Daily Archives: March 15, 2008

Blog Roundup

50 State Roundup

How's the tension at your favorite national blog community? Take a break from all the nastiness and drop by your favorite state blog for a change. Look in on our statewide and local races…..just stay away from the presidential primary threads. They bring a whole new meaning to March madness! Here are a few posts from last week and the roundup for March 14, 2008, over the flip…

Illinois
   Barack Obama's ad endorsing Bill Foster for Denny Hastert's abandoned seat in the 14th District caps an exciting week of new endorsements and good news in the polls

Wisconsin
   mal contends argues that as a superdelegate, U.S. Rep. Tammy Baldwin should reject Hillary's burn-down-the-house strategy and throw her support to Obama

Indiana
   7th District special election news includes coverage of the latest debate

Iowa
   Senator Tom Harkin introduces The Complete Streets Act of 2008 to promote street design that benefits all users, not just motorists

Michigan
   Michigan Liberal starts off Women's History month with profiles of Michigan's 22 female Democratic state lawmakers

Minnesota
   An endorsement in Minnesota's Third district race, currently 9th most likely to flip to the Dems according to the Washington Post's The Fix…

Texas
   Burnt Orange Report makes an attempt at humor in the presidential contest and asks people to “OMG, Plz stop w/ teh stupid!!1”.

Georgia
   Rand Knight, candidate for U.S. Senate goes to a worthwhile conference, can't take a joke and is overly sensitive. Read the comments to learn why.

California
   The Sacramento Bee published a database of all state employees, with their names and salary info, online. Privacy is last year's concept.

Ohio
   Ohio GOP Committeemen are getting into the spirit of throwing around the 'ole “Hussein” Reference to Obama. Glad to see the Republicants are really backing off that one. Not.

Iowa
   desmoinesdem is pleased to report that a bill requiring all counties to use voting machines with paper ballots is moving forward in the Iowa legislature.

Nebraska
   Three months after a tragic shooting at an Omaha mall that left eight dead, the NRA has flexed its might in the Nebraska Legislature, perverting a stong bill that would have addressed the problem of gun violence to actually make handguns more accessible.

Virginia
   Virginia Republicans get mainly “F”s when it comes to the middle class. Virginia Democrats get “straight A”s. Virginia Republicans get mainly “F”s when it comes to the middle class. Virginia Democrats get “straight A”s.Virginia Republicans get mainly “F”s when it comes to the middle class. Virginia Democrats get “straight A”s.

South Dakota
   Check out the interview with George McGovern on Democracy Now! Check out the interview with George McGovern on Democracy Now!Check out the interview with George McGovern on Democracy Now!

West Virginia
   As the ENDA act banning employment discrimination against gays made it further than ever before in the W.Va. legislature, some delegates covered themselves in appalling shame with excuses for not passing it. You won't believe what they had to say.

New York
   Daily Gotham rips the Spitzer administration (for incompetence) and the Bush Justice Department (for partisan malice that the media are completely ignoring) and New York republicans (for hypocrisy).

Ohio
   Visit Ohio Daily Blog for frequent roundups of news and notes on Ohio's contested congressional and local races, such as this one on the congressionals.

Oregon
   Think blatant and embarrassingly ignorant prejudice against gays is dying off? Unfortunately, not on the Republican side of Oregon's State Senate. Now with bonus slurs on African-American colleagues!

Alabama
   Alabama's Bush Dog Bud Cramer decides not to run for re-election this year, just 3 weeks before the filing deadline.

Illinois
   After winning the special election last Saturday, Rep. Bill Foster makes his first comments and first vote Tuesday

Wisconsin
   Obama picks up another superdelegate in Wisconsin's 7th District

New Mexico
   There's an investigation into a GOP vote-buying scandal in New Mexico.

North Carolina
   Mecklenburg Co. schools in North Carolina adopted an anti-bullying policy that includes bullying based on an individual's real or perceived race, color, sex, religion, creed, political belief, age, national origin, linguistic or language differences, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, socioeconomic status, height, weight, physical characteristics, marital status, parental status, or physical, mental, or sensory disability. …

New Hampshire
   Why elections matter…..at Blue Hampshire.

Uncategorized

CA Chamber of Commerce opposes the landlord scheme

I do some web work for No on 98.

I don’t often get to praise the CA Chamber of Commerce, but today is that lucky day.  The California Chamber of Commerce has voted to go NO on the landlord scheme, Prop 98. Prop 98 eliminates rent control, other protections for renters, and could harm our ability to protect our environment.

Given that the main supporters of this initiative has been the nutso Howard Jarvis Association, which actively campaigned for Prop 98 at the CRP convention, this endorsement should eat into the Republican support for Prop 98.  While the Chamber stayed neutral on Prop 99, the coalition against Prop 98 and for Prop 99 has grown further.

Check the flip for the full list.

UPDATE: Also, I hear some folks will be picketing an Apartment owners meeting in Oakland this morning. You want to join them? I’m sure it will be a rocking good time.  Dean Preston of Tenants Together will be joined by leaders for seniors and other tenants groups. Political blotter link here.

Dozens of seniors, tenants and community rights activists from Oakland/Bay Area will protest and march outside the Rental Housing Association of Northern Alameda County (RHA) convention on Saturday, March 15 at 11:00AM, 4700 Lincoln Ave, Oakland (in front of Greek Orthodox Church on the sidewalk.)

