FL-26-- Steve Machat Withdraws From The Race To Topple Carlos Curbelo

The DCCC & EMILY's List has their candidate and there is also a progressive running

Steve Machat is a guy I knew from the music business who, in one way or another-- attorney, publisher, manager, etc-- worked with Genesis, Peter Gabriel, Phil Collins, Leonard Cohen, Phil Spector, ELO, Snoop Dogg, New Edition, Bobby Brown, etc. He also wrote Gods, Gangsters and Honour, a book that is basically an insider's guide to the music industry. Until a couple of weeks ago he was seeking the Democratic Party nomination too run for the very blue seat occupied by Republican Carlos Curbelo. The DCCC endorsed conservative New Dem Debbie Mucarel-Powell. He wrote to his supporters to explain why he was withdrawing from the race.

Earlier this month I was a guest speaker in Israel, addressing equality, creation and how to perpetuate culture. From there, I went on to Jordan, meeting with King Abdullah’s Ministers.

Both these experiences allowed a lot of soul searching on my part.

I feel that the electoral system in the US is possibly irretrievably broken, with Blue Dog Democrats voting with Trump and Corporate Democrats voting with the special interests that fund them.

Our two party system is owned and controlled by a network of corporate interest, which funds and selects politicians on our behalf, places them in government, and then the government runs us. This is totally contrary to what our Founding Fathers intended. They intended a government of the people, by the people, for the people. They did not intend a government of corporations, by corporate-funded politicians, for the benefit of corporations.

It’s not enough just to elect Democrats, we have to elect truly progressive Democrats.

In the uneven minefield that is American politics today, there is no room for two independent-minded Democrats to oppose each other in District 26. The good news is that my platform and that of Commander Demetries Grimes are very similar. We both believe in campaign finance reform, universal healthcare, banning assault weapons, meaningful gun reform, tuition-free college, and the decriminalization of marijuana-- to name but a few policy areas. We both have the same objective-- to elect an independent public servant as our next Congressperson in District 26. It is for this reason that I have decided to withdraw from the race today to give Commander Grimes a clear run to beat Debbie Mucarsel-Powell in the Primary, and Carlos Curbelo in the General Election. My team and I will give Demetries and his team as much support as he wishes to win the battles ahead.

I thank those who have supported me. I also thank everyone who had the courage to engage in making dialogue with me against my views. Debate is heathy. It makes us great. The subjugation of critical thinking is one of the tools used by the corporations and the super-wealthy to take over our political system. We need to revitalize critical thinking and help give back to our youth the belief that they can fulfill their dreams.

In order to do that, I am going to concentrate on my entertainment career. I am now part of the team creating a new independent major network called Gran, dedicated to new creations of music, TV, films and webisodes. In addition, I continue to work with our friend in Cuba on a festival celebrating, arts, music and culture.

I realize that I can help shape our young people’s minds to believe in dreams again; to learn that for a dream to come true you must build; and to build successfully you need to work as a team.

I pledge to do whatever I can to continue to help America build the team for a 21st century life. A life where everyone is equal. A life where it is the duty of the government to provide healthcare for all, education for all, safety for our communities, a guaranteed income with jobs for all, a community that protects Mother Earth and an energy solution based on renewable resources. A life that works to ensure that our future is better than our present. A life that provides a future for our children and a security for our seniors.

Please make sure you are registered to vote here. Information on Commander Demetries Grimes can be found here. Please join us.

Red To Poo

After the odious Debbie Wasserman Schultz chaired the DCCC's Red-to-Blue program in 2008-- while endorsing 3 Republicans in seats neighboring on her own-- the program lost all credibility and the name faded. It's back to its former glory, acting as an arm of the Republican wing of the Democratic Party as it pushes Blue Dogs, New Dems, "ex"-Republicans, EMILY's Listers and assorted other garbage candidates. The DCCC likes to loudly proclaim that it doesn't interfere in primaries, but the Red to Blue program does nothing but interfere in primaries. On Wednesday it announced it was endorsing 7 more shitty candidates, most of them in competitive primaries. There are 18 now. Not one is an anti-Establishment reformer or a progressive. Basically, all 18 are corporate shills from the Republican wing the party, embodiments of why the best anyone can say about the House Democrats is that they're the lesser of two evils. The 7 new ones:

• FL-26- Debbie Mucarsel-Powell
• MN-03- Dean Phillips
• NE-02- Brad Ashford
• NC-13- Kathy Manning
• NJ-11- Mikie Sherrill
• NY-11- Max Rose
• UT-04- Ben McAdams

Worst on the list, as we've discussed before, is "ex"-Republican, ex-Congressman, Blue Dog Brad Ashford who managed to accrue the most Republican voting record of any Democrat in Congress before his constituents kicked him out. After being fired from his next job he decided to try for Congress again-- what's to lose, since the DCCC will finance the whole thing for him. NE-02 is Douglas County (Omaha and its suburbs) plus rural Sarpy County to the west. In 2016 Bernie won both. The DCCC response to that is to back the most reactionary, anti-progressive guy they could find-- and against a grassroots progressive, Kara Eastman. That's why the DCCC has become a serial losing machine. When I called Kara yesterday and asked her about Red-to-Blue endorsing Ashford, she didn't seem overly-concerned. She told me its just "another example of the outside establishment getting involved in Nebraska politics. I am not in this to win over the party, but to win for Nebraskans. Our grassroots campaign is strong, and our positive message is resonating with voters in the second CD. We have knocked over 14,000 doors and have more than 1,000 individual donors. This shows the strength and vitality of our campaign, which is different from previous congressional runs in Nebraska. I’m proud to say that real working- and middle-class Nebraskans are supporting Eastman for Congress and not our conservative opponent who lost the 2016 election."

Each Red-to-Blue endorsement is different but they all have establishment conservatism in common. All their candidates suck and any one of them who is swept into power in the wave cycle, will help make the House Democraps a worse organization. They're all a bunch of hackish Hillary-backers even in districts that were won by Bernie. For example, virtually all the voters in UT-04 live in Salt Lake (southern Salt Lake City and its suburbs) and Utah counties (Provo's suburbs). Bernie won Salt Lake County with 78.8% and Bernie won Utah County with 85.3%. Does that tell you something about how the Democratic base feels about status quo establishment candidates? It doesn't tell the DCCC a damned thing; they picked the most status quo, establishment candidate they could find, Ben McAdams, who had loudly endorsed Hillary in 2016, completely out of touch with Utahns. He's just another DCCC corporate confection with no issues page on his website. Utah Republicans are already referring to him as "Utah’s version of Hillary Clinton." 4 other Democrats are campaigning in the race for the nomination to oppose GOP incumbent Mia Love but the DCCC couldn't lay off and let Utahns decide; they had to big-foot in on behalf of Utah’s version of Hillary Clinton.

Down in South Florida progressive Democrat Steve Machat is running for the nomination to take on Carlos Curbelo. But so is the Debbie Wasserman Schultz candidate, Debbie Mucarsel-Powell, who lost a state Senate race in 2016. She's also been endorsed by EMILY's List, always a bad sign if you're looking for a progressive. She has a cookie cutter website that promises to protect Obamacare but doesn't mention Medicare-for-all or single payer. Steve Machat is one of the 4 Democrats running for the nomination in FL-26. He told me yesterday that the DCCC has "picked a candidate that will obey the order that runs the Democrat Party. An order that has lost the soul of the people,  this is not FDR’ s party nor Kennedy's either. These DCCC run by Pelosi believe they know the answers. To cure a disease of disservice they became the disease. I am running to represent the people. I will protect and defend the people from the few who have served in office way to long. So long they forgot they got into politics to serve. Not be served. I will win the primary. I will beat Curbelo."

The Hill reported that "the Red to Blue program, from the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee's (DCCC), program will provide the candidates with fundraising and organizational support. The total number of Democrats backed by the program comes to 18. Democrats need a net gain of 24 seats to take back control of the House." That's not interfering?

Carlos Curbelo Gets A Challenger: Meet Steven Machat

Like me, Steven Machat comes out of the music business. His time at Warner Bros Records, though, predated my own and it was years later that I learned who he is-- a lawyer, an accountant and a visionary who became famous working with artists at every level of their careers. He’s a a team builder-- called the “dreamers dreamer” by those who know him best. He’s always been someone who makes things happen in the entertainment business. And now-- still involved in the music business, bringing Cuban music to America-- he’s also involved with politics, though that’s hardly a new endeavor for him either.

He graduated from Law School at Vanderbilt in 1977 (a classmate of Al Gore’s), where he had spent two years working as a Nashville public defender in court rooms protecting the rights of minorities and the poor who could not afford a lawyer. He grew to like defending the underdog. During his time in Nashville, Steven met his father’s client Phil Walden, the man who created Capricorn Records. Walden got Steven heavily involved in the election of Jimmy Carter and Steven grew to love politics-- putting together teams so dreams could come true.

Steven has played almost every role imaginable in the entertainment business. Mostly on making artist dreams come true. Be it Jet Records with ELO or Ozzie Osborne or Genesis' Peter Gabriel or Phil Collins; Leonard Cohen, Phil Spector New Edition, Bobby Brown, Suge Knight, Soft Cell… many, many others. Steven helped make their dreams a reality.



Steven helped create the Music Festival WOMAD, a festival dedicated to sharing cultures from all over the world. Steven has traveled the world as a business man and has a very unique perspective in what binds people to work together and create. He has lived all over the world representing artists. Be it Manu Dibango from Cameroon. Rita Lee and Gilberto Gil from Brazil. Cerrone and Space from France. Angélique Kidjo from Benin or Franco Battiata from Italy, Steven knows and understands people.

