Last week I reported that Democracy For America,  a progressive PAC with 7,000 members in CA36 and over a million nationwide, announced they were endorsing Debra Bowen for Congress.

Today we get an idea of what kind of support that endorsement translates into with this personal appeal from DFA’s founder, Governor Howard Dean. Hoping to help boost Bowen’s fundraising totals before the March 31st end-of-quarter reporting deadline, Dean asks his DFA membership to contribute to the campaign’s Act Blue page.

Here’s the letter in it’s entirety:

I rarely endorse candidates in Congressional primaries. But Secretary of State Debra Bowen is a rare kind of leader, so when I heard that Debra was running for Congress, I pledged to do everything I could to help her.

I’m proud to endorse Debra Bowen – an intelligent, humble, and passionate public servant who has the courage to stand up to the special interests, and the record to back it up. We simply can’t afford to let this opportunity to send a leader like Debra to Washington pass us by.

All of Debra’s campaigns have truly been “people-powered” – and this time she needs even more grassroots action.

That’s why I’m asking you, right now, to make a donation toward Debra’s goal of 136 grassroots donations between now and March 31 – the first end-of-quarter reporting deadline. These fundraising reports will be scoured by the press, pundits, and her opponents to see if Debra’s got the support she needs to win this election.

I know you’ve chipped in before, and I can’t thank you enough for that – but making another contribution today will go so far toward ensuring that Debra’s campaign has the momentum needed to win.

Click here to contribute $25 or more toward Debra’s end-of-quarter fundraising goal!

Debra is the grassroots candidate in this race, and is a hero for working families, the environment, and better government. She won the John F. Kennedy “Profile in Courage Award” for her commitment to government transparency. And she will fight for jobs in ways that are pragmatic yet progressive, working from the bottom up to re-invest in our education system, protect our social safety nets, and trim our deficit while investing in our future.

Look, I’ve been part of a grassroots political campaign or two. I know what it’s like to come from outside the political establishment, taking on the entrenched politicians and special interests with ideas and values that work for regular working folks. Debra’s got a tough fight on her hands, but it’s such an important one for us to win.

Grassroots activists like you and me are the ones who need to lift Debra up. Can you do that today, by making a donation toward Debra’s campaign before Thursday’s first critical deadline?

Make a contribution today – and help Debra reach her goal of 136 grassroots donations by March 31!

I am so proud to join the thousands of citizens and leaders who’ve endorsed Debra’s campaign in the 36th Congressional District. We are all so lucky that we have the opportunity to elect a leader of such character and intellect.

Let’s make sure we do everything we can to seize it.

Sincerely,

Gov. Howard Dean

P.S. It’s hard to overstate the importance of the coming fundraising deadline. This is the first chance we have to make a major statement about Debra’s powerful grassroots support, so contribute now – and let’s make sure Debra’s March 31 fundraising report is a strong one

When we first started Democracy for America, one of our goals was to help ordinary people get involved in grassroots politics.  Thousands of you joined our community and brought about real change by making phone calls, sending emails, and knocking on doors.  

I need your help for someone who, just like you, stood up for change.  

In 2006, Jerry McNerney, a wind energy engineer, defeated one of the country’s most corrupt members of Congress, Richard Pombo.  Jerry was one of the first DFA Grassroots All-Stars and thousands of volunteers, including so many of you, came together for his campaign and achieved what many said was impossible – sending a seven-term committee Chairman packing.

Click here to give and keep this map-changer working for change.

Since that ground shaking election,  

Jerry has gone on to put his experience in renewable energy to work.  As the only member of Congress that’s also a former wind energy engineer, his leadership in the fight against global warming is invaluable.  

Now, Jerry’s facing a challenge from David Harmer, a corporate lawyer who spent his career defending Wall Street and big corporations.  After the taxpayers bailed out his Wall Street bank, Harmer pocketed a six-figure bonus and payout and then had the audacity to file for unemployment.  And as if that wasn’t enough, he wants to dismantle the Department of Energy, close public schools and outsource good American jobs.

Now he’s airing an ad attacking Jerry for standing up for change.  He’s also claiming to be a “constitutional attorney” who spent his career “protecting taxpayers” when in reality he was a corporate lawyer who helped big Wall Street corporations rip off California families.

We must keep Jerry working for change.  Click here to give $10, $40, anything you can, today.

What we’re working for isn’t just about one campaign – it’s about a movement.  To succeed, we must all stand up and keep working toward the brighter future.

I know I can count on you.

-Howard

There’s been a lot of analysis about why Democrats lost the Massachusetts Senate race, because it was so obvious.  Failing to accomplish what you campaigned on depresses your base, emboldens the enemy and convinces independents that you’re a loser.  The lesson is not that Democrats went “too far” – but that they didn’t go far enough.  If I had faith in President Obama and the Democratic Party, I would be hopeful that they learned that lesson.  But only one person seems to get it – former DNC Chair Howard Dean – who was unceremoniously kicked to the curb last January.  It was Dean who gave Democrats a backbone in the run-up to the Iraq War.  It was Howard Dean’s “Fifty State Strategy” (as opposed to Rahm Emanuel’s recruitment of Blue Dogs) that won Congress in 2006.  And it was Dean’s playbook that Barack Obama used to beat Hillary Clinton in an historic campaign.  Beltway Democrats resent Dean, because he cares more about helping progressives win than stroking their ego. And – what’s most unforgivable – he’s been proven right.

Every two years after an election, the Capitol Hill newspaper Roll Call publishes a large, beautiful color map of the United States featuring the results of House and Senate races.  Dark blue stands for “Democratic take-over,” and dark red stands for “Republican take-over.”  I first saw the map in 1996 on my college roommate’s wall, and resolved to buy it after an election where the Democrats win big.  What’s really pathetic is that I had to wait ten years.  Today, I’m proud to have the maps from 2006 and 2008 on my wall.

It’s not a co-incidence that both of these elections happened when Howard Dean chaired the Democratic National Committee (DNC.)  Dean had electrified the grassroots with his 2004 presidential campaign, because he said it was time for Democrats to be tough.  His campaign was about taking on Republicans in every part of the country, but it was also about empowering the Party’s grassroots.  Supporters were told to take ownership of the campaign, and small online donations allowed him to stay competitive with corporate-funded candidates.  In many ways, Howard Dean was the first “netroots” candidate.

Dean took the helm at the DNC, and set out to do the work to win in 2006.  He instituted reforms in the Party that devolved power from the well-heeled donors to the grassroots activists.  These “heavy hitters” were not real Democrats – most are corporate types who give money to both parties, as opposed to small donors who actually believe in the Party.  Dean proved that small online donations can compete with the “big boys,” which did not endear him to the old guard.  But activists could finally feel good giving their fifty bucks to the DNC.

He also implemented a “Fifty State Strategy” – investing Democratic resources in places where the Party hadn’t existed for years.  It may not help flip districts in one cycle, but it laid the groundwork for Democrats to seriously contest races in the future.  It also helped Democrats seize opportunities when the winds favored them.  Momentum favored Democrats in 1998 (due to disgust at the Clinton impeachment), but they failed to re-take Congress because they were not competing in enough districts.  That was not a problem, however, in 2006.

Compare this strategy with the “old-school” tactics that Rahm Emanuel employed at the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC.)  Rahm focused on a small number of districts, recruited conservative Blue Dog Democrats and told them to run against their own party to co-opt the Republican base.  At worst, these candidates lost.  At best, they won – but would then go to Washington with an anti-progressive mandate.  

Howard Dean is the reason Democrats won in 2006 – and got nothing but grief for doing so.  The media started pushing a lie right after the election that Democrats won because they had run “conservative” candidates.  James Carville went on CNN to throw a tantrum about how Dean should be kicked out of the DNC, and that Harold Ford – the only serious Democratic Senate contender that year to lose, and an anti-progressive DLCer to boot – should replace him.

Dean’s transformation of politics also made it possible for Barack Obama to win the White House.  Hillary Clinton was the establishment choice (and in party primaries, the establishment always wins), who raised money the old-fashioned way – through big donors.  But Obama adopted the Howard Dean playbook of a grassroots campaign with a compelling message, and fundraising from small online donors.  As the primaries dragged on, Obama outpaced Hillary because his donors – unlike hers – hadn’t maxed out and kept giving.

One would think that such a track record would have kept Howard Dean at the DNC for another four years.  Instead, President-elect Obama quickly replaced him with Virginia Governor Tim Kaine – and didn’t even invite Dean to the announcement ceremony.  As far as anyone can tell, Kaine has abandoned Dean’s “Fifty State Strategy” – bringing the DNC back to the old days of raising gobs of cash, dissing the grassroots and not investing in resources that lead to long-term viability.

The result?  Democrats lost the governorship in Virginia (Kaine’s home state), couldn’t save Jon Corzine in New Jersey and even blew Ted Kennedy’s seat in Massachusetts.  We can’t blame Tim Kaine for all of this, but it’s telling that just after the DNC stopped pursuing what Howard Dean had done they started losing elections.  What’s galling is that Obama would not have been President without the groundwork Dean laid.  What’s infuriating is that Obama was supposed to be about “change we can believe in.”

