Going Forward... What's The Democratic Party Going To Be?

No one knows what's going to happen, but it would be a safe bet that Americans aren't going to have a chance to vote for a real progressive for president in a very long time, probably longer than I'll be a sentient being. Or maybe not. Maybe Biden and the Democrats will screw up so badly that the Democrats lose Congress in 2022 and then the Democrat in the White House in 2024-- whether Biden or Kamala-- loses to a Republican who also screws up. So 2028... I may still be walking around and sentient. My grandmother was at that age.

But... I still feel cheated. I so wanted one damned good great president in my life. Instead they've all be mediocre at best and, more frequently, piles of stinking, rotting garbage. I wanted to see Bernie win so badly. It wasn't in the cards-- the Democratic establishment made certain of that.

Yesterday, Washington Post reporters Robert Costa and Sean Sullivan wrote about an interview they did with Bernie on Sunday. They predicted that Bernie's DNC speech last night "will effectively close an improbable odyssey-- two bids for the White House that together formed the backbone of a new, insurgent liberal movement." Thanks in great part to Bernie, Medicare-for-all, free college tuition, the Green Anew Deal and a chastening of the nation’s financial elite have all come to the fore of a grassroots Democratic Party-- and have pulled even a horribly corrupt status quo establishment slightly to the left and, perhaps put the breaks on a corrosive drift toward more-centrist views that have been been dominant since the Clinton DLC wing of the party managed to take over and change the focus from working class to managerial and donor class.

They quoted Bernie: "Ideas that we raised in health care, in education, in the minimum wage, in climate change, in criminal justice were ideas five years ago that people perceived to be radical and extreme. Today they are mainstream, and today they are actually being implemented by states and communities around the country."

They saw the slot allotted by Biden to AOC as a kind of passing of the torch. That's OK but there's more to it than that. I think I saw just about every Velvet Underground live performance in New York. They were my favorite live band when they were first getting going. There are many claimants to this but I think Michael Stipe first said, "not that many people ever bought that first Velvets album, but everyone who did started a band." And thank God they did. And not that many people saw that first Ramones national tour-- but it was Howie Klein (not the thieves who stole it as their own) who compared them Johnny Appleseed and noted that everyone around the country who went to see them started their own punk band.

AOC isn't the only political heir of Bernie's but one who even Biden was unable to deny at least 60 seconds of speaking time during his convention. But think of all the people Bernie has inspired who are now serving or will soon be serving at every level of government and who are committed to the somewhat revolutionary approach he imbued in a whole generation of Democrats.

When David Feldman introduces me on his radio show every week, he says something to the effect of Blue America supporting progressive and socialist candidates. I often remind him that this cycle, there was just one actual socialist candidate-- Shaniyat Chowdhury, who ran for a southeast Queens district held by loathsome and corrupt party boss Gregory Meeks, a New Dem. Shan, a first time candidate, didn't win, although close to a quarter of the voters backed him in the primary. "We’re only getting started," he told me this morning. "This was just the beta as a first time candidate. Change makers persist. I’ve continued to organize post election around housing rights, anti-poverty, and foreign policy. Sometimes I forget how young I am and how young our collective movement is with Bernie Sanders. Which speaks to the level of despair of what working people are going through. We are tired of waiting for change to happen election cycle or establishment democrats telling us it’s not our moment. I wake every morning thinking Trump or not, will everyone have free healthcare? Are we ending universal poverty and unjust wars? Are Black lives going to matter beyond symbolic gestures? The answer is clear. For that, I’m not going away anytime soon. Whether it’s this election or the next, we must continue to change the tides in the sea towards a more prosperous future. I will run for Congress again because I believe it is there where we can fight for humanity throughout the world."

In 2016 then-Flagstaff city councilwoman Eva Putzova was a Bernie delegate to the convention. This cycle she ran for Congress against a reactionary Blue Dog incumbent who spent most of his political career as a Republican and still votes as a mainstream Republican. Although the full face of the establishment opposed her. Yesterday, her district's election results were finally certified by Arizona's Secretary of State and she ended the race with 41.4% of the vote, winning in the most populous county and doing exceptionally well in the southern part of the district despite DCCC and the Arizona Demmocratic Party tilting the scales in favor of the incumbent. "We ran," she told me today, "a spirited, principled campaign that showed the district is winnable by a progressive candidate. If things fall in place, it's not out of the question that I'd run for the seat again. We have learned a great deal, built an impressive infrastructure, and we wouldn't be starting from scratch." That's how progressives win-- two cycles. It took that long for Alan Grayson and it took that long for Ro Khanna and Donna Edwards, each primarying their own party's establishment choice.

One of the people I met while Hector Oseguera was running for Congress told me during the convention broadcast last night the "for the past month, Hector has focused on the future of the progressive movement. Although we've witnessed incredible strides since Bernie's first presidential run, Hector often says 'we still have such a long way to go.' Policies like Medicare for All and a Green New Deal have not yet been realized. We are in the middle of a generational shift, and Hector is taking a central role in directing that shift across North Jersey. Bernie's presidential runs paved the way for a new generation of leaders, but that door sits merely ajar. It is now up to the Millenials to throw that door open and lead our nation into a new progressive era. It is often said that the true measure of a person is how they respond in times of adversity. Given the response I've seen from Hector in the past month, I wouldn't be surprised to see him throw his hat into the ring again." Yep... I get the same feeling!

Kim Williams ran for the strongly Democratic Central Valley seat held by worthless Blue Dog Jim Costa, who Biden will likely appoint to his dream job next year-- ambassador to Portugal. Kim told us she entered her race this year because she "wanted progressive policies to become part of the conversation in a poor, rural district that needed it. Throughout my campaign, we said things out loud that others would not, and I am extraordinarily proud of what we accomplished. We started a district-wide conversation and we knocked on 20,000 doors to promote a policy platform that resonated with actual people and not the local party elite. Our efforts proved that there was demand for Medicare for All and a Green New Deal while helping Bernie, and other progressives, win primaries in the district. And our work continues. I will not run again this cycle and I won’t need to. My focus today is on tearing down barriers for progressives and combating the incredible corruption embedded into every layer of our political system. CA-16 will see another candidate carry the progressive banner forward, and I am delighted by the base of support that is rallying behind her. My friend, Yenifer Gallegos-Mejia, is jumping in as the only candidate with the backbone to stand for progressive ideals and against Fresno’s duplicitous political class. She will not only build upon early momentum and carry us over the finish line, she will inspire an emerging generation of activists that will build a more equitable America. She is the future, and I will stand behind her and every other progressive running in the district."

"Sanders-style left-wing populism," wrote Costa and Sullivan, "is gaining power throughout Europe and the Americas, at times replacing an older guard of liberals who embraced globalization. Across Western democracies, campaigns rooted in passionate emotion and grievance have won mass followings. 'I’m very proud. I am very proud of the movement that we have built,' Sanders said. 'The younger generation is overwhelmingly progressive, and they want to see their government function in a different way than in the past.' Sanders pointed to Ocasio-Cortez and Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), two allies who recently won congressional primaries, as evidence of a healthy and competitive left flank inside the Democratic Party."

