Eric Bauman is going to raise $1 million dollars for 2008. The best part is how he’s going to spend it.
Last night, members of the Los Angeles County Central Committee raised their hands to take an oath of office from Supreme Court Justice Carlos Moreno, and took to electing Party officers. Among them was Chairman Eric Bauman, unanimously re-elected to a fifth term.
I’m told that’s a record. From his words last night, it’s easy to see why.
Bauman has been singled out here as someone who speaks his mind and knows the mechanics of electioneering, even when his opinions and techniques run against the grain of some Democratic leaders.
He showed what he’s made of in thanking the Central Committee and looking ahead to 2008 – and perhaps beyond:
Now is the time to rebuild, refresh and reassemble the mosaic that comprises our Democratic Party for it is only through unity, strength and shared purpose that we can be successful this fall.
As we work to build unity however, we must take seriously our responsibility to remind those we have elected or put in positions of power of their obligation to do the right thing by our Party and our people.
Whether it is protecting those most at-risk from harsh budget cuts or standing up for our Constitution or avoiding situations and actions that have the appearance of impropriety, as leaders of our Party, we must not fear holding feet to the fire and speaking truth to power.
If we truly are leaders, we must act like it: respectfully, responsibly, but fearlessly.
Who else senses a little tough love in there?
What I find interesting about Bauman’s leadership of the LACDP is not just his (sadly uncommon) willingness to speak truth to power, but how he marshalls forces and resources on the ground to help candidates up and down the ballot, even in those districts often written off as unwinnable.
After the jump I’ll share what I heard last night (and from Bauman separately), and what I’ve seen him do to build and strengthen the Democratic Party in Los Angeles County.
In nominating remarks, presumptive Assemblyman John A. Pèrez noted that in Bauman’s time as LACDP Chair, the organization had grown from an annual budget of $50,000 to over $1 million this year.
The amount raised is important. However, what really matters is how it’s being spent – a wider topic of some discussion here at Calitics (and across the party) in recent weeks.
Continuing his speech, Bauman reminded Party members how they chose to spend their war-chest when they adopted a budget earlier this year:
That’s why LACDP’s leaders have spent months setting goals and formulating an aggressive plan to educate, motivate and mobilize LA County’s 2,070,210 Democrats.
Our plans for 2008 are extensive and include everything from direct voter contact programs to voter registration to providing comprehensive training for Democratic activists.
Of course we will assist clubs and groups who open campaign headquarters; work with the California Democratic Party; and maximize the quality, effectiveness and impact of our Red Zone program. We will also work with our colleagues in rural, red and purple areas around the state to help them best take advantage of this incredible Big Blue Wave year.
As Chair of this Party, I staked out an aggressive goal in January to raise a minimum of one million dollars this year to fund our various programs – and more than half of it has already been raised. That is a testament to a talented staff and committed members who have worked hard to ensure we have the resources we need to accomplish our goals.
Most importantly, these funds are being used to support candidates for local, state and federal office and to fund the critical activities that will grow our Party and support our grassroots activists and volunteers.
Bauman’s details of how the funds would be used – for grassroots activities and Party building – fired up the membership. Whether it’s in candidate campaigns, PACs, or Party Organizations the fastest way to stifle grassroots fundraising is to have that cash disappear into a vacuum or worse, to have it used for purposes unfathomable to the rank and file.
I’ve had some personal experience with Bauman’s grassroots programs. A close friend of mine was a Red Zone candidate two years ago and benefitted from guidance and resources from Bauman and the LACDP staff.
I myself had the privilege of leading two training sessions for the Red Zone candidates and their staffers last weekend. These are citizens from across the county (or whose districts reach into the county) who are answering the call of civic duty by running in tough Republican Districts. They are doctors, teachers, and parents taking up the mantle of our Party and LACDP has their back.
Bauman has had his eyes on California’s rural, red and purple regions for a long time. In recent months, he has worked to export this Red Zone program beyond his home county – a good model as CDP moves toward implementing their 58 County plan.