Howard Dean has returned to Democracy for America – where he’s provided instrumental leadership on the health care debate.  Unlike Obama’s Organizing for America, which refused to target conservative Democrats who have given us nothing but trouble, DFA has aired TV ads in Nebraska that targeted Ben Nelson on the public option.  When Democrats caved to Lieberman’s extortion (because Obama sent Rahm Emanuel to Capitol Hill, urging the Senate Democrats to do so), Dean accurately read the public’s pulse and said, “kill the bill.”

For standing on principle, Dean got nothing but grief.  He was called “unstable” by White House aides.  The “screaming” Howard Dean meme was again repeated in the media.  He had committed the unforgivable crime of being right, and they resented it deeply.  And in a few weeks, Dean’s prophecy would be proven right again by voters in Massachusetts.

Now, the Democrats have managed to fumble Ted Kennedy’s Senate seat – losing to a right-wing Republican who once posed nude for Cosmopolitan. Evidence shows that Martha Coakley’s numbers went down after the Senate passed the health care bill.  Shouldn’t the Party leaders listen to Howard Dean?  At least, they owe him an apology.

Paul Hogarth is the Managing Editor of Beyond Chron, San Francisco’s Alternative Online Daily, where this piece was first published.

There’s been a lot of analysis about why Democrats lost the Massachusetts Senate race, because it was so obvious.  Failing to accomplish what you campaigned on depresses your base, emboldens the enemy and convinces independents that you’re a loser.  The lesson is not that Democrats went “too far” – but that they didn’t go far enough.  If I had faith in President Obama and the Democratic Party, I would be hopeful that they learned that lesson.  But only one person seems to get it – former DNC Chair Howard Dean – who was unceremoniously kicked to the curb last January.  It was Dean who gave Democrats a backbone in the run-up to the Iraq War.  It was Howard Dean’s “Fifty State Strategy” (as opposed to Rahm Emanuel’s recruitment of Blue Dogs) that won Congress in 2006.  And it was Dean’s playbook that Barack Obama used to beat Hillary Clinton in an historic campaign.  Beltway Democrats resent Dean, because he cares more about helping progressives win than stroking their ego. And – what’s most unforgivable – he’s been proven right.

Every two years after an election, the Capitol Hill newspaper Roll Call publishes a large, beautiful color map of the United States featuring the results of House and Senate races.  Dark blue stands for “Democratic take-over,” and dark red stands for “Republican take-over.”  I first saw the map in 1996 on my college roommate’s wall, and resolved to buy it after an election where the Democrats win big.  What’s really pathetic is that I had to wait ten years.  Today, I’m proud to have the maps from 2006 and 2008 on my wall.

It’s not a co-incidence that both of these elections happened when Howard Dean chaired the Democratic National Committee (DNC.)  Dean had electrified the grassroots with his 2004 presidential campaign, because he said it was time for Democrats to be tough.  His campaign was about taking on Republicans in every part of the country, but it was also about empowering the Party’s grassroots.  Supporters were told to take ownership of the campaign, and small online donations allowed him to stay competitive with corporate-funded candidates.  In many ways, Howard Dean was the first “netroots” candidate.

Dean took the helm at the DNC, and set out to do the work to win in 2006.  He instituted reforms in the Party that devolved power from the well-heeled donors to the grassroots activists.  These “heavy hitters” were not real Democrats – most are corporate types who give money to both parties, as opposed to small donors who actually believe in the Party.  Dean proved that small online donations can compete with the “big boys,” which did not endear him to the old guard.  But activists could finally feel good giving their fifty bucks to the DNC.

He also implemented a “Fifty State Strategy” – investing Democratic resources in places where the Party hadn’t existed for years.  It may not help flip districts in one cycle, but it laid the groundwork for Democrats to seriously contest races in the future.  It also helped Democrats seize opportunities when the winds favored them.  Momentum favored Democrats in 1998 (due to disgust at the Clinton impeachment), but they failed to re-take Congress because they were not competing in enough districts.  That was not a problem, however, in 2006.

Compare this strategy with the “old-school” tactics that Rahm Emanuel employed at the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC.)  Rahm focused on a small number of districts, recruited conservative Blue Dog Democrats and told them to run against their own party to co-opt the Republican base.  At worst, these candidates lost.  At best, they won – but would then go to Washington with an anti-progressive mandate.  

Howard Dean is the reason Democrats won in 2006 – and got nothing but grief for doing so.  The media started pushing a lie right after the election that Democrats won because they had run “conservative” candidates.  James Carville went on CNN to throw a tantrum about how Dean should be kicked out of the DNC, and that Harold Ford – the only serious Democratic Senate contender that year to lose, and an anti-progressive DLCer to boot – should replace him.

Dean’s transformation of politics also made it possible for Barack Obama to win the White House.  Hillary Clinton was the establishment choice (and in party primaries, the establishment always wins), who raised money the old-fashioned way – through big donors.  But Obama adopted the Howard Dean playbook of a grassroots campaign with a compelling message, and fundraising from small online donors.  As the primaries dragged on, Obama outpaced Hillary because his donors – unlike hers – hadn’t maxed out and kept giving.

One would think that such a track record would have kept Howard Dean at the DNC for another four years.  Instead, President-elect Obama quickly replaced him with Virginia Governor Tim Kaine – and didn’t even invite Dean to the announcement ceremony.  As far as anyone can tell, Kaine has abandoned Dean’s “Fifty State Strategy” – bringing the DNC back to the old days of raising gobs of cash, dissing the grassroots and not investing in resources that lead to long-term viability.

The result?  Democrats lost the governorship in Virginia (Kaine’s home state), couldn’t save Jon Corzine in New Jersey and even blew Ted Kennedy’s seat in Massachusetts.  We can’t blame Tim Kaine for all of this, but it’s telling that just after the DNC stopped pursuing what Howard Dean had done they started losing elections.  What’s galling is that Obama would not have been President without the groundwork Dean laid.  What’s infuriating is that Obama was supposed to be about “change we can believe in.”

Howard Dean has returned to Democracy for America – where he’s provided instrumental leadership on the health care debate.  Unlike Obama’s Organizing for America, which refused to target conservative Democrats who have given us nothing but trouble, DFA has aired TV ads in Nebraska that targeted Ben Nelson on the public option.  When Democrats caved to Lieberman’s extortion (because Obama sent Rahm Emanuel to Capitol Hill, urging the Senate Democrats to do so), Dean accurately read the public’s pulse and said, “kill the bill.”

For standing on principle, Dean got nothing but grief.  He was called “unstable” by White House aides.  The “screaming” Howard Dean meme was again repeated in the media.  He had committed the unforgivable crime of being right, and they resented it deeply.  And in a few weeks, Dean’s prophecy would be proven right again by voters in Massachusetts.

Now, the Democrats have managed to fumble Ted Kennedy’s Senate seat – losing to a right-wing Republican who once posed nude for Cosmopolitan. Evidence shows that Martha Coakley’s numbers went down after the Senate passed the health care bill.  Shouldn’t the Party leaders listen to Howard Dean?  At least, they owe him an apology.

Paul Hogarth is the Managing Editor of Beyond Chron, San Francisco’s Alternative Online Daily, where this piece was first published.

He asked me to take back the Democratic Party. And I agreed to try. I told myself that, if it became clear there was no chance, I would stop.

It has now become clear. John Burton may have a fine legislative record. I don’t honestly know. But I only had to meet the man for 2 minutes to know he has nothing to do with change we can believe in. And the whole process of crowning him chair smacks of smoke-filled back rooms and the old-boys network.

I no longer feel there is any opportunity for me to help take back the Democratic Party in California. Rather, I believe Burton is poised to take the party back at least several decades. It appears nobody has noticed the grassroots revolution that put Obama in the White House. Or they don’t care. Or, as seems more likely, they are once again saying, “That’s nice kids. Thanks for all the money and help. Now go away and let the adults handle things properly.”

To put it as delicately as I’m able, they can stick that attitude where the sun don’t shine. I was a registered independent before Dean, and I can be one again.

So I have notified the e-board rep for my AD that, despite the fact that I can’t find a way to take myself off the cadem.org site, I am no longer running for a delegate slot. I will not ask for re-appointment to another standing committee.

I’m sorry Howard, but I did try.  

(I’m at the Obama/DNC registration event right now, this was a great event this afternoon with Dr. Dean.  Get out the vote!!! – promoted by David Dayen)

The Barack Obama/DNC “Register for Change” bus just pulled up in front of the Netroots Nation convention in Austin, Texas, so that DNC Chairman Howard Dean could lead a rally and then register voters outside the Austin Convention Center.  Dean’s visit took place during a noon-time break in panel discussions being led by the Obama campaign and the DNC, laying out their plan for winning in 2008.