In the eyes of his core backers, Sanders came agonizingly close to seizing control of the Democratic Party with his strong showings in the initial contests of the 2016 and 2020 campaigns. There were days when they thought he would be unstoppable.

But it didn’t pan out four years ago, as Hillary Clinton scooped up victories and support from superdelegates-- and as Sanders grew furious with the Democratic National Committee. Nor did it work out earlier this year when former South Bend, Ind., mayor Pete Buttigieg muddied Sanders’s plans for a clean-cut victory in the Iowa caucuses and a politically hobbled Biden suddenly revived his campaign in South Carolina, in part because of alarm in corners of the party about a Sanders nomination.

Sanders and his supporters are trying to learn from his success during the 2020 primary campaign in courting young voters in Iowa and Latino voters in Nevada-- and from his stumbles, particularly with Black voters who rallied around Biden in March.

Exit polls showed that the struggles Sanders experienced among Black voters four years ago against Clinton largely continued. Sanders’s fervent push to broaden the electorate with new voters was never realized.

Sanders’s supporters argue that campaigns come and go but that ideas move glacially. And history has precedent for movement campaigns having a long-term impact. In 1964, conservative Barry Goldwater lost the presidential election in a landslide. But his campaign laid the ideological groundwork for his supporter Ronald Reagan to win the White House 16 years later.

If the United States eventually moves toward democratic socialism in the coming years, Sanders will deserve significant credit for mounting campaigns that pulled the Democrats to the left, said Abdul El-Sayed, a Michigan-based liberal organizer.

“He didn’t only take on the establishment but the governing consensus in America that markets are the answer,” El-Sayed said. “He drove the conversation that we are all having. He lost two elections, but he won the future in the sense that the party is now a lot browner, blacker and younger and sounds like Bernie Sanders.”

Faiz Shakir, who served as Sanders’s campaign manager in 2020, said the defeats were not rejections of the senator’s ideas but a product of a “party in transition.”

“There is no question the kinetic energy and dynamism in the Democratic Party is with progressives. But the party is in transition,” generationally and politically, Shakir said, “and you’re going to have fits and starts.”

...Biden, who once fashioned his candidacy as a vessel to restore political norms and bolster institutions, has started sketching out a more transformational-style presidency that would seek to marshal a sweeping response to the coronavirus pandemic, a severe economic crisis and racial upheaval.

“What we’re seeing is more than lip service,” said Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA), who served as a national co-chair on the Sanders campaign. “The Biden team has been very intentional about listening to not just Bernie Sanders but a lot of his key policy advisers.”

Some Sanders activists have refused to join with the senator in offering the former vice president their unequivocal support, underscoring the importance of Sanders’s pitch for unity on the convention’s opening night.

In a column for the socialist magazine Jacobin, former Sanders adviser David Sirota mocked the task-force rollout as “an SNL skit.”

“They are a mix of party dinosaurs, corporate zombies and some terrific progressive voices,” Sirota wrote of the group members.

Over the weekend, Tlaib said she voted against the Democrats’ platform and cast her delegate ballot for Sanders, expressing outrage about her party’s refusal to upend what she called a “for-profit system that is leaving people to suffer and die just because they cannot afford health care.”

The Sanders political operation has labored to keep things calm, asking some supporters he picked to represent him at the convention to sign agreements barring attacks on other candidates or party leaders, combative confrontations on social media or talking to reporters without approval.

The move, which carried a threat of being removed as a delegate, has the effect of blunting one of the most powerful if divisive tools of the Sanders support network-- its unrestrained online presence and tendency to stoke controversy through social media, which has at times spiraled into abuse of his opponents.

...“It’s not about looking back,” [Bernie] said. “It’s about looking forward.”

Rachel Ventura is on the Will County board and primaries a garden variety Illinois New Dem this cycle. Yesterday she told me that "Bernie is right, it’s about looking forward. Currently, the corporate Democrats continue to ignore the people, whether it’s the call of free college, Medicare for all, the green new deal, or even legalizing marijuana. The hope and change we are looking for does not rest in the present, but in the future. We need to take control of our own future and run our own candidates. We need more bartenders, teachers, community activists, nurses and blue-collar workers taking the reins of power from the elitists who currently govern for the wealthy few. We see candidates like Marie Newman and Cori Bush win on their second time running. How many progressive candidates who ran this year will run again in 2022? I know I’m leaning that way and with an army of supporters already pressuring me to run coupled with national organizations biting at the bit to endorse our campaign again, there’s definitely a compelling argument to run. While taking home 42% of the vote after being outspent 17 to 1 is impressive, it isn’t a win. The win will come from continuing to champion the people’s voice."

Rachel continued: "Today and every day until the 2022 election, we need every person to drown out the false media voice and demand better representation, Medicare for All, and The Green New Deal. We need people to have political conversations with their friends and neighbors about how both democrats and republicans have failed the people in a time of COVID and economic uncertainty but pulled no punches to protect their corporate donors. It isn’t enough to call for our politicians to be anti-corrupt; we must throw them out and elect people who will truly represent common sense solutions. Our government, via the politicians, for too long have told us what we deserve and don’t deserve but it is ‘we the people’ that need to tell them what it is we need and demand. Now is not the time of polite negotiations, now is the time for impatience and bold action. Regardless of who wins the Presidential Election, the people must rise up and demand better policies. We cannot allow them to control the messaging, whether at the pulpit or on the news stations. That fight continues from everything Bernie has fought for, from the things MLK fought for, even all the way back to Henry Wallace. Our fight won’t be over in 2020 and it certainly won’t be over in 2022. But it is the time to stop pulling punches. To stop the DNC or RNC from gaslighting us. We all, collectively need to call them out. I’m excited for the future and have already begun collaborative talks with the 2020 congressional candidates like Eva Putzova, Morgan Harper, Melanie D’Arrigo, Robert Emmons, and so many more. Join us in the continued fight!"

Dorothy Reik is widely considered one of California's most visionary progressive leaders is the president of the Progressive Democrats of the Santa Monica Mountains and an elected member of the Los Angeles County Democratic Party Central Committee-- elected by the largest majority of anyone else in the county-- and is a member of the California Democratic Party Executive Board. This morning, she told me that "Looking forward without looking back is how we got where we are today. We cannot really move forward until we understand how we got where we are right now and until we conquer the forces that led us here, from corporate greed to racism and everything in between. As I write this at least 850 delegates have refused to support the platform because it does not include Medicare for All. What evil brought us to the point where we confuse 'insurance' with 'care'? Yes, Bernie has moved us forward in many ways but we cannot progress further until we admit to who we are and where we have been.

Congressional Super Tuesday In Two Days

Not every state holding presidential primaries Tuesday is also holding congressional primaries. But the two biggies-- California and Texas-- are. Both these states are polling strongly for Bernie. The CNN poll for California that was released Friday shows Bernie in the top slot with 35% (up 15 points since December) and Elizabeth Warren in second with 14%. Conservatives Biden, Bloomberg and Mayo Pete combined don't have as much support as Bernie. In Texas, the new CNN poll, also shows Bernie with tremendous momentum and in the top spot-- 29%, up 14 points since December. Biden has been sinking from 35% in December to 20% now, the closest of anyone to Bernie.

