(We just wrapped the debate, but you can catch the archive at http://CourageCampaign.org/CA3… – promoted by Brian Leubitz)
I helped organize this event with the Courage Campaign.
In case you hadn’t heard, there’s an election heating up in California’s 36 Congressional district, as Jane Harman has unexpectedly retired. The “primary” election is coming up in mid-May, so this is something of a sprint now.
Well, now you have the chance to hear about the candidates straight from the horses’ mouths. On Thursday evening, 6-7:30, the Courage Campaign is hosting a candidate forum (with a boost from yours truly) with four major candidates for the seat: Democratic Secretary of State Debra Bowen, Republican Redondo Beach Mayor Mike Gin, Democratic LA City Councilwoman Janice Hahn, and Democratic educator Marcy Winograd.
You can also submit questions at #Courage36 on twitter and on the Facebook event page. If you are interested in one of the most interesting races, well, check it out on Thursday night.
Question for Winograd: Why are you running a spoiler campaign, don’t you realize it makes you look awful?
Question for Hahn: Do you think “Legacy Candidate” or “Empty Suit” best describes why you lost this seat to the Republicans in a great year for Democrats?
Question for Mike Gin: Why do you think the other Republicans chickened out?
…
Question for Bowen: Is it weird that the only argument against you campaign is that people would rather see you in the US Senate?
Why do you think Calitics’ coverage of the congressional race reads like press releases from Secretary of State Bowen’s campaign? Always dismissive without trying to be too harsh concerning Ms. Winograd. No mention of strong endorsements for Hahn(like the LA County Federation of Labor) but quick to print endorsements of Hahn(DFA, Chu).
I will leave it to greater minds than mine to pick this debate apart, but there were a couple of take-aways from it that I think are worth highlighting.
Debra Bowen: Although I wish she had kept her answers a little shorter (a problem all the candidates shared), I think she did a pretty good job of reminding voters that of the four, she’s the only one with an actually legislative record. Wether it was AB32 – the landmark global warming law which big oil recently tried to gut with proposition 23 – or Sheila Kuehl’s single-payer legislation that was unfortunately twice vetoed by Republican governor Arnold Schwarzenneger, Bowen was the only one who actually had experience crafting, supporting and voting for legislation to deal with a lot of the issues that are still important to the district.
Janice Hahn: In her opening statement, Hahn highlighted her work as an LA City Councilmember, including this statement, “I’ve balanced my budget on the LA City Council.” This sounded like a deliberate – if curious – choice of words, and it makes me wonder if she’s sitting on internal polls that shows some vulnerability there. Just today the LA Times ran a story on the city’s $400 budget shortfall, and a deal Mayor Villaraigosa reached with labor unions to cut the deficit by reducing wages and benefits.
Mike Gin: I have no idea why the openly gay mayor of Redondo Beach is still a Republican – he refuted nearly every position the GOP has taken in the last decade. This is my first time hearing him talk about issues – I was pleasantly surprised.
Marcy Winograd: Can someone please tell her Jane Harman isn’t in the race?
Our CA36 district’s Mar. 24th first candidate forum & debate really confirmed for many voters — including my family’s own household — that Marcy Winograd is the best suited candidate for CA36’s congressional seat. Janice Hahn delivered question responses that were consisntely vague and ill informed. She is an intellectual lightweight entirely unqualified to be CD36’s congressional representative. As for self-described ‘geek’ Debra Bowen, she is far more valuable in Sacramento completing the remainder of her term than in D.C. Both she and Hahn are jumping to fill the shoes of a pro-war candidate they endorsed who quit three months after winning last November 2010 and costing voters millions for a wasted primary.
Marcy Winograd’s congressional recent campaign in 2010 was one about what sort of country and citizenry we want to be. Marcy absolutely — with no reservations — is a real leader and deserves this district’s voters’ votes and word-of-mouth support. Marcy Winograd has been an organized, genuine, hard working, committed and passionate activist in the Anti-War movement, the 2006-2008 Bush/Cheney impeachment movement (Kucinich’s HR 333), Healthcare Reform movement and other progressive efforts to authentically restore the People’s voice to national government.
Marcy received close to 38% of the vote in the 2006 primary and over 41% when she ran against Jane Harman in last summer’s June 8th primary. She is not a machine or party sycophant who will humbly do what the party elders & attendant drones command. Marcy Winograd is a terrific individual and activist. She is a teacher & citizen who has inspired countless thousands over the last decade. She puts her time, money and — perhaps most importantly — her heart where her words are. Marcy is a thinker and a doer : an authentic voice the likes of which voters are hungry for in these cynical and hard economic times.
My family and I sincerely believe that Marcy Winograd is the best voice for for this district’s voters who is aligned with their economic & social interests and — importantly — with their deeper values and their concerns about the directions this country has taken over the last decade.
Pete Thottam
Venice Neighborhood Council, Elected Community Officer & Education Committee Chair
Venice, CA 90291