Steven has produced movies and theatre and written four books in which he has endeavor to share his truths and visions. He believes in a dream. He believes we can create the America we all dream about. The one our Declaration of Independence speaks about-- a land where we all work together as a team to build a land, based on the American dream.

Steven ran for the Senate in 2016 as an independent in Florida. He lost to Marco Rubio. Today he’s running for Congress in Florida's 26th district as a Democrat, a blue-trending swing district, occupied by Republican Carlos Curbelo. Hillary beat Trump in FL-26 handily-- 56.7% to 40.6%. Unless the DCCC interferes to put a conservative establishment shill in as a candidate, the district will be blue in 2018. I’m pleased to introduce Steven to DWT readers. He’s truly a Renaissance man. As he says, people first… and let's make our dreams reality


Guest Post
-by Steven Machat

Thank you, Howie. And I am so pleased to announce with you my decision to run for Congress in the 26th Florida district as a Democrat.

I run to serve the people. I look forward to helping do what I can to rebuild the Democratic Party on the inside. As well as help create the awareness and attract the public to vote in Democrats in as we recreate the people's party. The party that gave America the New Deal.

My goal is to get into Congress here in Florida. Florida's 26th District to be exact. My dream is to help finish what one of my personal heroes, FDR, started. We need a second bill of rights-- an Economic Bill of Rights. We have the first bill of rights but it is political, created when most of our nation were farmers. There was no big cities. Everyone could grow their own food. Today that is not true. We need a safety net for all and even the wealthy will be happier.

During FDR's time our nation industrialized. We started trading our wares and ideas with the world on a really big scale. Instead of sharing cultures we tried to control trade, from manufacture to distribution, to whole sale and retail. We have since built an economy on war and industry. We created capitalism with banks in control of our economy and our government. The Fed comes first. And we the people allow this to continue. Our nation was built on visionaries and team work. Building communities and making life better for the living as well as their future. The only asset mankind has in truth is Our children.

We have lost our way as a community of equals. People live to pay interest. We do not own our central bank, AKA the Federal Reserve, as a nation. We let independent bankers get paid before our government gets its taxes. Between Bush the second and Obama we have socialized the losses of these bankers but privatized their wins. We today are a nation of interest slaves.

We say we understand climate change and will fix it. But the Paris accord was a basement not a ceiling. We still take fossils the earth has buried and burn the fuels to run the industries which need to be retired. Our future is renewable energy which will create jobs that can't be exported. Florida is the sunshine state, it should lead our nation in renewable energy.

We need to put people first. Not paper profits. We need to educate our people of all ages so they can help our nation grow. We do not need to create a scam where we loan people money to go to school, in reality to create profits for the banks on debts our young can not escape like the bankers did.

We need to take care of our old. The senior citizens of our land. They have so much to give to us all. We need to insure they live out their lives with dignity, health and welfare.

We need to give everyone health care in a single payeer system. This is the coach ticket to health. You want business or first class pay for it. I have lived in London. Their system works.

The second bill of rights by FDR, as I hereby modify for our time, proposed just before he died must be the following:

1. The right to a useful and remunerative job in private business or working with the local, state, regional or national community.
2. The right to a living wage not a minimum. Where everyone has a roof over their head, food to eat. Plus clothes to wear and money to discover and share culture.
3. The right of every businessman, large or small, as FDR said, to trade in an atmosphere of freedom from unfair competition and domination by monopolies at home or abroad.
4. The right to adequate medical care. The ability to achieve and enjoy good health.
5. The right to publicly financed education. This includes early education, technical training, and college.

In addition to people economics I run to protect the Environment. We must put earth first. I will protect the Everglades. I will stop Big Sugar from polluting our water. I will do what I can to stop fracking. I believe we need to create a Gross National Quality of life index so we can judge how we are living. Not just a Gross National Product that measures only what we make. We need to effectively measure what the real costs are, of what we do.

On international affairs I will help create an understanding that the whole world does not need to be just like us. We must respect diversity and different cultures. We must stop getting involved in civil wars and nation building. We must be strong and ready to defend-- but not invade so the military industrial complex can profit. We must create a world to share and build cultures.

We need term limits on all branches of our government. That is how you achieve progress and limit the establishment's corruption. Remember when our nation was created people lived to maybe forty as an average.

We must control election spending and election debates. I sued to get on the air to debate Rubio. I qualified to run but did not qualify for the debate because I did not have money for big TV adds. It is nothing but a game of political payola. We need people to run who wish to serve man. Not who wish to serve corporate powers.

I will be the people's candidate and Congressman. People are my constituency and it is to people I will communicate. I also pledge to hold town hall meetings and never run from debates where you the people can become wise about who and what is what.

Please help me to help you. Go to my website Machat4Congress.com and learn more about what I’m trying to accomplish and how you can join in what I’m doing and help the cause.