a such a thing as a Religious Left - and that it is often guilty of completely fatuous beliefs despite being good on many issues.

Back to the article.

“I do hold issue with, first of all, the money she accepts, because it shows me that she doesn’t represent me. She represents all of the corporate PACs that she’s accepted money from. You can’t do both,” Ashcraft said.

“You cannot be a progressive if you support corporate PAC money,” she said. “That’s like the number one thing.”

In effect, corporate PAC money is blood money that leaves one morally tainted.

Though Ashcraft has never held political office before, she is active as an organizer, hosting comedy shows to benefit causes like Planned Parenthood, and serves as a project manager and emcee for the New York City Women’s March.

She is also a member of the Queens branch of the Democratic Socialists of America, and she canvased for public defender Tiffany Cabán during the Queens district attorney race.

 

[lpetrich]

Last night I saw Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Twitter: "Big announcement coming tomorrow " / Twitter

This morning:

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Twitter: "It’s time to elect a progressive majority in Congress accountable to strong, grassroots movements that push support for issues like Medicare for All, a Green New Deal, racial justice, & more.
It’s time to elect public servants with the Courage to Change: https://t.co/K6JXmCH2Vh" / Twitter

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Twitter: "Today [MENTION=990]CO[/MENTION]uragetoChange is announcing its first endorsements of newcomers to Congress:
SENATE
Cristina Tzintzún Ramirez (TX)
HOUSE
Teresa Fernandez (NM)
Kara Eastman (NE)
Georgette Gomez (CA)
Marie Newman (IL)
Jessica Cisneros (TX)
Samelys Lopez (NY)
https://t.co/sbSKTipijm" / Twitter

Courage to Change on Twitter: "@karaforcongress @Marie4Congress @SamelysLopez @cristinafortx @SDGeorgette @JCisnerosTX @TeresaForNM Creating progressive change takes more than winning the White House.
We must also elect progressives in the House and Senate who have the courage to take on corporate interests and fight for justice for all.
Join our movement today: https://t.co/OQ3qQPJlbq" / Twitter

 

[lpetrich]

I have thought for a long time that many people on the Left seem to think that the Presidency is the only office worth having, and that the main Presidential election is the only election worth being involved in. So I am grateful that some on the Left have thought otherwise and that they continue to do so. That's what Brand New Congress's founders thought, and that's what their most successful candidate continues to think.

Courage to Change, AOC's PAC for electing like-minded Congresspeople. It was named after her famous campaign video of 2018. From its "About" page, it supports "people who refuse to bow to establishment pressure, who advocate ferociously for working-class families, and who have lived the same struggles as the people they seek to represent."

CTC refuses all corporate PAC donations, and its candidates will also. Presumably because it is morally tainted. I recall AOC once saying that it was a big dilemma for her if she had a would-be big donor who completely agreed with her platform. She would have decided against accepting anything from that donor.

Contributions will be used to make early investments in progressive challengers that can even the playing field against established incumbents, and bolster progressive leaders in Congress who take difficult but righteous stands. All endorsees will embody the ideals of racial, social, economic, and environmental justice.

Although CTC cannot endorse every good candidate, CTC's people will consider

• How have the candidate’s lived experiences prepared them for office?
• Will the outcome of this race shift political power back to working-class people?
• Does Courage to Change PAC’s involvement add value to the race?
• s this person a progressive, movement-oriented, underdog candidate?
• Does the candidate display a strong history of community involvement and a deep understanding of local issues?
• When is the upcoming Election Day?
• Is there a sense of political urgency in the race that requires immediate action?

When is the upcoming Election Day?

There's a scene in "Knock Down The House" where AOC compares her campaign mailers with Joe Crowley's. Hers contain the primary election date and her platform, while his doesn't have any date, and he has very little on it that can be called a platform: opposition to President Trump.

 

[lpetrich]

Ocasio-Cortez Builds Progressive Campaign Arm to Challenge Democrats - The New York Times

They also are a clear sign that Ms. Ocasio-Cortez, a celebrity of the liberal left, intends to leverage her influence among activists to try to reshape the Democratic Party.

To do to the Democratic Party what right wingers done to the Republican Party.

“One of our primary goals is to reward political courage in Congress and also to help elect a progressive majority in the House of Representatives,” Ms. Ocasio-Cortez said in an interview. “There’s kind of a dual nature to this: One is opening the door to newcomers, and the other is to reward members of Congress that are exhibiting very large amounts of political courage.”

...
“Anyone can show up one day and say, ‘I support all these policies; that makes me a progressive,’” she said. “But one of the things that is really important to us is winning.”