Those of you who have read emails and posts from the California Democratic Party have already heard many of the specifics for their plan.  The primary tool that Democrats will be using to win this election in November is the Neighborhood Leader program.

In the morning’s first presentation, the speaker, Parag Mehta of the DNC outlined the effectiveness of various forms of communicating with voters.  He provided some data about political outreach that were extremely telling.  

The contact required to garner one vote for your cause requires the following:

• 389 mailers
• 460 phone calls
• 14 doors knocked

Those numbers don’t leave much doubt as to where we can most effectively increase our numbers of Democratic votes for November.  And something tells me there’s going to be a lot more talk here at Netroots Nation about the Neighborhood Leader program.  

That’s because the premise is strikingly effective and amazingly simple.  You sign up to be a Neighborhood Leader and promise to talk to 25 of your friends and neighbors about your Democratic values and the candidates who share your values.  You talk to them three separate times between now and November.   Then you try to find two other people to volunteer to become Neighborhood Leaders.

Our message is amplified exponentially, and most importantly our message comes to people from trusted sources.

It’s such a powerful tool, that they even plastered the message on the side of the Register for Change bus.

Penny

Online Organizing Director

California Democratic Party

Every political insider in the state woke up this morning, opened the Sacramento Bee and read:

Perata aid angers some Dems

$250,000 to help with his legal bills should go to 2008 races, they say.

The California Democratic Party’s decision to spend another $250,000 on Senate leader Don Perata’s legal bills has angered some party activists, who say the money would be better spent electing Democrats this year.

The Oakland Democrat has racked up nearly $2 million in fees fending off an ongoing FBI corruption investigation in the last four years. With the latest donation, made July 1, the party has now given a total of $450,000 to help cover Perata’s legal bills.

“The California Democratic Party is in business to defeat Republicans and elect Democrats,” said Rick Jacobs, co-founder of the Courage Campaign, a left-leaning online activist group. “It’s not really to keep corrupt politicians out of jail.”

Steve Cummings, vice president of the Democratic Club of Ventura County, said that while he had not personally formed an opinion, “People are going to be livid.”

Democratic activists who want to take advantage of what could be another tidal wave year should be livid to see the CDP waste money like this. Wasting money on an impotent lame duck who should have passed the batton to Darrell Steinberg long ago instead of electing Democrats is plain stupid. There is no excuse. Art Torres should resign in shame. With this latest scandal, on top of the $4,000,000 he wasted on Fabian Nunez, it is abundantly clear that Torres has no intention of doing his job.

Tomorrow, Speaker Karen Bass is hosting a small dollar fundraiser for the CDP. How can Speaker Bass honestly ask Democratic activists to go to Actblue and make a two figure donation when the CDP is writing six and seven figure checks that have nothing to do with electing Democrats? Chair Torres is embarrassing Speaker Bass with this crap and putting her in an awful position thanks to legal crisis created by the clear appearance of impropriety by Senator Don Perata.

At the heart of the crisis rolling the CDP is money. While DNC Chair Howard Dean and Democratic Party presidential nominee Barack Obama have crossed the bridge to the 21st century and inspired small dollar donors to build people-powered political operations, the CDP is actually going backwards and Chair Torres is running things worse than when he was first anointed by then President Bill Clinton a decade ago. Chair Torres is either unable or unwilling to lead the CDP in this direction. As such, he has no business being Chair and should resign immediately.

When I hear the name “Art Torres” I have a sour taste in my mouth. My first thought is how far the $4,450,000 he has wasted could have gone to register and organize Democrats. Think how far that could have gone towards actually helping Charlie Brown this cycle, or Debbie Cook or Russ Warner or any of the great challengers who should be receiving strong support from the Party. If we lose Proposition 8 and California codifies discrimination into the state constitution, I’m going to think how far that money could have gone towards registering and turning out Democrats. Think how many organizers could be hired and trained with such a large sum.

The California Democratic Party is lost and the first step to set a new course is to admit that the CDP is FUBAR with Art Torres at the helm. Chair Torres needs to step down, preferably before he shames Speaker Bass at tomorrow night’s small dollar fundraiser. For as long as he stays, it makes no sense for small donors to contribute and every Democrat on the ballot this fall in a tight race is at an extreme disadvantage. It is time for reform, for progress. It is time to start winning.

[UPDATE by Dave] – Might as well add this here – the FISA Amendments Act passed today, and Sen. Feinstein voted for cloture, for the final bill, and against stripping out immunity.  Art Torres told us all that last year, she “led the fight” to stop telecom immunity in the United States Senate.  Draw your own conslusions.