DCCC's Red To Blue List-- Feebler Than Ever

DCCC downgrades 2 of its worst recruits, Aguilar and Garrison

Today the DCCC announced its Red-to-Blue program. Not every one of Steve Israel's ridiculous Jump Start candidates made it to the Red to Blue List and two, empty suit Pete Aguilar (CA-31) and ex-CIA agent Kevin Strouse were downgraded completely. Aguilar's D+5 district is now listed as a Red to Blue district, which was what Israel should have done from the start-- but was forced into by endorsements of the progressive in the race, Eloise Reyes, by a number of congressmembers, particularly Xavier Becerra and, today, Lucille Roybal-Allard. Strouse's Bucks County, PA district is now an emerging race district, taking into account that Shaughnessy Naughton may beat Strouse in the primary. Also downgraded… Jennifer Garrison was pushed down into the Emerging Races division, as were Michael Eggman (CA-10), Suzanne Patrick (VA-02), Sean Eldridge (NY-19) and James Lee Witt (AR-04).

Israel has some especially bad recruits-- anti-Choice, anti-gay, anti-environment, pro-Big Business, pro-NRA… all kinds of corrupt shills and miscreants. We're still sorting through them to figure out who's worst of all. But, as we've said before, Jennifer Garrison, pretty much sums up everything that's wrong with DCCC recruiting. As of today, Blue America officially endorsed Garrison's primary opponent, Greg Howard, an organic farmer, construction engineer and a progressive member of the Meigs County Democratic Central Committee. You can contribute to his grassroots campaign here.

Over the next few months we'll be comparing and contrasting the stands that the two conservative candidates-- the NRCC's Bill Johnson and the DCCC's Jennifer Garrison-- and the progressive candidate-- Greg Howard-- take on the issues facing hard pressed southeastern Ohio (OH-06). Today, when I was looking over Howard's new campaign website, I came across the approach he's taking on energy in this coal mining Appalachian area. Johnson and Garrison are both lockstep shills to King Coal and big money energy interests. Howard is promising to "work to put the incentives in place to develop 
the next generation of automotive fuels so that the public will be able 
to reduce their transportation costs and breathe clean air… Peak oil is past. We must plan for, and build, the future energy solutions."

A few months ago Steve Israel's favorite recruit, Jennifer Garrison put out a press release that showed exactly hat we can expect from her if she ever gets into Congress. She's all about "clean coal," an oxymoron invented by the coal barons who have financed her disgraceful political career. Her press release is an attack on-- you guessed it-- the Environmental Protection Agency, the kind of attack you hear from Republicans everyday but not all that frequently from Democrats. Her quotes could very well come directly from the p.r. firms that are employed to greenwash Big Energy.

“It troubles me that people in Washington making these regulations may not understand the impact it will have on people where I live. Part of what’s wrong in Washington is when people put the interests of their party or their party’s leaders ahead of the needs of their constituents. When President Obama is wrong, I won’t hesitate to speak out, and this is one of those times.

“I am very concerned that President Obama and the EPA are moving too quickly in trying to force overly burdensome regulations on the coal industry. This is short-sighted, and it would have a tremendously negative effect on Ohio coal miners and the nation’s economy. The technology does not yet exist at a scale or cost that would allow the industry to comply with these regulations. These regulations would sound the death knell for the coal industry.

…“Not only would these burdensome regulations put Ohio coal miners out-of-work, but it would cause American families’ electricity rates to surge and lead to more manufacturers shipping jobs overseas. Our economy cannot afford these types of job-killing measures.”

Garrison makes her living hustling her neighbors for companies that buy and sell fracking rights. I'm sure there's some reason why she runs for office as a Democrat instead of a Republican… but I haven't found it yet. There is not a single issue where the Garrison/Johnson approach is as good for Ohio's people as Greg Howard's approach. Please consider helping him compete against these two corporate monstrosities. He's on a the Blue America ActBlue page-- and there is no such thing as a contribution being too small.