Do You Believe In Making Good Trouble?

 

Congress needs more members like these 4, not more Blue Dogs and New Dems

Most candidates being significantly backed (over a million dollars) by the DCCC are New Dems and Blue Dogs from the Republican wing of the Democratic Party. It's heartbreaking because these people will block every piece of systemic reform needed by the country and play palsy-walsy with the Republicans through corrupted organizations like Third Way and the Problem Solvers.

Meanwhile, the Congressional Progressive Caucus has endorsed 17 candidates, 8 of who do not have serious opposition and won their races, in effect, on primary day. The bolded names are the candidates who will definitely be members of Congress in January:

• Georgette Gomez (CA)
• Nikema Williams (GA)
• Kai Kahele (HI)
• Marie Newman (IL)
• J.D. Scholten (IA)
• Jon Hoadley (MI)
• Cori Bush (MO)
• Teresa Fernandez (NM)
• Ritchie Torres (NY
• Jamaal Bowman (NY)
• Mondaire Jones (NY)
• Dana Balter (NY)
• Kara Eastman (NE)
• Mike Siegel (TX)
• Candace Valenzuela (TX)
• Julie Oliver (TX)
• Beth Doglio (WA)

The DCCC has spent significant money on Dana Balter, Kara Eastman and Candace Valenzuela (who, I'm afraid to say, isn't really campaigning as a progressive). One candidate told me, "The DCCC has been stringing me along for 3 years, giving me goals, making me send them weekly call time report, making me jump through crazy hoops-- and now a week out… they haven't come through for me at all. Even though they have $100 million cash on hand. They can go to hell." You wouldn't believe how many candidates have told me the exact same thing.

I'd like to share an e-mail Bernie sent out yesterday. As usual, Bernie makes some important points-- "Now is not the time for thinking small. Now IS the time for millions of working families to come together, to revitalize American democracy, to end the collapse of the middle class, and to make certain our children and grandchildren are able to enjoy a quality of life that brings them health, prosperity, security, and joy-- and that once again makes the United States the moral leader in the world. No more corporate elites and lobbyists calling the tunes." Please read the whole thing and consider contributing to the candidates you're find by clicking on the thermometer-- progressive stalwarts who have been abandoned by DCCC Chair Blue Dog Cheri Bustos because they are "too progressive."

We find ourselves in a moment in history in which we face unprecedented crises:

We are facing the worst pandemic in 100 years which has already claimed the lives of more than 220,000 230,000 Americans.

We are in the middle of a severe economic downturn which has left millions unemployed, while we now experience more wealth and income inequality than at any time since the 1920s.

We are facing the existential reality of climate change which, as we speak, is burning up the West and threatening the entire planet.

We continue to experience systemic racism, a broken criminal justice system and widespread police brutality against minority communities.

We are dealing with a grossly immoral immigration system which has divided families and leaves millions of undocumented immigrants terrified about the future.

And, in the midst of all that and more, we have a president who does not believe in the rule of law and is more concerned about his own wealth and power than the needs of the American people.

So we have eight days to do everything we can to evict Donald Trump from the White House and to elect Joe Biden. What all of us do in these next eight days, in this very close election, will be remembered throughout history.

But I must tell you that defeating Trump is not the end of our work. It is only the first, and very important, step forward to transforming our country and creating a government and economy that works for all, not the few. In other words, by defeating Trump and electing a Democratic Senate, we can stop being on the defensive every day and start moving forward with an agenda that speaks to the needs of the working people of our country.

But one thing is very clear to me. Even with a Democratic president and a Democratic Congress, we will not successfully address the many crises that we face if we return to the same old, same old type of politics.

No More Business As Usual.

The day after Joe becomes president, we have got to begin mobilizing the American people around the Justice Agenda: economic justice, political justice, racial justice, social justice and environmental justice.

Now is not the time for thinking small. Now IS the time for millions of working families to come together, to revitalize American democracy, to end the collapse of the middle class, and to make certain our children and grandchildren are able to enjoy a quality of life that brings them health, prosperity, security, and joy-- and that once again makes the United States the moral leader in the world.

No more corporate elites and lobbyists calling the tunes.

Now is the time for the working families of this country to be heard, and for their agenda to be implemented.

So we have a lot to do over these next eight days, sisters and brothers. But then our work begins again-- the work of bringing our people together and enacting an agenda that works for all Americans and not just the wealthy few.

Let us go forward together.

In solidarity,

Bernie Sanders

Alternatively... there's always this-- Señor Trumpanzee with his next FBI Chief: