What Are We Fighting For? Justin Coussoule, Not Travis Childers And John Boehner

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While the DCCC wastes their time-- and Democratic donors' money-- trying to save the seats of worthless, aisle-crossing Blue Dogs like Jim Matheson, John Barrow, Travis Childers, Bobby Bright and Frank Kratovil, Blue America is taking the fight exactly where it belongs. We've endorsed strong progressive contenders for seats across the country currently being held by right-wing misanthropes like Virginia Foxx, Bill Hedrick, John Campbell, Michele Bachmann and John Boehner-- mostly being ignored by the DCCC. Boehner is working full time on trying to replace Nancy Pelosi as Speaker of the House, but the DCCC refuses to assist Democratic primary winner Justin Coussoule take Boehner on.

Blue America wants to help defeat John Boehner. Can we do it. Depends how big that "we" becomes but I'll tell you one thing-- the Inside-the-Beltway analysis that western Ohio is "too Republican" is dead wrong. OH-08 has a plurality of independent voters, not Republicans. The GOP thinks nothing of taking on Democratic leaders-- the way they're targeting Harry Reid now with some John Birch Society crackpot-- but the Democrats (or at least the DCCC) is too polite, or chickenshit, to go after Republican leaders. Are they helping Democratic candidates running against Eric Cantor? No. Thaddeus McCotter? No. Mike Pence? No. Paul Ryan? No. Pete Sessions? No. They're just worthless-- and the race against Boehner is the most obvious of all. Coussoule, an aggressive and talented West Point grad is the first Democrat whose run who can go toe-to-tie with Boehner and make him wince. Help Justin get his message out to voters in Butler, Preble, Miami, Darke, Montgomery and Mercer counties. What message? Well, here's how Team Coussoule explained Boehner's position on his handpicked GOP head of the Energy and Commerce Committee, Joe Barton, after Barton denigrated the president of the United States for persuading British Petroleum to pay for the clean-up of the catastrophic mess they made in the Gulf. (Keep in mind that between the two of them, Boehner and Barton have accepted $1,706,230 in campaign "contributions" from Big Oil corporate executives and lobbyists.)

John Boehner and British Petroleum-- A Love Story

For two decades 8th Congressional District absentee Congressman John Boehner has maintained the coziest of relationships with all things pertaining to oil marketing and exploration. His opponent Justin Coussoule thinks that is “a chief reason he should be removed from the Congress.”
 
Boehner is historically a leading recipient of campaign funds from big oil interests; he recently invested his own money in British Petroleum; and he has opposed raising caps on damages caused by careless oil exploration like the horrible catastrophe we are witnessing in the Gulf of Mexico.
 
In addition, Boehner’s powerful position was purchased for him by oil industry and other lobbyists & contributors and they continue to fund his high-rolling personal lifestyle-- thereby assuring that he will block any legislation on alternative energy or genuine environmental protection. He clearly believes in big oil for his financial future when he invests his millions in fossil fuels and when he takes their generous campaign contributions and pays them back by casting votes favorable to big oil in Congress.

At a recent press conference Boehner joined the head of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Tom Donohue, by saying: "I think the people responsible in the oil spill-- BP and the federal government -- should take full responsibility for what's happening there."

Coussoule retorts, saying, “just try to explain that to the taxpayers and the ‘small people’ of the 8th District-- at least those who do not live in a gated golf course community as Mr. Boehner does. They just might not understand and will begin to question just who it is that Boehner is representing in their name.”

As Boehner’s Democratic opponent Justin Coussoule has clearly stated, “Boehner is tucked so tight into big oils pocket that he cannot even muster genuine anger, sympathy for the victims or call for increased accountability-- because he can apparently find no fault with his oily benefactors who have brought us the worst environmental catastrophe in American history.”

Yesterday when BP CEO Tony Hayward testified before Congress we all anticipated his lawyerly apology for the disaster his company has caused. Instead, GOP Congressman and Boehner confidant, Joe Barton (R-TX), who received $1,447,880 from oil interests, was the one saying he was sorry-- to BP! Barton called the initial payment a "tragedy in the first proportion.” Conservative commentator Pat Buchanan agreed with Boehner’s team saying Barton had shown immense “political courage.” Other conservatives called the escrow account a “fleecing” of BP and the dependable Rush inconceivably called it a “bailout.”  And then the House Republican Study Committee, with its 114 members controlled by Boehner, called the BP payment a "shakedown.”

The question inevitably arises—Whose side are they on?
 
These statements underline the good reasons why BP has given a full 70% of it’s political contributions to Republicans and why Boehner’s friends at the Heritage Foundation-- largely funded by big oil and related corporations-- called the hearings a “public lynching” and called the initial down payment on damages “a shakedown of godfather-like proportions.”

 Justin Coussoule, the young businessman, attorney and West Point graduate who is aggressively challenging Boehner in Ohio’s 8th District believes that “given the sloppy performance of BP and the immense damages this still spewing devastation will have on our Southern Coast, this $20 billion is just a down-payment on what will be required to restore the region. Our American economic future; our agricultural resources and food supplies; our essential wildlife preserves; and the disruption of tourism in the region will compound the human costs and  a way of life that may never be the same. BP must be held strictly responsible for this debacle.”
 
Coussoule concluded by saying that Boehner’s comments this week “clearly show that he is devoid of shame and has lost all touch with the millions of Americans who are fighting to protect everything they have from this man-made calamity in the gulf, such callousness must not be rewarded with a leadership position that would have tragic consequences for our nation as well.”

Yes, that's the press release the Coussoule campaign sent out to the media yesterday. Are Debbie Wasserman Schultz, Patrick Murphy and Chris Van Hollen getting behind him? Don't make me laugh. They'd rather waste millions of dollars fighting for lost-cause anti-Choice, anti-gay, anti-healthcare Blue Dogs in Mississippi and Alabama.

Blue America helped elect Patrick Murphy to the House, before he told us he intended to join the Blue Dog caucus. We've learned our lesson. This guy is running around sucking up campaign dollars from gay people claiming to be their biggest champion in Congress because he pushed the conveniently stalled DADT repeal. But while he was pushing it, he was also pushing the disgraceful careers of viciously rapid homophobes inside his Blue Dog caucus. The money he gets from gay organizations goes right into the pockets of the kind of anti-gay candidates he supports. And Coussoule, who fully supports Murphy's fight to end DADT? Nada. So it's going to be up to us to win this one.

We had to fight the Democratic Establishment to help elect Alan Grayson, John Hall, Jon Tester, Donna Edwards, Carol Shea-Porter. They said our candidates couldn't be elected and asked us to butt out while they stuffed millions of donor dollars down the toilet like they just did with Blanche Lincoln. If Justin Coussoule beats Boehner it's going to be because grassroots progressives get behind him and give him a shot to take Boehner on. Blue America has a team working on TV spots, radio ads and a big surprise we'll be unveiling later this month. Meanwhile, please consider helping Justin build a strong campaign infrastructure. And if you missed this... pure grassroots brilliance, neither affiliated with Justin's campaign nor with Blue America... you just gotta watch it: