Unlike Jimi Hendrix, Alan Grayson Can't Play Guitar With His Teeth

We never asked Alan Grayson how he feels about a Hillary Clinton presidency-- although he's getting a lot of pressure to run in the primary against her. But we do know how the Republican Party feels about her perspective run: they are terrified. They know she can beat any of their horribly flawed candidates-- think Ted Cruz, Chris Christie, Jeb Bush and Mike Huckabee-- in a landslide the scope of which is likely to jeopardize the political careers of dozens of senators, congressmembers and local Republican officials. For that reason-- and for that reason alone-- they stopped their caterwauling about repealing Obamacare and formed the Select Committee on Benghazi.

Many Democrats reacted by suggesting that Nancy Pelosi not legitimize the witch hunt by appointing any Democrats to it. Other equally sincere Democrats insisted that it is necessary to respond to scurrilous, partisan Republican smears with facts. Blue America came up with the solution that has since been widely adopted by the progressive movement: appoint just one Democrat to the committee-- Alan Grayson. Literally, within 60 seconds of a tweet to that effect, Grayson approved the idea. He's a lot faster on the uptake than your garden variety Democratic congressman.

In the end, its questionable if a stick-in-the-mud like Steny Hoyer would ever allow Pelosi to follow the Grayson-only strategy. Friday Grayson was on MSNBC vowing that if she does, he will be the Republicans worst and final Benghazi nightmare.

There is no other member of the House like Alan Grayson. Blue America works hard to try to change that by helping elect other members as brilliant, as fearless, as values-focused, as principled and as strategic as Grayson. But they don't grow on trees.

After Grayson was gratuitously attacked by Beltway corporate shill Cokie Roberts, he said, "Cokie Roberts's attack against me is designed to discredit not only me, but also to discredit the concerns of ordinary Americans-- like you-- in order to protect the Washington elite: corporate lobbyists, corrupt insiders, millionaires and billionaires, multinational corporations, big banks, the Halliburtons and Exxon Mobils of the world, and other economic aristocrats who would benefit from these 'free trade' giveaways. In short, the people who think that they own us. The D.C. Establishment doesn't know what to do about me, because I am unbossed and unbought. Lobbyists don't like me, because I stand against their 'free trade' giveaways, their bailouts, their no-bid contracts and their tax breaks. Billionaires fund my opponents' campaigns. Not mine."

I met Jimi Hendrix in 1967, before he went off to England and formed the Jimi Hendrix Experience. Musical talents like Jimi don't grow on trees either. I watched him-- he was Jimmy James then-- play guitar at a John Hammond, Jr. show at a tiny NYC club, the Cafe Au Go Go. I asked him to come play at my college. He said he was leaving the next day for England but that he'd play my school when he got back. The following March he was back-- on his first U.S. tour as the Jimi Hendrix Experience-- and he remembered and played at Stony Brook, one of his first shows. Later I spent some time with him in Morocco and then saw him for the last time at the Isle of Wight Festival. Ironically, much later, after he had died so young and so tragically, I became president of his record label, Reprise.

Over my years at Reprise, I was given hundreds of gold and platinum record awards when our releases reached sales plateaus. There was never one I was more thrilled to have gotten than a platinum award (one million sales) for Jimi's debut LP, Are You Experienced?

Grayson's "Republican Health Care Plan" speech on the floor of the House was his Are You Experienced? moment. That's why it was a natural instinct to offer to give that rare, collectible platinum award-- RIAA-certified, of course-- to an Alan Grayson contributor. That's our Blue America "contest" this week. Just contribute-- any amount-- to Alan Grayson's reelection campaign on this page and you may be the lucky, randomly selected donor who gets the Jimi Hendrix plaque as a thank you gift from Blue America. (In fact, if you want to plaque but can't afford even a $5 contribution at this moment, send a post card to Blue America at PO Box 27201, Los Angeles 90027 and let us know you want the award too.)