 

    *  California Chamber of Commerce (only oppose Prop. 98)

   * San Marcos Chamber of Commerce

   * California National Organization for Women (only oppose Prop. 98)

   * Strategic Actions for a Just Economy

   * National Lawyers Guild – Los Angeles Chapter

   * Americans for Democratic Action (ADA) – Southern California Chapter

   * Endangered Habitats League

   * Progressive Jewish Alliance

   * People Organized to Win Employment Rights (POWER)

   * Homeowners Acting Together H.A.T.

   * South Asian Network

   * Sonoma County Mobilehome Owners Association

   * St. Peter’s Housing Committee

   * Los Rancheros Association, Inc.

   * County Mobilehome Positive Action Committee

   * San Marcos Mobilehome Residents Association

   * Mountain Springs Homeowners Association

   * San Rafael Mobile Home Estates Homeowners Association

   * GSMOL Chapter 820

   * GSMOL Chapter 1200

Coachella Valley

Palm Springs Democrats Tire of TDS, Pro Bono Sun, Mydesert.com Bias, Begin Local Media Watch

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Well, it has come to this.  Local progressive Democratic activists have for years attempted to work with The Desert Sun, aka The Pro Bono Sun, and, more recently, mydesert.com, to have more accurate and fair reporting on local politics.  But, the Pro Bono Sun and mydesert.com has been oblivious to the changing demographics in the Coachella Valley and continues to inaccurately and unfairly represent local Democrats.

Case in point, the recent article which listed the four Democratic candidates for the CA 80th Assembly District that listed only three of the candidates and omitted the name of Greg Pettis, Mayor Pro-tem of Cathdral City and Candidate for the 80th AD.  Inaccuracy at its worst, or prejudice at its best.

More below the flip…

Last week, the Pro Bono Sun and mydesert.com corrupted an article on the ineffectual representation of Rep. Mary Bono Baxely Mack (R-CA) in the 45th Congressional District.  The Gannett news empire, of which TDS is apparently a not-so-integral part, posted an amazing story about Mack ranking 309 out of 425 Congressmen and Congresswomen in the current Congress re power and legislative skill.  Scathing journalism, truth to power.  TDS however watered down the article, incorporating the two powerful U.S. Senators in CA, Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA) and Sen. Diane Feinstein (D-CA), and reworded the title of the article and the text to mask Bono’s ineptitude.

Must be nice to be a friend of TDS (was that the picture of the TDS hierarchy at Mack’s wedding?  Talk about conflict of interest).

The Pro Bono Sun is oblivious to the fact that the Coachella Valley is changing and the progression is probably irreversible.  During Election 2004, Palm Springs, Desert Hot Springs, Cathedral City, Coachella, and Indio all voted a majority for Kerry/Edwards over Bush/Cheney.  In 2000, when the CA 80th Assembly District was formed, Republicans held an advantage over Dems.  Now, as of February 2008, Democrats outnumber Republicans by almost 15,500!  Together, Democrats and Decline to State voters amount to 51% of the voters in the 45th Congressional District where Rep. Mary Bono Baxely Mack holds onto the district by the tips of her French nails.

Last Saturday, representatives from the Desert Stonewall Democratic Club, the Palm Springs Democratic Club, the Democrats of the Desert, and the Palm Springs Democratic Women have launched a media watch group for the most egregious news media venture in the Coachella Valley: The Desert Sun (aka, The Pro Bono Sun).  These clubs plan to also include the other Democratic clubs and our allies in the Coachella Valley in our efforts to track the inaccuracies and bias of The Pro Bono Sun and mydesert.com.

(Remember the Democratic Unity Rally for the New Hampshire primary where 75-100 activists gathered at the Look Patio Bar & Restaurant and where the Republicans had nothing scheduled?  The Pro Bono Sun took quotes from Democratic Rally organizers Greg Rodriguez and Rob Simmons for sure.  But, even without any event, The Pro Bono Sun tracked down three, count them, three Republicans to counter.  No Republican party, three quotes.  Democratic Unity Rally, two quotes.  Interesting.)

The Times, er, The Sun, it will be achanging.  Otherwise, the media watch wars begin.

Uncategorized

Pelosi Tips Her Hand for Obama

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While she did not outright say whom she supports, Madame Speaker tipped her hand clearly in Barack Obama’s favor during an interview with ABC News.

ABC News’ Teddy Davis Reports: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi told ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos on Friday that it would be “harmful” to Democrats if superdelegates were to give the party’s presidential nomination to a candidate who is trailing in the delegates awarded in primaries and caucuses.

“If the votes of the superdelegates overturn what’s happened in the elections,” said Pelosi, “it would be harmful to the Democratic Party.”

Although Pelosi offered her assessment without directly referencing Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., her comments lend considerable support to the Illinois Democrat.

Obama leads Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., in pledged delegates: 1,396 to 1,241. Because of the proportional system used by the Democratic Party to allocate delegates, Obama is widely expected to remain in front of Clinton in pledged delegates at the conclusion of the primary season.

It’s been rumored that Pelosi has quietly supported Obama for some time and Congressman George Miller’s endorsement was considered to have been an indicator. Now that she is a little more in the open, it will be interesting to see what the remaining Congressional superdelegates do. Stay tuned.