But for Bernie to be able to pass his ambitious agenda-- an agenda that has driven so many of us to Bernie (and Elizabeth)-- he's going to need more progressives in Congress. There are men and women running for House seats who are campaigning on Medicare-for-All, the Green New Deal, free state college, criminal justice, peace, etc.

We're asking Blue America supporters to contribute to a very specific subset of candidates-- the ones who are actively campaigning for Medicare-for-All. How do you know who is and who isn't? We've asked them. You can see the list of the ones we've endorsed who are campaigning for Medicare-for-All by clicking on the ActBlue thermometer on the right.

Liam O'Mara is running against one of Trump's last knee-jerk allies in California, corrupt Riverside County extremist Ken Calvert. We asked Liam how the voters he's been meeting have reacted to Medicare for All, the Green New Deal and the other policies that are the foundation of his campaign.

Audrey Denney is running for a congressional seat in the northeast corner of California where the Golden State meets rural sections of Nevada and Oregon. Trump's ally there, Doug LaMalfa, opposes any government-funded healthcare and whenever, given the opportunity, has voted for cutting Medicare and Medicaid. We asked Audrey how the voters she's been meeting have reacted to Medicare for All, the Green New Deal and the other policies that are the foundation of her campaign. "Our rural part of the world is being decimated by the effects of a broken healthcare system and we became the face of climate influenced natural disasters with our catastrophic fires in 2018," she told us. "As I travel across this huge congressional district (that is larger than ten U.S. States) I encounter people from across the political spectrum who are anxious for effective change on so many of these important issues. The people of California’s first are ready for a healthcare system that doesn’t put them at risk of losing everything because of a health crisis. They are ready for a healthcare system that effectively functions as well as a healthcare system that meets the unique needs of our rural communities. The people of California’s first are ready for a representative who believes in science and understands the impact of climate change on our forests and our communities. More than ever, we need a Representative who can bring the diverse viewpoints found across our district to the table to find solutions to our unhealthy forests and environment."

Climate change is not a threat in the distant future. It is threatening the lives, homes, and livelihoods of people who live in my district today. We have to take bold action to mitigate climate change and restore our forests to health. The Green New Deal is not a plan to mitigate climate change-- it is a bold commitment to the belief that we can. I want to be a policymaker who crafts pragmatic policies that support the vision of the Green New Deal-- tailored to benefit the people and the communities of California’s first district. I will be the voice at the table that represents rural America, our farms, ranches, and forests.

On Tuesday our district votes to take us one step closer to having the effective representation we desperately need. In November, we will finish the job.

Mike Siegel is running very strong in a gerrymandered district that runs from north Austin into the outer suburbs of Houston and is likely to win Tuesday. But his focus has been on Trump crony Michael McCaul who has voted to cut Medicare and Medicaid every time he's had the opportunity. Mike has been running a very grassroots campaign and we asked him what the voters are telling him about Medicare for All, the Green New Deal and the other policies he's running on. "They key," he told us, "is to get outside of the bubble of donors and consultants, and meet the activists and community stakeholders who form the base of our progressive community. Here in Central and Gulf Coast Texas, the electorate is far more ambitious than the establishment gives us credit for. I see almost universal support for a Green New Deal, and also very powerful support for Medicare for All (especially if you have a minute or two to talk it through)." He continued: 

"Rural Democrats want Medicare for All because it will keep their hospitals open; they want a Green New Deal so they can drink their well water and restore the local landscape. In the cities, where the cost of living is sky-high, single payer healthcare will give working people a little breathing room. And the Green New Deal provides a pathway to address the growing threat of floods (five 500 year flood events in Houston in the last five years) while also creating good jobs that will help rebuild the middle class.

"Gatekeepers in DC and Texas have discouraged me from running on these policies. When I forged ahead without their blessing, they backed two primary challengers against me. Although these two have collectively spent over $2 million to block me from the nomination, they have almost zero support in the community. You don’t build a popular movement with feckless “pragmatism” that is a thinly disguised nod towards austerity. Rather, we need to keep pushing a visionary program that provides a true alternative to the crumbling status quo.”

Liam O'Mara is in a similar situation, but in southern California, where he's running against one of Trump's last knee-jerk allies in the state, corrupt Riverside County extremist Ken Calvert. We asked Liam the same question we asked Audrey and Mike. What is he hearing from the voters? He told us he's heard "tremendous support not only for clean money but for a broad progressive agenda including the Green New Deal and Medicare for All. To win these inland districts you need to get beyond your base and talk to everyone, and I've had people come on board with that same agenda who self-identify as conservative, since at the end of the day we all want a better future. When you run against the establishment as a whole, taking shots at out-of-touch politicians and billionaires alike, you'll find supporters in the most unlikely of corners! A progressive-populist message can take the heartland of this country from the GOP, and deliver a solid Congress that's ready to work on that Sanders agenda. It just takes the right candidates, a shift in strategy, and the support of allies across the country. Working together, we can change the direction in DC for good, and finally deliver on the promise of FDR's Second New Deal."

Kim Williams is the only progressive in the three-way Central Valley jungle primary. The incumbent is reactionary Blue Dog Jim Costa in a strongly Democratic district. Same questions for Kim: She told us that she and her team of volunteers have knocked on 16,000 doors. "We’ve heard heartbreaking story after heartbreaking story of families on the brink of homelessness because someone in their household was sick. And when we ask voters which issue they care about most, they almost always say healthcare tops the list. The Central Valley is famously short on doctors and Jim Costa’s solution is to establish a medical center that will take years to complete. He also states that the best way to get more doctors into the Valley is to raise them. He adds, and I’m not kidding here, that it’s best to start recruiting in elementary school. So folks who are currently battling cancer should just hold tight until these kids grow up and finish medical school." 

These are the absurd solutions voters have been handed for decades, so it’s no surprise people are eager for change. They are also eager for childcare. Given the alarming numbers of homeless families in the Valley, safe, consistent childcare that lets working parents grow their careers and communities is critical to lower our high poverty rate.

At each door, we talk about how we need fundamental, across-the-board change to make America work for working families. Empty promises of incremental change means little to folks who understand that the policies on the ballot this year could mean the difference between clean water or a sick child, a college education or farm work, and healthcare or a shortened lifespan.

By electing candidates like Kim Williams, Liam O'Mara and Audrey Denney in California and Mike Siegel in Texas, we're going to make fundamental changes in America and resuscitate the New Deal-- which has been all but buried by venal conservatives from both parties.

Can Congress Save America? Not This One, Hopefully The One We Elect In November

Today is Presidents' Day... but we'll forgo taking about that until we have a legitimate president in the White House again and, instead, say a few words about the legislative branch of government that was created with the power to check a possible tyrant in the White House. Political parties were not taken into account by the framers of the Constitution, particularly not one as supine and cowardly as today's GOP working hand in hand with a would be tyrant to undermine that constitution.

A substantial number of people would likely agree that the biggest problem facing mankind right how is the Climate Crisis. The GOP's response has largely been to deny there's anything to worry about-- let alone do anything about. Conservative Democrats generally agree with them to some extent, playing ostrich and hoping the problem will just go away or that when the full force of the problem becomes manifest, they'll be dead and gone anyway. Right now there are only 98 members of Congress co-sponsoring the Green New Deal resolution, all of them Democrats, a dozen of them freshmen.

Last cycle saw the election of 87 new members of the House and 9 new senators. All 9 of the senators have accrued voting records that have been graded "F" by Progressive Punch. Almost all of the House freshmen have also been graded "F"-- that includes all the Republicans (no exceptions) and 40 DCCC Democrats. These are the Democratic freshmen-- listed from best to worst in terms of the ProgressivePunch scorecard:

• Andy Levin (D-MI)- 100 A
• Ayanna Pressley (D-MA)- 100 A
• AOC (D-NY)- 98.33 A
• Rashida Tlaib (D-MI)- 98.33 A
• Chuy Garcia (D-IL)- 96.67 A
• Joe Neguse (D-CO)- 96.67 A
• Ilhan Omar (D-MN)- 95.00 A
• Veronica Escobar (New Dem-TX)- 93.33 A
• Sylvia Garcia (D-TX)- 91.67 A
• Tori Trahan (New Dem-MA)- 91.67 A

• Debra Haaland (D-NM)- 90.0 B
• Mary Gay Scanlon (D-PA)- 89.23 B
• Madeleine Dean (New Dem-PA)- 88.33 B
• Jahana Hayes (D-CT)- 84.75 B

• Donna Shalala (New Dem-FL)- 85.00 C
• Mike Levin (D-CA)- 81.67 C
• Chris Pappas (New Dem-NH)- 78.33 C

• Debbie Mucarsel-Powell (New Dem-FL)- 81.67 D
• Greg Stanton (New Dem-AZ)- 81.67 D
• Sean Casten (New Dem-IL)- 78.33 D

• David Trone (New Dem-MD)- 78.33 F
• Jennifer Wexton (New Dem-VA)- 76.67 F
• Steven Horsford (New Dem-NV)- 75.49 F
• Joe Morelle (New Dem-NY)- 75.38 F
• Tom Malinowski (New Dem-NJ)- 73.33 F
• Dean Phillips (New Dem-MN)- 73.33 F
• Gil Cisneros (New Dem-CA)- 70.00 F
• Jason Crow (New Dem-CO)- 70.00 F
• Lizzie Fletcher (New Dem-TX)- 70.00 F
• Kim Schrier (New Dem-WA)- 70.00 F
• Haley Stevens (New Dem-MI)- 70.00 F
• Susan Wild (New Dem-PA)- 69.84 F
• Lauren Underwood (D-IL)- 68.97 F
• Harley Rouda (New Dem-CA)- 68.33 F
• Collin Allred (New Dem-TX)- 67.80 F
• Ed Case (Blue Dog-HI)- 67.12 F
• TJ Cox (D-CA)- 66.67 F
• Sharice Davids (New Dem-KS)- 66.67 F
• Josh Harder (New Dem-CA)- 64.41 F
• Susie Lee (New Dem-NV)- 63.33 F
• Lucy McBath (New Dem-GA)- 63.33 F
• Katie Porter (D-CA)- 63.33 F
• Antonio Delgado (New Dem-NY)- 61.67 F
• Chrissy Houlahan (Blue Dog-PA)- 61.67 F
• Andy Kim (D-NJ)- 60.00 F
• Max Rose (Blue Dog-NY)- 58.33 F
• Ann Kirkpatrick (New Dem-AZ)- 53.64 F
• Mikie Sherrill (Blue Dog-NJ)- 50.00 F
• Angie Craig (New Dem-MN)- 48.33 F
• Abby Frankenauer (D-IA)- 46.67 F
• Xochitl Torres Small (Blue Dog-NM)- 46.67 F
• Elaine Luria (New Dem-VA)- 45.76 F
• Elissa Slotkin (New Dem-MI)- 45.00 F
• Cindy Axne (New Dem-IA)- 40.00 F
• Jared Golden (D-ME)- 35.00 F
• Ben McAdams (Blue Dog-UT)- 31.67 F
• Abigail Spanberger (Blue Dog-VA)- 30.00 F
• Kendra Horn (Blue Dog-OK)- 28.33 F
• Joe Cunningham (Blue Dog-SC)- 23.33 F
• Anthony Brindisi (Blue Dog-NY)- 21.67 F

"Progressive policies are popular." That was how AOC began an e-mail to her supporters over the weekend.

"The corporate media and naysayers," she continued, "might try to convince us that we should compromise our values, but the facts just don’t lie. In Iowa, 92% of caucus-goers said that they support the Green New Deal-- our plan to transform our energy infrastructure, reach net-zero emissions, and create millions of union-wage jobs for communities that have been left behind. But as we speak, many in the Democratic Party still refuse to believe it’s possible to rise to the occasion of the climate crisis... The Green New Deal was introduced just over one year ago. In that time, with the help of organizations like the Sunrise Movement, we’ve built an incredible consensus in the Democratic Party. But the Green New Deal isn’t just popular with Democrats. Huge margins of independents and even Republicans support it, because Americans from all walks of life understand the necessity of saving our planet. We can’t let fear goad us into inaction."

But fear is what has largely kept almost all the corporate-friendly freshmen the DCCC selected and elected last cycle from getting behind AOC's resolution. In her words, "Passing a Green New Deal is not just a plan to save our planet-- but a chance for us to come together, to improve the lives of millions, and to ensure a better quality of life for our children. Let’s get to work."

Yes, let's get to work replacing members who do not recognize that the Climate Crisis must be a national priority, with challengers who are ready to devote their professional careers to enacting the Green New Deal. Alexander Kaufman wrote that "Sunrise Movement is pulling back from the presidential contest and redirecting its efforts toward a trio of March 3 congressional primaries in Texas, hoping a victory in the oil and gas industry’s mecca will add momentum to the two-year-old Green New Deal movement... [I]n the coming weeks, Sunrise Movement is sending its army of canvassers to knock on doors in support of [Heidi] Sloan, Democratic Rep. Henry Cuellar’s left-wing challenger Jessica Cisneros and Mike Siegel, the progressive Green New Dealer running against two other Democrats in the race to take on Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX). The group plans to direct its nearly 350 local chapters across the country to make phone calls for the three candidates. 'For us, Texas is both the frontlines of the climate crisis and the extreme energy fossil-fuel industry,' Sunrise Movement’s political director Evan Weber told HuffPost by phone Thursday morning. 'If we can show that running boldly on the Green New Deal without moderating or hedging is a path to victory for Democrats, we think it can transform the entire conversation in this nation.'" I spoke to Jessica Cisneros about how she was endorsed both by the AFL-CIO and by the Sunrise Movement. "We know that a just transition to renewable energy," she told me, "will provide our first opportunity in decades to truly invest in the working people of our district. Coming from a border district in Texas, we have an obligation to be a voice for workers during the transition, one that brings thousands of good-paying union jobs to our communities and ensures a sustainable future for generations to come."