• Kara Eastman (NE-02) - vs. Don Bacon (R)
• Cristina Tzintzún Ramírez (TX-Senate) - vs. M.J. Hegar (D) vs. Don Cornyn (R)
• Jessica Cisneros (TX-28) - vs. Henry Cuellar (D)
• Marie Newman (IL-03) - vs. Dan Lipinski (D)
• Teresa Fernández (NM-03) - open race (D district)
• Samelys López (NY-15) - open race (D district)
• Georgette Gómez (CA-53) - open race (D district)

To clarify, I'll quote the article: "Cristina Tzintzún Ramirez, a labor and voting rights activist who is running against the candidate endorsed by Senate Democrats’ campaign arm, M.J. Hegar, to take on a Republican, Senator John Cornyn."

“We’ve never seen somebody break onto the scene with this amount of potential and ability to drive the conversation and drive financial commitments from supporters,” said Ian Russell, a former deputy executive director of House Democrats’ campaign arm. “The challenge for her is determining where she wants to spend her capital.”

AOC cites what candidates are up against, and she wants to break down those barriers.

“When community leaders, activists, and working-class candidates try to run for office, organizations like the D.C.C.C. discourage them,” read a fund-raising pitch for the committee, using the acronym for the campaign arm, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. “These potential progressive leaders are asked: ‘Can you raise $300,000 from your friends and family? If not, don’t bother trying.’”

...
“It’s important for us to create mechanisms of support because so much of what is happening in Washington is driven by fear of loss,” she said in the interview. “We can really create an ecosystem that makes people more comfortable into making the leap to make politically courageous choices.”

 

[lpetrich]

AOC has decided not to endorse any challengers to any of the Democratic Party leadership - she doesn't want to primary her bosses.

Like:

• Rep. Nancy Pelosi (CA-12), Speaker
• Rep. Steny Hoyer (MD-05), House Majority Leader
• Rep. Richard E. Neal (MA-01), head of the Ways and Means Committee
• Rep. Jerrold Nadler (NY-10), head of the Judiciary Committee
• Rep. Eliot L. Engel (NY-16), head of the Foreign Affairs Committee
• Rep. Carolyn Maloney (NY-12), head of the Oversight and Reform Committee
• Rep. Peter DeFazio (OR-04), head of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee

The House Democratic campaign arm infuriated progressives last year when it formalized a policy barring campaign vendors from conducting business with a primary opponent of a sitting Democrat, a move intended to shield incumbents. Democratic leaders defended the policy, arguing it was reasonable to afford incumbents that level of protection.

Top progressive lawmakers in the House in January signed onto a temporary détente, but Ms. Ocasio-Cortez made clear she would continue to refuse paying the party dues and press forward with her own fund-raising.

AOC has raised an impressive amount of money: $1.4 million last month (January), with over 20,000 contributions directed toward the CTC PAC. The average contribution: $17.

Alexandria is a real political talent,” said Representative Ro Khanna, Democrat of California, and an ally of Ms. Ocasio-Cortez’s. “She has made an enormous impact on the Green New Deal, and I predict she will be governor or senator in the near future and then off to the races after that.”

Some people speculate about her primarying Chuck Schumer in 2022 or Kirsten Gillibrand in 2024. KG met AOC when AOC was at the Sunshine Startup Incubator back in 2012, so it would be an interesting sort of reunion.

Ms. Ocasio-Cortez said that she was not sure what her next move in politics would be — and that she sometimes wondered how long she would stay in politics. Until then, she said she would work to elect more people like herself to serve in the House and Senate.

“While I think sometimes a lot of people see this as a huge amassing of influence or power or money or what have you, my personal experience does not feel that way — it can feel very lonely,” she said. “I think my ambition right now is to be a little less lonely in Congress.”

 

[lpetrich]

AOC Is Trying to Build ‘The Squad' Into an Army - VICE

OC isn’t the only member of the Squad of four female progressive reps to go out on a limb for congressional candidates this cycle. Last week, Michigan Rep. Ilhan Omar endorsed Nabilah Islam, who’s running for a House seat in Georgia. And on Thursday, Omar retweeted a fundraising post from Arati Kreibich, a North Jersey neuroscientist and town councillor primarying incumbent Democratic Rep. Josh Gottheimer, a conservative who has frequently clashed with the Squad.

When asked if the retweet was an endorsement of Kreibich, an Omar spokesperson replied: “Don’t have any news beyond what you sent.”

Rep. Ilhan Omar Endorses Progressive Nabilah Islam In Georgia Congressional Primary | HuffPost - "Islam, the daughter of working-class Bangladeshi immigrants, is consolidating her hold on the left lane in the race for a suburban Atlanta seat."

“We need a movement that is powered by people, not corporate power, to create the change we want to see in Georgia and around the country — and Nabilah Islam is the leader to do that,” Omar said in a statement.

...
Omar’s endorsement “means a lot to me, and it means a lot to our campaign,” Islam told HuffPost. “Rep. Omar is a personal and political role model for me.”

“A strong woman of color running on a progressive platform showed someone like me that I too was electable,” she added.

I can't find any new endorsements from Rashida Tlaib or Ayanna Pressley.

 

[lpetrich]

Patrick Svitek on Twitter: "Happening now: @SpeakerPelosi is visiting @RepCuellar’s campaign office in Laredo. #TX28 https://t.co/AHCCZZBUry" / Twitter

.@SpeakerPelosi: “We want this to be not only a victory, but a resounding victory for Henry Cuellar.” #TX28

“We assume that Henry will win, but we don’t take anything for granted,” @SpeakerPelosi says. “The word ‘assume’ — ass of you and me. Assume nothing.” #TX28

"It’s utterly shameful, especially considering that Cuellar doesn’t even have the courage to debate his opponent," @justicedems says in statement on Pelosi campaigning for Cuellar.

Here's what @JCisnerosTX told me this morning about Pelosi being in Laredo today:

“She’s been here before. That wasn’t really surprising. She was here last year, right? Cuellar didn’t have a primary opponent back then. So for us, it’s just we know what she sees her role as, which is protecting incumbents and expanding the majority, and we know that at end of the day, once March 3 comes around, we’re the ones that are gonna win because we’re the ones that have a true ear to the ground, so we know what the challenges are, we know that we’re not counting on her support right now, but I’m looking forward to working with her once we make it past this.”

JC's text OCRed with Free Online OCR - Convert JPEG, PNG, GIF, BMP, TIFF, PDF, DjVu to Text

March 3 is Super Tuesday, with Texas having its Democratic Presidential primary on that date. Should be a good turnout, and if Bernie Sanders does well, then JC is likely to do well also.

Ezra Levin on Twitter: "Cuellar is in a safe Dem district but voted with Trump 68.8% of the time between 2017-2019. https://t.co/432O2ajN3g" / Twitter

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Twitter: "For those upset about critique of establishment politics:
There are D reps in SAFE blue seats who side w/ the NRA, are anti-LGBT+, and yet are protected because they advance the interests of big donors, Wall St, fossil fuels, etc.
It’s not “wrong” to take that on and do better. https://t.co/0Frl0vPlap" / Twitter

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Twitter: "This isn’t about swing seats or pushing communities “too far left.”
It’s about accountability. Working families deserve so much better. And if we aren’t willing to admit where we can do better, then what is the point?
Our job is to serve the people, not the powerful." / Twitter

 

[lpetrich]

AOC’s endorsement in Bronx race could backfire - New York Daily News

AOC's Courage to Change PAC has endorsed Samelys López for NY-15, the South Bronx, a district whose Representative is retiring. It's a wide-open race, with her, Councilman Richie Torres, a progressive front-runner in it, Assemblyman Michael Blake, former Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito, and Rubén Díaz, a loud opponent of same-sex marriage.

The city’s liberals loathe Díaz for his history of homophobic remarks like, most recently, claiming the Council is “controlled by the homosexual community.”

But during his years in elected office, starting with the state Senate in 2003, he’s built up a loyal base among socially conservative Latinos. He co-founded the New York Hispanic Clergy Organization, members of which rally their congregations to vote for Díaz, who is himself a Pentecostal minister. About 56% of the more than 280,000 registered Dems in the 15th congressional district are Latino, according to an analysis of registration data by pollster Jerry Skurnik. About 30% are black, he said.

So SL and RT run a risk of splitting the progressive vote and letting RD win. But if SL follows AOC's strategy of seeking new voters, then she can help expand the electorate.

The date of the House primaries in New York is June 23, a long way to go, and some candidates may drop out before then, as Erica Vladimer has in NY-12.

 

[lpetrich]

AOC-backed challenger targets Texas Democrat ahead of Super Tuesday primary - CNNPolitics - Jessica Cisneros has gotten into a national publication.

She's running against incumbent Henry Cuellar in TX-28, on the US-Mexican border between San Antonio and Laredo.

In a new video released on Thursday morning, Cisneros calls Cuellar "Trump's favorite Democrat," claiming the congressman "voted with Republicans to stop DACA, to defund Planned Parenthood and to fund Trump's wall." Her campaign points out that Cuellar votes with Trump nearly 70% of the time.

Colin Strother, a Cuellar campaign spokesman, said the attacks were "a gross misrepresentation of his record." He claimed that Cuellar is one of Congress' strongest supporters of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, or DACA, which provided legal protections for young adults who illegally came to the US. He said Cuellar opposes the border wall but voted for major spending bills to fund the government, while working to protect parks and refuges in the Rio Grande Valley from new physical barriers. And he said that Cuellar's anti-abortion stance did not mean that he wanted to stop funding for Planned Parenthood.

JC has a good ground game, and she's outraised HC. So she has a good chance of winning, I think. If she wins the primary, she will be a likely victory in the general election, beating AOC as the youngest woman ever elected to Congress.

 

[lpetrich]

A wave of young progressives is looking to follow AOC to the House - "Stevens Orozco, the son of undocumented immigrants, wants to unseat one of Texas' most liberal members of Congress. To Orozco, the 13-term Democrat is just not liberal enough."

His target: Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, D-TX-18.

Many are millennials and political newcomers, motivated by their experiences coming of age amid the 2008 financial crisis. Others got started as activists on the front lines of battles over police brutality, gun violence, climate change and immigration.

And like Orozco, most are facing extraordinarily long odds of victory. Orozco is challenging Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, a Democrat running for a 14th term, who has a long-standing reputation as one of the more liberal members of Congress, though Orozco argues she has not gone far enough on issues such as climate change and immigration reform.

Back in 2018, they had a roughly 1 in 10 success rate. But one of the successes was totally spectacular: AOC.

Also mentions Jessica Cisneros, campaigning against Henry Cuellar, D-TX-28.

Moderate Democrats aren’t the only ones being targeted. In another Houston race, Rep. Al Green, who made national headlines as the first House Democrat to call for President Donald Trump’s impeachment, is facing a primary challenge for the first time since being elected to Congress in 2004, from a 36-year-old mortgage broker, Melissa Mechelle Wilson, who says she’s running to expand affordable housing and overhaul the criminal justice system.

No mention of AOC's PAC Courage to Change or Brand New Congress or Justice Democrats or Our Revolution or Progressive Change Campaign Committee or Support Working Women Candidates | Matriarch or similar PAC's and their candidates.

 

[lpetrich]

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez jumps into California politics to help House Democrats - SFChronicle.com helping:

• Mike Levin, D-CA-49, San Juan Capistrano
• Katie Porter, D-CA-45, Orange County
• Katie Hill, D-CA-25, north LA County (resigned late last year)
• Jahana Hayes, D-CT-05, west CT
• Lauren Underwood, D-IL-14, west Chicago suburbs

No mention of her CTC PAC, and that PAC's pages still mention only its 7 initial candidates.

2020 House Race ratings | The Cook Political Report - for the main elections.

 

[lpetrich]

From A wave of young progressives is looking to follow AOC to the House

Rottinghaus said these progressive challengers remind him of the political revolution of the 1960s and ’70s, when a new generation of candidates and young voters, outraged by the war in Vietnam and the Watergate scandal, pushed for a vast expansion of civil rights and environmental reforms. As was the case then, Rottinghaus said, progressive candidates could succeed in moving the Democratic Party further to the left, even if they failed to win many seats in the process.

“They don’t want to wait, and this is in their opinion a moment that can lead to this full-scale revolution in the way the Democratic Party handles these issues,” Rottinghaus said. “These progressive challengers are looking for a different type of approach, a more aggressive approach to the issues.”

Thus to Stevens Orozco, Sheila Jackson Lee is good but not good enough. That's what Lauren Ashcraft likely thinks about Carolyn Maloney and Doyle Canning likely thinks about Peter DeFazio.

I like that comparison to the 60's and 70's, the Sixties Era. Gilded Age II has lasted longer than the original Gilded Age, and the Left has been unsuccessful at ending it. After the failures of Clinton, Obama, the Wisconsin Revolt, and the Occupy movement, I am reluctant to feel very hopeful. But getting lots of progressives into Congress is a step in the right direction, if nothing else.

 Cyclical theory (United States history) - conservative periods tend to end because of accumulated unsolved problems, problems which the ruling elites are reluctant to do much about, if they accept that those problems are really problems or if they exist at all. That looks like what's happening now.

 

[lpetrich]

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Twitter: "South Texas: Vote for @JCisnerosTX tomorrow! 🗳 https://t.co/xWu4lZAHYG" / Twitter
noting
Natalie Andrews on Twitter: "Rep. @AOC on @JCisnerosTX primary: "If she's able to pull this off tomorrow, it will be profoundly energizing. I, for one, could not think of a better way to be the shortest-lived youngest woman in Congress and I would absolutely be thrilled to hand that off to her tomorrow."" / Twitter

Jessica Cisneros Pulls in More Money Than Henry Cuellar as South Texas Democratic Primary Heats Up | The Daily

Cisneros banked more than $350,000 in contributions for the first six weeks of the year — some coming from celebrity backers such as actress Susan Sarandon. That compares to Cuellar's $100,000 take during the period. The incumbent still has more than $2 million in his war chest, compared to Cisneros' $296,000.

...
Cisneros is backed by Justice Democrats, the insurgent progressive group behind freshman U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-New York. Meanwhile, moderate Cuellar has racked up endorsements from establishment Dems plus the pro-businesses U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the political network formed by the Koch brothers.

AOC won because of her great ground game and her seeking new voters. Let's see how well JC does.