Full disclosure: I am proud to have previously worked for John A. Perez and the Los Angeles County Democratic Party – both mentioned above. I tapped these relationships to copy/paste from printed remarks, instead of transcribing my recording.
“It just seems to me it is improper. It reduces confidence in government and also particularly the Party. I think the Party is going to have a tough time with all this publicity raising money from the smaller donors.”
-Bob Stern, President, Center for Governmental Studies on KCRW last night talking about the California Democratic Party wasting $450,000 on Senator Don Perata’s criminal defense fund. CDP flack Roger Salazar refused to go on at the same time as Stern and Rick Jacobs to debate the scandal.
Which brings me back to last night’s ill-timed fundraiser with Speaker Karen Bass. The actblue page to RSVP for the account said the money was going to support the California State Democratic Committee – Federal Account. Great idea, Madame Speaker Bass helping Madame Speaker Nancy Pelosi pick up more seats and be able to overcome the Blue Dog Caucus siding with the GOP to obstruct Pelosi’s leadership.
With California unable to count on DCCC ad money against any of the very vulnerable Republican Representatives, it is clear California Democrats need to plan to win on our own. Which is why yesterday’s LA Times editorial on the CDP wasting money on Don Perata is so counterproductive. We need the resources to win on our own and we need small dollar donors to get there. Yet the actions of the CDP discourage small dollar donations. The results are clear, including last night, the CDP has only raised $6,630 ALL CYCLE in federal money on actblue. To put in perspective, San Diego County Democrats have raised more than 20 times that much federal money on actblue — from more than 30 times as many small dollar contributions.
It could be another landslide year, but it probably will be yet another year when Democratic Congressional challengers don’t get the support they could and should count on from the CDP. In fact, when taking into account outstanding debt, the CDP Federal Account had less than $300,000 as of the end of May. And Democratic state senate challengers have already seen $450,000 wasted on not helping elect Hannah-Beth Jackson and Lois Wolk. We can trust in the CDP if the goal is to seize defeat from the jaws of victory (which it might be, Perata already called uncle on two state senate races so far this year). Or we can reform and begin fighting to beat Republicans instead of coddle the Democratic Party establishment. The first step is accountability. Again, Senator Don Perata needs to give back the $450,000 and Art Torres should step down as CDP Chair for wasting $4,450,000 not electing Democrats this fall.
As many have noticed, the Leadership has moved on the offense in the budget fight. They’re not negotiating with themselves, instead staking out a fairly strong position for changing the revenue model and rejecting a stop-gap, borrow-and-spend, cuts-only approach. Media wags, who normally act like two year-olds and talk about “working together” as if this would solve the problems in Sacramento, are responding to the aggressive approach. George Skelton writes today about how California voters “can’t handle the truth,” how they want unlimited services without paying for them, and how they need to face reality. He also specifically cited the 2/3 requirement as crippling the state. Dan Walters says it’s about time for a “budget cage-match,” the ideological battle to once and for all address the structural deficit and budgeting-by-catastrophe that has become commonplace.
Yet at the same time, the California Democratic Party hands $250,000 to the Senate President Pro Tem to pay for his legal bills, causing oodles of outrage. Over the last two days I’ve been given a lot of reasons for this. “The money was earmarked for Perata,” they say. Perata has his own campaign account already and he’s perfectly capable of raising his own cash. If people want to hide their donations by legally laundering them through the CDP, that’s nothing the state party should involve itself with. There ought to be transparency. “He’s being railroaded,” they say. That’s certainly possible in an era of Bush league justice, but nobody is making that case credibly, just talking about how long the investigation has dragged on.
And then there’s this excuse. “If the Senate leader is indicted, that will hurt downticket races.” But the appearance of impropriety in the CDP legally laundering contributions and paying for Perata’s legal defense fund is doing the EXACT same thing, and at a crucial time. The LAT op-ed that Bob mentioned is just the beginning.
Furthermore, I have no idea why Sen. Perata is still the leader. Sen. Steinberg, who did a $10 fundraiser in Sacramento a couple days ago and who I feel represents a breath of fresh air, is perfectly capable of carrying out the duties, and having someone this tainted as the face of the budget fight is incredibly damaging. It won’t be long before the press connects this story and the budget story, and then all the mostly laudable efforts to cast a stark difference between Democrats and Republicans on the budget will be compromised. For the life of me, I can’t figure out why the caucus has not demanded immediate leadership elections. I believe Steinberg is scheduled to take over on August 11, when we’ll already be down the road in budget negotiations. It is the height of stupidity to thrust someone into the leadership at that late date. He should have been in there a month ago.
At the least, Perata can return the money and throw himself fully into this budget fight as a means of preserving what’s left of his legacy. The CDP can return to its core mission of electing Democrats, and if it has to give back this $250K to donors, so be it. But at a time when the momentum is on Democrats’ side and the budget fight is going to consume all the oxygen for the next couple months, allowing a distraction like this is a huge mistake.
Meanwhile, the Sacramento Bee reported that the California Democratic Party used $250,000 of its contributors’ money to pay the legal expenses that Perata (D-Oakland) has racked up defending against a criminal probe by the FBI.
It’s all perfectly legal, but it sure stinks. […]
As for Perata, Democrats not just in his district but anywhere in the state must wonder what their party is doing. They have every right to expect that contributors’ money will be pumped into districts where Democrats are locked in tough election fights with Republicans, or into struggles with the GOP over the budget. Instead, it’s paying the legal bills for Perata, who simultaneously is leading the fight against a redistricting measure on the November ballot.
When politicians demonstrate contempt for Californians, Californians respond in kind. Term-limits reform, badly needed to fix the state’s broken political system, lost at the ballot box in large part because voters mistrusted Perata, Nuñez and Schwarzenegger, and with some reason. The notion that elected officials are paid by the public to do the public’s work has become distressingly quaint.
This is clearly indefensible, which is probably why Bob Mulholland chickened out on debating the issue with Rick Jacobs on KPFA this morning. According to the host, Perata’s flacks also refused to go on the show. With today’s editorial rightly blasting the CDP, the press is trying to get people on record and the word on the street is that the CDP and Perata’s team are refusing to try and defend the indefensible. Props to any press organization that can get the CDP or Don Perata to debate this in public.
There isn’t a debate because there is no excuse for this waste of money. Don Perata needs to immediately refund all $450,000 and Art Torres must resign in shame before tonight’s fundraiser to avoid making a fool of Speaker Karen Bass. And then both should apologize to Hannah-Beth Jackson and every Democrat on the ballot this fall for having such contempt for the concept of trying to win elections.
[UPDATE by Dave]: The problem here is transparency, and it’s not limited to funding. Watch palace courtier Bob Mulholland respond to the fact that his boss essentially lied about Sen. Feinstein and the FISA bill:
So I contacted the party today to see if Torres would comment on today’s votes. I got a callback from party political advisor Bob Mulholland, who noted Obama voted for immunity today too as a compromise. “Our attitude as a political party is, let’s win the election and we can start cleaning up the constitutional mess Bush gave us,” Mulholland said.
In other words, shut up and trust us, we know what we’re doing. I think it would be easier to win the election if they weren’t laundering half a million dollars to the Senate leader’s legal defense fund and embarrassing the entire party. Speaking of which, why IS he still the Senate leader? Why haven’t there been immediate caucus leadership elections in the wake of this? Nuñez at least had the sense to step aside.
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.
Boy, lameduck CDP Chair Art Torres sure looks like shit. All that smoke he blew up the asses of the E-Board about how DiFi listens to him and so she shouldn’t be censured — well it was all crap. He stuck his neck out to vouch for DiFi on an issue as simple as upholding her oath of office and by doing so made an ass of himself and made himself look irrelevant at the same time. Didn’t think it could get any worse than the scandal over the $4 million payola to Fabian Nunez, but Torres sure out did himself on this one.
Also not surprising, Senator Barbara Boxer fought to defend the Constitution against domestic enemies like Senator Dianne Feinstein. And fortunately for her, she’s putting together a strong re-election campaign that won’t rely upon the worthless CDP during the time we are recovering from the Torres dynasty.
The great statement by Senator Barbara Boxer on how those who vote for retroactive immunity, “are perpetuating a cover-up” is good news for everyone who defends the Constitution. While Sen. Boxer has yet to vow to join the Feingold/Dodd filibuster, the thinking by many seems to be that Boxer will fight hard for what she believes in so many activists I’ve talked to are excited by anticipated aggressive maneuvering by Boxer to stop retroactive immunity.
As for the other senator…there is a great deal of concern that Senator Dianne Feinstein will capitulate. While defending Senator Feinstein against the push to have her formally censured by the California Democratic Party, Chair Art Torres said:
I said I think it’s important that you hear this from me because there’s also concern about the telecom immunity issue which will come before the senate judiciary committee. Don’t believe me, ask my friend Senator Dodd, who will tell you that she led the effort along with him to make sure that that wasn’t in the FISA bill that emerged from the senate judiciary committee. That bill as you know does not include the telecom immunity issue, which was a very important issue for me, and I’m proud that she listened, because she does.
Does she? (202) 224-3841
If not, she is likely to again face a censure push by CDP activists seeking to hold her to account.
We are writing with great concern regarding reports the Democratic leadership has struck a deal which will further erode civil liberties by circumventing the original FISA laws, and we ask that you not only oppose this new FISA bill but that you filibuster its advancement in the Senate.
We are deeply disappointed in our Party and its leadership for capitulating to the Bush administration with this utterly unnecessary legislation–but you are our Senator, from the great and progressive state of California, and as your constituents we have a right to expect better leadership from you.
We wish to note that in an official statement regarding a previous FISA bill, you defended the telecom industry, stating they had no choice but to break the law–but in this you were incorrect: They did have a choice, proven by the fact Qwest chose to obey the Constitution rather than wiretap without proper FISA warrants. We would also remind you the telecoms’ illegal activity began well before the attacks of 9/11.
We need better answers and better representation from our senior Senator. It was with great pain that, last year, we moved several California Democratic Party caucuses to censure you for your approval of an Attorney General who condoned torture, and for your previous support for telecom immunity. We would prefer not to censure you again, but to instead applaud you for doing what is right and protecting our Constitution rather than protecting corporations and the Bush administration. We ask you to stand with the vast bulk of your constituents who side with the rule of law.
Thank you,
Yours,
Michael Jay, Delegate, California Democratic Party, 42nd Assembly District
Ricco Ross, California Democratic Party, 42nd Assembly District
Co-Chairs, Progressive Democrats of Los Angeles
Linda Sutton, CDP Delegate, 41st AD, Vice Chair of Progressive Democrats of Los Angeles
Last time, the push for censure united an amazing array of organizations in less than a week, including:
Endorsed by the Courage Campaign, MoveOn.org Political Action, Progressive Democrats of America, Progressive Caucus of the California Democratic Party, Women’s Caucus of the California Democratic Party, Irish-American Caucus of the California Democratic Party, Steering Committee of the East Bay for Democracy Democratic Club, Sonoma County Democratic Central Committee, Wellstone Democratic Renewal Club, the Coordinating Committee of SoCal Grassroots, San Diego Democracy for America, the Steering Committee of Progressive Democrats of Los Angeles, Sacramento for Democracy, DFA-Orange County, Santa Cruz County for Democracy, Trinity County Democratic Central Committee, Diablo Valley Democratic Club, Ventura County Committee to Stop the War, Progressive Democrats Sonoma County, the Inyo County Democratic Central Committee, the Torrance Democratic Club, San Mateo County Democracy for America, Castro Valley Progressives, the Whittier Area Peace & Justice Coalition, Santa Barbara Impeach Cheney & Bush Meetup Group, Democracy for America – Marin (DFA-Marin), Valley Democrats United, the Executive Board of the West LA Democratic Club, Progressive Democrats – San Francisco, Greenwood Earth Alliance, Hammering the Issues, Westchester Democratic Club Executive Board, Young Democrats of UCI, the North (San Fernando) Valley Democratic Club, Lassen Progressives, Castro Valley Democratic Club Executive Board, Progressive Democrats of Marin, Progressive Democrats of America – Metro San Diego Chapter, Sonoma County Democracy for America, Progressive Democrats of America Orange County, and Progressive Democrats of America Ventura County.