Like Jessica, Eva Putzova is also running against a reactionary Blue Dog-- Tom O'Halleran. "My opponent, the incumbent congressman," she told me, "opposes the Green New Deal, or any bold climate action for that matter. Yet large areas of my state consist of Native American reservations that have been poisoned by the fossil fuel industry-- namely coal and uranium extraction-- for decades. There is a burning need for renewable energy production on the reservation. Solar, wind, conservation and light rail transportation systems would rejuvenate the economy of the reservation and produce thousands of good paying union jobs. This is what is envisioned in the Green New Deal that my opponent refuses to support. We need to elect representatives with the political will to fight the fossil fuel industry and invest in the green infrastructure we so sorely need. I will be that representative."

The Climate Crisis and how it impacts the farmers and rural communities of Iowa was part of the impetus that led to J.D. Scholten running for Congress against Climate Change-denier Steve King. "The climate crisis," J.D. told us, "is already ravaging our communities and economy in Iowa. Farmers are losing profit, crops, equipment, and their homes and fields from record-breaking floods, droughts, and temperature changes and southwest Iowa has climate refugees who have lost everything from devastating floods. We don't need more scientific evidence, more studies, or delaying tactics-- we need action. We need to bring rural America including our farmers to the table to enact solutions that will avert this crisis, create jobs, update our infrastructure, and ensure the health and well-being of our people."

"CA-16 has the least breathable air in America, and this is not by accident," said Kim Williams the reformer and insurgent running for a seat occupied by reactionary Blue Dog, Jim Costa. "Our corporate-backed incumbent rides atop a rigged system using right-leaning media, plants in environmental groups, and Exxon dollars to push out a message that he’s climate friendly. He’s not. He’s a millionaire farmer who has directly profited from his own policy decisions. He placates the worst polluters in the Valley and America knowing that his own constituents will see their lives cut short. But his days are numbered. Voters in the Valley are waking up to alternatives and demanding a Green New Deal. They understand that he is both 'bought' and 'bossed' by giant corporations and that he will never deliver the change our residents so desperately deserve. This primary is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to deliver the fundamental change we need. We all know Bernie is the champion who will fight for us in the White House and I’m committed to fighting alongside him in Congress. Because we’ll need more than him to bring thousands of worker-protected, green jobs to the Valley to solve our air and water crisis. We’re going to need a progressive wave of representatives to send the Green New Deal to President Sander’s desk."

Will County Board member Rachel Ventura, the progressive Democrat running for the Chicagoland seat occupied by New Dem multimillionaire and incrementalist Bill Foster has an excellent chance at replacing someone who does nothing but stand in the way of progress. "Winning this seat as a Green New Deal Democrat against a scientist who is taking fossil fuel money and supporting carbon capture and enhanced oil recovery," she said, "is going to send a strong message that other Illinois Democrats will notice. I am actively campaigning on the GND. I envision using healthy tax incentives or direct rebates for people to make their homes more energy efficient with weatherization and gut rehabs, incentives to buy EV’s or hybrid vehicles and incentives to use wind or solar when it makes sense geographically. The same tax levers could be used for businesses and municipalities who want to make their automobile fleets electric or improve the efficiency of the building envelope, or HVAC system. We can push municipalities to build large-scale, public power projects using wind, solar and hydro technology where it makes sense. We need to upgrade commercial and residential building codes to achieve the highest levels of energy efficiency. The focus is to reward people and businesses who make carbon-free decisions, and move to publicly owned over corporate owned utilities."

She also noted that the 11th congressional district "is home to two oil refineries and a converted coal plant that has left coal ash pollution leaching into our water.  Additionally, the district encompasses the second and third largest cities (Aurora and Joliet) in Illinois that are home to high poverty rates and dominantly minority communities. These people work in low wage, temp agencies with few workers’ rights. Most of them work at the warehouses in CenterPoint, the largest inland port in the world. The Green New Deal would put people in the 11th CD to work retrofitting homes for energy efficiency, and installing solar panels and wind turbines. These jobs would pay union wages and reduce our carbon footprint. The Green New Deal isn't just a solution to the climate crisis but also a solution to fixing our economy. Nancy Pelosi has replaced the Green New Deal with another framework piece of legislation called the 100% clean economy bill. This bill allows the fossil fuel industry to continue to generate carbon as long as they find a way to capture the carbon through carbon sinks or other means. This makes absolutely no sense when the rest of the industrialized world is making huge technological advances in renewable energy and energy efficiency advances. I want to see America be a leader in these technological advances, not keep pumping out carbon with unproven carbon capture devices. My opponent is supporting both the 100% Clean Economy Bill and the Use it Act. This is a danger to our generation and for those to come."

Robin Wilt is also taking on a do-nothing New Dem, Joe Morelle. She told us that "As the mother of three, ensuring that our future generations inherit a habitable world is of utmost importance. We need bold political leadership that will not settle for ineffective and inequitable solutions to the climate crisis that fail to meet the urgency of the threat posed. I support the Green New Deal because it centers the needs of frontline and marginalized communities that have been historically most impacted by polluters and are currently most vulnerable to the impact of the climate crisis. We must address everyone’s basic needs for clean air, water and soil in order to build a broad coalition for fighting climate change. While my opponent has sat on his hands, refusing to meet the demands of the planetary crisis and failing to support the Green New Deal; by contrast, I have led on a local basis, supporting the implementation of Community Choice Aggregation in our town, in order to pool our community’s purchasing power to allow for sourcing our energy from 100% renewable resources at lower prices. When in Congress, I will not only immediately sponsor the Green New Deal and the Green New Deal for Public Housing Act, I will ensure that we price carbon at its source, remove subsidies for fossil fuel companies, restore the authority of the EPA, bring clean water to Flint MI, ban fracking, stop the TPP, and implement the measures and principles articulated by Paul Hawken in ‘Drawdown’, in order to create a just and livable world, with the promise of improved human health, security, prosperity, and well-being."





Mark Gamba, mayor of Milwaukie, Oregon, is another stalwart progressive largely motivated by the Climate Crisis. His opponent is treacherous Blue Dog Kurt Schrader. Gamba declared a Climate State of Emergency, making Milwaukie the first city in Oregon to do so. "There is no question it’s an emergency," he told me. "The Antarctic was 65 degrees last week. That’s an all-time record high temperature. Last summer the Arctic was on fire! The Amazon Basin is on fire! Australia is on fire and billions of animals have perished, potentially driving some species to extinction. Parts of the Midwest were underwater for months. Houston has had three 500 Year floods, three years in a row! Eastern Oregon is flooding-- that would be the dry half of the state. How is this not an emergency? We are facing the greatest existential crisis our species has ever faced. But the federal government, who has known about this for 35 years has not only failed to declare an emergency, it has not done a damn thing, because most of Congress and the con man in the White House are sold out to the fossil fuel industry."

He noted that states like Oregon are trying to do the right thing and that a lot of cities like Milwaukie are doing everything they can to fight climate change. "But the Oil Barons and the timber barons fear a different kind of existential crisis-- one that will alter their ability to amass vast fortunes. And so, they will spend millions lying to loggers, lying to farmers, lying to politicians lying anyone that will listen, telling them that their lives will get worse if we address climate change the way we need to. We need to engage the climate crisis, with the ferocious intensity and all out investment that we engaged in WWII. In the process we need to make sure that we leave no one behind. As a matter of fact we need to use the catalyst of this crisis to lift everyone who is suffering-- out of poverty. To Create millions of family wage jobs, union jobs, jobs with good benefits to do all the things we need to do, to stop Climate Chaos over the next 10 years. We know how to do this, we have all the tools we need, we just need politicians with the backbone to stand up to the billionaires and let them know that the time has come for them to pay up for the damage they have been doing to our planet for decades."

He concluded by reminding us that "our young people are counting on us. The young people from the Sunrise movement have been kicking ass all over this country. Young people are not going to put up with our incremental, profits first, suicide cult. They want to live in the beautiful world we all got to enjoy, and they can. We can do this, we can heal our home and heal our people. It is time to elect a new president and a new Congress, one that is made up of members that are not taking millions from the fossil fuel industry. People like my opponent, Kurt Schrader are not only taking money from all sectors of the fossil fuel industry but he takes money from the Kochs! We can’t have “Democrats” whose actions are as bad as the climate denying Republicans. This is an all-hands-on-deck moment for humanity and the effort must be led by the country that has done most of the damage-- the United States of America. It is why I’m running for congress to be a relentless fighter for our future, for the very lives of our children and grandchildren."

Bernie Will Wipe Away The Stench Of Trumpism And The Trumpists... And He Can Use Some Help

As we mentioned yesterday, Jeff Stein and Sean Sullivan of the Washington Post revealed a document from Bernie headquarters that shows the new frontrunner-- in both the Democratic primary and the general election-- "is considering dozens of executive orders he could unilaterally enact on a wide range of domestic policy issues if elected president, including immigration, the environment and prescription drugs."

Aides have presented Sanders with a list of possible executive actions, including more than a dozen options for reversing President Trump’s immigration policy, such as lifting the cap on the number of refugees accepted into the United States and immediately halting border wall construction. Another option is the reinstatement of an Obama-era program that granted legal status to undocumented immigrants brought to the United States as children.

The document reviewed by the Washington Post shows how the Sanders campaign has already begun extensive planning for how the senator would lead the country in his first days as president if he won the Democratic nomination and defeated Trump in November. Many of the proposals Sanders has floated on the campaign trail do not have support from congressional Republicans and are opposed by some Democrats, so a willingness to move forward without congressional approval could determine whether many of his policies are enacted.

The list of potential executive orders includes unilaterally allowing the United States to import prescription drugs from Canada, directing the Justice Department to legalize marijuana, and declaring climate change a national emergency while banning the exportation of crude oil. Other options cited in the document include canceling federal contracts for firms paying workers less than $15 an hour and reversing federal rules blocking U.S. funding to organizations that provide abortion counseling.

The campaign’s potential executive orders come amid increased scrutiny about how Sanders, one of the most left-leaning members in Congress, would attempt to advance his agenda. One of Sanders’s top rivals on the campaign trail, former vice president Joe Biden, has talked about working with Republicans in some cases to enact his agenda. Sanders’s approach appears to be different.

The unilateral actions considered by Sanders’s campaign are likely to be fiercely opposed by conservatives and even moderate liberals. Sanders could face criticism for moving to take more power away from the legislative branch amid ever-expanding executive authority, although he has been a vocal proponent of giving Congress more power over the country’s wars and military interventions. Many Democrats and some Republicans have criticized Trump for the numerous executive orders he signed in the early part of his presidency.

“Every time a president leaves office, they leave office with more power the next president in line can take and expand,” said Jason Pye, vice president of legislative affairs for FreedomWorks, a conservative group. “You’re getting to the point where the legislative branch has lost so much of its power... it almost does not matter. And that should concern every person in this country.”

Sanders has already released a slew of legislative proposals that would have to be approved by Congress, including a “Medicare-for-all” single-payer health-care system and a Green New Deal to remake the nation’s energy system.

He has faced questions from voters in recent weeks on the campaign trail about how he would deal with Republican resistance in Congress should he be elected and made to work with a GOP-dominated Senate.

“I love your ideas, Bernie,” a woman told him at a town hall in Anamosa, Iowa, in January. “But what are you going to do about the partisanship that prevents any good Democrat from getting anywhere in Congress right now?”

Sanders replied, “We’re going to run a different type of presidency.”

Sanders also said he was prepared to make his case to voters, even in red states, in a bid to pressure Republican lawmakers to support his agenda.

“It’s not just sitting down and arguing with Mitch McConnell,” he said, referring to the Republican Senate majority leader. “It is getting people to stand up and fight back.”

On the campaign trail, Sanders talks frequently about implementing sweeping changes in the way the government deals with health care, climate change and the economy, but he often discusses enacting those changes through legislation rather than through executive orders.

Other possible executive orders being considered include the immediate release of disaster aid to Puerto Rico and a review of federal policies toward Native American tribal groups.

“Bernie will try to do all he can do with executive orders as quickly as he can, while fully cognizant of the fact much more will have to be done by legislative means,” said Robert C. Hockett, a professor at Cornell University who has advised Sanders and Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) on economic policy matters. “The idea is to get as much done as you can, as quickly as you can.”

A prominent Blue America advisor suggested that Bernie go beyond the leak to The Post and officially announce and hugely publicize a list of planned executive orders. Why? It will show Bernie’s strength and transparency while contrasting him with Biden's dishonest and unrealistic nonsense about working with Moscow Mitch-- tantamount to getting nothing of consequence done-- the entire premise of a Status Quo Joe presidency. Campaigning on the proposed executive actions will also highlight Congress’ inability to block numerous urgent Bernie policies while emphasizing the fact that Bernie will only pass other laws upon Congress being persuaded over the following two and four years-- by more mobilization of more voters-- and by replacing reactionary congress members of both parties with progressives like these. This also knocks out of the park 3 widely shared memes:

• Lefties are wimps-- in between filling up Gulags;
• Bernie will get nothing done;
• Bernie will end voters’ future "choices."

There are dozens of candidates who are running on Bernie's platform and who have endorsed Bernie's candidacy. It's important to help as many of them as possible, especially the best and most prepared of them. I spoke with Liam O'Mara of Orange County, California yesterday about how his own plans will sync up with President Sanders'. He told me that "Senator Sanders and I share a desire to aid the working and middle classes in this country, and to reverse the damage of a 40+ year class war waged by the right on the American people. A trillion dollars in wealth has been lost by the bottom 50% while the top 1% broke all records for profit. This massive redistribution is killing the American Dream, and both the Senator and myself have long been sounding the alarm over it. And yes, there is only so much that can be done with even our overly-powerful presidency. We need to replace the reactionaries and toadies for the oligarchy that currently fill the halls of Congress with solid progressives who want to tackle the real issues and revitalize the promise of the New Deal for the 21st century. To get Sanders's agenda through, I and folks like me all across this country need your help."