And Rick Jacobs made the teevee (I do so work for Courage Campaign):
As the focus intensifies over this bill, here are some of the emails I’ve received as of late.
The House passed a version of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) last week that included retroactive immunity to the telecom companies that conspired in Bush’s warrantless wiretapping program. And now, as the bill heads to the Senate, it looks like we have one last chance to stop this massive erosion of the rule of law.
Thankfully, we have a few champions, like Russ Feingold and Chris Dodd, who look poised to fight this to the very end, but they can’t do it alone. They need both strong support from progressive senators and the vote of those senators currently sitting on the fence. This is where you come in.
Sen. Feinstein could be the deciding voice and vote on stopping retroactive immunity. Please take a minute right now to give her a call and ask her to strip the retroactive immunity provision of FISA.
Senator Feingold effectively summed up the insanity of retroactive immunity yesterday by saying, “It doesn’t simply have the impact of potentially allowing telephone companies to break the law. It may prevent us from ever getting to the core issue…which is the president ran an illegal program that could’ve been an impeachable offense.”
I hope that you’ll join me and do what you can to help prevent this from happening.
Over the last 8 months, you and I have stopped Congress from granting retroactive immunity to telecommunication companies who illegally spied on Americans for the Bush administration — at least three times.
On Friday, Democratic Leadership in the House of Representatives decided to stand with President Bush instead of with America. They voted for a so-called “compromise” to let AT&T, Verizon and the entire Bush administration off the hook for lying to America and illegally tapping our phone calls.
If this bill passes the Senate, then Americans will never be able to hold President Bush accountable for warrantless wiretapping.
We need to take action to stop this horrible bill. Last time immunity came up for a Senate vote, Senators Dodd, Feingold and Obama each said they would filibuster to stop it from passing. They will need 60 votes to keep a filibuster going and stop the Senate from caving to pressure to support this fake “compromise”.
Call your Senators right now and demand they support a filibuster of any Senate bill that will ultimately grant retroactive immunity to telecoms who spied on innocent Americans.
Barbara Boxer
(202) 224-3553
Dianne Feinstein
(202) 224-3841
Suggested Text:
“I calling to demand Senator (Boxer or Feinstein) support a filibuster of any bill that will ultimately grant immunity to telecommunications companies who spied on innocent Americans. Can I count on the Senator to stand up to President Bush and his fear mongering?”
Let’s call a spade a spade. This bill is a complete capitulation to Bush and the telecom lobby. We need all the support we can get in this fight to uphold the constitution.
The vote is scheduled to happen this week. We need to act today. Please make your call right now.
No Immunity for Telecoms that Illegally Spy on US!
Last Friday, the House of Representatives granted de facto amnesty to the phone companies who cooperated with the Bush administration’s illegal spying on American citizens. Our final opportunity to prevent this from becoming law lies with the Senate. We must stop the Senate from making the same terrible decision, a decision that chips away at one of our most fundamental and progressive values-the right to privacy.
Please call your senators right now and tell them to vote against any bill that lets the Bush administration and these telecom companies off the hook for shredding the constitution.
We cannot let the Senate give the phone companies and the Bush administration a free ride for past and future violations of our basic civil liberties. If we join together and ask our Senators to stop this bill by supporting a filibuster and voting NO against a bill that gives the phone companies amnesty, we can protect our privacy rights from this assault by conservative forces in Congress.
Call Your Senators Today.
The Senate switchboard is (202) 224-3121 (see below for a list of direct numbers). Tell them your state and ask them to connect you to your senator. Be sure to speak with both senators from your state. When you complete your calls, let us know what happened using this report form.
In addition to giving phone companies a free pass, this bill fails to restore adequate judicial review for future surveillance, which will continue to put our privacy rights at risk. Protecting our privacy rights is a core progressive value. Don’t let them slip away. Take action by calling your senator today. And don’t forget to report back to us.
Thanks,
Alan and the CAPAF advocacy team
P.S. We are excited to tell you that we will soon be launching our new advocacy website, IAmProgress.org. IAmProgress.org will be the home to all future CAPAF advocacy campaigns. So look out for the announcement and help us make IAmProgress.org a success.
Direct Phone Numbers to Senators (Listed by State)
[…]
California
Sen. Barbara Boxer (D) (202) 224-3553; (202)228-2382
Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D) (202) 224-3841; 228-3954
On Friday, House Democrats caved to the Bush administration and passed a bill giving a get-out-of-jail-free card to phone companies that helped Bush illegally spy on innocent Americans.1
This Monday, the fight moves to the Senate. Senator Russ Feingold says the “deal is not a compromise; it is a capitulation.”2 Barack Obama announced his partial support for the bill, but said, “It does, however, grant retroactive immunity, and I will work in the Senate to remove this provision so that we can seek full accountability for past offenses.”3
Last year, after phone calls from MoveOn members and others, Obama went so far as to vow to “support a filibuster of any bill that includes retroactive immunity for telecommunications companies.”4 We need him to honor that promise.
Can you call Senator Obama today and tell him you’re counting on him to keep his word? Ask him to block any compromise that includes immunity for phone companies that helped Bush break the law.
Obama’s presidential campaign: (866) 675-2008
Then, help us track our progress by clicking here:
These companies helped the Bush Administration illegally spy on the emails and phone calls of innocent Americans. By giving “immunity” to these companies, all lawsuits brought against them by civil liberties groups would be thrown out of court. That means we may never find out how far Bush went in breaking the law. And once it’s done, it can’t be undone. That’s why we need Obama to promise to block any bill that has immunity.
Supporters of the House bill say it doesn’t guarantee immunity-it just kicks the issue to a court to decide. But that’s deceptive. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) points out:
“It gives [Bush’s] attorney general the power to decide if cases against telecommunications companies will proceed. The AG only has to certify to the FISA court that the company didn’t spy or did so with a permission slip from the president. A note from the president is not a legal defense. Allowing phone companies to avoid litigation by simply presenting a ‘permission slip’ from the president is not court review.”5
The Electronic Frontier Foundation, a non-profit group working with the ACLU to hold these companies accountable, adds, “whatever gloss might be put on it, the so-called ‘compromise’ on immunity for phone companies that broke the law is anything but a compromise…no matter how they spin it, this is still immunity, period.”6
President Bush and the phone companies know that the facts are against them. A judge appointed by President Bush’s father already wrote one opinion finding that “AT&T cannot seriously contend that a reasonable entity in its position could have believed that the alleged domestic dragnet was legal.”7
But we’ll never know how far their illegal actions went unless we fight back now. Can you tell Barack Obama you’re counting on him to keep his word and block any compromise that gives immunity to lawbreaking phone companies?
Obama’s presidential campaign: (866) 675-2008
Then, help us track our progress by clicking here:
Despite the outrage coming from a broad coalition of concerned citizens, by tomorrow night the House of Representatives will vote on whether or not to gut the Constitution and give immunity to phone companies who broke the law and spied on Americans.
We have to act now. Even if you’ve emailed, called or visited your members of Congress about FISA, we need you to contact them again today.
Congress is moving so fast and so secretively that we only got a copy of this bill this morning. I can tell you it’s horrible. It contains vacuum cleaner style surveillance that sweeps up the phone calls and emails of Americans. And it’s blatantly unconstitutional.
The bottom line is that this is legislation that benefits a few of our country’s largest corporations while taking away basic rights from the rest of us. And it is unacceptable.
I’m going to spend the rest of the day on the phone calling Capitol Hill trying to stop this bill. I hope you will spend whatever time you can to make the voice of freedom heard in Congress — make calls, ask your friends and family to call — please do whatever you can.
Put Congress on notice that the American people don’t want a “compromise” that sells out our rights. Act now. We’re hearing the vote is tomorrow, so we could have less than 24 hours.
Believe me, no matter what happens, the ACLU will continue fighting this — if necessary, in the courts.
Thank you for all you have done through this fight. Your dedication has truly inspired me and all of us at the ACLU. Now, let’s hit the phones!
I was at the Rules Committee meeting today. Here’s what happened.
First, former Assemblymember Howard Wayne submitted a series of reforms aimed at ending the packing of the endorsement process; the proposals, which included requiring elected officials or party nominees to only appoint from within their legislative districts, as well as something having to do with Democratic Clubs (don’t remember the specifics), were referred to an ad-hoc subcommittee to handle them.
Mal Burnstein proposed an amendment that would insert a clause into the bylaws that would require candidates seeking the endorsement of the CDP to have acknowledged reading the state party platform, as well as the fact that they had a right to comment on it if they so desired. Christine Pelosi testified passionately to this amendment, with much sympathy from me because I’m on the committee and, well, sometimes we get the feeling that nobody ever reads what we do.
There was much angst from certain members of the Rules Committee that this proposal would hurt “Blue Dog” democrats running in red areas (apparently, because merely having read the platform means you agree with it 100%, and because Republicans who weren’t intending on using the Platform to attack their opponents all of a sudden would if we required an acknowledgment that their Democratic opponents had read it).
I got the chance to testify first and foremost that simply acknowledging reading the platform doesn’t constitute acknowledging it, and that any questions or comments submitted about the platform would not be a matter of public record regardless. No matter–the proposal was postponed to the next e-board meeting.
Then came the amendment I proposed, which would require (like Howard’s above) that party nominees and elected officials only appoint from within their legislative district. Some liked the principle behind the idea, but others pointed out (astutely, in my view) that it would prevent elected officials from naming, for instance, their chief of staff to the committee. There was a proposal made to amend the proposal to the effect of letting them have one or two appointments from outside the district to alleviate that problem, but the credentials people weren’t too happy about that.
So eventually, my amendment got referred to the same subcommittee, and these issues will be brought up again at the next e-board meeting this fall in SoCal.
I then spent five minutes on the Platform Committee before it ended. At least I got the chance to sign in.
At this weekend’s California Democratic Party Executive Board meeting, the most important thing will be to see whether the Party wants people to respect the party. As of late, the CDP hasn’t made much of an effort to earn respect and instead hasn’t seemed to even give much of a damn.
For instance, the scandal over the $4 million “refund” to Fabian Nunez was disgusting on so many levels, not the least of which was the fact it occurred on the same election day where we spent less money on GOTV while losing the gubernatorial race in a landslide year. So tactically, the CDP needs to choose a new direction and not just honor Howard Dean at a cocktail hour but embrace the successful 50 State Strategy in California.
In this era of reform, with delegate elections and a new chair coming up soon, how do you see this weekend playing out? Will the CDP be like the DNC under Terry McAuliffe or Howard Dean? Transactional or transformational? The way things have been done or cross that bridge to the 21st century?