Milwaukie, Oregon Mayor Mark Gamba is taking on a reactionary Blue Dog, Kurt Schrader this year (OR-05). He told us, "I'm not surprised by Bernie's list of executive orders. He watched as Congress, under Republican sway, stymied many of Obama's relatively uncontroversial attempts to cause positive change. We don't have time to waste arguing with sold out politicians. We literally have 10 years to save our children's futures. We have people dying right now because they can't afford the drugs their doctors have prescribed, and that is with an insurance policy that includes prescriptions. We have people becoming homeless right now because the cost of housing has far outstripped the minimum wage. Yes, we should fix all those things with laws passed by congress and that will be my job, to move as much of it as possible, as fast as possible. Mine and a few dozen others in the Brand New Congress that the people will elect to replace the corporate shills that have sold them out. However, President Sanders will be right to treat many of these issues as emergencies and behave accordingly."

"Our plans," said Rochester, NY progressive Robin Wilt, a dedicated Berniecrat, "are simply what the vast majority of the American people, and those in NY-25, support, but that the corporate-controlled establishment has resisted. A majority of Americans (58 percent) support the idea of replacing the Affordable Care Act with a federally-funded health care system. In repeated Kaiser polls, 2/3 of Americans had a positive reaction to Medicare-for-all. Similarly, Public Policy Polling (PPP) has found that overwhelmingly (88 percent), voters oppose cutting Social Security benefits, while according to Gallup polling, 67 percent of Americans support removing the cap and requiring high-income earners to pay the payroll tax for all of their income. The common ground among Americans goes on and on: a majority of Americans-- 61 percent-- believe that upper-income earners pay too little in taxes and 64 percent believe that corporations don’t pay their fair share in taxes. Significant majorities believe that wealth distribution is unfair in America and support raising the minimum wage, and say they are worried about the climate crisis. Over and over, a consistent majority of Americans support the policies that Bernie Sanders wants to implement, and now we simply need a Congress on board that actually reflects the interests and desires of the American people."

"I am fully in support of Bernie Sanders' platform and endorse him for president, because he understands that the working class in this country is suffering because of the greed of corporations and the 1%," said Rebecca Parson without hesitation." She's the progressive Democrat running for a seat in Washington held by chief New Dem Derek Kilmer. "Our corporate politicians and the entire professional apparatus that surrounds them," she continued "have utterly failed to propose and pass policies that will help us. I'm fighting for single-payer Medicare for All, the Green New Deal, and Housing for All, because they will benefit WA-06 and the entire country. I was one of the first candidates in the country to call for national rent control, and as someone whose rent has gone up 16% in the past few years, this will help me, too. The inside-outside strategy, which is what Bernie is proposing, is a proven strategy for winning legislation for the people, as the Civil Rights movement showed."

California's Central Valley has one terrible conservative after another in Congress-- from Devin Nunes (R) to Jim Costa (Blue Dog). Kim Williams, a former Obama-era diplomat and college professor, is taking on Costa this year. Yesterday, she told me that "Bernie has gained traction in every forgotten corner of America because he has the backbone to stand up for real change. We need him, but we also need progressives at every level of government who will push his policies over the finish line and ensure federal money and resources funnel down to those who need it most. This means we need a Congress who will send Medicare for All and a Green New Deal to President Sanders’ desk for signature. It means we need progressive governors, mayors, county supervisors, and city council members who won’t block progress and ensure more voters can access the polls on Election Day. And it means supporting progressive candidates for central committees who will reshape the Democratic Party from the inside out and support candidates who will truly fight for the people. This is why each weekend our canvassing team promotes an entire progressive slate. As we’ve knocked on thousands of doors, we’ve handed out literature for not just our campaign, but for progressives running for the Democratic Central Committee, our progressive champion for mayor, and Bernie Sanders. We do this because we understand it will take all of us to write America’s next chapter and we’ll need every progressive ally to band together for change."

Indiana progressive candidate, Jennifer Christie asks voters to "Imagine having a progressive Congress working with President Bernie Sanders. I am running because we need real action to solve tough issues. What I love about Bernie is that he has political courage and is willing to fight for the planet and working families without hesitation, even if it means taking on powerful corporate interests to do it. I am ready to help him fight! I am running in a competitive primary for an open seat where I am the progressive candidate. I am the only scientist running in this race, and also the only mom with young children. I have four young children, and each day I work this campaign with their future in mind. Recently, the DCCC threw their support behind one of our opponents. The DCCC has never prioritized candidates who have embraced and fought for progressive issues and values. Our opponent does not have a single issue listed on her website. In contrast, Climate Change, Medicare for All, Education for All, fair taxes and wages, and common-sense gun reform are all centerpieces of our campaign. Furthermore, we have comprehensive policies, including a Climate Agenda to solve the climate crisis with a Green New Deal. Like Bernie, I am not afraid to take on these issues. Furthermore, I am proud that our campaign does not take any corporate PAC money, nor any fossil fuel money, nor any other dark money whatsoever. We have known for decades about climate change, yet we have seen almost no legislative movement to solve this existential threat. We have a healthcare system that leaves tens of millions of people behind. Our tax structure favors the very wealthy. And gun reform is held ransom by the NRA. We are going to change this...All of it!  We will take real action. When in Congress, I will be a voice for our the future of our planet, working families, and children. Like Bernie, I cannot be bought. That’s probably scary to special interests, but for the rest of us, it’s long overdue. I look forward to passing a Bernie budget, solving the climate crisis, and guaranteeing healthcare and college for all Americans. We will transform our economy, our nation, and the world."

Do You Think Congress Needs More Working Class Members? Or Should It Just Be A Playground For The Wealthy?

At the end of the week, a non-political source, Teen Vogue, featured Nabilah Islam's proposal on behalf of working class candidates. It's something we discussed with Nabilah earlier as part of the Blue America endorsement process. A dedicated advocate for Medicare-for-All, his advocacy for health care for candidates is related but different. The idea is to help elect more working class candidates who, in turn, will advocate more working family-friendly policies. That's not going to happen if only relatively wealthy people can run for Congress. Her idea is pretty simple: allow candidates to use their campaign contributions for health insurance.

She wrote OpEds for both Teen Vogue and Vox. She began her piece for Vox with an all-to-familiar statement: "About four months ago, I canceled my health care plan. A couple of months before that, I put my student loans-- of which I still owe $30,000-- into forbearance. My story isn’t unique among working-class millennials in the country. But what sets me apart is that I had to do all of this because I decided to run for Congress... I’m here to tell you what I’ve learned: Political campaigns are often a pastime for the wealthy, meaning they’re off-limits for working-class people with backgrounds like mine. Let’s start with the fact that it’s nearly impossible to run for Congress while holding down a job. Campaigning is a full-time endeavor that requires having enough money to live without a salary for months on end. It also usually means paying out of pocket for health insurance, forgoing money that could have been put toward a retirement account, buying a house, or caring for loved ones.

All of this might be fine if you’re independently wealthy, but that’s not me. I grew up in Gwinnett County as the daughter of Bangladeshi immigrants, attending Gwinnett public schools. My father was a file clerk with the IRS for nearly 30 years, and my mother has worked multiple low-wage jobs all my life. I worked odd jobs as a teenager and in college, putting myself through school and helping my family make ends meet.

I never thought I was electable. But 2018, the year we elected the most diverse Congress in history, showed me that “electability” is a myth. So I came back home and worked really hard to put together a grassroots campaign.

And yet, hard work isn’t enough. People like me can do everything in their power to cut costs and climb the ladder, and still find themselves at the bottom financially.

I thought I would be able to hold down a part-time job waitressing or driving for Uber while campaigning, but the demands-- calling and meeting with voters, attending events across my community, pursuing endorsements-- became too high. For a while, I was paying out of pocket for a junk health care plan. It was unfortunately the only plan I could afford, especially since Georgia has refused to expand Medicaid. I knew the plan wouldn’t do much for me if I got sick or got hurt on the trail, so eventually, I canceled it. Having no income also means I’ve eaten enough packets of dollar ramen to last a lifetime.

My situation is difficult, but it’s not unique. Working-class people don’t usually run for Congress, and when they do, they often find themselves struggling like I am. It’s hard to build up independent wealth if you aren’t paid fairly, and women and people of color are disproportionately impacted by the wage gap. I’m struggling to support just myself, and I know it would be nearly impossible for me to continue my bid for Congress if I had a family to care for too. It’s no wonder nearly 40 percent of Congress members are millionaires. Three of my competitors in this race have spent more than $250,000 to self-fund their campaigns.

If we don’t eliminate barriers that prevent candidates from supporting themselves while running for federal office, we’ll continue to see a Congress that’s largely composed of wealthy, older white men. Americans will be deprived of representation by people who understand their lived experiences, and will continue to struggle under mounting student and medical debt.

The Federal Election Commission currently doesn’t allow candidates to use campaign funds for health care. I’m challenging the FEC to change its rules and to explicitly allow working-class candidates to use campaign funds to pay for health care, so at least one hurdle to running for Congress is eliminated for the non-wealthy.

I have hope that the FEC’s position will change. Liuba Grechen Shirley, an activist and founder of Vote Mama, successfully petitioned the FEC to use campaign funding for child care costs in 2018 while running for Congress, and it’s why I’m hoping to change the face of health care funding for candidates for years to come.

Running for Congress has taught me that the process is not designed for the working class. It’s also taught me that voices like my own are badly needed in the House of Representatives. And that starts with creating a system where people like me can run in the first place.

She's been reaching out to progressive members of Congress for advice and support. Today Ro Khanna announced his endorsement for her campaign. Iron worker and former congressional candidate Randy Bryce told me yesterday that "It’s tough enough finding an everyday working person willing to put their life on pause for a while in order to run for Congress but most of us can agree that we need more working people to be elected to Congress. There are already quite a few hurdles. Money is probably the biggest. Not only do we need it to fund a campaign but we need it to pay our bills and it needs to come from a different source. Too many live paycheck to paycheck. One of the biggest worries is health care. Imagine having an amazing campaign that comes screeching to a halt because the candidate can’t afford to go to the doctor? Until we have Medicare for all this is going to be an issue. Appears most of those running for office who would benefit from being covered the most have a M4A platform to make sure all of us have health care. It says a lot to oppose a candidate being allowed to cover their health insurance while expecting them to take care of their staff. We can take care of everyone and we should be looking for ways to remove the hurdles if we really want to see people like us representing people like us. If we don’t we’ll keep having people elected who just view us as money farms.And we still won’t be able to afford to see a doctor ourselves."

I asked some of the other Blue-America endorsed candidates what they think about Nabilah's proposal. Kara Eastman is running for the second time in the Omaha swing district (NE-02) and she's experienced this already. "When I decided to run," she told me, "people told me to pull out my 'Rolodex' and call my friends and ask them for money. As a nonprofit CEO, I asked 2 questions. 'What is a Rolodex?' And 'how will I fund my race with the $50 each one of my nonprofit friends and colleagues can afford to give me?' As a mom, and the primary breadwinner in my family, running is and has been a sacrifice. The system is set up for wealthy people to run since the average net worth of a sitting congressperson is $1 million. Before we finally get around to getting money out of politics, we need to make running more attainable for regular working people. Allowing candidates to use funds for healthcare and childcare would certainly help."

This is Robin Wilt's first congressional campaign, but not the first time she's run for office. "Today, the majority of members of Congress are millionaires," she reminded me, "and the typical congressional representative has an estimated net worth of over $500,000-- roughy fives times the median US household net worth. At the same time we are more likely to be represented by a member of the financially elite, running a Congressional campaign has become increasingly costly. If we don’t want running for and serving in Congress to be exclusively the province of the wealthy-- those who don’t have to pay a mortgage, college tuition or student loans, or other every day real-life expenses-- we need the campaign finance rules that allow fundraising to relieve some of the burdens that are associated with running for office. If more people like Nabilah ran for office, we would have more representatives that share our priorities-- like Medicare for All and legislation to remove money from politics. That’s why we need more people like Nabilah in Congress that share the average Americans experience!"

California Central Valley progressive Kim Williams told us last night that she "grew up in Nabilah’s home county, and I’m behind her 100%. She is spot on when she says that the candidates we need are hampered by a system that supports the candidates we don’t. Like her, I’ve had to make hard choices. I’m a single mom, and I’ve had to maintain my full-time job to support my child. This means I start my day at 4:00 a.m. to get a jump on my day before work and then I drive to events all over the district in the evenings and on weekends. But I have great hope that the system will change, and I know every working class candidate that makes it into office will fight to make sure those behind them have a fair shot. It's why I back Nabilah’s proposal and why I support publicly funded elections."

Rachel Ventura, the Will County reformer running for Congress against New Dem multimillionaire Bill Foster: "I certainly agree with Nabilah that we need to allow candidates to use campaign funds to pay for healthcare. In my first two campaigns I went without insurance and it was unsettling. Working people have it much harder than the 40% of Congress that fall into the millionaire category. The only way we are going to take our democracy back is to build a powerful grassroots movement that can propel working people into the halls of power without corporate campaign contributions. I look forward to fighting alongside Nabilah to pass a Medicare for All system and transform our political system to being one that serves all Americans."

"Running a campaign while working full time," said Arizona progressive and labor activist Eva Putzova, "is almost unheard of and even that is a privilege most people don't have-- they don't have an understanding employer that allows a candidate to flex their time to run. We need a complete overhaul of the campaign finance law and we need campaigns to be publicly funded-- to ensure that it's not just rich and corrupted to have a chance to represent us in Congress. Until we have such system, the campaign finance law should allow candidates to raise money to reasonably replace their income and non-wage benefits, including healthcare."